“For quiet, sensitive souls, solitude is the golden thread that unites us with our inner world…we need quiet to connect the dots in our constellations of thought.” Michaela Chung
It had been over 30 years since I spent any time in Yosemite National Park. It was so crowded back then, that I had no interest in returning, even though the landscape was beautiful. This past summer, I decided it was time to get back there and do some exploring. I chose to stay in the south end of the park thinking that it would be less crowded. What I learned is that there is no such thing as “less crowded” during the summer anywhere in Yosemite.
The first day I was there, the plan was to do a couple of short hikes. I drove up to Glacier Point to see the view but there was no parking available, with traffic everywhere including lot’s of tour buses and people wandering aimlessly. There was no way I was going to wait, so I headed back down to Taft Point and got the last parking space available. I took a couple of pics (the cover photo) and decided I better get going to the parking area for the trail head to Sentinel Dome. When I got there, it was crawling with people. I then turned to plan B, which was the trail head parking lot to Ostrander Lake, which I had passed earlier and saw plenty of parking. This hike is long and difficult, so apparently it doesn’t attract hoards of people. This was perfect for me, even though I wasn’t sure I was in good enough shape to hike 12.4 miles with a 1600′ elevation gain. I didn’t care…I would find some solitude on this hike.
This hike is actually a popular cross country ski trail in the winter time, but is quite nice in the summer as well. The first three miles were flat and wandered through the forest with patches of wildflowers poking through the sunny spots. I noticed that there were a lot of damaged trees from the bark beetles and very dry terrain, but was not surprised given the recent drought that we have experienced in the past few years. After the first three miles, the trail began to climb and did so rather steeply for the next 3.2 miles. I made plenty of stops to rest, check out the view and cool off, as it had gotten pretty warm in the afternoon. At one point I was ready to quit and turn back. However another hiker caught up to me and we chatted for a few minutes. He was a little bit older than me, larger in stature and wasn’t even carrying a water bottle. I found that odd, considering it was so warm. I asked him if he knew how much farther it was to the lake, and he pulled out a GPS device from his pocket and told me that it was two more miles. I thanked him and he was on his way.
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I felt a renewal of energy and sense of competitiveness kick in. I decided if he could get there, then so could I. So I gathered my pack and set off up the grade. I could see that my new found friend was pacing himself, stopping at about every 200-300 yards, and thought that was a good strategy for the uphill climb. I made sure to keep him in my sight. Sweaty and tired, I made it to the lake, and it was worth the effort. I checked out the ski hut and then found a nice spot to relax by the lake. It was invigorating to make it here, and I knew that I couldn’t hang out too long as it was getting late in the day. I ate a snack, gazed out at the crystal blue water, and let the fresh mountain air fill my lungs.
It was 6.2 miles back to the car, half of which was downhill. I moved at a steady pace wanting to get back to the car before it got dark. At about mile 4, I could feel blisters forming. I’d never had blisters before, so this was new to me. The result was me slowing down quite a bit the last couple of miles. I was both exhausted and ecstatic when I got back to the car. It was time to treat the blisters and see what is in store for the next day. Even though my feet paid a price, it was good to go beyond what I thought I could do…a good reminder when faced with the many challenges that life brings.
