Yosemite National Park Pt. 3

I got up around the same time as the day before. I made some breakfast and got ready for the Vernal and Nevada Falls hike. The trailhead wasn't too far from my campsite, so I left my van parked and walked over. It was another beautiful clear day and I was excited for another day of hiking. I started at a busy time of the day but it didn't bother me too much. I was a little bit more aggressive with my initiations to pass people and that worked. This hike also had many switchbacks but it also had its moments of downhill and flat trail. At one point I could see Yosemite Falls way in the distance and thought it was cool to be hiking the other side of the valley.

Although I woke up with slightly sore calves, I was doing well during this hike. I drank more water and once I hit Clark Point I had a snack. From this Point, I could see both Vernal and Nevada falls, which had the same river flowing down them. There were a few trail closures so instead of continuing on the John Muir Trail, which I had taken to get to the Point, I did the little detour towards the top of Vernal Falls. I got to walk along the rapid river and be right at the top of the hurried falls. I got to see it from a bit of a distance on the Mist Trail, which was closed, but if you walked just a little ways up it you could see Vernal Falls. I then moved on and went through really nice forest getting closer to Nevada Falls. I had run into a few familiar faces on this trail that I had seen or talked with on my Yosemite Falls hike the day before. Which reminds me that I was also camping a few sites down from a couple I recognized from Death Valley National Park, so that was cool too. I actually recognized their dog and then realized it was them!

After I hauled myself up some rocky switchbacks, I made it to the top of Nevada Falls. I sat on a slab of rock near the top of the falls and had a little lunch. I felt something hit my back and it was a squirrel. There were two that were pestering a few people, me included, for some food. I shooed them away and sat for a while.

I got up and looked closer at the falls and went over to the area that had a railing. It was quite the view overlooking the falling water that crashed onto ice-covered rocks. I asked a lady to take my picture and she asked if I was a climber since I wasn't afraid to go all the way up to the railing. I told her no, though a little flattered she thought I was that cool, and talked with her for a bit about the best trail to take down. I ended up trying the John Muir Trail all the way down instead of the route I took up. It was much more icy and wet but the view of the valley was really nice. I hit a spot that people had warned me about where lots of snowmelt was trickling down icicles and the side of the mountain. It flooded and made part of the walkway very wet and icy. After some careful steps and some clinging to the rock wall, I made it out with a couple of wet boots and cold hands. There were a couple more icy spots but luckily I didn't slip. It was cool to walk the higher trail along the small canyon the whole way back down. It gave me a different view of Nevada Falls and the peaks that towered that side of the river.

My pace was pretty quick coming down today too. I wasn't stuck behind too many people and before I knew it I hit Clark Point again and then all the way down to the footbridge. The footbridge area was pretty populated and at that point I was ready to get back to the campground to use the bathroom and eat something. I found my way back to my van and had a little snack. My hike ended up being 8.9 miles with over 2,700 ft in elevation gain, so a pretty good hike.

It was only around 3:30 pm, so I decided to take my snack to go and walk towards Mirror Lake from the opposite direction as I had a few days ago. It was nice to take a little stroll but I barely reached the trailhead for Mirror lake before being ready to head back. My legs were a little spent and I was feeling tired. When I got back I read a little bit and cleaned up. I had some chores that I for some reason saved until after my hike to do, like switching out my empty water jug for a full one, cleaning some dishes and putting some away. After that I found the energy to cook a bit of an elaborate meal, a taco salad type thing. I ate dinner while sitting on my doorstep enjoying the dimming sky. I had a couple glasses of wine with dinner to celebrate hiking around 25 miles in the last 3 days. Once the sky turned off I climbed back inside and watched a show before going to sleep.