Day 63 - Thru-Napping SEKI

July 01, 2017

Day 63 - Thru-Napping SEKI - June 7

We woke up early and had a weird breakfast, consisting mostly of lunch foods since that's all we brought. I enjoyed it immensely. Who says you can't eat an avocado hummus vegan cheese tofurky sandwich for breakfast and follow it with a banana, Pringles and Oreos?

We wanted to do a tour of Crystal Cave, so we went to the Lodgepole Visitor Center to get tickets. I learned that they do not recommend going in the cave with clothes that have been in a cave in the last ten years, to avoid spreading White Nose Syndrome (WNS), a disease that is killing off bats. Well, that pretty much means I can't go, because I went in few caves on the trail and I only have one set of clothes. We considered buying a t-shirt and maybe I could wear my thermal pants since I don't wear them hiking, but I would be cold. I couldn't remember if my down was on when I went in the caves. I decided I'd rather let the bats continue eating bugs undiseased. It was disappointing, though. I could tell Ian really wanted to go and we were both a bit sulky for a while.

I decided my new goal for today was to nap in the shade of a Sequoia tree. First, we had some sights to see. We checked out the Giant Forest Museum, it had good exhibits about the Sequoias. Nearby was Moro Rock, we climbed up the winding concrete steps. In places they were very narrow and you had to stop and let others come back down. I saw the High Sierras covered in snow. A kid remarked that there was more snow than in the pictures! Yes, there is, and in a couple weeks, I'm going to be up there. Eeek. It makes me nervous, but even scarier is looking at the streams around here, full and raging from snowmelt. Streams are creeks, creeks are rivers and rivers are terrifying.

I get a preview of the snow in the Sierras from Moro Rock. Can't believe I'm going to be in that. Yikes.

On the way down Moro Rock, we saw a proscribed burn that we'd seen signs for yesterday. The rangers purposefully set fires to control the amount of underbrush. If they let it build up, eventually when it does catch fire, it will burn hotter and faster, killing the big trees along with the small ones. The fire is an important part of the lifecycle of the Sequoias. It eliminates competition and the heat opens the pinecones, releasing the seeds. The seeds are tiny and flat, they can blow far in the wind. The fire reduces competition for the seedlings that sprout. For years, the park suppressed fire, until they realized there were no young Sequoias growing to replace the old. Now they use the fire to encourage new trees.

Proscribed burn?

I drove us to Crescent Meadow, where we had lunch and then walked around in search of a good napping spot. We took the High Sierra Trail for a little bit, and I found a perfect spot between two twin Sequoias. It was just big enough for two or three people, but it was cold in that deep shade. Ian found a napping spot with a view and that's where I got more napping done. Success!

Crescent Meadow

A great napping location, but it was a little too cold in the shade.

That's better, nice and warm!

We drove back towards our campground, and decided to use the public showers at Stony Creek Village whole we had a chance.

We drove to the other large Monarch Sequoia, General Grant. The loop was very short, but neat. There's a hollow fallen Monarch Seqouia you can walk through.

Then we went to Lake Hume for dinner. Same food as lunch and breakfast. There is a Christian camp for kids there. So many little cliques of teenagers giving us looks like we don't belong. Good thing I'm not a teenage girl and those looks just look dumb to me. After dinner, we walked down the Lake Hume Trail, it looks out over the lake. The sun was setting and you could see the High Sierras over the lake.