Hiking Yosemite National Park

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Yosemite National Park is as grand as everyone says!  I was fortunate to hike about 14 (long and rugged) miles of it one day back in 2006 while traveling solo for a week through California!  That’s me…looking small beside the towering pine trees!

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The terrain was quite varied…ranging from gently sloping fields to arduous and steep inclines.

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I think the only trail I didn’t hike that day was the famous Half Dome…pictured here in the background!

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I was traveling by Amtrak trains and buses throughout California and met this lady…Claire–from the UK…on a bus heading into Yosemite from Napa Valley.  After getting to know each other a bit, she told me of her plan to stay in a Youth Hostel about 45 minutes from Yosemite.  I had booked a room for two evenings at the Yosemite Lodge at the Falls…so I invited her to share the room.   It was nice to have someone to hike with and her British accent and “little sayings” were so fun!  Although I was old enough to be her mother (barely), we got along well!

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I was there in September and the weather was glorious!  Chilly–crisp mornings warming enough during the day to make the hiking perfect and the sunshine was dazzling!  The only downside to visiting Yosemite in the fall is the probability of the falls being dried up.

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I was so sore (my back) when we finished hiking (it took us 9 hours with just a few breaks) that I took a hot bath when we returned to the room to soak the pain away!

The following day we took a 14 mile bicycle ride and came across this lovely little chapel.  I love the way the sun lit the tree up behind it!

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I checked Yosemite National Park off of my bucket list!  If it’s not on yours…it should be!

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58 thoughts on “Hiking Yosemite National Park”

  1. Pingback: Hiking the Colorado Trail | Fabulous 50's

  2. Pingback: Hiking Olympic National Park, Washington | Fabulous 50's

  11. If there’s 1 thing other than getting my novel published before I die, it’s to visit Yosemite. A friend of mine visited the park a few years ago & took more than 300 pix. Just looking at them made me realize how spectacular the place is! Thanks again for sharing.

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  12. Yoselite is one of my favorite places too! My first visit there was in the fall and those colors are so vivid. But every season has its own flair. I have a visit on my list–another return trip. My post on Yosemite was the one of mine that was freshly pressed a bit ago. http://learnmoreeveryday.wordpress.com/2011/05/20/the-grandeur-of-yosemite/ Thanks for bringing up good memories, for your glorious pictures–and for making me envious as I am not in shape enough to do the hikes you do.

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  21. I was there for one brief day in April, and they had had more water than usual so got to see all the waterfalls at full blast which was great, but I definitely want to go back in the Fall. What beautiful colors!

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  23. Interesting your post. It is always good to follow your steps, a great road traveled. Congratulations.
    The writer Rumi wrote: You are what you are looking for. Traveling – that’s desirable.
    Cruz

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