A golf club early in the morning?by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
OK - let's see if this will work. GPS track: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/308807767by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Also there was a large group of day hikers there when we arrived - probably 8 of them - shorts, tiny day packs, one of them had no shirt. I am wondering how many scratches from manzanita and live oak they incurred! They did not look like they were even on the route - I certainly wouldn't want to thrash through brush with no shirt....by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
I think we went up before the use trail - we crossed the granite near Emerald Pool and went up the first creek bed. It wasn't hard going up but would have been difficulty going down. There was a forested bench that we traversed over and joined up with the other gully, I think. Did not go between Broderick and Liberty - I could see Broderick to our right. Only one of my friends had a camera, anby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
We three intrepid explorers set out from Happy Isles Saturday morning with backpacks and went up from the Emerald Pool climbing through the trees and finding water bottles and other small reminders that many have done this... We bumped into a gent with a large tripod at the bottom where we depart the Mist Trail who said he was going up there, but we didn't see him again all day, so don't think heby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Taking dogs on trails, letting bears get food, speeding, and failing to park off the pavement are things that will get you fined. So will crossing the railing on the Merced and needing rescue (that's what the sign says).by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Quotegplg I can only do 2 days sadly. I was hoping to do a loop to see as much as the park as possible since I only have 2 days to hike. Are there any decent views on the upper trail towards Half Dome? How much further is Washburn from Lake Merced? Thanks! If that's truly your goal, driving and day hiking is a better bet. Don't underestimate the views you see from roads in Yosemite. You'by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Quotettilley If you're comparing "California Pizza Kitchen" with Curry Village, then sure, I'll pick Curry. I assumed the comparisons were restricted to edible substances. Aren't you from Fresno? Me n Ed's is pretty decent for a chain. Why are we talking about Curry Pizza Deck then? You think they have real pizza? When did they start spiking the drinks? The beer, now - that'sby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Better check to see if Mariposa Pizza Factory is open... I drove through a couple weeks ago and it was not. It was rebuilt after burning down last year.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Only five or six? Haven't been to Waterwheel, LeConte or California yet, I suspect.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Wapama Falls is the most impressive, IMO. Yosemite Falls impresses for distance and grandeur. Chilnualna is more impressive if you view it from afar - standing in the meadow across from Wawona Hotel and looking up at it gives you more of an idea of the true length of it than standing at the top trying to view the whole thing.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Easier on the knees would be taking the JMT in whichever direction (uphill or downhill) is easier on *your* knees. The stone steps are what does the job. Some people find the uphill climb worse, others dislike the down. The JMT from Nevada Falls adds a couple miles of distance but has switchbacks instead of lots of steps.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
You didn't happen to mention whether you are an experienced backpacker or not. If not, that is a really ambitious trip with serious gain and mileage. It's about 4.5 miles to Little Yosemite campground climbing 2,140 feet in elevation over that distance, and another 6.7 beyond that to the trail junction in Echo Valley. Then your second day has you climbing 800 feet in elevation over four miles andby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
I could do better than Curry Pizza Deck any day of the week by driving to Oakhurst to Pizza Factory...by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
I sure hope it was shut down. Those guys were ripping people off right and left.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The Tuolumne Meadows rangers blogged they were leaving for their summer environs as the Tuolumne Meadows snow stake has no snow to measure. Something tells me "variable" is the word.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
So go the winter route - up the JMT, down to the top of Vernal and onward. The upper part of the trail being closed probably means there is still patchy snow and ice along part of the trail. Or, it means they just haven't opened it yet. A few weeks ago the Mist Trail was still gated yet the trail was ice free and people were jumping the gates. You could take the chance and jump the gate, I suby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Sometime in May is the rumor, tho it will probably be melted out and more of a case of "let's make sure there are no rocks or trees someone can hit while far exceeding the speed limit on a blind corner" before it opens.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
I would ask them whether they prefer to pay the fines and risk being thrown out of the campground, or pay for a doggie day care/kennel that will entertain and love on their pooches (feed them, anyway, and let them run around in a contained space every day). If the guy in the camp site next door is a nuisance, you bet I'd complain. Not that I am often in the campgrounds in the valley, but therby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Quoteplawrence Quoteeeek Quoteplawrencethere shouldn't be any need to try to scare a bear away from the campsite, even if a bear decides to drop by for a visit. It's still not a good idea to just let the bear play with your bear container. Shoo the bear away and go back to sleep. True, one might end up with a search & rescue mission for one's canister (even though the food inside of itby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
I can imagine what happened here - everyone went after backpacking permits because there were no limitation on them, and the surrounding area became heavily impacted by people trying to backpack it and go to Half Dome. So now there is a quota/limitation to keep people from totally trashing the region. I agree with this new limitation.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Quotechick-on In all honesty the posts about bitching about Half Dome only makes me personally not really want to share anything. I just don't get it. You hate Half Dome. Wonderful. Then don't go there. Don't piss on other people's parade. Because quite simply Half Dome IS Yosemite to a lot of people. There was a great post previously about someone bitching about the Valley and the replby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
QuoteThtsaPaddlin On Half Dome last summer, we didn't have much time to enjoy the summit, since when we arrived we saw thunderheads building. I wouldn't be so steadfast on revisiting, except I feel like the ~35 minutes we spent on the summit with dozens of other people wasn't really the experience I was seeking. You've just summed up in a sentence why I visit a myriad of other high places iby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Trips to Santa Cruz Mountains, Kaiser Wilderness, Dinkey Wilderness, John Muir Wilderness, Ansel Adams Wilderness, and Yose and SEKI. Possibly Sespe Wilderness. All backpacking, except the two car camper base camps. 2 - 5 days each. Taking adults, kids, newbies, oldbies, and everyone in between. Half Dome, pfffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffft. Going to Big Bird Lake,by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Isn't the sequester kind of interfering with that this year? I'm not holding my breath. There are plenty of lower trailheads.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The route on your permit doesn't give you much leeway beyond Mist vs. JMT, and that will depend on whether you want to go shorter miles/lots of granite steps/get wet, or switchbacks up to the top of Nevada Falls/add about a mile/potential to get a little less wet (the melt trickles over an overhang just before you reach Nevada Falls). Unless you want to do cross country, you're going up the Meby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Quotewherever QuoteAlmostThere .... North Dome is about 8 miles round trip with 571 feet of gain. .... Are you using meters instead of feet? It's certainly more than twice what you think. see: http://www.modernhiker.com/2010/04/05/hiking-north-dome-and-indian-rock-yosemite-national-park/ Cumulative gain - which is different. Old GPS track measurements. The hardest part of the hike wasby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Clouds Rest is a moderately strenuous hike of 14 miles with 1,512 feet (approximately) of cumulative gain. North Dome is about 8 miles round trip with 571 feet of gain. Big Difference. I would take an out of shape kid on easy stuff in the valley first. If sufficient interest developed I would take the kid up to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Maybe Dewey Point.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Quotechatka Sleep mat and food 20 lbs of mat or food? 2 lb mat/19 of food? That much food I'd be out for 10 days. (I usually take it out of the packaging, put in ziplocks, dehydrating where necessary to further lighten 'er up.) Tent is wise in early summer. Unless you like DEET baths, or have a mosquito net to put around you.by AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Quotechick-on You said this: Quoteyou (You can't camp until you're at Sardine - inside park boundary it's still within 4 miles of the trailhead). I said this: Quoteme You can camp once you are outside the park boundary at Mono Pass. So, yes, you are correct. It doesn't agree with what you said. You don't have to go all the way to Upper Sardine. You only have to be just ouside the parkby AlmostThere - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion