Yosemite National Park

Yosemite Part 1 by Samantha:

The first time you experience Yosemite, you experience it in a state of astonishment. The second time you experience Yosemite, you experience it as a blissful reacknowledgement; a remembrance and reclamation of the joy you had left there. Such was our second sojourn in Yosemite National Park, which in contrast to our first visit, was almost empty upon our arrival because of the heat wave ravaging California. It was reminiscent of a ghost town. The heat wave had dried up the Merced, and the waterfalls barely trickled out of the valley walls above us. As the water evaporated, so did the tourists, and by the time we pulled in, the park was nearly empty. It climbed to over 100 degrees in the valley and so we decided to hike in the Tuolumne Meadows, the high Sierra region of Yosemite. We first hiked 4.5 miles to Cathedral Lake, a mystical alpine meadow blanketed in serenity. It’s different being in the high Sierras; the alpine landscape is both familiar and foreign and the chilly landscape resembles a dreamland. Our second hike to Gaylor Lake was just that, out of a dream. Ascending the 1,000 feet in elevation to the lakes was a challenge. At 10,000 feet of elevation, it’s not the mileage that exhausts you, it’s the elevation. The first mile was brutal, as the oxygen was stolen from our lungs and our hearts almost beat out of our chests. But as we reached the top of the mountain and beheld the valley below us, it was as if we had been transported to a stark yet fantastic landscape. The lakes were surrounded by vibrant meadows and a carpet of butterflies. We hiked through the meadows to an abandoned mine, where we beheld the majesty of the high Sierras. The next day, we hiked with the Nungesters to Sentinel Dome, which overlooks the valley floor. We beheld the jaw dropping panorama of Half Dome, El Capitan and the Three Brothers. It was a stunning view of the park and reminded us of how small we are compared to the world around us.

Yosemite Part 2 by Korin:

We had been planning to visit Yosemite for more than a year. In January, we were fortunate enough to score three camping reservations so we invited Matt’s sister’s family and his parents to join us.  When we got back from the Gaylor Lakes hike, the Nungesters and Matt’s parents had arrived. That afternoon, we spent a lot of time in the Merced River cooling off. The following day Matt, Samantha, Eli, Jon, Josh and me hiked the Sentinel Dome and Taft Point loop. We saw one bear on the trail and enjoyed catching up with one another. The next day, we rented bikes and rode through the valley. It was such a great way to see the valley! Matt and Jon headed back to Gaylor Lakes in the Tuolumne area to fish the next day while the rest of us hung in and around the Merced River. Our time in Yosemite went quickly and it was an amazing place to spend time with family.  

We applied for the Half Dome preseason lottery and started training for the hike in January. Unfortunately, we didn’t get permits for Half Dome. We continued to train and planned to submit in the daily lottery once we were in the valley. Once in the valley, we tried in the daily lottery each day but we were unsuccessful. We were very disappointed but I guess this just means we will have to come back to this beautiful valley in the future!

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