Miles 6041-6130: Yosemite, Mist Trail, and Mariposa

7/25

Yesterday morning, we got up around 8:30, so we could get an early start for our hike. I packed up, ate, brushed teeth, and we got under way. We parked about a mile from the trail-head because the parking lot was full. We walked to the bottom of the trail and began our hike up the Mist Trail. The first part was paved and very steep for about 0.8 miles. It was a really crowded trail and there were some people there that definitely shouldn’t have been. They weren’t dressed for it, or wearing the right shoes, or just not physically able to do it. Once we got to the end of the first part (the footbridge over the Merced River underneath Vernal Falls), some people turned around, but it was still pretty crowded. It was still paved and pretty steep, but was a little easier. It was right along the river and some really good views downstream. Once we got in view of Vernal Falls, it became wet rock and stair climbing. It felt so good to get drenched with mist. It was the first time I had really sweat since probably our hike in Badlands. The stairs were fun, but there were so many people trying to get up to the falls and back down that I was glad Dad was behind Jackson in case he fell. Once we got to the top of Vernal Falls, it was a really pretty view of a different side of the valley than we had seen the day before. A mountain called Half Dome was on our right and it was huge, very awe-inspiring right there. We ate lunch a little way up from the falls next to the river. There were these huge ground squirrels that were very fat and bold; they had obviously been fed a lot previously. Mom made a good point: that we were in the squirrel’s habitat and it wasn’t their fault that they were bold from being fed, but I still shooed them away from all my food. We started the hike up to Nevada Falls. It was a lot less crowded; most people turned around at the top of Vernal Falls. It was a little harder, but not much. It wasn’t even that steep, just winding back and forth up the slope. Jackson had some trouble, but we made it all the way to the top with only a few breaks. It was probably my favorite hike so far because it had some amazing views and was pretty challenging with the elevation gain of around 2300 feet over 3.5 miles each way. It felt like a really big accomplishment, having basically just climbed a mountain. Overall, it was about 8 miles round trip. That makes a total of around 44 miles of hiking on this trip. When we got to the bottom, it started raining pretty hard. We ran into the village and took cover in a store. We met our grandparents in the village. We were going to visit Glacier Point (another high-up panoramic view) before we went back, but 1) it was raining and 2) Pampam and Grumpy had visited it while we were hiking. We hung out in a large eating area facility until the rain died down a little and then made a break for the car. It took us a little over an hour just to exit the park because everyone was trying to leave at once. At the house, the men grilled steaks on the porch while the rest of us played Monopoly. We ate the steaks with some baked potatoes and salad and then got in bed.