We took the short walk up to Bridalveil on Saturday and on the way back down we passed a woman wearing slick-soled cowboy style boots that came up to just above her ankles. She was clinging to the pipe railings beside the walkway, bending forward at the waist, and shuffling her feet because the shoes were slipping. Her partner said, with a British accent, "I think you might have considereby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
QuoteDave Reality is harsh. He left his party. Not a bright move. He went off trail without knowing the terrain. Not a bright move. He put the lives of his rescuers in danger and cost all of us money. Send him a bill. I have trouble mustering up a tiny bit of sympathy for him. You can study a map all you want and still not "know the terrain" until you get there, unless other topo mapsby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
I'm going to be in that area again this weekend. Heading north from TM. Sleeping at around 10,000 feet, I think. I'll be packing my winter bag and baselayers and may upgrade from windmits to heavier mits just in case. Hoping for a beautiful weekend!by Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Of course, but the NPS report didn't provide enough detail to know what navigational aids this guy was carrying and exactly what his level of ability with them might have been. He might have found his own way out had SAR not gone looking for him. Who knows? The assumption by many in this forum, though, seems to be that anyone who gets misplaced in the wilderness is an incompetent boob who has noby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
If this guy was an "experienced" hiker, he would have had a map with him. I don't recall the article saying that he did or didn't, but having navigational aids of any kind is still no guarantee against becoming misplaced or misinterpreting landmarks. I've seen it happen to experienced people who were using a map. Hiked a little farther and it all sorted out, but again, it happens. Hoby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The backpacker in question may not have been experienced enough for off-trail travel in Yosemite (impossible to know what happened), but he seems to have been properly equipped for his trip. He did manage a few unplanned nights in the wilderness and was found in good condition. Backpacking isn't badminton. It's intended to be an adventure, and I support those who participate in it for just thaby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
It is frustrating to hear stories about people who head out with a SPOT device or GPS and don't bother making proper preparations or learning basic survival or self-rescue techniques. The salty water people contacted rescue personnel no less than three times during their trip, if I recall correctly. Making every rescued person pay for rescue because a few groups of suburbanites have misused a SPOby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Many of the personnel who participate in search and rescue do so because they are service minded and desire, for whatever personal reason, to be a part of wilderness rescue efforts despite the risks. Accidents happen and mistakes are made, even to people who are well prepared and experienced. Should people be afraid to go to national parks, be reluctant to try backpacking or climbing, or delay inby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Sounds like all of you were at Lower Young. Even so, with 5 groups equally spaced from the SW to N around the perimeter of the lake, you could have 0.1 mile separation between them. Also, on the NW side of the lake, you can easily go back 0.2-0.3 mi from the shoreline and find nice spots. (More shelter from the wind there also.) Most likely, there was nobody camping at Middle or Upper Young. (by Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The tent held up great. I don't think stakes would have held it down, though. I was glad I had used a different setup exploiting some of the many heavy rocks in the area. We had a somewhat sheltered bivy site, but that wind howled, and any part of the tent that could flap was definitely trying to do so all night. We were parked close to a boulder on my side of the tent, so I couldn't stake out myby Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
I didn't climb Mt. Conness, but I spent two nights at the uppermost of the Young Lakes two weekends ago with my fiance (Aug 21-23). We were able to get a permit even late in the week, but the trailhead was almost full. We actually went in on the trail starting past Lembert Dome (Young Lakes via Dog Lake or something like that). It was extremely windy at the lake on Saturday night and quite cold.by Nancy - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion