We wanted to get an early start on our last full day in
Yosemite because its generally cooler in the morning, so we woke up early and stuffed
the backpacks with water, food, and goodies before leaving Wawona around 8. We
arrived at the valley floor around 9, parked, and hopped on the shuttle to take
us to Mirror Lake.
Now, for me, the ambience of going to Mirror Lake is #1 it's
a lake, #2 you see the reflection of Half Dome in the water. We were dropped
off at the stop and decided to take the dirt foot path up the 1 mile hike.
Mules also use the dirt path so my 6-year-old was totally grossed out. Mind
you, at 6, boys have a bad habit of being a little gross themselves…
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| Mirror Lake |
When we arrived, we discovered a trickle of a lake. The area
was becoming "reclaimed," and in the process of becoming a stream.
The boys took off their shoes and walked through the water, having a blast.
Eventually, my husband and I crossed over. Down by the dam, plenty of people
were out sunning and playing in the water. We found some shade and pulled out
our lunches. A squirrel found us and watched us through narrow, intense eyes. I
don't know if he expected a crumb or two, but the rangers told us not to feed
the wild life so we didn't.
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| Hiking back from Mirror Lake |
We hiked back on the road and made our way back to Yosemite
Village. I raised my hand and Ranger Elsa signed me in as a Jr. Ranger. Heck, I
figured if Andrew could do it, so could I.
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| I'm a Jr. Ranger! |
When we returned to the valley floor, we headed over to Yosemite Falls. The hike was about 3/4 miles and pretty flat - easy for Joe to do. The falls is rather high up, but this time of the year, in Summer, it's a bit of a trickle. A lot of people were down at the base of the falls so it was kind of crowded. My husband got some great black and white shots.
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| Lower Yosemite Falls |
Then it was time for the most important adventure of the
trip – Souvenir Hunting! We hit up the big store in the village. It had
everything – food, beer, postcards, and clothes. I found a comfy burgundy
sweatshirt to wear and Andrew found a happy face bottle that said 'Yosemite.'
Joe got a red Yosemite baseball cap.
Our backpacks now stuffed to the max with souvenirs, we
drove back to Wawona and fixed up tacos for dinner. Andrew and I went to
Campfire with a Ranger. Our ranger played a little guitar for us. We sang "This
land is Our Land" and even learned what a raven sounds like.
When Saturday morning rolled around it was time to go. My air
mattress was practically flat after five days! We cooked up breakfast with
bacon and camp toast and everyone chipped in to tear down our campsite. The
journey home back to Castaic took about 3 ½ hours.
There are things I wish I could have done like go to Glacier
Point and look at the stars. I love astronomy and the skies are so clear up in
Yosemite, it was music to my soul. I wish I could have seen the blacksmith in
Wawona and a couple more waterfalls. I can honestly say I'm looking forward to
going back this October to see what the park looks like in the fall.
The best part of Yosemite was just spending time with my
family, learning about the park, and sharing my love of the outdoors with my
boys. Oh, and it's features, the valleys, rivers, and granite reminded me of
growing up in New Hampshire.
How many of you have visited Yosemite? What's your "take
away?" For those who haven't been, what time of the year would you want to
go and why?
Thanks for hiking with me.
Smiles
Steph
