Part Seven: Hiking My Feelings in the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne - Yosemite National Park
PART SEVEN // Aggressive Hikers
I used to say "I slept like a baby" when I'd get a great night's sleep. This is probably indicator #1 that I'm childfree by choice. Rumor has it, babies don't sleep very well. 🤷🏼♀️
Turns out, I sleep like a hibernating bear on the trail. Good news for my goal of hiking some of the longer trails around the US.
After some deeply restorative rest and a delicious breakfast, we started hiking toward Tuolumne Peak. To get there, we'd be going through Glen Aulin.
Word on the trail? Glen Aulin = 🐻.
This was another monster day - 11.2 miles and 3,343 feet of elevation gain. After the hell we put ourselves through the day prior, we agreed we would take as many breaks as we needed.
Our first break came after a couple miles that morning. I was squeezing a peanut butter packet into my mouth when I saw it: a bear cub hopping on rocks to cross the river. The second picture and video shows the scenery, but I didn't get footage of the bear. I wiggled with delight when I saw it and shout-whispered to the guys:
"THIS IS GONNA BE A GREAT DAY!"
And it was.
We stopped in Glen Aulin and KBong shared some of his Amazing Grass energy blend. This green juice was next level energy, and not the anxiety-inducing kind. I felt like I had rockets for legs, amping me up for the steep climbs that would take us to our campsite. Total game changer. Bonus: no added sugar! A win for managing Type 2 Diabetes on the trail.
We stopped at Tuolumne Falls, then filled up at a lake, possibly our last water source for 15 miles. Passing through the forest to Tuolumne Peak, we came across some locals with only fanny packs and poles. After sharing about our route so far, one of them said, "that's some aggressive hiking you're doing."
And with that, the tag line for our trip was born.
Confidence restored, we discussed skipping this campsite and pressing on toward Ten Lakes. We did about 539 switchbacks (best guess) through the forest, came over the ridge, and there it was.
I thought I'd be disappointed after sleeping at Waterwheel, I mean how could you top that?
This was epic. Great views and total silence.
What else is possible?!
Part 8 tomorrow!