Tualumne Meadows

Getting There
Hitch hiking up to Tualumne Meadows was pretty fun. I started out at 9:00 this time with no complications. I met a guy at my apartment complex who was going to the Valley so I hitched a ride with him. I got off at the 120/140 junction and waited at the beginning of 120 for someone to pick me up. Pretty much anyone heading up 120 would be going somewhere around Tualumne.

After about 5 minutes of waiting, an extremely nice couple from Denmark picked me up. Their names were Nana and Ulrik. It was really nice talking to them and getting to know the culture of their country. Ulrik was a biology major and Nana was an actress. We got so caught up in talking that we missed our turn by 9 miles! I got their email so that if I ever travel to Denmark I can meet up with them, which I'd love to do after all they told me. They fed me very well and gave me plenty of hydration while we were in the car. Even though I'd already eaten a breakfast of 2 pieces of toast, 2 eggs, 4 pieces of bacon, a bowl of cereal, and 1 banana; I ate everything I could because I knew I would be hungry later. They dropped me off at May Lake where their destination was. This was about 30 minutes outside of Tualumne Meadows where I wanted to go. In talking with them I had informed them about my lost wallet (which is a story that will be in another blog post shortly). When we said our goodbyes they tried giving me $40 for food. I was amazed at such a courteous gesture. It was very tempting, given I had been saving my only money of 1 dollar and 7 cents for 3 days. However, mom and dad raised me better than to take such money. I sincerely thanked them for the ride and headed on my way.

A 26 year old named Matt picked me up 20 minutes later. He was a history teacher for a school in Tahoe. I was in the car with him when I got my first glimpse of Tualumne Meadows. I knew right away it was Tualumne because of how beautiful it was. Matt dropped me off at the Wilderness Center and we wished one another the best in life. While I was getting my wilderness permit I saw a Western Tanager, a rare and tropical looking bird in the Sierra's. I suppose such a spotting could only bring me good luck before my trip, ey?

The Trail
The first day brought me 7 miles and 1,500 feet high into Tualumne. The path ran along the Rafferty Creek for 3 miles and intersected the most amazing meadows I have ever seen. Due to my late start I only saw a few people in the 3-4 hours that I hiked. I liked this. It connected me with the same thoughts and understandings any hiker appreciates on their seemingly timeless journeys. People don't walk these miles for nothin.

I snapped out of this quickly when my, “beautiful woman sensor,” set off. She passed on the trail that winded through the meadow I was playing in. I found myself putting my pack back on, only because I hadn't talked to anyone in a few hours. The 200 yard gap was closed within minutes and I met Carry. She was an attractive girl in her mid-twenties from Ohio. She worked at the Vogelsang High Sierra camp with 10 other DNC employees. We hiked the remaining 2 miles together until we arrived. By now she had a black mosquito net over her head that made her look funny. It wasn't long before I realized why.

I have never seen mosquito's like the ones there at Vogelsang. If you had any desire to survive it was beyond necessary to cover yourself (including clothes) with bug spray. Even with such precautions, the lil bitchez still swarmed and terrorized innocent humans. My arms had so much bug spray on them that they died immediately after touching my skin. I'm sure it wasn't good for me but it was better than being their dinner for the night.

I set up camp next to a father and his son named Jason. Jason was just entering his first year of college and seemed to be just as excited as I was back then. Even though I had already eaten dinner and part of my next day's food, I was still hungry. I regretted bringing the 3 beers instead of food. Luckily Jason and his father cooked enough for 3 and were happy to trade. The beverages and food were split amongst our friendly utopia and we shared our stories with the sun set. I hung out with Carry and her friends afterwards and experienced the DNC high country life. I fell asleep before 8:00.

It was an amazing slumber. Without the fly on the tent, my intermittent wakings were accompanied by the most incredible view of the stars I've ever seen. It made me wonder how anyone could make out any constellations with such a view of cosmos. Within the few minutes I was awake all night, I saw two shooting stars.

Hiking Back
I woke before the sun at 5am. I felt completely at peace with my surroundings and ready for the day ahead. By 6:00 I was on the trails and experiencing a sun set that remains vivid in my head. Watching the world come alive, minute by minute, is a perfect way to start any day.

The trail I planned on taking did not exist once I got to the trail intersection. I didn't want to hike the same trail again, so I did my first back country topo-mapping. I never thought reading topographic maps in High School Earth Science would be useful. At this point in my life, it became very useful. Relying on the sun, it looked like the trail I wanted to reach was right over the mountain I currently faced. Three quarters of a mile later I found I was correct. My first topo-mapping experience went well. I took out my notebook and on the list of things I needed I wrote, “Compass.”

The path took me a few hundred yards before I reached the most memorable point of the trip. A scene so beautiful it made me truly laugh, wondering if what I was experiencing really existed. I yelled as loud as I could and stood there in the middle of the Sierra Mountains.

A few miles later I rounded a corner and a hiker was crouched down with his pack on. We greeted each other with a scream of fright, for we both didn't expect to see another human. He was building a snowman in the permafrost as a sacrifice to the gods (he had just gotten a cold before his week long backpacking trip he had planned for months). After we finished the sacrifice we headed our opposite ways. I didn't see another human soul for 6 miles.

The John Muir Trail is a very popular trail here. It stretches 211 miles through Yosemite, providing a taste of everything I imagine. The last 7 miles of my trip were all spent on this trail. The section I hiked on was in the Lyell Canyon and always close to the Lyell Creek (although it looked more like a river).

My overall path looked like a D. I went approximately 7 miles down into Vogelsang the first day. The second day I made the half circle around and hit the John Muir trail, covering 13 miles (20-21 miles in total). When I reached the wilderness center again I wandered around our society like I always do when I come back from a hike: astonished at how strange our species and culture is. I started to pity the people around me who never experience even one night like mine in the wilderness. It's so intriguing, I already wanted to wander back into my natural origins.

I hitch hiked back to El Portal. I waited 30 minutes with my thumb out. The time was all worth it once my ride finally picked me up. It turned out they lived right next door to me. They squished me into their station wagon that already had 4 people in it. Good for both me and them, I sat in the front seat. I think I smelt bad.



See the pictures (in order from start to finish) here