If you are up to a good workout to a land that escaped the glaciers, Dana Plateau is a good one. And if you go now, you will see beautiful columbine blooms which are at their prime in the bouldery wash as you hike up there. Those columbines don’t stick around very long though. And you just might get a ...
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Adventures with Candace: Hiking Up Yosemite’s Mono Pass Trail
I love hiking Yosemite’s Mono Pass Trail, a historic Native American trail and there are also many lakes along and off this trail. Some lakes have names such as Sardine, Spillway, Helen, Kuna, Bingaman and Parker Pass Lakes and many aren’t named. I brought my fishing pole with me. . . just in case. Where: Yosemite National ParkDistance: About 9 ...
Read More »Hiking From Tioga Pass to Gaylor Lakes, Dana City and Gaylor Peak
I hiked alone but I wasn’t by myself. I walked in the footprints of miners dreaming of hitting a huge ledge of silver, building a town in the Tioga Pass area at 10,760′ elevation to support their mining operations but that town was only there for about 4 years. Oh, and that part about not being by myself? Besides the ...
Read More »Adventures with Candace: Hiking to Helen and Spillway Lakes
When those views of Mono Pass, Parker Pass and Kuna Crest are streaked with snow, they contrast so beautifully with those multi-colored mountains. This is one of those hikes that I love to do soon after Tioga Road reopens for the year and those white puffy clouds always liven up the scenery, even if they threaten a bit of the ...
Read More »Walking up a Dirt Road: Westfall Picnic Area up Miami Mtn Road
Long before YARTS existed, daily automobile shuttles ran from Madera to Wawona on the road we call Miami Mountain Road today. Before that, it was an old stage route and I had been walking up parts of it the past few months. This time I visited the locations where some of the people that I had written about died and ...
Read More »First Day Tioga Road Reopened: Heading Across With Fannie and Sally, Hiking From Saddlebag To Lake Greenstone Lake
I loaded up my dogs, Sally and Fannie, and drove across Tioga Road the very minute it reopened this year. Like visiting old friends, I made several stops along the way to admire the views, then we all were rewarded with a hike from Saddlebag Lake to Greenstone Lake with incredible views of snow streaked high mountains surrounding the lakes. ...
Read More »First Day Yosemite Reopened: Hiking From Glacier Point to Illilouette and Nevada Falls
It was the first day that Yosemite National Park had reopened after the COVID-19 shutdown, a new Day Use Entry system was in place and I was determined to cross through the gate as soon as I could to check out the waterfalls. My adventures always have a surprise or two and this one delivered some.Where: Yosemite National ParkDistance: 10.92 ...
Read More »Adventures with Candace: Hiking with Fannie at Nelder Grove
I told my puppy Fannie the Corgi all about a special place called Nelder Grove and how it wouldn’t be a long drive or hike. I tried to explain to her just how huge the Giant Sequoias were. I don’t think she totally grasped the concept but she said let’s do it!Where: Sierra National Forest, Nelder GroveDistance: 2.31 miles, but ...
Read More »Walking up a Dirt Road: Worman’s Mill Loop Along Sunny and O’Neals Meadows
Walking up historic wagon roads near my house on a cool day after a rain was a party for my senses, full of fresh smells of the forest and flowers. Dogwoods were blooming like crazy and those animal tracks were easy to spot while the gnats and skeeters slept in. Distance: 10.62 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: ...
Read More »Walking up a Dirt Road: Worman’s Mill to Cedarbrook, Up and Around O’Neal’s Meadow Loop
Adventuring close to home, I walked the same dirt roads, followed different spur roads, giving me a looped walk along a historic stage route that carried Yosemite tourists to Wawona starting in the 1880s. Distance: About 11 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: Easy to ModerateElevation Range: 3,418′ to 4,994′Date: May 13, 2020Maps: Ben Hur and Daulton Topographic ...
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