Here comes a doozy! If you've read my blog in the last few months, you might remember that I was at Yosemite in November with Patagonia Boy. He made me promise that I'd go back. Being someone who likes being in the outdoors, he didn't have to twist my arm. At the beginning of January, I bought a National Parks Pass that gives me free entry into places like Yosemite. If I go four times in the next year, it makes financial sense. I bought the pass to motivate me to get out there.
I set my alarm for 5am on Saturday, but woke up at 4...I guess I was excited. I'm one of those people that just likes to get up earlier than later, so if I wake up before my alarm, nine times out of ten, I just get up. The first picture here is of El Capitan at about 8:30 am. I took this picture just after seeing two coyotes just strolling down the road like it was normal. When I got to the park, it was dead quiet. As you can see, no one was on this road. When I was in the same spot on Thanksgiving weekend, this place was loaded with "gapers." It was nice to be there by myself and seeing the sun come up on a perfectly clear day.
As I set off on Glacier Point Road, here's who was heading out with me. Pretty much everyone on skis said something like, "You're smart" or "Wish I was doing that." It's funny how some people do things that they aren't totally pumped about. Snowshoeing just like like walking, only a little more awkward than normal, so it easy for anyone. I got to Dewey Point in a little more than an hour and got this view. On the left is El Cap, but funny how it doesn't look the same.
Pretty magical. There were quite a few skiers and snowshoers on the trail. When I got back to Glacier Point Road, it was packed! I probably saw a hundred people in the span of five minutes, many of them with big packs and some of them with sleds attached to their waists with lots of stuff. Totally awesome! There's a hut at the end of the road, 10.5 miles out, where you can stay overnight and get hot meals. I'd love to do that trip some weekend. I got back to the car after about three hours out in the snow and was pooped. I decided to head back to Yosemite Valley and settle into my cold accommodations. I got a hot lunch, wrote some cards, read, and generally tried to say warm. For some reason, my Gore-Tex trail shoes got soaked, so I was pretty chilly. I spent some time in Yosemite Village where there is a large store, post office, Ansel Adams gallery, and more. On Saturday afternoon, there was also a family of deer just hanging out in the middle of the action eating some chestnuts. Here's the view of Half Dome as the sun sets.
As I went to sleep in my unheated cabin, I was already feeling nervous about waking up and putting on cold clothes. So, I had an idea! I would put all the clothes I needed to put on the next morning in my sleeping bag with me to keep them nice and toasty. It worked like a charm! Here's the view of Half Dome from Curry Village, Sunday morning.
On Sunday, I woke early and bundled up. The plan for the day was to rent cross country skis and see what happened. I got back to the ski area right as they opened and was on the trail in no time. I thought I would take a lesson, but the Girl Scouts were monopolizing them, so I just went out. I was encouraged by a sign in the rental shop that read, "Anyone can walk on skis." Cool! I can walk so I had a bit more confidence. It was a bit colder and there were a few more clouds in the sky than the day before, but I was warm in no time. A few things to point out: exercise-induced asthma makes it hard to breathe. Exercising at altitude also makes it hard to breathe. So, in short, it was hard for me to breathe. In that way, it felt like swimming. I did a few strokes, but it was hard, so then I'd have to walk a bit. I also have no idea how to stop myself on these things. So, when a downhill came, gravity was my guide. So that was exciting.
Here's what I saw for a good two miles. Constant uphill. After about an hour of it, my shoulders were tired from my backpack and using the poles nonstop, so I decided to turn around. There were reports of 20% chance of snow in the evening, and I didn't want to deal with that, so after about five and a half miles, I felt like it was time to turn around. On my way out, I saw about half a dozen people coming down, many with their big packs. When I did turn around, there were about three cute boys in a row, all alone like me. The first guy asked if I knew how to stop. I was glad to know there were other rookies out there and told him that falling was my only strategy so far. I did make sure I got the view of the Clark Range before I turned around. Here it is for you mom:
What is so amazing about this place is that I feel like I could keep going back for years and find something new to explore. I hope to get back in the next few months and ski to the hut at Glacier Point for a night. I was very lucky this fall to have someone to adventure with, but I have spent most of the past two years adventuring solo and I'm back to that mode. It can be frustrating at times. I don't get to many restaurants or movies or concerts, but I've come to a point where there are things I want to do and I don't think I can put those things off just because there's no one to be with me. I say this to justify the fact that I went into the woods alone. To ease the fears of my parents, I did it as smart as you can. I wrote a detailed itinerary for Bec with phone numbers and let her know I was safe at the end of each day. I also chose routes that were very popular, were within my comfort zone, and would keep me out only a few hours so I wouldn't run into daylight issues, and I paid attention to the weather. And it was great fun! Here's the last picture of the trip, the sun forcing its way through the clouds.
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