"Summer" Vacation

This summer has been the coldest summer in San Francisco since 1975. That's saying a lot considering Mark Twain once wrote, "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco." Luckily Matt and I had a chance to head out to see some of our National Parks in a quest for better weather. In an effort to reserve picture space on my blog and picasa, but in an antithetical manner to proper blog posting, I have chosen not to illustrate this blog with pictures. Please click on the album below to see those - which are far more interesting than my words!

Yosemite and Sequoia Kings Canyon August/September 2010

Day 1:

Hetch Hetchy in Yosemite National Park. Supposedly this valley was once as grand as Yosemite Valley, but the greedy City of San Francisco had a dam put in and made the gorgeous valley into a reservoir. It was a fight that likely led to the end of John Muir. But I must admit that water sure is tasty.

• 5 mile RT hike to Wapama Falls (500 feet). Disappointing, but I can't imagine how amazing the falls must be in Spring. Apparently sometimes the bridges are impassable.
  

Day 2:

• 13 mile RT hike to Smith Peak (3700 feet). Bear sign everywhere, movement of large brown entity through the bushes, and lots of hiking through thicket in burned area made this hike not much fun. Amazing views from the top however.
• 3 mile RT hike to Poopenaut Valley (1229 feet). Straight down. Met a couple heading up who scared us off with stories of the biggest bear poop they'd ever seen. Peeked at the river and headed back up. Not nearly as pretty as it looked from the top. And after hiking the depth of the Grand Canyon in one day, we were pretty exhausted.
  

Day 3:


Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park. Gorgeous, gorgeous place. So many hiking trails accessible from the campground. If it weren't for the sub-freezing temperatures at night and the high altitude, I might be tempted to stay there longer.

• ~16 mile RT hike to Young Lake, Dog Lake, and Lembert Dome (~2100 feet). Started at noon, got back to camp around 8pm. Absolutely gorgeous but in too much of a hurry to enjoy much.

Day 4:

• ~3 mile RT meander through Tuolumne Meadows and along Lyell Fork (I'm assuming about 0 feet). Fabulous rest day. I love exploring the rocky rivers.
  

Day 5:

• ~3 mile RT to Middle and Upper Gaylor Lakes. (600 feet). I've been here before and still enjoyed the sweeping vistas. And we saw a marmot!
  

Eastern Sierra. The austerely beautiful Mono Lake and the forested Devil's Postpile near the popular Mammoth Ski Area.

• 1 mile RT nature trail at South Tufa. Hot but loved it. Such amazing geologic features.
  
• ~4 mile hike to Devil's Postpile and Rainbow Falls. The postpile was really neat - although I think Giant's Causeway was neater. Could have done without the hike to the falls.

Day 6:

Spent the night in Bishop then drove many, many hours to Sequoia.

• Pathetic swim in the hotel pool.
• 5 mile run past empty fields owned by the City of Los Angeles and lots of roomy sf detached homes and lots. Also, I probably wouldn't call my real estate company Owens Valley Realty. Just saying.
  

Day 7:

In the Giant Forest of Sequoia National Park.

• 3 mile RT hike to General Sherman and along the Congress Trail. Amazing trees and arrived early enough to avoid the crowds.
  
• 1 mile RT hike Big Trees Trail. We saw a mother bear and 2 cubs! Then a male bear by the parking lot.
  
• 1 mile RT hike to Crystal Cave (steep). Access trail to the cave; nice waterfalls. I was too chicken to go on the cave tour, but Matt got to see some pretty cool sights.
  
• 0.5 mile RT hike to Moro Rock (300 feet). Probably some of the best views you can get in Sequoia. I still prefer Yosemite.
  
• 1.5 mile? RT hike to Tharp's Log and Chimney Rock, around Crescent Meadow. No bears this time. Getting bored of the sequoias. I still like the Redwoods better.
  

Day 8:

Matt's birthday! Exploring King's Canyon National Park. Draped in smoke.

• 0.5 mile RT hike to see General Grant. Very imporessive.
  
• 8-9 mile RT hike to Mist Falls (600-1000 feet). Apparently no one can agree on the exact stats for this hike. I can imagine it would have been lovely if not for being accosted by forest fire smoke, flies, and mosquitoes the whole way, and meeting huge crowds of families at the Falls.
• 1.5 mile loop hike around Zumwalt Meadow. Actually quite pretty and somewhat redeemed Kings Canyon. It still isn't Yosemite.
• Chickened out swimming in the gorgeous Hume Lake. Redeemed Sequoia a tiny bit more. Even if it is a reservoir.
  

Day 9:

Bored with Sequoia/Kings Canyon, we headed into the exciting city of Fresno. We explored the quite fascinating Forestiere Underground Gardens, the Target, the pool at the Holiday Inn, and some AAA baseball.

I realize that Sequoia and Kings Canyon are a backpacker's paradise, and since we didn't go on any hikes longer than 9 miles we probably can't judge it. Plus there was the whole forest fire problem. However, I think next time we will still stick to Yosemite Valley and Tuolumne Meadows. Why ruin a good thing?

Day 10:

Got our money's worth out of the hotel with the max 20 hours. Enjoyed some relaxation before the long drive home.

• 20 minute swim in the hotel pool
• 45 minute run through the neighborhood. (Nike Plus out of battery...)
  

Tally:

• Over 65 miles of hiking including one 16 mile, 5000 foot day.
• 2 runs (pain free!)
• 2 swims in the hotel pools
• 7 nights of sleeping on the ground
• A strong desire not to have to work

Hope you had a great Labor Day weekend!