Yosemite: Too Big for Two Days

After a night of recovery in Sacramento (we desperately needed showers and a night in a bed), we drove into Yosemite. I thought Yosemite would be "just another forest." Boy was I wrong! Yosemite is this amazing national park filled with granite mountains, giant trees, lovely meadows, and crystal clear streams. It's also a huge park that we underestimated. I think it would take two days just to get yourself oriented. We should have planned two weeks in Yosemite, rather than two days.

Given our time constraint, we only saw a small percentage of the park. Chris and I hiked 13 miles from the bottom of Yosemite Valley to the top of Sentinel Dome and then back.

I chose our particular hike over the famed Half Dome hike because I thought it would be less demanding. I was wrong. We climbed over 4,000 miles and then hiked back down those same 4,000 miles during our hike. Half Dome is about the same elevation change but more gradual. Needless to say, our legs were extremely sore for the next couple of days - so sore that simple tasks like getting out of the car became a challenge.

The first night in Yosemite we camped in the valley. During the night we heard a loud rock slide. It sounded like thunder that was right on top of you. The second night in Yosemite we camped in Tamarak Flat, which is North of Yosemite Valley. The campsite was much more primitive and secluded, which was fitting for the last night of camping on our trip.

Driving out of Yosemite we saw the lovely meadows and ponds the park has to offer. I suppose we'll have to plan another trip to explore them.