MapSource
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Google Maps Terrain
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Up today at 6:30
31 degrees out. My fears from last night were unfounded. There was only
about an inch of snow. The freezing rain, snow and ice from last night
created a layer of ice on the outside of my Tarptent.
The inside had a bit of frozen condensation on the walls. It seemed odd
to knock off the ice instead of wiping down the walls!
So far, condensation on my Tarptent Moment, even in humid conditions on
the Superior Hiking Trail, has been comparable to my Contrail and only
a mild nuisance. I have never had any water drip onto my bag or inside
the tent.
My water bottle was frozen, it was a good thing I
was not planning on a hot breakfast!
The sun is out!! Yay!! Although I can appreciate experiencing inclement
weather (for a little while!), I really was glad to have bright, sunny
weather again. It was still cold, but with the sun out, it got warm
quickly once I started hiking.
No bears or other critters last night. I am a bit worried about the
temps and how cold I was last night. It was odd, since I have taken
this bag/pad combo down to below freezing before and was fine. I
usually am hot blooded, and sleep hot. To give perspective, I was
wearing Patagonia Cap 3 top and bottoms, wool socks, baclava, and a
Montbell down jacket inside my 30 degree bag. My pad was the insulated
Big Agnes Air Core with a Gossamer Gear Thinlite insulation pad on the
ground. I believe I am colder than usual due to burning more calories
than I am eating each day. I have a hard time regulating my body
temperature when I am not eating enough to fuel the factory. I'll have
to factor this in for future hikes... I decided to check at Tuolumne to
see if they have a bag liner.
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It snowed last night! |
By Sunrise High Sierra Camp |
Heading to Cathedral Pass |
I was less than a mile from High Sierra Camp, and as I approached I
could smell bacon and eggs cooking. It smelled great!! I refilled my
water bottle at the pump at High Sierra Camp and took a few photos,
then headed back down the trail.
The trail between HSC and Cathedral
Pass was stunning. Colombia Finger and Long Meadow were my favorites on
this section of trail. Cathedral Pass was nice, but certainly not the
most impressive pass of the trip. It was one of the easiest passes to
get up and over.
Once I got near Cathedral Lakes, the freeway started up again. There
were a lot of day hikers coming up from Tuolumne. It was funny, some of
those day and overnight hikers had huge, heavy backpacks. I stopped for
a few minutes and talked to a couple about my age who were doing a
weeklong trip, and averaging 5 miles a day. They told me their packs
were over 50 LBS and they were very interested in how I got my pack
down to 29 LBS. What a HUGE difference those extra 20 pounds
make. For me, it means the difference between miles of misery versus
being able to enjoy the journey and the physical challenge of the hike.
Once I got past Cathedral Lakes, the trail went downhill through pine to Tuolumne Meadows.
I
must have missed a sign somewhere along the way since I wound up
hitting Hwy 120 highway and hiking along it to TM.
Long
Meadow
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Cathedral
Peak and Cathedral Lake
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The
first order of business once I reached Tuolumne Meadows was to get my
resupply from the Post Office. The PO closed at 5pm, and I arrived at
3pm so I had plenty of time. I grabbed a cheeseburger and fries at the
grill and sat at the tables next to the grill to eat. The food was
pretty good compared to trail food!
I walked over to the gear shop, and purchased a sleeping bag liner
(cotton and heavy!). They have a pretty good selection for such a tiny
little shop. I explored the general store as well. They have enough in
the store to do a complete resupply if you choose to do it that way.
Next I headed to the overnight backpackers camp, which is through the
regular campsites, and up a little hill over by the campground fire
ring. If you plan to use the backpackers camp, make sure you look at
the campground maps ahead of time. It might be a little hard to find
otherwise. I picked a site, paid my fees, set up camp, and spread out
my resupply on the picnic table. I realized that I was not eating
nearly as much as I had planned and had way too much food packed. I had
a slight headache most of the day today (altitude), and just not
feeling hungry most of the time. This seems to be normal for me when I
am out backapcking. As I was sitting at the picnic table, a deer
stopped by to say hello. It came within 10 feet of me, and was not at
all concerned. It grazed for a bit and then moved along.
Toulumne
Meadow map
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TM store, grill and Post Office
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Totally unafraid deer came to visit
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There are no showers at Toulumne, so I cleaned up as best I could in
the restroom. It was dark by then, and I started to load my food and
gear into the bear box. Hmmm... where did I put those hiking poles??
Must have fallen under the table. Nope. Must have leaned them against a
tree. Nope. They are gone! Panic... Hiking poles have become a critical
piece of gear for me. I'm not sure I could do this hike without them.
Brain flash... I remember leaning them against a building down by the
Post Office!!! I also remember that the Gear Shop sold hiking poles, so
worst case I would be there when they opened in the morning and get a
new set. I grabbed my headlamp and headed off down to the Post Office.
Not much hope that they would still be there after several hours and
tons of people in the area. And yet... there they were. Sweet. I was a
happy camper.
Two guys were wandering around in the dark by the post
office, and asked me if I knew where the campfire program was. It was
right below the backpackers camp, but there was no way they were going
to find it in the dark. I told them to follow me, and led them to it. I
decided to join them for the program. It was about bats, and reminded
me of all the years we enjoyed the Ranger led programs in Kings Canyon
NP. Back at camp, I headed for bed. I want to get up a little earlier
tomorrow.
Lembert Dome in Toulumne Meadows
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Toulumne Meadow
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Around 1:00am I was awakened by load voices and banging of bear boxes. Maybe a
bear?? No, just rude hikers. They kept everyone awake for 10 minutes
before things got quiet again. High was 66 today, so much warmer than
yesterday! Tomorrow looks to be an easy day with several miles of flat
hiking along Lyell Canyon.
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