Smith Peak, Yosemite: Fire Scars, Bears & Vistas
I never hiked the Smith Peak trail before the fire, but right now it is a heck of an adventure! I solo hiked this 14-ish mile day hike starting early last Friday morning, rolling into the Hetch Hetchy gate around 7:30 am. I had completely forgotten that the Hetch Hetchy entrance has shorter ‘open hours’ (unlike the other entrances to Yosemite), it was good I didn’t start too much earlier. At the entrance station…
Tueeulala Fall – Hetch Hetchy Valley’s Bridal Veil
Have you heard about the rock slide that happened in the beginning of this month in Hetch Hetchy? It is blocking the trail just past the Wapama Falls footbridges – meaning it shouldn’t affect day hikers too much, unless your game plan was to power hike to Rancheria Falls. Seriously, don’t let this deter you from enjoying Hetch Hetchy’s first two waterfalls, Tueeulala and Wapama falls, this spring. I was hiking in…
Hite Cove: California Wildflowers with a Side of Ruins
Guess what season it is? … California Poppy Season! Last weekend’s arrival of California’s poppies swept aside any previous hiking plans (Sorry Little Nellie Falls, check you latter) and instead filled my head with visions of hiking in sandals through fields tinged with orange. And not just any trail would do – this year I was going to get to Hite Cove, damn it! Hite Cove Distance: 9-ish mile out…
Foresta Falls & McCauley Ranch on Yosemite’s West Side
This low snow winter has had me creating some more creative hiking endeavors: Mariposa’s Williams Peak, the”Secret” Sierra Point, and now Yosemite’s more “Elusive” waterfall – Foresta Falls. It is a nice short little hike, but with lots of room to explore around the old McCauley Ranch and enjoy some sunshine. Actually come to think of it – it was pretty much the opposite of Sierra Point. At Foresta we hiked…
Secret Yosemite: Sierra Point
Alright, I will admit Sierra Point is apparently not a secret. We saw a dozen other people while on the “Trail” this Sunday… way more then I ever see hiking to Mt Watkins (one of my favorite off trail hikes in the park). My theory: because of the dry winter people are taking to many valley hikes that when they would otherwise be skiing if there was snow, or hiking…
Yosemite During the Dry Winter & Hiking the 4 Mile Trail
The news for the last month has been inundated with tales of polar vortexes, snow closing down highways in Atlanta, and snow days for kids and adults alike… on the east coast. Here on the west coast we are in the middle of in the middle of a critically dry winter, meaning an alarming low amount of snow pack in the high country, lowering reservoirs, and (from my point of…
Private Autumn Exploration of Lyell Canyon
I headed up Tioga pass a week and half ago hoping to find some snow and frozen winter scenery – which was pretty silly considering how many dry days in a row we had had prior. But today, after a brush of windy wet weather, Tioga Rd is currently closed. I guess that makes this trip to Lyell canyon perhaps my last trip out of the high country for 2013?…
Backpacking Ediza, Iceberg, and Rosalie Lake in Ansel Adams Wilderness
Another #ThrowbackThursday blog post here, this one documenting a backpacking trip I did with a few of our friends (Tom, Johanna, Pete, and of course Curtis) back in 2011. It was a two night backpack into the Ansel Adams wilderness, my first time traveling in from the Agnew Meadows Trailhead. This was the last trip with my tiny little “first” backpack, a pack that could only fit a bear canister…
Half Dome Backpacking: Yes, the Cables are down now. Meaning it is the perfect time to start planning!
There are so many hikes I have been on that I have not blogged about. These are, of course, accompanied by so many excuses: Because of the timing (summer is busy), because the lack of good pictures (you might see that in this post), or simply because back in the day I did not have the inkling to blog about my hiking trips (I am looking at you, Denise the…
Hello! I am a 30-something outdoors-lady, backpacker, and resident of Groveland, California - 
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