As I mentioned last week, Memorial Day weekend normally kicks off "summer" in these parts. It means we can start swimming a little, even if the water is frigid and it marks the beginning of camping and hiking season. This year we had a very high snowpack and some parts of the Sierra have over 10 feet of snow still, but this did not stop me from getting outside anyway. Here are some of the highlights.
Memorial Day weekend, I went to Yosemite for a few days of backpacking. Basically depending on what way the hill was facing and whether or not there was tree cover, there was snow from about 6,000 feet in some places or as high as 8,000 in others. Additionally there were a lot of downed trees due to either the recent fires and or the snowpack causing them to fall. The cherry on top was the creeks and rivers, which are all swelled up three or four or more times their normal size. This meant altering my route several times, but did not detract from the beauty of the region.
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| Panoramic Trail view of Half Dome |
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| Top of Nevada Falls |
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| Sunrise on Half Dome |
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| Merced River |
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| Snowy Trail |
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| Four Mile trail - view of Half Dome |
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| Four Mile Trail - view of Yosemite Falls |
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| Four Mile Trail - view of El Capitan |
Last weekend was my Dad's birthday and I met up with my family to do some regular camping, hiking and a couple of rounds of Spades. We met near Mt. Shasta, in an area called Castle Crags. I have driven by this a bunch of times and have even hiked near it, but I did not know that you can hike right into the middle of it and it is really beautiful! It was quite hot though, probably over 90 degrees and we wanted to go swimming, but the Sacramento (and all of the rivers) river is still flowing a bit too fast for our liking.
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| Mom and Dad looking at the Crags |
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| Crag Dome and Mt. Shasta |
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| Dad nearly at the top of the Crag Dome trail |
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| View from the top (with Mt. Shasta) |
What did you do this weekend? Is it hot where you are? Have you gone swimming yet this season?
Oh man, everything is so beautiful. We just can't compete with your views over here in the Eastern US.
ReplyDeleteWe definitely have some large mountains but I also love the quiet of the plains, the long rows of hay bales, the lakes, and in Iowa the breakfasts were so big that I could barely finish them (and I am a good eater!) so there are definitely good things in your neck of the woods!
DeleteLisa here! Wow! Gorgeous photos! I’m envious that Yosemite can be a short weekend trip for you. It would require lots of planning and a flight for us. We have beauty around us, but nothing on this level!! As you know from my post, it’s been hot here, too. Lots of days in the 90s and the nights have been hot too. We will have some cooler nights this week with lows in the 50s so we are looking forward to that. We planted grass this spring as some animal dug up our yard for grubs or something and now it has barely rained. I am guessing we will be back in drought conditions again soon unless things change. But I am glad we have lots of pools and splash pads in the area. Will had a blast as the one we went to yesterday. He didn’t want to leave! It doesn’t take much to entertain him. He just wants to fill up a cup with water and dump it out - over and over. But he wants me to ‘come wiff’ so I didn’t get to socialize much with the friends who were there. But I am glad he’s warming up to the water. And it felt good to sit in the water with him while he played.
ReplyDeleteLucky for you, you can just stay with me and then it will be a short weekend trip! Also I noticed they are not doing quotas anymore; I had a permit for hiking which allows you to get into the park no matter what, but for the last few years there have been quotas, so if you do not have a permit or reservation for camping, you can't get in. I think this is great, as it does make it less crowded for the ones who are inside, but it does make it harder to plan a spontaneous trip!
DeleteI am not sure how California is going to be, drought-wise. Right now it seems like we have all the water in the world, but I remember hiking last October and there was nary a drop of water in many of the creeks, so we may just get a lot of snow melt and then go back to bad conditions. Also I think it has more to do with the water table and I don't know what the status of that is at the moment.
What a beautiful trip! I have never been to Yosemite, but it looks amazing! I'm green with envy over here!
ReplyDeleteAs I mentioned to Lisa, it is not as hard to plan as you may think, and it is so worth the trip! If you need help, I am here for you! Actually this year one of the entrances is closed due to the bad storms and a road closure, so I had to go a longer way around to get there than I normally would, but usually if I take the "normal" way, it is only about a three hour drive! So you should definitely put it on your list for next summer! Also if you come here, you should go and see the neighboring parks, Kings Canyon and Sequoia, which are both beautiful as well!
DeleteBeautiful photos! My husband was just out there this weekend- well, he is flying from SF to LA today for work, but he went early Saturday morning to see a cousin who lives nearby and spent the weekend. They went on a hike somewhere yesterday, not sure where- he said "really close to Yosemite" and his cousin took a pic of him dunking himself in some apparently frigid water! haha. We went to Yosemite years back now when we all went to visit and it was so beautiful, though we really only had a day and I know we didn't even scratch the surface. Will just have to go back! I love that picture of the tent and campsite!
ReplyDeleteOh, I wonder where he went! Was there snow? There are so many places to hike and especially when you are near Yosemite but a lot of the mountain passes are still closed, so I am assuming he went somewhere with a little lower elevation. I went hiking near Auburn (between Sacramento and Tahoe) in early May and we went in the American River afterward and (1) you had to be very careful because the water was flowing fast, so we found a little pool and jumped in (2) it was freezing snow run off and I did not stay in long! I love that your husband is adventurous enough to dunk himself in the frigid water; good for him! We used to have a "contest" when I was a kid about who would go in the water first. My Dad loves to challenge us to those kinds of things!
DeleteYou definitely need to go back! The valley (the "one day" tour) is beautiful but you can hike a few miles and get into some really nice high backcountry which is very special. Also if you are not too afraid of heights, the hike to the top of Half Dome is excellent.
Wow - so beautiful and great weather (if a bit hot - but at least not raining). I love that your parents are still so active.
ReplyDeleteI had an odd weekend; it rained, my daughter was away at a big youth event, and we spent a lot of time test-driving used cars as we need to replace or at least add a second vehicle. So it felt unusual, but not bad in any way. And while I normally HATE rainy weather, with all the forest fires in Nova Scotia, it's the best possible forecast (it's still raining and it's supposed to keep raining all week).
The weather in Yosemite was not too hot, maybe 38 - 65 F (3 - 18 C), because I was up at about 8000 feet at times. I was actually surprised it was not colder, as I hiked in a similar area last year (more like 9000-10000 feet) and it was 17 F (-7 C) one night! However, the middle of the state gets VERY hot in the summer (and spring) and can sometimes be 115 degrees (46 C)! Where we were at Castle Crags is one of those places.
DeleteOooh...buying a used car! How is the process now? I know that it was a struggle over the last few years; has it gotten any better? Are the prices coming down at all? I hate fires and am glad it is nice and snowy still, as some years they have started in July. I am hoping that we can keep them down this year, since I think we have had enough big ones in the last few years to hold us for another 100 years or so! Actually in Yosemite there was a big section that burned either last year or the year before and they are doing a ton of cleanup this year.
Wowza! I have never been to Yosemite, but is it ever gorgeous! *adds to list of places to visit*
ReplyDeleteIt actually IS hot where I am, although a California girl might not think so. It's hot for us! Which isn't great because of the fires, but the smoke has abated so I'm enjoying the sunshine for now.
I think the smoke has abated because it drifted over to NYC. They are really in a huff about the air quality lately! I don't know if you have seen that on the news. We have offices there and I keep getting emails about staying inside!
DeleteYou definitely have to put Yosemite on your list and if you love the Canadian Rockies, you will really love the Sierra Nevadas; they are so beautiful!
the view is beautiful!!! it looks very cold though. I don't think I can camp there with that temperature. camping is something that I have yet to try with my family. it's not clear the girls will like it.
ReplyDeleteI have definitely had some cold nights while camping in that area, but this time it was above freezing (around 38 F) so it was not too bad. I think it is all about the gear; if you have the right gear, you can really do anything, but if you have bad gear, it can be really uncomfortable at times! However, that did not stop our family when I was kids and I remember sleeping three to a (two man) tent and freezing at night on some of our hiking trips! We complained; we complained A LOT, but here I am now, out doing the same thing, so something must have stuck!
DeleteGorgeous! Yosemite is one of my favourite places on earth. What an awesome camping adventure :-)
ReplyDeleteIt was very fun and I feel so glad to be so close to something so beautiful!
DeleteHow wonderful! I love that your parents are active hikers! I have not camped with my family yet- but did some camping before kids.
ReplyDeleteI got my love of hiking from my parents and am so glad that they ingrained it in me! I am also very happy and lucky that they are still fit enough to keep joining me year after year. I hope that does not go away any time soon!
DeleteYosemite is one of those bucket-list places for me - I love that it's a place you can go on a random weekend! And how nice to experience it with your parents. <3
ReplyDeleteIt really is beautiful! You can get a pretty cheap flight to SFO and can be in Yosemite less than four hours after that if the traffic is not too bad! I really recommend a visit, even if you just go for the day, but it is really a nice place to spend a few days if you have the time.
DeleteThis looks INCREDIBLE. No matter what I did for my weekend, it would pale by comparison. You really are lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the country. I know you can find beauty just about anywhere- we have the ocean- but there's just something about mountains. I've never been to Yosemite but I really want to go. Someday!
ReplyDeleteI agree that I do feel lucky to live near such a beautiful place; there are so many of them nearby and that is why it's so dang expensive to live here! I really do think that there are so many beautiful places around the world, but the Sierras do feel like home to me!
DeleteBeautiful images! I haven't been to Yosemite in a while and now I want to go :) I also love that you were able to get together for a hiking trip with your family! How special!
ReplyDeleteNow that they have removed the daily quota, you can just go for the day if you want. I actually kind of liked the quota, as it meant less busy when you were there, but for spontaneity, the non-reservation system is nice. I don't know if they are going to implicate it again in the summer or not this year though; I had heard rumors that they may do it during the more busy times.
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