Tuolumne to Upper Cathedral lake
About 5 miles
Last night in Lone Pine we realized that the hike just didn't feel done and that since we had food left we might as well hike the section that we missed in the beginning. We have hiked that section in the past, but thought it would be fun to do it again via Cloud's Rest which we hadn't been on. Rode the Eastern Transit 6:15 AM bus to Bishop. Then one from Bishop to Mammoth and then on Yarts to Tuolumne. The buses all connected seamlessly. British John was on the Yarts bus and I found out why Mark visited all afternoon the previous day. It's the accent.... that and he has hiked all over the world. Interesting man.
We grabbed a permit from the same ranger station we had been at 3 weeks before and after stopping off at the grill for some lunch, we hit the trail. It felt good to be back in Yosemite. Love this place. Upper Cathedral lakes as lovely as always and we didn't have any rain. Clouds and a little thunder was all.
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| Leaving the ranger station |
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| These little wandering asters were along the whole JMT |
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| Lovely Dome that I can't remember name of |
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| Cathedral Peak |
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| Upper Cathedral Lake (check out the face) |
8-16-12
Upper Cathedral Lake to Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley (via Cloud's Rest)
About 21 miles
Met about 6 couples/groups that were starting their JMT hike. It was fun to encourage them and share our bit of trail lore. Incredible views from Cloud's Rest. Thankful that AJ had told us it was one of his favorite views on the whole trail. Loved hiking down into the valley that feels like home. We got married here 32 years ago and have camped and backpacked and hiked these trails our entire lives. Finally felt like a fitting ending to our wonderful hike. The day was probably over 15 miles of downhill, we were really thankful for strong knees and trekking poles. The trekking poles have been incredibly helpful. After having a man snap our photo at our finish we hopped on the shuttle to go get some pizza and beer.
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| Walking the ridge to the top |
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| Looking east |
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| Top of Cloud's Rest |
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| Half Dome |
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| Nevada Falls |
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| The END |
Wonderful! Thanks for sharing your trip and your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteSee you a week from tomorrow.
Dan
What an amazing, amazing trip you both had. I bow down in admiration, cause that's a long walk! It was great to read it and travel along. Thanks!
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