Despite its late appearance, winter was reluctant to leave the High Sierra. A cold breeze greeted us on the top of Pothole Dome and other exposed viewpoints. There was less snow than last week, but not much less.
Our usual "Pothole Dome" route is to follow closely to the river; this time we were led over various domes which were mostly--but not completely--snow-free.
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Other places looked as if the last glaciers had melted not too long ago.
From above the Tuolumne we could see that despite being near this year's peak flow, the river was low.
We did encounter a bit of snow near the river near the Little Devils Postpile portion, but it was soft enough for easy and safe traversal.
Eventually we regained the trail at the twin bridges, where the Tuolumne's series of falls begins, ending almost 5 miles later at Waterwheel Falls.
Water lovers may be disappointed towards the end of summer this year, but granite lovers will have nothing to complain about.
Tuolumne Falls itself was impressive despite the lower-than-usual water levels.
We had been doubting the forecast of clouds and snow flurries during the morning--the wind had been keeping the sky mostly cloud-free. But, as we continued towards Glen Aulin, dark clouds grew above us. Photosynth.
We were targeting a nice campsite with great views, but the strong, cold wind greatly reduced the appeal of such a location.
We eventually decided to camp a bit further down the trail, just before the flooded section of the trail. After dropping some gear--and one of our party--we continued downriver to LeConte Fall. The Mattie Lake outlet was flowing enough to flood the trail, although not nearly as deep as previous years. Still, the water was cold, especially given the chill in the air.
The sun appeared enough to bring out the reddish coloring in the rocks around California Falls.
LeConte itself was exhibiting some impressive waterwheels. Photosynth.
On the other hand, Waterwheel Fall itself was a bit of a letdown. Despite the strong up-canyon breeze, there was not enough water to create an impressive waterwheel effect.
After spending a few minutes taking pictures, we headed back to camp.
My wife had turned back at LeConte. Just above LeConte, the predicted snow flurries hit, and I rushed since I still had some important gear.
Near camp, the flurries turned to bona-fide snow.
We were able to set up our shelter and get out of the weather. We had dinner in the dark, but were in bed by 10 or so.
The next morning, the combination of the previous day's trail-wade and the cold nighttime temperatures was apparent. (My hiking shoes were similarly solid...)
We opted not to ice-climb the Mattie Lake falls.
After a leisurely morning in camp waiting for the sun to thaw out everything, we headed back to our cars. At White Cascade, we decided to split: one party would go up the river on the north, then cross to the Pothole Dome trail/route; the other would follow the trail to Soda Springs.
The north side was new to me and is definitely a recommended cross-country alternative to the normal trail--especially once the mule trains start stocking the High Sierra Camp.
Unlike the previous evening, the sky was clear, although the breeze that the forecast had said would end by morning continued throughout the day.
A few patches of ice here and there reminded us of the previous night's freeze.
After our party regrouped for lunch near the twin bridges, we separated again, and the "fetch the cars" party retraced its footsteps back up-river.
Well, perhaps not exactly....
..deciding instead to check out a different set of domes on the way back.
There's a lot of very interesting country just west of Pothole Dome that's certainly worth exploring. Photosynth.
After a bit of gratuitous mountaineering, we dropped back into the forest, where we quickly encountered a significant use trail that led more or less back to Pothole Dome. After enjoying the views a bit, we returned to our cars and drove to re-unite our party once more.
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