Mountain Quest: Yosemite Day 2

On Halloween morning Jason & I woke up at a decent hour, had a great breakfast that was included with the tent rental (scrambled eggs, a bottomless cup of coffee, sliced peaches, a small blueberry muffin, and all the bacon I could eat!), packed up the car, and headed further into the park. Jason wanted us to climb to Glacier Point, but the road had been closed yesterday, and was not reopened today, due to snow and ice. The scenery on the drive up there was amazing though (we stopped to take some pretty majestic shots of various morning mountain vistas), and the place we settled on, Mariposa Grove was just as interesting. It was a steady hike up through a forest of giant sequoia trees, both fallen and soaring up majestically into the crystal blue sky. They are humongous! We saw all of the 'key' sights (the California Tunnel Tree, Grizzly Giant, etc...), and at the point we decided to head back down, we ran into a trio of deer. The air smelled amazing (sequoias and redwoods have a heady scent unlike anything here back east), the wildlife enchanted, and the second day of climbing in the thin air went so much smoother than I expected, it was a perfect day. I'm not sure how much elevation we attained, but it was a steep and steady climb upward for an hour, and it took us about 30 minutes to get back down to the parking lot. It was a weekend well-spent with my brother out in the wild!

Mountain Quest: Yosemite Day 1

On Saturday morning my brother Jason & I drove the 3+ hours from his home to Yosemite National Park to spend a weekend climbing and hiking through the peaks of the Sierra Nevada. On the way to our lodging we made a quick stop to check out Bridalveil Fall, one of the smaller falls we would see today. Very cool. It was a cloudy day, but once we checked in (a few hours early - score!), we headed out to the trail head parking, and set off on our first climb. After about an hour of ascending a reasonably inclined (and oddly, paved) trail, and then a steep staircase carved into the mountainside, we reached Vernal Fall (elevation 5044 feet). The sky had cleared, but the mist from the waterfall cast a greyish (yet beautiful) curtain over everything in its vicinity. And due to the steady spray I had to swap out my jacket for my brother's spare raincoat! We took a few photos and then trudged up another chunk of the steep steps, but after checking the time, we decided to turn around about 150 feet shy of the top of Nevada Fall, rather than attempt the extremely dangerous descent in the dark. What amazing scenery, fresh air, vistas and scents unlike those found in New England's forests. And while it was beautiful, and an extremely fun day, I don't feel very comfortable with so many millions of tons of rock looming overhead on all sides. The total distance we traveled was about 4¾ miles, and we went nearly 1,850 feet vertically. It was a visual feast, a fantastic workout, and most definitely (and importantly), time well-spent with my youngest brother.

Once we were back at the tent cabin (wooden platform, canvas shelter with a heater, three cots, one outlet and one overhead light) there wasn't much else to do but find a place to hang out for awhile. We headed over to the Mountain Room Lounge, and finding the inside packed with Giants fans watching their team lose Game 3 of the World Series, we decided to hang out at one of the outside tables 'til the place cleared out a bit. Jason had a serviceable Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, and per usual, I decided to try a local beer. I opted for the Mammoth Brewing Company's Epic IPA. What a beer! Extremely fragrant, nice and hoppy, and it went down smooth. Over the course of the evening I enjoyed four more of this delicious brew, but for my second beer I decided to try Mammoth's Double Nut Brown. It had a definite chocolate taste to it, and even a coffee-ish tang. It was very good, though not quite as palatable as Wachusett's Nut Brown Ale. I am glad I got the chance to try it, but I returned to the IPA on the next round. We had dinner once we got a table inside, and hung out for a few hours watching random sports on one of the tvs, listening to the local band that set up right after the game ended, and enjoyed the friendly service of Maria, our gorgeous waitress from Belarus. I was so smitten I didn't find out 'til my bro and I got back to the cabin that she had a wedding ring on (haha). Picture a tall blue-eyed Jessica Biel type, with a superhot accent and winning smile, and you will have some idea of how nice that part of the evening was. What a perfect day.

Mountain Quest: Barrett Mountain

I drove up to New Ipswich, NH earlier today to climb Barrett Mountain by way of the Wapack Trail going up the Windblown Cross-Country Ski Area. It took 55 minutes to make it to the top, and 45 minutes to complete my descent.

It was a mostly sunny day, and relatively humid. The hike started off so easy (and with a barely noticeable incline for a good stretch), that I was rather disappointed. But as it went on, the steady increase in the degree of incline began to affect me. The worst thing about the climb though was the surface. There was barely any rock for footing! It was mostly spongy moss and grass overgrowing loose stones. I felt like I was climbing a hill of wet sand most of the time, and traction was frequently treacherous. Plus it was muddy. However, the air smelled fantastic, which always puts me in a great mood. The evergreens were giving off that Christmas wreath scent, and the damp leaves, ever-present moss, and running streams & small ponds added their bouquets to the air as well. It felt great to be outdoors, and it was another fortunate climb where there were no other humans in sight all day.

I hiked steadily to the top of the ski area, and then pushed on for another quarter mile to the top of the mountain (1835 feet above sea level, and just over two miles traveled in each direction), but there was no scenic vista (nor was there a marker at the top) once I achieved the summit. What a disappointment! No view, no official confirmation of conquest - what a ripoff! Oh well, it was still an amazing hike, a great way to get exercise, the drives there and back were full of New England autumn foliage, and hey, it was 72 degrees on October 26th. So all complaining aside, it was a worthy way to spend a few hours.

On the way down I ate my traditional apple, and listened to Joy Zipper's "American Whip" album on my iPod. They sound like a cross between Lush and early Pale Saints. A nice dreamy accompaniment to an arduous trek. Toward the bottom of the mountain there were a ton of blue jays - they were an amusing burst of color and noise to signal the end of today's adventure. Next up: Yosemite National Park!