Jason's Big Day

Last year in July we visited Yosemite National Park in California.  For those that have visited, you will agree that Yosemite is an amazing place with wildlife, rivers, mountains and spectacular views.  The mountains are what captured me the most.  I loved the view from on top of Glacier Point.  From here you have a view of the valley, the Merced River, El Capitan and Half Dome.  Sadly that is as close to Half Dome as I would get.  Why, because you need a “cable permit” to climb Half Dome.  I also needed the legs to go the entire 17 mile distance and the lungs to go up 4800’ from the valley floor.  The latter two I would have struggled through however not having the permit created a problem.  I would simply not be able to go!  That started a yearlong quest to return to Yosemite and hike Half Dome. 

Almost exactly a year later we were scheduled to return to Yosemite.  The morning of July 7th I called and put my name in the daily lottery for cable permits for a July 9^th hike.   The daily lottery is for 50 permits which brings the total number of hikers climbing Half Dome to 300 a day.  The morning of the 8^th I got the news that I had been granted a lottery spot.  The only way I can describe it is that I was like an 8 year old at Christmas.   I immediately began planning out the hike.  I packed my backpack that afternoon: 7 cliff bars, one gallon of water (camel bak / bottles) head lamp, whistle, pocket knife, bear spray, bear bell, fire starter and a compass.  Wanting to get a good night sleep, I turned in at nine.  Christy finished off my pack with banana chips, pbj and a note.

 

I woke early too excited to sleep any longer.  I got on the mountain bike and headed for the trail head at Happy Isle.  I arrived at 5:15am in the dark and found Mark getting his gear together.  After finding out that he was going solo as well I suggested we go together, so we did.  We started out at 5:20 am.  I had read online that the first 3 miles was steep and exhausting. They did not disappoint.  We hiked up the Mist Trail to Vernal Falls and on up to Nevada Fall.  This 3 mile section took just over 4 hours and was an elevation change of 2000’.  Mark and I missed a trail marker sending us back down the John Muir trail heading for home.  We turned around after finding out from other hikers that we had missed the trail.  The next mile and a half was an easier hike through the meadow gaining 150’ in elevation.  Then another 3.5 miles that was mostly shaded switch back trails leading up to the granite staircase.   The change in elevation along this portion is almost 2000’ and took another 3 plus hours. 

 

 

 

 

 

After grabbing a bit to eat Mark and I checked in with the Ranger and started up the toughest part of the trail, the Granite staircase.  This ¼ mile section took 25 minutes to hike.  The altitude made the hike tough as I was frequently gasping for air after just a few steps.  Once on top of the staircase you get a great view of the cables and I remember having goose bumps.  Still early in the day the cables were relatively empty.  The cables are two way single file up and down and you rub shoulders with the people going the opposite direction.   Mark and I made our way to the cables and started up.  It took about 20 minutes to make our way up the last 400’ of the hike.  The cables were not as tough as I thought they would be.  Everyone in front and back of us were super friendly.  Imagine that, near vertical, clinging to a cable and everyone is polite as could be.  Mark and I summited Half Dome at about 1:30pm.  I ate my pbj that Christy made, posed for some pictures, took pictures for other hikers, walked around taking in every possible view.  Not wanting to get stuck on the cables by the crowd of hikers behind us Mark and I headed back to them.  Too late!  We were stranding on the near vertical section of the cables for 10 minutes waiting for 2 young ladies, about 20 people in front of us, which were frozen with fear. The amazing thing was no one was rude or impatient.  Imagine how upset we all get waiting in lines at the grocery.  Not so much when one slip and you meet Jesus, literally!  After finally descending the cables Mark and I didn’t waste any time heading for home, still 8 miles in front of us.  The return trip was more pleasant than the hike up and only because it was almost all downhill.  However, after 8 miles of downhill hiking my calves and the middle toe on my right foot had paid a big price. 

 

Just before Nevada Falls Mark and I stopped to fill his water bladder and a couple water bottles for me.  We did so in the river using the water filter he purchased for the trip.  We also discovered that the trail at that point becomes congested with hikers who aren’t going to Half Dome.  At the top of the falls there are signs warning people that going over the falls will result in death...Duh!  That didn’t stop a half dozen “adults” from swimming in the pool just before the falls.  Not wanting to witness someone falling to their death we quickly moved on.  I think we were both starting to feel the effects of the previous 15 or so miles as we navigated our way down the busy trail filled with families of all ages.  We must of looked as exhausted as we felt because many people were just giving way as we headed down the last 3 miles of the hike.  Now the average person hikes to Half Dome and back in 12 hours.  Being the above average person that I am (LOL) and having a good partner, Mark and I completed our quest in 11 hours 20 minutes.  

 

 

Arriving back at the trailhead was an awesome feeling.   Mark and I quickly made our way to our bikes, said our goodbyes and rode off.  Riding back into camp I saw Christy heading toward the river to swim with the boys.  She shot me the biggest smile and was excited to see me back at camp.  The hike was simply amazing and I am looking forward to hiking it again.

 

Worth Repeating...

The only national park that we had to revisit was Yosemite. Jason fell in love with it last year as soon as we entered into The Valley and he saw El Capitan standing tall above the meadows. Then he set a goal to get back and hike Half-Dome this year. I won't go into that too much because he wants to tell you all about it. For now, I will share the rest of our visit to Yosemite.



This time around, we had secured our campsites well in advance so there would be no funny business with purchasing from another individual or waiting for the daily lottery.

We pulled in to the North Pine Campground which was across the Merced River opposite from where we camped last summer. The site was a little tight with our cargo trailer but we wanted to keep our bikes, etc. close by. We barely had room to open the slides and the stairs but whose complaining. After all, we were in Yosemite! The boys quickly made their way to the river while we got camp set up. All of my photos of that afternoon were lost due to a bad SD card. Thanks goodness the store in the Yosemite Valley had another card so I could quickly rode over and grabbed one for the next day.

While Jason went on his long awaited hike the next day, we explored Yosemite Village and Curry Village by bike. This was the best way to get around without riding the bus which could take an hour to go a couple of miles because of all of the stopping in between. Grand mommy was getting used to this mode of transportation and even talked about buying one when she got home. 

 

We did a little shopping and bought some souvenirs. I also had to mail a package back to Tampa so we got to see inside the old post office. We visited the native American museum and also grabbed some lunch. After everyone was thoroughly exhausted, we rode back to camp and went for a swim. 

 

 

 

 As we relaxed by the beautiful river, I tried to re-create the lost photos from the night before. Finally, Big Jason came back from his hike and we were all relieved that he was safe. A few more hours of outside fun and then I could get the sun setting on Half-Dome.

 

 

Our third day at Yosemite was mostly traveling to Tuolumne Meadows which was Northeast of Yosemite Valley. It was a long and narrow trek through the mountains. Along the way, we passed many beautiful things like Tenaya Lake.

Finally, we reached this part of the park which was so foreign to us.

Tuolumne Meadows was just as breathtaking as Yosemite Valley but very different. It had domes but not quite as large. The meadow was the focal point here.

 

We needed a few groceries and there was only one convenience store here next to the campground. Wow, the prices were inflated but they knew that people would pay because it saved them hours of driving! After feeling robbed, we made our way to the campground and checked in with the ranger on duty. Our site was primitive as were all national parks but we were just content to be there. We wandered over to the river and found an amazing view of water cascading over fields of granite. The boys were ready to get in! After some searching, we found a spot that was deep enough to jump into. Nathan also found a waterslide but was a little unsure due to the boulder waiting directly at the bottom left of the slide.

 The next morning we set out to hike around Lembert Dome. The guide said it was a moderate level hike and only a few miles. Apparently we started on the wrong path or something because it was very strenuous. Mom and I turned back after a few miles and left Jason to take the boys the rest of the way. They actually went all the way to the top of Lembert Dome. Jason had to keep the boys corralled since there were no ropes, fences or anything else to keep them from falling to their deaths.

 

Later, back at the campground, we went to the Tuolumne River to refresh. The older boys got up the nerve to try out the water slide and made videos with the GoPro. We had a great time and didn't want to leave this place.

We even got to see a deer doing his business in the campground. That's something you don't see every day!

 

  

 

 

Lake Tahoe and our guest

We managed to find our way to another BMX track for an Olympic Day race. South Lake Tahoe BMX was almost directly across from the lake. There was lots of business stuff to catch up on so I stayed inside the RV to work until race time. The boys made some new friends quickly and had fun racing that evening. Everyone made their main events and we even got a cool trophy shaped like Lake Tahoe to take home for Wesley's first place.

The main road around the lake was very busy with tourists. The campgrounds in the area were packed with hundreds of campers in for the holiday weekend. The first campground we tried was full so we called another around the corner. We secured a spot but it was after hours when we arrived and it was a little difficult maneuvering through the maze of tents and cars. I had never seen so many people in one park! It was dark by the time we set up so we skipped the fire and went to bed!

The next morning we drove on the East side of the lake to Nevada to pick up my mom. She would be joining us for the next 9 days on our trip in the RV. What a treat she was in for!

 
 Our campground was on the West side in California about halfway up so it took a while to drive the narrow, winding road. It was also very crowded on the two-lane road until clearing the busy town area. When we reached Sugar Pine Point State Park, we were a little disappointed that it wasn't directly on Lake Tahoe. That meant we had to walk or ride bikes to get to the water.


 
 



 My mom had to adapt quickly to our fast-paced lifestyle. We put her on a mountain bike and off we went to the lake. She had not been on a bike in 40 years! The water was a beautiful shade of deep blue and nothing like our lakes back home in Florida. The water was freezing but that didn't seem to stop anyone from swimming, boating, skiing, etc.

 

 
The boys went straight to the dock for some jumping and flipping. There were many others there daring to do the same.

It was our first night in the RV with grand mommy and we had to work out some minor sleeping arrangements before retiring after a long eventful day. The next day we headed back to the lake for some more water fun. This time, we packed drinks and lunches. It wasn't very busy when we arrived that morning but it picked up quickly as the hours passed. Jason and I rented a kayak and paddled around to get a different view while the boys swam by the shore. My mom didn't dare get in the frigid water but instead layed out to work on her tan with little Jason.