Into the Backcountry (2 of 3)

This is the second pictorial installment of a recent 4-day hike through Yosemite National Park, starting in Tuolume Meadows and ending in Yosemite Valley.

We camped at high-altitude the second night and witnessed some bad weather (though it did no more than rain lightly on us for no more than an hour during which we were comfortably within tents). The view from our camp site:



The same view soon after ...





The storm passed over as the sun was setting ...






The next morning we continued our upward journey and soon approached our mid-hike objective: achieving the summit of Cloud's Rest. Here's a shot of Stick and Mike during the final stages of the ascent.







On the top ...





Looking down (a LONG way down) ...






Starting the descent of Cloud's Rest on the other side (it was downhill for several hours thereafter!) ...




As we descended, our next destination, Half Dome, came into view. We would reach it by nightfall and join a line of fellow adventurers in using pre-installed cables to climb to the 5-acre area on it's top.

As we climbed the trails high on Half-Dome that afternoon, storms were visible in the distance ...

... and due to the threat of lightning, we were not allowed to complete the cable climb to the top. The dome looked as follows as we descended to our base camp two miles lower on the trail.

Friday's post: descending into Yosemite Valley.