Walking Among the Giants

Walking Among the Giants

Today started out earlier than planned when I awoke a little after 3:30 am because my thighs and shins were aching from the previous day’s hiking in Hetch Hetchy. I forgot to take some ibuprofen before I went to bed so I suffered for it. I lay there for a wile and finally got up and took some around 5 am. I listened to some “calming” music on my iPod until around 6 am and then got up, dressed, read my devotional for the day and went for a walk until the café opened at 7 am.

I had breakfast consisting of oatmeal, fruit, milk and coffee. I saw Dara and was introduced to some of her fellow wilderness EMT trainees as they commiserated about the coming day’s schedule. (See pics below)  I met Kevin, James, Tucker and Michelle. Later I met two of Dara’s roommates, Kristen and Cammie. I suggest they make a musical about their experiences and can call it Le Commiserable.

Dara, whom I think never met a stranger

James, Michelle, Tucker and Dara

After breakfast I headed toward Wawona on the south end of Yosemite, with a stop at the Rite-Aid drugstore for some “moleskin” padding for my blistered feet. I then headed on toward Wawona. Samantha was with me today and she must be feeling a little bad about hiding yesterday, since when I decided to go a different way than she suggested, she didn’t say anything, but just adjusted her plans.

I arrived at Wawona around 10 am and checked in at the Visitor Center on what possibly might be seen for the day. The Chilnualna falls was a 4 mile one-way 2400 foot elevation change hike that takes 5-6 hours so, that was not going to happen today. However some of the many cascades of water can be seen along the trail, so since it was close to the Visitor Center I headed in that direction to see what I could see.

I got to the trail entrance and cut the moleskin pieces and applied them to my feet, laced up my hiking boots at took off up (and I do mean up) the trail. After about 15 minutes I reached the first set of cascades. I checked the route map and there was another section which looked to be about as far as the fist cascade, so I headed on up the trail. After another 15 minutes or so I reached another cascade. On the way there I could look back toward the trail head and see the buildings where I had parked the car. From that vantage point it looked like I had already ascended 400 feet or more. After taking some pictures at the second cascade I headed back down since it was another 2-3 hours of climbing to get to the falls, so they would have to go falling on without me. I returned to the car in a little over an hour for the round trip. It was 12 noon, so I drove back to Wawona.

One of the Cascades of Chilnualna

View Across to Snow on the Mountain Tops

I parked at the village store and checked on the shuttle schedule to Mariposa Grove. The shuttle ran every 30 minutes so I popped into the store for a soda and got some beef jerky out of my car and went and waited for the next shuttle which arrived about 10 minutes later. While waiting for the shuttle I met some folks from Boston and the Maryland-DC area. The shuttle got to Mariposa Grove about 12:45 pm and I started walking the trail to see the Grizzly Giant and Tunnel Tree Sequoias along with the rest of the lower grove of Sequoias. I continued on the loop trail, walking among the giants, and missed my turn for the parking lot and had to back track a ¼ mile or so and finally arrived back at the parking lot. I walled over to the toilets and saw a park employee picking up trash with a grabber. I jokingly asked if “business was picking up” to which he growled “there’s always got to be a comedian”. I guess you could get soured on having to pick up everyone else’s trash that they can’t take the time to dispose of properly. I arrived at the shuttle stop around 2:15 pm. While waiting for the shuttle I met a couple from, of all places, TEXAS! They live at Hilltop Lakes which is somewhere between Dallas and Houston. The shuttle returned me to the village store area around 2:45 pm and I got to my car and headed back to “The Bug”.

The Bachelor and the Three Graces

Tunnel Tree and Grizzly Giant

On the way to Wawona I had seen a building in Ahwahnee with a sign that read Box’s, Rods and Rails. It was a welding shop. On the way back I stopped to take a picture of it and the owner, Bobby, was out front testing a 4-wheeler. We chatted a few minutes and I told him I liked the name of his shop and that’s why I stopped to take a picture. He is a third generation welder and enjoys the work. He does some custom welding particularly on custom autos, hot rods, Bonneville racers, etc. My Dad had a welding shop when I was a teenager and into college and taught me how to weld, which I used to pay for some of my college expenses, so I appreciate the type of work Bobby does.

After I got back on the road, Samantha wanted me to take a road off the main highway, which I had seen on my maps. It was a cut-across road from one highway to the other. It was a two-lane back mountain road which may have been shorter but would probably take longer. I was early getting back anyway so off we went. It was a pleasant back road and I got to see some wild flowers and an interesting old building that looked as though it should have fallen down years ago but won’t! I reentered the highway about 4 miles from camp arriving around 4:30 pm.

After a nice shower and shave, to remove 3-4 days growth, I went over to the Café and started uploading pictures and ordered my dinner consisting of grilled pork chop, smashed red potatoes and mixed vegetables. Dara came in while I was eating with her dinner and she had a night class for her EMT training so had to eat and run. I had giver her one of my road trip cards and asked her to email me with what her next step plans work out to be after her training and I would be praying for her that God would reveal the direction for the next chapter in her life story after she completes her training.

Tomorrow I leave the Yosemite Bug and travel to Reno, NV and will stay with Jerry and Neysa Regent who recently moved there this past March from Garland. I met Jerry and Neysa over a year ago at the fitness center where we exercised and they had invited me to visit if I was ever in the area. We didn’t know it would be so soon.

I will probably pick up my blog after Reno, on my stopover in Ely, NV on my way to Bryce Canyon and will post some reflections of my visit to Yosemite and the three different sections of the park.

See you down the road!

Miles Driven While at Yosemite