Wandering Wednesday: The Top of Pothole Dome

Finally, we wandered somewhere, back to our favorite place to camp, Yosemite. On one of the days we journeyed up to the high country to visit Tuolumne Meadows. There was a hike that I had always wanted to do, one of the smaller granite domes, Pothole Dome, as seen here from the trail. Years ago, the last time we went camping in Yosemite with our kids, they all climbed up the dome and I sat in the car. This was before I'd gotten my meds right, and I frequently ran out of any and all energy. I sat there and enjoyed watching my family scamper up, and enjoyed the nice mountain breeze from my seat in the car, but I was really sad that I couldn't participate. 

But this time, I had the oomph to try it. The giant meadow was very very wet for this late in September, which is good. Making up for all those dry years.

Once you get to the granite dome, the trail peters out and you're on your own getting up onto the rock. It's not hard, there are plenty of not too steep approaches to choose from. We followed one of the bigger fissures. Note, the sky is really really *that* blue. No adjustments or edits were made to these photos.

It seems kind of endless, you can't see the top for quite a while. I love those separate boulders that get left behind when all the glacial action is over and the ice has melted. 

Another fellow hiker offered to take our picture, how nice to get one that isn't an awkward couple selfie. 

Well, not too awkward I guess. The peak to the right of me is Cathedral, we did a several night backpacking trip up there and over Cloud's Rest to the top of Half Dome in the late 80's (ie very long ago!). I really could not make that trip now, so I'm super glad to have done it when I was able to. But this time, I was able to make it up to the top of this dome. It's all worthwhile to do, even just going up to Tuolumne there if you don't hike at all, just to see this with your own eyes is a tremendous privilege that I really treasure.

Sunny Saturday

I'm having my second coffee of the morning on the deck, and my DH arrives with the new tent that we bought a couple years ago and haven't yet used. He proceeds to set it up in a few minutes after cursing about one thing or another and checking for better set up information than is included.

Now that it's just the two of us, of course this is when we have the biggest tent we have ever owned. This thing is 8' x 8'. For reference, way back when (37 years ago!) we started out camping in a tiny little just barely two person backpacking tent. 

He hasn't put the rain fly on even though it's getting cloudy. Monterey County, the next county over is getting rain, hall and dry lightning, so it's a little unsettled. Hoping none of that comes our way.

We are thrilled with the idea of standing up inside the tent, so much easier to change clothes.

And of course this means we may be bringing the Aero Bed air mattress. I'm quoting DH here: "We could even bring pillows and blankets!"

I have to say, it's pretty cushy and if it wasn't getting so hot, I might spend the day out here reading.

But will it really be camping if we're not on the ground on our mats and in our sleeping bags? I mean, we'll still be sleeping outside in Yosemite and all. I will report back after next week. I'm so excited, it's been years since we've camped in Yosemite and I can't wait.

 

Another Trip to Tuolumne

I'm just back from our yearly camping trip to Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite. This time only two nights since I was late in getting reservations (oops, grrrr), but still lots of fun. Once we got over the shock of seeing gas being sold for $5.55 in El Portal. Geez! Price gouging anyone? That is a full dollar more than the next town down the road. This is the little town right on the outskirts of Yosemite, so they apparently can charge any damn price they want. All those motorhomes gotta fill up to make it up and down the mountain.
It is not every day that one gets to see a marmot! And not one but two, hanging out in their rocky nest near the Soda Springs/Parsons Memorial in the meadow. They're about the size of a housecat, only live at high elevation and wary but not skittish. They just kind of looked at us for a while as we took our pictures.
It made me remember one of my favorite John Muir quotes which mentions marmots:
" How hard to realize that every camp of men or beast has this glorious starry firmament for a roof! In such places standing alone on the mountaintop it is easy to realize that whatever special nests we make -- leaves and moss like the marmots and birds, or tents or piled stone -- we all dwell in a house of one room -- the world with the firmament for its roof -- and are sailing the celestial spaces without leaving any track. -John Muir, naturalist, explorer, and writer (1838-1914)

Click on this picture to see the marmot on top of the rock a bit better. They really do have good camouflage don't they? The last time I saw one was at the summit of Mt. Whitney,(yes really I did that hike, way back when I was quite a hiker), as it was stealing my trail mix right out of my backpack sitting next to me. We've always been telling the boys stories about our encounters with marmots and I was so glad they finally got to see one up close and in person.
Ahhhh, I just love those High Sierra Meadow Colors!

Now back to doing camping laundry and dishes. Yes dishes, our tradition is to bring home our last day's worth of dirty dishes to wash up at home. That way, when they are put away until the next trip they'll actually be clean instead of just "camping clean".

Vacation Snaps

We just returned from our spring break camping vacation. Here are some highlights, mostly by sunset as you'll see.

Hole Digging was a big preoccupation.
Bike jumping also was attempted in the campground.
Dog Sleeping, oh was she ever tired out from running all day at the beach.

Sunset
A very nice house on the cliff.
Dead trees look better when lit by sunset.
Setting up the tent a.k.a. fencing with tent poles until dad yells at you because you've hit him one time too many in the backside.
Getting buried up to the neck in the sand, mom promised not to post the ahem embellished body version of this photo.

Another sunset.
Closeup of sunset with cliffside plants.
Aren't those clouds beautiful?
Love that corona.
This looks like a sunrise, but that would have required a whole lot of traveling, so yes, it is yet another sunset.

The last skimboarding of the trip, in the light of the sunset.
This is what a liberal looks like when she is reading.
Light captured.
Lizard not giving an inch on the cliffside.
Manresa beach.

Alex reading.
The cliffs of Manresa.
Birds hunting in the surf.
The long view.
A happy camper (by sunset of course).

Dog Lake

Here is a snip of the quiet and peace of the shore of Dog Lake, which is a very steep yet short hike out of Toulumne Valley.

I just wanted to try the new button on Blogger! Next to the upload picture button, there is a shiny new upload video button. And you know how hard it is not to push buttons.... So let's see if it works!

Where My Head Is

This is where my head is.
I haven't fully come back from vacation yet.
Not even close!
A week of camping in Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite will do that to a person.
I have hundreds of photos, but this is my favorite that I'll share with you right now.
This is Lembert Dome at sunset, with a deer in the foreground.