The spring grasses were still bright green and wildflowers were near peak bloom.
The forecast had called for a chance of thunderstorms all weekend.
We had to settle for smaller waterfalls than those that the Yosemite Valley crowds were enjoying.
The water was high enough to be flooding normally-dry areas.
Those who didn't head for the mountains may instead have headed for a beach.
The day was quite warm, and everyone welcomed a bit of shade.
Far from the Valley, we were still surrounded by wonderful granite, everywhere.
JKW stayed at camp to recover from a back injury while the rest of us (the two birds and soon-to-be-elsewhere AndrewF) hit another beach and did some boating.
After crossing the small pond, we headed upstream a bit to check out more cascades.
Really?
We were not disappointed...
...even if the route was a bit... interesting.
Really?
The grandeur--and crowds--of the Valley seemed a million miles away.
Even though we were treated to a rainbow...
...the threat of showers never materialized, and we found ourselves wishing for an occasional cloud to block the warm sun, even late into evening.
The next day after an excellent meal of breakfast burritos and bacon we were once more boating across the pond, and JKW was once more getting some R and R.
We stopped for more pictures of more waterfalls.
We reached a point where the excellent open granite we had been enjoying transitioned to forest.
Our fearless guide lead us straight into, then through, a thicket of all kinds of dense understory.
Really?
We made slow progress through the jungle portion of our trek.
Really?
Fortunately, we fared better than others who had preceded us.
Eventually the forest opened up, and there were more sections of open granite.
The terrain had numerous small route finding challenges, but the scenery made it worth it.
The morning had been warm and a bit humid, and being near the cool air near the water provided some relief.
We eventually stopped for lunch, and after a time check, abandoned our original ambitious route plan, deciding instead to return the way we came--generally.
We checked out some places we had bypassed on the way up, and bypassed some we had walked by.
The dark clouds forming behind us confirmed that we had made the right decision in retreating.
A new guide found a brush-free route around the jungle of death, but also found a new jungle.
The World's Best Guide clenching defeat from the jaws of victory: Really?
But once more we emerged onto open granite...
Even if we almost got cliffed out.
Really?
Once onto more walkable terrain we strolled back to camp.
The dark clouds had managed to avoid us all day.
As with the previous evening, this evening was quite mild, and a comfortable breeze kept most of the mosquitoes from being too annoying.
The next day, after an excellent breakfast of pancakes and bacon, we did another day hike while JKW rested some more at camp.
We were treated to more granite and waterfalls, both big...
...and small.
Once more clouds were forming, and once more we reached a turn-around point.
We rested a bit at a nice overlook before heading back. AndrewF had to hike out to the trailhead that afternoon.
That's not to say we took the most direct way back, doing some flat water boating on a flat segment of the stream.
Unfortunately the flat water didn't take us all the way back to camp.
We said goodbye to AndrewF... but we know he'll be back for some more Sierra granite.
The next morning, after a decent breakfast, we too had to hike out to the trailhead.
We took a slightly different route back.
It was overall a good route, with a few more questionable bits.
Really?
We all too soon left the last bits of nice granite behind....
...as our path transitioned to mildly...
...and then more heavily burnt-out forest.
We reached the car having seen zero other hikers for the entire weekend.
More Pictures
I bought some of the miso paste when I got back and tried to replicate the experience in my home a few weeks later, but suffice to say the bloom was off the rose, and it did not taste nearly as good to me. I hope that's not the case with the Crème Brule.
... was happy eating Pasta Roni and other
