Cleverly Relevant Title

            I woke up sore and cold. However, knowing that the worst was behind me, waking up came a little easier. After that grueling, yet satisfying hike the day before, the only thing I wanted to do was hang out in a hammock all day.

            We had planned to have a down day at Yosemite, and it was much needed. Everyone was pretty tired, and none of us complained when it took us until after lunch to actually leave the campsite. Breakfast was an amalgam of breakfast foods held together with a glue of egg. You may call it an omelet if you prefer. This was probably the best breakfast we have had so far. And man, was it good.

            After eating breakfast, we just hung out around the campsite for a while. While some of us waited for the water to heat up to wash the dishes, we threw around the Frisbee. Thankfully the
campsite was empty, or our pride would have been gravely damaged. Also, it was so QUIET! I loved it. It almost made me sad to pack up the camp this morning after having such a relaxing morning yesterday.

Wish Granted

            Once the dishes were done, and after one unfortunate skillet had its finish almost rubbed off, more lounging ensued. I got to play some Pokémon for the first time since halfway through the semester, which was nice. Yeah, some of us will never grow up. Eventually, however, that pesky wonderlust perked up again.

            Yesterday’s hike was a luxury, short and sweet. We started out our adventure at Climbing Camp 4, which happens to be the birthplace of modern rock-climbing. Many famous climbers have passed through that campsite. Sadly, either through our ignorant eyes or from it not being climbing season, we didn’t see anyone famous. That didn’t dampen our spirits, because this day was the day that Keegan and I could finally don our Vibram FiveFingers and give the Upper Yosemite Falls trail a good run for its money. I mean run in the most literal sense of the word. After hiking up a few switchbacks (OH JOY!), I got a little bored, and took off at a jog. Once Keegan joined up, we kicked it into high gear. There is nothing cooler than sprinting past people who are wheezing and sucking air on their way up a mountain. There is only one compound word to describe how we felt… Bad-Ash!

            And then… it happened. Lower atmospheric pressure and a decreasing oxygen content took its toll, and we were both reduced to those heaving, wheezing masses that we had previously scorned. Brain signals were sent to no avail. I can’t remember another time in my life that my body has been so non-responsive. Just flexing my calf, even a day later, still sends a pain shooting up my leg. But, alas, we had made it to the overlook. Thankfully, the two of us had put a decent gap between us and the other three guys, so we could rest. And man, what a view.

            Once the crew was reunited, pictures were taken, water was ingested, and spirits were renewed. We set off again to the next highest point of the trail. Along the way, we received quite a few comments and question about our curious foot attire. One lady even told us that she had seen someone coming down the trail barefoot. Challenge Accepted random elderly lady.

            After reaching the top of the trail, with random spurts of running in between longer walks along the way, we laid eyes on the Yosemite falls from the closest vantage point yet. It was glorious. The mist blowing off the falls was a blessing from God, cooling us off from a strenuous hike. Stephen even overcame his fear of heights, though I think he didn’t realize it at the time, to take an amazing picture from the cliffs. My heart began to beat faster when I saw how precarious his chosen perch was. But well done, Stephen!

            Soon, we began to get a bit chilly, and the time to descend the trail had arrived. I mentioned earlier a challenge inadvertently set forth by the elderly woman. My feet began to feel a bit too enclosed, so I removed them and continued down the trail. I loved knowing that as soon as I passed people, they began to comment to each other in different languages about “that barefoot guy.” Also, as a side note: Keegan eats… all… the… time! Dan surprised him with a bag of chips that he had brought up with him on the highly predictable chance that Keegan would be hungry. They proceeded to chow down, while Stephen and I continued our trek down the trail. The descent seemed to go by much faster than the ascent, even though I had been running for the latter. I think this came from having to concentrate so much on where I set my feet down. Stephen and I made quick progress down the mountain without much happening. When we arrived at the bottom, we waited for the other three, and then set off back to camp.

Like a Champ. A very special champ.

            After a meal of chicken fajitas, we realized we had cooked way too much rice. Here’s a lesson kids: Always follow the instructions on the bag. ALWAYS! We all ate way more than we wanted to, because when you’re in a camp you can’t just leave stuff out, or put it in the refrigerator for later. We were amply rewarded though, by a much better batch of cookies. I fell asleep early the day before, so this was actually my first batch of cookies. Then we all gathered around our surprisingly well-built fire. I say surprisingly because we did so with nothing but a few branches of pine and pine needles. Credit for that goes to Stephen and Keegan, with a little lighter fluid from Dan.

            Thankfully, we had that fire to warm us up for part of the night, because for the rest of the night, it was freezing! In my opinion, it was the coldest night we had at Yosemite. And also, the last, because this morning we packed up the camp and headed out for Redwood. I’m excited because the camp we’re staying at is a privately owned campsite, which means showers and laundry. =D

-Davey J

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."
- Hebrews 12:1-3