Sierra Backpacking Trip, 1994

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This hike was along the Northern most 60 miles of the John Muir Trail, from Devils Postpile National Monument to Yosemite Valley. We drove from Indiana, Dave drove from Phoenix, and we met within twenty minutes of each other in Tonopah, Nevada at the Best Western Motel where we had reservations. After a fun evening visiting and a good night's sleep, we left the next morning for California keeping in touch in our cars with our CB communications. Soon after entering California, we got on Highway 120, a scenic road through pine forests with lots of dips that made us squeal going over them....a fun road to drive.

We stayed two nights at Reds Meadow Lodge at 7500 feet to acclimate our bodies to the higher altitudes. It also gave us time to shuttle our car to Yosemite Valley for pick up at the end of the hike. It was our first true wilderness hike where there were bears so even though we were a little apprehensive we trusted our capable son, Dave, to know what to do. He planned for us to do the hike at a leisurely pace, taking 11 days to hike the 60 miles. The weather altered these plans slightly.

Reds Meadow Lodge.

This into a backpack?

Ready to go.

Our rustic cabin at Reds Meadow Lodge included a kitchen, bath, bedroom and a loft upstairs. After settling in we hiked about a mile or so to Devils Postpile mostly to stretch our legs. We came back, ate at the on-site cafe, and then spent the rest of the evening trying to decide how much or if everything would fit in our packs. Dave provided most of the stuff and he carried the heaviest load.

Finally the day came to start our hike. We got our permits and headed out. Since Dave is a strong hiker he went ahead, especially on the uphill climbs, and then waited for us at some scenic spot. We would soon tire going his pace and he would tire going our pace so this arrangement worked well. We hiked only 4½ miles the first day but gained almost 2000 ft. It doesn't sound like much but we were tired. It is beautiful country.

Beautiful scenery.

Banner Peak, elevation 12,945'.

End of the day.

Thousand Island Lake elevation 9834'.

Mt. Ritter and Banner Peak.

Love a campfire.

Filtering water.

Dinner.

We have to keep clean.

Dave's water filter didn't work for some reason so we improvised and strained our water through a clean handkerchief then added an iodine pill. We sure didn't want to get sick from contaminated water. There were several new experiences on this hike, getting our water from lakes and making it safe to drink, Dave hanging our food in trees away from bears, and we learned how to dig a hole for bathroom needs or happy moments we called them. We left no trace.

Doctor Wyant doctors his Dad.

11,056' Donahue Pass.

13,144' Mt. Lyell.

On the 6th day we had to abort the hike at Tuolemne Meadows because of snow. We were still 30 miles by trail, about 50 miles by road from Yosemite Valley and our car. The only help the store would give us was a piece of cardboard to write on for hitchhiking purposes. Dave stood at the road freezing and practically begging but no one stopped. Finally a young employee overheard us talking about our plight and offered to drive us in his van that was big enough for all of us and our gear. It was the best $50 we had spent for awhile. We got our car, drove back to Mammoth Lakes and stayed at a motel for two days until the weather cleared. We then returned to Tuolemne Meadows to finish the hike five days later.

He washed his socks They froze.

It was only 26 degrees when we got up.

Tuolemne Meadows Small store on Tioga Road.

Cathedral Peak in the distance.

Happy to be back on the trail We camped here.

Dave keeping our food from bears.

Dave and Ralph put huge boulders over this crevice to hide food.

Half Dome A popular climbing rock.

Yosemite Valley finish Happy but tired.

We said our sad goodbyes here at Mono Lake.