When we were in Mammoth, we had seen in the weather forecasts that there was a cooling trend predicted. They had also said it would be cloudy on Saturday and they had nailed that. This morning we woke to very cold temperatures- the kind that inspire you to stay in your sleeping bag, indefinitely. We did not have a thermometer, but there was no ice in our water bottle so we assumed it was 33°.
We had decided last night to just eat Pro Bars for breakfast and forego cooking because we were anxious to get moving quickly, as today was the day we would hike into Tuolumne Meadows with its grill and store full of food.
Once up, packed and moving we began to see frost on the vegetation in the meadows and ice on the margins of streams. Our first goal was to cross over 10,800' Vogelsang Pass, then drop down to the Vogelsang High Sierra Camp. Today is a total on-trail day.
We bested Vogelsang Pass just as the rising sun hit it. Dropping down from the pass puts you in the cirque that contains Vogelsang Lake. We rounded the lake, crossed the outlet, and headed toward the High Sierra Camp. As we did, I knew Half Dome would come into view, and with it, cell service. It was still quite early, 7:30 am, so we sent a few texts, checked the weather and downloaded emails, then headed for the high camp.
Craig had not been to any of the six high camps, so we stopped in, used the composting toilets and wandered into the dining room, hoping we could buy a few candy bars, but none of the staff were present. We left the dining room and prepared our packs to leave.
It has been a while since I hiked the trail down from Vogelsang, the Rafferty Creek Trail. I knew I detested it, but as the memories fade, so do the details. It did not take but ten minutes on this seven mile long travesty of a trail to remind me why I so dislike it. You see, this is the trail the pack trains use to haul all the bedding, food, propane and other items to the Vogelsang High Sierra Camp. These daily pack trains (we saw four-six mule trains going up today as we came down) churn and grind the dirt and rock of the trail into fine dust, loosen and knock rocks onto the trail (the lead horse is actually on the trail, the string of mules behind wander as far afield as there leads will let them) and poop all over the trail. Hiking down the trail means ankle deep dust, dodging rocks from fist sized to five gallon bucket sized and stepping on and around their excrement. I had forgotten these details until my ten minutes had elapsed. Then, I had to endure the next three hours as we descended the trail. Oh, did I mention the "trail" is six to eight feet wide and in some places a ditch 3 feet deep? After the first mile it is on the bottom of a wide valley with no views. Enough said. It is not a pleasant trail.
We got to the Tuolumne Campground about 12:30 pm and found ranger Brian in the booth at the entrance to the campground. We spent a few minutes catching up, then hiked to the store. 2 Bananas, a bag of Chili Cheese Fritos, an Ice Cream Sandwich, 3 Gatoraides, a hamburger from the grill, a brownie and a bag of mini Oreos quenched my hunger.
While in the store, I asked the cashier if Ron was going to open the Post Office (it is Sunday of Labor Day Weekend). He said yes and wandered into the back of the this tent building to summon Ron. Ron asked if I was just picking up a box and if I had ID. My answer to both questions were “yes”. He unlocked the small room that is dedicated to the post office and emerged with my resupply box.
Craig and I relaxed on the picnic tables in the sun to the west of the store. The sun was warm, but a cold wind was blowing strongly from the west. The adjacent bathroom building helped block the wind, but it was still a fleece-on afternoon.
Craig walked up to the backcountry permit office to retrieve his resupply box that Barb and Sally had put in a bear box as they drove back to the Valley from Mammoth the week before. Once he returned we sorted food for the last four days of our trip and put what we needed in our bear canisters. It was nice to have plenty of room in the canisters after cramming them full for the previous sections of the trip. Four days of food is not much.
We were loath to walk to the backpackers campground. It is in the shade and we were fearful it would be colder than the sun soaked area near the store. Once we got there, we found the wind to be nearly nonexistent in the trees and the comfort level about the same.
We erected the tarp, hoping it would help keep the chill off a little. We spread our ground tarps on the dusty ground, hoping they would keep us isolated from the clingy dirt that is typical of an overused camping area and settled in for the night.
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