Hiking to me always sounds like a good idea. At least at first. I mean, who,doesn’t like a stroll through a forest or a meadow or up a hill to a great vista. I love those things…I’m a hiker…I have the poles to prove it.
But then,as usual,reality sets in. Sometimes even before the hike begins. Here’s how the conversation goes
Friend – “Hey, me and Bart are going to Super Amazing Vista State Park to do a hike, wanna come?”
Me – “Sure sounds like fun. When you going?”
Friend – “Probably this afternoon around 1.”
Me – ” Oh, yeah, great…umm…what’s the hi temp today?”
Friend – “I think about 84 degrees, not too bad.”
Me – “Uh huh, ummm right not too bad. And how long is the hike?”
Friend – “It’s a nice little loop trail about 4 miles.”
Me – “Right … 4 miles… not too bad, and could we bring the dog?”
Friend – “Aww, sorry but the park doesn’t allow pets off leash.”
Me – “Oh yeah I see. So what you are asking is if I’d like to join you for a 2 hr trek, up hill, through Amazonian heat, then come back home and spend another hour walking the dog. Think I’ll have to pass.”
This is how my thought process usually goes. So you may find it surprising to know that Jimmy and I planned a “vacation” around hiking. Sure, it’s not the sole thing we will do on vacation, but it is a big part. And since we already told people we will be hiking through a national park they will expect that my pictures will contain at least some shots of us actually hiking.
And so we have set out on our Yosemite hiking vacation and did at least 2 pretty amazing hikes.
Hike 1–Yosemite Mist Trail–This is a 3 mile round trip hike to Vernal Falls (climbing about 1000 feet) (you could also do Nevada Falls but that is 7 miles).
Here is what you sometimes don’t take into account. HEAT! Of course this means extra exertion and dehydration so make sure you have LOTS of water. However heat also means sweat, sweat means wet skin, wet skin that rubs together or on cloth means chafing, chafing equals pain. Trust me I know! Pain that can sometimes be crippling – in that either you can’t walk anymore or you walk like John Wayne. Either way it’s embarrassing.
Plan ahead. This can be nipped in the bud if you bring along some Body Glide and apply liberally to your sensitive bits. If you forget, be prepared to hit the store for ibuprofen and Desitine. Ice is nice as well.
The hike was awesome though and pretty unforgettable.
Hike 2 — Cathedral Lakes–This hike is a 7 mile loop with a 1000 foot elevation climb.
Here is what I did not take into account. The recuperation factor! While we did have one day off in between these 2 hikes in which we spent time relaxing, these were two moderate hikes with steep trails at elevations we were not accustomed to. If you haven’t done some training for these more strenuous hikes you can feel the effects. I did some preparation workouts for our trip but clearly not enough as I was totally exhausted after each hike.
Again though,the scenery payoff was big and it is definitely a hike I will remember.
While there are definite draw backs to hiking, the rewards are totally worth it. You may look a bit bedraggled at the end
but of you plan it right you can hit a place like this to relax afterward
Contentment and French Fries 