National Parks Loop Day 9 (June 20, 2010)

I actually slept until almost 8:30 this morning. A little noisy early but forced myself through the sound of other campers headed back to civilization. I hooked up with Phil & Jess as they were deciding what to do for the day. They decided to leave after they broke down their camp as they had a long drive ahead of them. I hated to see them go, but I was glad for the time we were able to spend together this weekend. And I understood the need to get on the road early. So, a quick hug and they were on their way. I decided to treat myself with a breakfast buffet at the lodge next door. It was actually very good. After breakfast, I balanced my checkbook (oh what fun!) and realized I was doing okay with money.

I wanted to spend at least part of the day at Hetch Hetchy. I have read a good bit written by John Muir and knew that I needed to visit this area. In case you don't know the history, Hetch Hetchy is an area just north of Yosemite Valley that some felt rivaled the beauty of the Valley itself. In 1906, after a major earthquake, San Francisco applied to the United States Department of the Interior to gain water rights to Hetch Hetchy. This provoked a seven-year environmental struggle with the environmental group Sierra Club, led by John Muir. Muir wrote:

That anyone would try to destroy [Hetch Hetchy Valley] seems; incredible; but sad experience shows that there are people good enough and bad enough for anything. The proponents of the dam scheme bring forward a lot of bad arguments to prove that the only righteous thing to do with the people’s parks is to destroy them bit by bit as they are able. Their arguments are curiously like those of the devil, devised for the destruction of the first garden. . . .

These temple destroyers, devotees of ravaging commercialism, seem to have a perfect contempt for Nature, and, instead of lifting their eyes to the God of the mountains, lift them to the Almighty Dollar.

Dam Hetch Hetchy! As well dam for water-tanks the people’s cathedrals and churches, for no holier temple has ever been consecrated by the heart of man.

Obviously, the efforts of Muir and many others were ignored and the Hetch Hetchy Valley became a reservoir that exists to this day. It was a very beautiful area. The elevation is lower than Yosemite, so you see a much different landscape with manzanita, wildflowers and more. Hetch Hetchy receives a fraction of the visitors that flock to Yosemite, so it's a great area to explore and enjoy an environment absent of the sound of cars, buses and their associated odors. I took some time to cross over the dam, walk through the tunnel and do a little exploring on the neighboring trails.

As I left the reservoir after my hike, I saw a blond, black bear cub on the side of the road dining among the grasses and flowers. I watched for a while but never saw the Momma. Not knowing where she was made me a little nervous. At one point, I was outside the car taking a few pictures of the cub when someone parked in front of me thought they saw the Momma. I quickly got back in the car, but she never appeared. After about 10 minutes, the cub decided he had enough of the spotlight, and climbed the hill on the side of the road and back to the privacy of the scrub. It was very cool to see him and be able to take some fairly close pictures without disturbing him.

I stopped in a shaded area just outside Hetch Hetchy and had my own lunch. Luckily it was not comprised of grasses and flowers like my bear cub friend's meal. It was nice to sit and listen to the wind through the pines after lunch and enjoy a relaxing moment.

Following lunch, I found myself back in Yosemite Valley. After negotiating the multitude of other vehicles on the Valley Loop road, I headed up towards the Tunnel View area on the road to Glacier Point. It offers a tremendous view of the valley including El Capitan on the left, Bridevail Falls on the right and Half Dome standing majestically in the distance. I sat at the viewpoint for about an hour watching the Valley change as the sun got lower in the West and shadow overtook the Valley floor. I noticed the moon to my right at about 45 degrees off the horizon and it was almost perfectly situated above a waterfall pouring over a nearby cliff. I took tons of pictures of the waterfall and moon with both the digital and the film camera. As the Valley gave up the last remnants of sunlight, I headed back towards my campsite.

Back at camp, I found it even more crowded than it had been Friday or Saturday. On one side of my site was a couple in a camper that were very quiet and kept to themselves. The other side found a fairly active gathering of a group living in the San Jose area. There were at least three generations if not four amidst the group. As I started to write in my journal, a gentleman came over from the family gathering and introduced himself as "Paul". This was a nice change from me introducing myself first. We talked a bit as everyone was preparing dinner in their camp. I told him of my adventures so far on this trip and he said he does alot of solo camping on longer trips himself. He makes trips in his van and has been through every state except Hawaii. As I sat back down to resume my writing, Paul told me he and his wife put a piece of chicken on the grill for me. I had not planned to eat again tonight, but they insisted and it smelled damned good. So, I wound up with a piece of BBQ chicken and a side of potato salad. Paul's wife would not let me sit back down with anything less. It was delicious and I appreciated their kindness and inclusion. I took my camera over and told Paul's wife that as payment for dinner, I wanted to share my pictures of the bear cub from Hetch Hetchy. She loved the pictures and wound up carrying my camera around the circle of people surrounding the campfire to share them with her family.

After a wonderfully unexpected dinner, I finally sat to finish my journal entry. I will probably head over to see my bartender friend (Dean) and his magical Black Russian ambrosia before bed. The family reunion next to me is planning to send a few people very early in the morning into the Park in order to tackle the Half Dome hike. I wish them luck as that appears to be one helluva tough hike, as beautiful as it seems. I'm hoping to be up and on the road no later than 8am headed towards Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. It will probably take about 4 - 5 hours to get to Kings/Sequoia and I want to get there early enough to be able to explore the area. My goal today was to enjoy the day and not get down about Phil and Jess leaving. I did well with that goal. I made the most of the day and was happy to have had the chance to do Yosemite with them. It was also nice to find a friendly group next to me when I got back to camp tonight.

I'm halfway through my trip. Nine days down and eight waiting before me. After Kings/Sequoia, I head down out of the mountains and greenery to the heat of the desert. It will be quite a transition and I hope it won't be too hot to enjoy the rest of the adventure. Regardless, I plan to enjoy each day of the trip to the fullest.

Good night