I Made It To The Top

Alright, so it seems like it's been a while since I've updated this thing, and there's a good bit to catch up on.

The past couple of Sunday services have been going really good. We've been having good turn outs, with between 25 and 30 people coming. And within the people we hang out with, although they may not be turning to any particular beliefs in God and Christ, I do believe that they see that we love them. I just finished reading Blue Like Jazz and it was really good and has really gotten me thinking about just how we as Christians should love everyone, but how we tend to have an agenda behind our love which then turns our love to a conditional love. So I'm trying to love people unconditionally, or at least without an agenda, without expecting anything in return and it's really a cool thing because I think I'm succeeding in doing so. And I'm not saying this to brag at all simply because God has a lot more to do with it than I do, but it's just a relief to be able to do so. Another thing that kinda goes along with this is complaining against people. With this whole loving everybody thing, I've been reminding myself constantly in my head not to complain about people, to myself, and especially to other people, whether it simply be about someone not doing work right or about somebody's personality, or other things of the sort. The reason being is that I have found that complaining about somebody only causes more resentment towards that person, and therefore less love. And the resentment could grow which could lead to anger which could lead to hate. For me it's never gotten that bad, but it could have been leading down that path. So I constantly stop my words as I almost complain, and I have really noticed that when you choose not to complain, you are mindfully choosing to love that person more which is very rewarding in itself.

So two Sundays ago on the 4th, the ACMNP crew along with others took a quick trip to Tuolumne Meadows which is at about 8600 ft. From there we hiked to Dog Lake and Lembert Dome and then just walked through the meadow. It is a beautiful place, a lot different than the valley, and a lot less crowded.

During my six day work week, which has now actually changed to a five day work week from here on out hopefullly, I filled my time doing night photography and I also took a trip to the famous Tunnel View from which you see Bridal Veil Falls and El Capitan mainly, and Half Dome and Cloud's Rest way in the background.

However, this past weekend was where it was at. After the church service, I headed out on an overnight camping trip, traveling to Cloud's Rest first, then to Half Dome the next morning. For the record, Cloud's Rest is the highest peak in Yosemite Valley at 9,926 ft but not the tallest peak in the park which belongs to Mt. Lyell at 13,120. So I started out from the valley floor at about 11:30 am and got there at about 6:30 pm. It was a 10.5 mile hike with almost a 6,000 ft elevation gain. It was pretty killer. While hiking to it with my heavy pack and everything, I was thinking to myself that there was no way that this hike could be worth it. But it was so worth it. On top it was incredibly gorgeous, the best views I've ever seen in my life, absolutely incredible. So I spent a couple of hours on top then headed back down and camped near the trail head for Half Dome. I had planned to get up early enough to catch the sunrise from on top of Half Dome but that didn't happen at all. I was so tired from hiking to Cloud's Rest that I slept from 9 pm to 5 am which is really decent sleep for camping. I did, however, wake up in the middle of the night to find myself looking at the most stars in the sky I've ever seen. Sadly enough, I was way too exhausted to set up my camera to take some pictures. So at 5 I got up, packed up my gear, ate my breakfast of a protein bar and a ham sandwich and then ventured off. I was only about two miles away from the peak of Half Dome, but it took me two hours to make the trip to the top because I was so tired and because I had to do a lot of elevation gain for two miles. Finally at about 8 am I made it to the top, 8842 ft in elevation. The cables were pretty dang scary, but once you started there was no turning back and it was really fun and tough. At the top there is basically a field of granite that you can walk across, unlike Cloud's Rest which is more like a peak. It was awesome. So to do the math: 10.5 miles from the valley to Cloud's Rest, about 3 from Cloud's Rest to the campsite, 3 miles from campsite to Half Dome, about 8 miles from Half Dome to the Valley. So that's roughly 25 miles, with a elevation gain of 6000 ft. Pretty intense and so worth it.

View of Tuolumne Meadows and High Sierras from Lembert Dome



Night sky from the valley floor



Bridal Veil Falls from the Tunnel View

Close up of the Tunnel View

View from Cloud's Rest of High Sierra peaks

View from Cloud's Rest of Tenaya Lake and surroundings

Going up the cables of Half Dome

Going down the cables of Half Dome

View of the valley and Cloud's Rest from Half Dome

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View from the subdome of Half Dome of something

P.S. There has been a long overdue shout out and it goes to one of the Fab4, and that is Miss Megan Hunter.