Friday, February 16, 1973

JMT Master Planning Document

This is a master document of our John Muir Trail (JMT) Trip for 2016.

Dear Friends and Family,

Sherri and Gary are trying to walk most of the John Muir Trail this year--starting Sunday morning, August 7th. Instead of going alone, we will be joining four other friends of ours: Rose, Sonya, Kate and Kim. This year instead of walking all the way to Mt Whitney, Sherri and Gary will be exiting at Roads End, near Cedar Grove in Kings Canyon. The rest of our group will be conquering Whitney. We anticipate it will take us a little more than three weeks. Some of you have said they would like to follow us. Here's how:

Each day after we set up camp, we will send out a message through our Personal Locator Beacon (SPOT Messenger or SPOT 2).
It will appear on a map, which you can see at bit.ly/mapritto1 (if that does not work, try clicking on this link.). The link should be updated each night by about 7 or 8 .
A map should appear in your browser, when you click it. You will see our locations from the past 5-7 days. Take a look at the map below for an example. By the way, Ritto and Shirley are the names of our two PLB's.
SPOT Map-Corrected from Original e-mail

Most messages will say, we are OK. But if you see a “Custom” message or a message with text, we are probably on a day hike, or communicating with our support team.
If a campsite does not appear for a day or two, do not panic, we may not have been able to transmit. If we are in trouble, we will have set off an alarm for our support crew to help us out.

For those of you who want to know more, here is a little more detail. We own both a SPOT Messenger PLB and a SPOT2. It uses satellite communications to transmit messages and coordinates. There is a limited number of message types which can be sent—see the list below. It's most important function is if we are in a terrible fix, to alert a national rescue center to find us. But its more common use is to let people know where we are and to help them follow us or to coordinate with our support team. Sherri's and Gary's support team consists of Gary's brother and our children. The SPOT Messenger has five buttons, which we mostly use the first one:

“I am OK”,
“Custom Messages”-which we use to say we are on a day hike,
“Help”-to coordinate with our support team,
“Tracks”-leaves a set of tracks on the map showing where we have been, and
“SOS”-notifies the national rescue center.

The SPOT2 has those functions and the ability to send limited text messages.

Finally, for those of you who cannot get your fill of us, there is a blog of our summer travels which you might be interested in. They will not be updated with out JMT walk until we get back:

Gary's Summer Trips Blog: http://gary-summer.blogspot.com/

JMT-2016: Proposed Itenerary

There are six of us which are on this trip. Two people have permits to do the JMT. Four of us have permits to do a alternative/pseudo JMT route. Possible alternations:

On the alternative route, we are mulling over changing the trailhead to come in at Silver Lake and go by Agnew, Gem and Waugh Lakes rather than over Parker and Koip Peak Passes. This is the highly probably route we will be taking.
Another alteration to the route. On August 30th, Gary and Sherri will be leaving the party and returning home. Their route will be down Bubb's Creak to Roads End, near Cedar Grove.
The other four are examining ways to accelerate getting to Lone Pine. Nothing has been put into concrete yet.

JMT Proper Route

Date	Day	JMT Mile	Mileage	Elevation Gain	Camp Elevation	Camp Spot	Notes	Side Trips	Access Points

08/07/16	0	0.0	0.0	0	7,215	Glacier Point
08/08/16	1	6.0	6.0	1,400	6,174	Little Yosemite Valley		Half Dome
08/09/16	2	15.3	9.3	3,700	9,498	Sunrise/Long Meadow		Clouds Rest
08/10/16	3	24.0	8.7	600	8,615	Tuolumne Meadows		Columbia Finger
							Restock/Night in Lee Vining?

					8,671	Tuoulumne Meadows Wilderness Station
08/11/16	4	34.6	10.6	1,506	10,185	Pond at 10,185'		Donohue Peak
08/12/16	5	41.3	6.7	1,440	10,233	Island Pass	We will meet at Devil's Lakes Trail Jct		Rush Creek
08/13/16	6	52.8	11.5	1,775	9,304	Trinity Lakes			Shadow Lake/Agnew Meadow
08/14/16	7					Zero Day-Mammoth
08/15/16	8	63.7	10.9	1,673	9,514	Deer Creek	We pass through Red's Meadow on this day	Red Cones	Red's Meadow
08/16/16	9	73.6	9.9	2,085	10,344	Virginia Lake			Mammoth Pass, Duck Pass
08/17/16	10	84.1	10.5	1,869	9,016	Pocket Meadow	(Not a good camp spot)		McGee Pass
08/18/16	11	87.8	3.7	121	7,648	Edison Lake			Mono Pass
							Restock at VVR

08/19/16	12	97.8	10.0	2,580	10,010	Bear Creek		Volcanic Knob
08/20/16	13	109.1	11.3	1,120	7,920	John Muir Ranch Area	Meet Lianne and her daughter		Florence Lake
08/21/16	14	120.7	11.6	2,540	9,800	Evolution Valley/Colby Meadows			Piute Pass
08/22/16	15					Zero Day			Piute Pass
08/23/16	16	125.8	5.1	1,186	10,971	Sapphire Lake		Mt Spencer	Piute Pass
08/24/16	17	136.9	11.1	1,058	8,733	Le Conte Ranger Station		Mt Solomon, Black Giant	Bishop Pass
08/25/16	18	147.2	10.3	2,546	10,615	Lower Palisades Lake			Taboose Pass
08/26/16	19	157.5	10.3	1,825	10,564	Bench Lake	Not a good place to sleep-Marjorie is better	Split Mountain	Sawmill Pass
08/27/16	20	167.8	10.3	1,350	8,537	Wood's Creek Bridge			Woods Creek
08/28/16	21	174.6	6.8	2,053	10,544	Rae Lakes	Half a zero day	Painted Lady	Baxter Pass
08/29/16	22	180.9	6.3	1,434	10,510	Kearsarge Lakes	Half a zero day	Painted Lady	Kersarge Pass
08/30/16	23	186.9	6.0	1,092	9,219	Onion Valley Campground	Need to be at Onion Valley by 12:30		Kersarge Pass
							Restock: Mt Williamson Hotel

08/31/16	24	196.9	10.0	2,487	9,945	Upper Virdette meadow		Mt Bago	Bubb's Creek
09/01/16	25	208.1	11.2	3,155	10,890	Tyndale Creek		CalTech Peak	Shepherds Pass
09/02/16	26					Zero Day
09/03/16	27	219.9	11.8	1,875	11,559	Guitar Lake		Tawny Point
09/04/16	28	229.1	9.2	3,336	11,810	Trail Camp	Whitney Day	Wotans Throne
09/05/16	29	235.4	6.3	147	8,333	Whitney Portal
							End of Trail

JMT Alternate Route

Date	Day	Cum Milage	Day Miles	Elevation Gain	Camp Elevation	Camp Spot	Notes	Side Trips	Access Points
	0	0.0	0.0	0	7,214	Glacier Point
08/07/16	1	3.5	3.5	0	6,400	Illouete Creek
08/08/16	2	8.4	4.9	800	6,174	Little Yosemite Valley		Half Dome
08/09/16	3	17.7	9.3	3,700	9,498	Sunrise/Long Meadow		Clouds Rest
08/10/16	4	26.4	8.7	600	8,615	Tuolumne Meadows		Columbia Finger
							Restock/Night in Lee Vining?

					9,700	Mono Pass/ParkPass Trailhead
08/11/16	5	37.4	11.0	2,500	10,627	Alger Lakes		Donohue Peak
08/12/16	6	48.7	11.3	1,160	10,233	Island Pass	We will meet at Devil's Lakes Trail Jct		Rush Creek
08/13/16	7	60.2	11.5	1,775	9,304	Trinity Lakes			Shadow Lake/Agnew Meadow
08/14/16	8
08/15/16	9	71.1	10.9	1,673	9,514	Deer Creek	We pass through Red's Meadow on this day	Red Cones	Red's Meadow
08/16/16	10	81.0	9.9	2,085	10,344	Virginia Lake			Mammoth Pass, Duck Pass
08/17/16	11	91.5	10.5	1,869	9,016	Pocket Meadow	(Not a good camp spot)		McGee Pass
08/18/16	12	95.2	3.7	121	7,648	Edison Lake			Mono Pass
							Restock at VVR

08/19/16	13	105.2	10.0	2,580	10,010	Bear Creek		Volcanic Knob
08/20/16	14	116.5	11.3	1,120	7,920	John Muir Ranch Area	Meet Lianne and her daughter		Florence Lake
08/21/16	15	128.1	11.6	2,540	9,800	Evolution Valley/Colby Meadows			Piute Pass
08/22/16	16								Piute Pass
08/23/16	17	133.2	5.1	1,186	10,971	Sapphire Lake		Mt Spencer	Piute Pass
08/24/16	18	144.3	11.1	1,058	8,733	Le Conte Ranger Station		Mt Solomon, Black Giant	Bishop Pass
08/25/16	19	154.6	10.3	2,546	10,615	Lower Palisades Lake			Taboose Pass
08/26/16	20	164.9	10.3	1,825	10,564	Bench Lake	Not a good place to sleep-Marjorie is better	Split Mountain	Sawmill Pass
08/27/16	21	175.2	10.3	1,350	8,537	Wood's Creek Bridge			Woods Creek
08/28/16	23	182.0	6.8	2,053	10,544	Rae Lakes	Half a zero day	Painted Lady	Baxter Pass
08/29/16	23	188.2	6.2	1,434	10,510	Kearsarge Lakes	Half a zero day	Painted Lady	Kersarge Pass
08/30/16	24	194.2	6.0	1,092	9,219	Onion Valley Campground	Need to be at Onion Valley by 12:30		Kersarge Pass
							Restock: Mt Williamson Hotel

08/31/16	25	204.2	10.0	2,487	9,945	Upper Virdette meadow		Mt Bago	Bubb's Creek
09/01/16	26	215.4	11.2	3,155	10,890	Tyndale Creek		CalTech Peak	Shepherds Pass
09/02/16	27
09/03/16	28	227.2	11.8	1,875	11,559	Guitar Lake		Tawny Point
09/04/16	39	236.4	9.2	3,336	11,810	Trail Camp	Whitney Day	Wotans Throne
09/05/16	30	242.7	6.3	147	8,333	Whitney Portal
							End of Trail

dasdsa dsadsa dsadsa

JMT-2016: Misc Stuff

7/22/2016
1) Inyo National Forest is under fire restrictions, except in the wilderness areas.
2) Also Sierra National Forest has restrictions in place-this affect Edison and Florence Lake areas. Vermillon Campground is exempt from the restriction.
2) When will Dave know if he can pick up Kim and ___ on Sept 5th?
i) Who will coordinate with Jody to pick up people?
3) We should compensate Lianne and her daughter for the ferry service-it is $25 a piece for a round trip.
4) There is currently a fire above Edison Lake called the Springs Fire. It is 174 acres and 85% contained. Between 40-75 firefighters are in the area and being feed by VVR.

7/15/2016
Just got a notice that Sequoia National Forest is banning all fires-not a concern right now, but other places we go through may be upping their restrictions

NO campfires or charcoal fires, are allowed within the Sequoia National Forest and the Giant Sequoia National Monument.
Yosemite is banning fires below 6,000'-we are not affected.
Again from the Sequoia NF, but probably is applicable to Inyo NF. Stoves and lanterns with shut-off valves that use pressurized gas, liquid fuel, or propane will be allowed if the operator possesses a valid California Campfire Permit. Forest visitors must clear all flammable material five feet in all directions from their camp stove, have a shovel available, and ensure that a responsible person attends the stove at all times when in use.
They also note:While drought-stressed trees create dry fuels for wildfire, they also present a danger of falling unexpectedly. When choosing your campsite remember to look up, down and around. Choose a location away from hazard trees.

JMT-2016: GPS and Electronics

7/22/2016
a) GPS
    i) Gary is carrying a wrist GPS (Garmin Fortex 401).
    ii) Rose's InReach can be used as a GPS.
    III) Gary has GPX files of locations along the JMT with bear boxes. Also there is a GPX file with the campsites listed in Wenk's book. These files are attached.
    iv) Also I have quadrangle topo maps for the entire JMT in pdf format if anybody is interested-they are large so I am not including into this e-mail. Also have a map with the entire JMT on it.
b) PLB (Personal Locator Beacon)
    i) Rose-InReach
    ii) Kim-InReach
    iii) Sonya-SPOT
    iV) Sherri-SPOT 2
    V) Gary-SPOT Messenger
c) Gary will be bringing along a solar charger (Goal Zero Nomad 7). While this is enough to power Gary and Sherri's devices and some others, it probably is not enough to power all 6 of us. If you intend to power your devices, be sure to bring the proper cables.

JMT-2016: Permits

2/16/2016
Gary and Sherri will need to get a separate permit to come out at Road's End in Kings Canyon. They will travel on Rose's permit from Glacier Point to Tuolumne Meadow
We will see if we can get permits over Donahue Pass rather than Parker Pass and the formidable Koip Peak Pass. The question is who will get to go over Donahue Pass if there are two slots open. We can probably decided that when we see how strong Gary and Sherri are.

JMT-2016: Transportation

07/22/2016
a) Talked about Lianne and her daughter. We will meet them on August 20th. If each could carry 2 lbs/person (12 lbs on each person), that would be good.
b) Confirmed Jeff is not going to Mammoth
c) Transportation out of Lone Pine. With the Duran's not needing transportation and Dave (Kim) there should be enough seats to take all out of Lone Pine at the end of the trip.
i) If Dave cannot make it, Jody Hamilton has offered to pick people up on Sept 6th. the question is how to coordinate with Dave, Jody and Jeff.
d) August 10th/11th: Does Sonya need to deploy her truck at Tuolumne Meadows? It sounds like we can squeeze into Jeff's Tahoe. Or if Kim comes up on the 10th, then she could take someone to Lee Vining
i) Note: Kim will be coming on on either Aug 10th or 11th to Tuolumne Meadows with Dave rather than hiking from Glacier Point
e) August 18th: Jeff and possibly Dave will come up to Edison Lake/VVR with the restocks. Jeff is wondering about BBQing at Edison.
f) Jeff will bring stuff back for our pick up if we so desired-probably put into the same packaging we sent our resupply in.
g) Jeff is willing to keep medicine in a refrig instead of in the heat, if required.

JMT-2016-Zero Days

7/22/2016
There are two concerns with this.
1) In the second section, there are two zero days almost back to back.
2) If we can meet Lianne on August 20th, then Lianne can also bring in her daughter who can also carry weight as well.
We decided on moving the zero day from Island pass to someplace after meeting Lianne and before leaving the trail for Mt Williamson.
How we use zero days is up to us as a group, or at least each sub-group with a permit. I would suggest we have three considerations for us of zero days:
1) How do we like the area-do we want to explore
2) Our physical needs-are our bodies falling apart and we can us a rest
3) Weather.
Also as a note: To make us arrive at Onion Valley by noon on August 30th, I may split one of the zero days into two half days.

The schedule for Mammoth's zero day will look something like this:
a) Rosalie, Gladys and Trinity Lakes are all within a mile and a half of each other and have campsites. They are about a half day hike to Red's meadow. We do not want to stop at Johnston Lake-it is a biting fly magnet. Both Rosalie and Gladys are popular stopping places. We have stayed at Trinity, but have not found Wenk's sandy beach area.
b) Should get to Red's Meadow around noon. There is a shuttle to Mammoth where we would need to take the "white Bus" into mammoth proper.
    i) There is a forest service campsite at Red's Meadow which costs $22/night
    ii) Shuttle costs $7.
    iii) I am not finding much on the MAS Bike Shuttle. There is a map which shows it goes from the Village up to the Adventure Center where the Red's Meadow shuttle takes us the rest of the way.
    iv) Sonya is finding out about places to stay in Mammoth.
c) Leave Mammoth someplace between 9-10 to return to Red's Meadow.
d) Eat either breakfast or lunch at Red's Meadow
e) Hit the trail around noon.
f) Camp at Deer Creek that night.

JMT-2016: Duran Decisions

July 22, 2016
Gary and Sherri told of the decision to come off the trail at Bubb's Creek instead of going over to Mt Williamson. Gary will talk to mt Williamson about the situation. It is possible that Rose will need to leave a credit card with them, or at least when they sign in. A lot of the decision has to do with the care for Gary's Mom. They were torn between going on and the needs of the family.

Thursday, January 4, 1973

St John's Cathdral District Walk - February 19, 2020

Central Valley Hiking Meetup Group-February 19, 2020

Locations we will be walking to on our Historic St Johns Cathedral District Fresno walk. Many of the items have links which have some explanations of the place or building.

This walking tour of the St John's Cathedral area is based upon the Historic Fresno tour of the area. Many of the descriptions was lifted from it.

	Building	Address	Current Use
1	Emmanuel Lutheran Church	1115 U Street	Church, now World Mission Society Church of God
2	Goodman House	1060 T Street
3	Ewing Home	1025 T Street
4	Gundelfinger Home	1020 T Street
5	Martin Home	1002 T Street	Yost & Webb Funeral Home
6	F. K. Prescott Home	2983 Tulare Street	Palm LaPaz Funerals and Cremations
7	Thomas R. Meux Home	1007 R Street	Currently a museum/tours are led through the house
8	Collins Home	1107 R Street
9	St. John's Cathedral
10	St. John's Hall School
11	St. John's Rectory
12	Rehorn Home-Vacant Lot	1050 S Street	Fire burnt the house, February 1, 2016
13	Aten Home	1133 S Street
14	H. H. Brix Home	2844 Fresno Street	Miles, Sears & Eanni
15	City Fire Alarm Station	Fresno & Divisadero St
16	Eaton Flat Apartments	131 N. Fresno Street	A way from the St John's Cathedral Route
17	Sunset Apartments	3329-3335 T Street
18	Van Valkenburgh Home	1125 Street
19	Anderson Home	1120 T Street

Yosemite Valley West Loop

I do two loops around Yosemite Valley. The west loop starts at Bridalveil Falls, I usually go clockwise and hit Pohono Bridge, then travel along the north side of the valley until we hit Yosemite Falls. Then we cross over the Valley and return along the South wall until we hit Bridalveil Falls.

	Location	Miles	Elevation	Notes
1	Bridalveil Falls	0
2	Bridalveil Moraine/Meadow
3	Pohono Bridge
4	Valley View
5	Old Big Oak Flat Road
6	El Capitan
7	Camp 4
8	Yosemite Falls
9	Cook Meadow
10	Sentinel Bridge
11	Valley Chapel
12	Swinging Bridge
13	Four Mile Trail
14	Taft Toe
15	Cathedral Rocks
16	Bridalveil Falls

March 25, 2015 - Ft Monroe Trail Notes

My rough notes concerning hiking to Ft Monroe

Old Wawona Road (El Capitan)
(long, lat)

Description:

Starts at the Wawona Covered Bridge. Crosses the road around the campground. Around Misquito Creek, it drops below 41 and parallels or crosses it several times. Dr. John Taylor McLean created the road. Once only one of two ways into the valley. remarkable achievements of these pioneers using picks, shovels, black powder and sweat to achieve their goals. Their only monetary reward was a wage of $40s a month, food, and lodging.

Soon after enthusiast James Hutchings began escorting sightseers to view Yosemite Valley in 1855, Andrew, Milton and Houston Mann built a 45-mile toll horse trail from Mariposa to the already-famous Valley via the South Fork. Mainly, they followed the old Indian trails. It was opened August 1, 1856, and operated as a toll route until 1862 when Mariposa County purchased it, declaring it a “Public Highway.” Until then, tolls were: [“]Man and horse each way, $2.00; pack mule or horse, each way, $2.00; Footman, $1.00.” ³¹
In 1869, Galen Clark organized a stock company of eight men to build a wagon and stage road from Mariposa as far as Clark’s ²² (Wawona) which was used as a toll road from 1870 until 1917. As early as 1870, Clark had a survey made for a wagon road from his lodging at Wawona to Yosemite Valley. This road was begun by Chinese laborers, under the direction of John Conway and Edwin Moore and finished by Washburn, Chapman & Company in July, 1875. ³² Most of the 16-foot-wide road was constructed during severe winter weather. The era of the stagecoach, which was to continue, in jolting, dusty fashion for forty years, began for Yosemite-bound visitors.
By mid-April, 1875, the rough road was passable for stagecoaches except for a narrow, 300-yard section still under construction near the old Inspiration Point. To the passengers’ temporary inconvenience and amusement, they walked the unfinished stretch while their quickly-dismantled stage was carried in pieces by hand, then reassembled, harnessed up, reboarded and driven off with considerable aplomb. ³²
The Yosemite Stage & Turnpike Company (Washburn brothers), ran stages from Merced to Wawona via Mariposa where they had a livery stable.
The road from Raymond to Wawona generally followed the route of present State Highway 41, while the stage route from Mariposa, called the Chowchilla Mountain Road, exists today, rutty, dusty and little-changed from its 1870 route.
The Wawona Hotel was a logical and popular overnight stop for stage travelers, and the Yosemite Stage & Turnpike Company, operating two stage schedules and 700 horses, saw to it that their passengers traveled speedily and safely, though dustily.
In 1865, 369 hardy, saddle-sore travelers visited Yosemite. In 1875, mostly in stagecoaches, the Park had 2,423 visitors; 2,590 in 1885; 8,023 in 1902; and in 1914, when automobiles were allowed on the Wawona Road, 15,154. Travel doubled in 1915 when 31,546 visitors chugged in; 209,166 came in 1925 and 498,289 in 1932, ³³ the last year of Washburn ownership.
The Wawona Road accounted for a number of Yosemite “firsts.” The first automobile to enter the Valley traveled it in 1900, and 32 miles of it had the honor of being the first paved road in the Yosemite region in June, 1902 ³⁴ Mud and dust were tamed!
Soon increased automobile traffic made oiled roads a necessity and, in 1932, the new, modern Wawona Road was completed from the South (Fresno) Entrance to Yosemite Valley.

Place: CA-CA-Bridalveil

Bridalveil Falls-4,436' (El Capitan) (37.7165936, -119.6468332)
Bridalveil Meadow-3,894' (El Capitan) (37.7171491, -119.6598896)
Bridalveil Moraine-3,930 (El Capitan) (37.7171491, -119.6568338)
Bridalveil Creek-3,904' (El Capitan) (37.7188157, -119.6532226-Mouth)
Bridalveil Campground-6,968' (Half Dome) (37.6621519, -119.6207175)

Description:

====
Hutchings claimed that he suggested the name on his first visit to Yosemite in 1855. 'Is it not as graceful , and as beautiful, as the veil of a bride?' to which I propose that we now baptize it, and call it, 'The Bridal Veil Fall', as one that is both characteristic and euthonious.' (Hutchings, In the Heart, 89) Another who claimed the honor of naming the fall wrote: We make bold to call it Bridal Veil; and those who may have the felicity to witness the stream floating in the embrace of the morning breeze, will acknowledge the resemblance, and perhaps pardon the liberty we have taken in attempting to apply so poetical a name to this Queen of the Valley. (Warren Baer, editor, Mariposa Democrat, Aug 5, 1856)

There were some who didn't like the name at all. ... in 1856, it was christened 'Falls of Louise' in honor of the first lady of our party who entered the valley. Thank Heaven, the cataract wouldn't stand this nonsense, and it seemed to me to be pleading with us to have the 'Bridal Veil' fully thrown aside; that it might be known forever by its Indian baptism, 'Pohono' (Boston Transcript, Jan 26, 1861) Other early names were Queen of the Valley and Cascade of the Rainbow.

The Indians did indeed call the fall "Pohono", the name was still in use in 1863 when the Whitney Survey was there (Brewer, Up and Down, 404. See Pohono Trail for the differing explanations of the word's meaning.)

The names of the meadow and the moraine appear only on the 1:24,000 map. (YNP)
From Brownings Places Names of the Sierra Nevada

====
Póhono. The Bridal Veil Fall; explained to signify a blast of wind, or the night wind, perhaps from the chillness of the air occasioned by coming under the high cliff and near the falling water, or possibly with reference to the constant swaying of the sheet of water from one side to the other under the influence of the wind. Mr. Hutchings, more poetically, says that “Pohono” is “an evil spirit, whose breath is a blighting and fatal wind, and consequently to be dreaded and shunned.”
From THE YOSEMITE BOOK by Josiah D. Whitney (1869)

According to GNIS:

Bridalveil Campground is also called Bridalveil Creek Campground: The Official Map of Mariposa County and Communities. Modesto, California: Compass Maps, 1990
Bridalveil Creek: In Yosemite National Park, heads at Ostrander Lake and trends northwest to the Merced River just south of mile marker 122 at Bridalveil Moraine in southwestern Yosemite Valley
Bridalveil Falls: :In Yosemite National Park, 620 ft plunge over the south wall of Yosemite Valley on Bridalveil Creek between the north slope of Leaning Tower and the southwest slope of Cathedral Rocks. Also called:
- Bridal Veil Falls: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p16
- Pohono: U.S. Geological Survey. Geographic Names Phase I data compilation (1976-1981). 31-Dec-1981. Primarily from U.S. Geological Survey 1:24,000-scale topographic maps (or 1:25K, Puerto Rico 1:20K) and from U.S. Board on Geographic Names files. In some instances, from 1:62,500 scale or 1:250,000 scale maps.
- Falls of Louise: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p16
- Cascade of the Rainbow: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p16
Bridalvail Meadows: In Yosemite National Park, at the base of the south wall of Yosemite Valley, 0.8 km (0.5 mi) west of Bridalveil Fall on the south bank of Merced River near between mile marker 121 and 122.
Bridalveil Moraine: In Yosemite National Park, on the south wall of Yosemite Valley, 0.96 km (0.6 mi) west of Bridalveil Falls and 6.2 km (3.9 mi) southwest of Yosemite Village.
- 1988 Letter from N King Huber discussing the naming of this moraine and why he felt it should not be named
- 1987 Form from Martuch showing where the moraine is
- 1989 Form from James Schubert saying the old location of Bridalveil Moraine is inaccurate
  - I do not know how the name Bridalveil Moraine got applied to the published
    location; probably another confused fieldman or editor. There really is a
    small, hard to find moraine at that location. .... As the USGS field checker of
    this information, I concur that the moraine at this described location is
    the most prominent and noteworthy of the several in the Yosemite Valley. It
    seems perfectly acceptable to officially tame it Bridalveil Moraine.
- 1991 Form showing the approval of this name
- 1930 map showing location of the moraine
- 1972 map showing the wrong location of the moraine
- This moraine marks the westward progress of the Tioga glacier

El Capitan-7,569' (Yosemite Quad, El Capitan) (37°44′03″N 119°38′16″W)
El Capitan Meadow-3,953' (Yosemite Quad, El Capitan) (37.7238155, -119.6354441)
El Capitan Bridge-3,953' (Yosemite Quad, El Capitan) (37.7238155, -119.6312772)
El Capitan Moriane-7,713' (Yosemite Quad, El Capitan) (37.7415924, -119.6585020)
El Capitan Gully-4,675' (Yosemite Quad, El Capitan) (37.7411111, -119.6372222)

Description:
The name was given by the Mariposa Battialian in 1851... "The native Indian name ... is To-to-konoo-lah, from To-to-kon, the Sandhill Crane, a chief of the First People, (C. Hart Merriam in SCB 10, no.2. Jan 1917, 206)

"The famous cliff, El Capitan, the Captain, is a Spanish interpretation of the Indian name To-tock-ah-noo-lah, meaning the "Rock Chief'" (Bunnel, Report, 1889-90, 9) "Upon one occasion I asked [Tenaya], 'Why do you call the cliff To-to-konoo-lah? The Indian's reply was, "Because he looks like one...Come with me and see...As the Indian reached a point a little above and some distance from the cliff, he triumphantly pointed to the perfect image of a man's head and face, with side whiskers, and with an expression of the sturdy English type and asked, 'Does he not look like To-to-konoo-lah? The 'Rock Chief' or 'Captain', was again Sandino's [the interpreter's] interpretation of the word while viewing the likeness." (Bernell, Discovery, 1911, 214-15)

There is also a legend type of explanation that is repeated throughout Yosemite literature. Galen Clark says that To-to-konoo-lah is from the measuring worm (tul-tok-a-na) which crawled up the face of the rock to rescue two small boys who were beyond being saved by any other creatures of the valley (Clark, 92-95)

According to one source, the original English name was "Crane Mountain," not for the reason given above, but for the sandhill cranes that entered the valley by flying over the top of El Capitan. (YNN 34, no 1, Jan 1955:6) And finally, Hutchings' California Magazine 1, no 1, July 1856: 3, called it "Giant's Tower". (YNP)

From GNIS:

El Capitan: In Yosemite National Park, on the north wall of Yosemte Valley and directly above Yosemite Meadow. (US-T121) Also called:
- Tote-ack-ah-noo-la: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p38
- To-tock-ah-noo-lah: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p38
- To-to-konoo-lah: Browning, Peter. Place Names of the Sierra Nevada. Berkeley, California: Wilderness Press, 1986. p63
- Monarch of the Vale: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p188
- Giant Tower: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p38
- Crane Mountain: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p38
El Capitan Meadow: In Yosemite National Park at Yosemite Valley and the north bank of Merced River at mile marker 123. (US-T121)
El Capitan Moraine: A glacial deposit in Yosemite National Park, in Yosemite Valley between El Capitan and Cathedral Rocks. (US-T121)

Place: CA-Artist Point

Artist Point-4,701' (El Capitan) (37.7121494, -119.6748902)
Artist Creek-3,855' (El Capitan) (37.7174269, -119.6729459)

Description:
See Chapter 24 in Sharon Giacomazzi's Trails and Tales of Yosemite and the Central Sierra. Thomas Hill painted the 10'x6' painting Great Canyon of the Sierras from Artist Point. Many other paintings can be found by Googling artist point yosemite painting.

Thomas Hill is the most noted artist who worked at this point. From sketches he made here, he painted the Great Canyon of the Sierras in 1871. Also he painted Yosemite Valley. This painting gathered top honors in the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. He eventually worked out of Wawona at what is now the Ranger Station there. For paintings of his, look at the Yosemite Museum, Oakland Museum and Sacramento's Crocker Museum.

Many hiking blogs and trail descriptions say that Thomas Ayers painted his famous picture here. But I am not so sure. Giacomazzi's account seems a lot more authoritative. Also the perspective of the picture is wrong for Artist Point.

There is a benchmark at the 4,701' level. denoting Artist point.

From GNIS:

Artist Creek: In Yosemite National Park, heads just south of Old Inspiration Point, flows north past Artist Point on the west to the Merced River.
Artist Point: In Yosemite National Park on the south wall of Yosemite Valley, and 0.8 km (0.5 mi) south of the mouth of Artist Creek.

Trips:

September 2, 2014-Day trip with Kevin and Connor from McGurk Meadow to Bridalveil Parking lot
November 12, 1014-Day hike up Old Wawona Road
November 22, 2014 -Day hike leading meetup from to Ft Monroe

References:

Yosemite Hikes
Anne's Travel
The Redwoods Cottage
Yosemite Hikes-Short description of hiking from Tunnel View
Hikes with Tykes blog
NorCal hiker blog
Thomas Kincade painting
Thomas Hill's painting Grand Canyon of the Sierra's. Another view of the painting can be found here.

Places: CA-Pohono

Pohono Bridge-3,868' (El Capitan) (37.7165937, -119.6660010)
Pohono Meadow-7,211' (Half Dome) (37.6582632, -119.5843261)
Pohono Trail-6,857' (Half Dome) (37.7049275, -119.6123862)

Description:
"Pohono. The Bridal Veil Fall , explained to signify a blast of wind, or the night-wind ... or possibly with reference to the constant swaying of the sheet of water from one side to the other under the influence of the wind. Mr. Hutchings, more poetically, says that 'Pohono' is an evil spirit whose breath is a blighting and fatal wind, and consequently to be dreaded and shunned." (Whitney, Yosemite Guide-Book, 1870, 16)

"The whole basin drained, as well as the meadows adjacent, was known to us of the battalion, as the Pohono branch and meadows... I Have recently learned the Po-ho-no means a daily puffing wind, and when applied to fall, stream or meadow, means a simply the fall, stream, or meadow of the puffing wind, and when applied to the tribe of Po-ho-no-chess, who occupied the meadows in summer, indicated that they dwell on the meadows of that stream.... Mr. Hutchings' interpretation is entirely fanciful, as are most of his Indian translations." (Bunnell, Discovery, 1911, 212-213.) (YNP)

From GNIS:

Pohono Meadow: In Yosemite National Park, 2.2 km (1.4 mi) northwest of Horizon Ridge and 2.2 km (1.4 mi) south of Mono Meadow.
- Also called Bridalveil Meadow, but a different one than on Yosemite Valley floor: U.S. Board on Geographic Names. Geographic Names Post Phase I Board/Staff Revisions. 01-Jan-2000. Board decisions referenced after Phase I data compilation or staff researched non-controversial names.

4Ft Monroe

At the elevation around 5,600 feet we arrived at Fort Monroe. These structures were removed when the Wawona Tunnel was completed in July of 1933.

Fort Monroe was named for George F. Monroe, a stage driver for the Yosemite Stage Line. The "fort" was a stage team relay station, and a place where stage line customers and other travelers camped.

Monroe came to California with his uncle from his native Georgia in 1856 to meet his parents who had recently moved to Mariposa as part of the gold rush. George was 12 at the time. George's father Louis became a successful barber in Mariposa,[citation needed] and eventually bought and lived on a prosperous ranch south east of town.
In 1866 Monroe started working for the Wabash brothers, who ran the Yosemite Stage Line, and eventually got promoted to driver. He was said to excel at taking the team over the treacherous road, which included many sharp drop offs at the side of the road and numerous tight switch backs. He never had an accident that cost the company money nor injury to his passengers.[1] It is thought that an accident precipitated his own death at the age of 42. According to one account, he was riding as a passenger in the stage when a horse got away from the driver, and George clambered to the front horse to stop the team, in the course of which he injured himself. A few days later, after complaining of feeling ill, he died at his parents ranch. He was their only child.[2]
Monroe was said to be well known to travelers from Europe, as well as throughout the United States. Among his passengers over the years were presidents Grant, Garfield and Hayes

The location retained Monroe's name after his death. It was always a site of significance, from the stage and horse era of the late 19th century, well into the automobile era when for a time it was an entrance station, and was said to have a fine automobile camp.[3] When the Wawona Tunnel was built, the upper road was converted into part of the Pohono Trail, whose starting point is now located at the Tunnel View parking lot.

J Smeaton Chase: Yosemite Trails

We camped at Fort Monroe, and ate our supper between exclamations at the sunset color on the pines and cedars on the opposite hillside. The level light illuminated the forest with a radiance that was indescribably royal and august, and the great trees stood thoughtful and reverent, ripening their harvest in the golden air.

From just beyond our camp there opened a wonderful outlook to the west. The land here falls away almost precipitously two thousand feet to the cañon of the Merced, where it forms a sweeping amphitheatre at the point where Tamarack Creek enters from the north. Opposite, the unbroken forest rises to the high ridge that is held by the Merced Grove of Sequoias, and which here forms the watershed between the Merced and Tuolumne systems.

In the gathering dusk the myriad pinnacles of the forest rose into a pale, clear sky, down which the new moon passed musingly to sink behind the western mountains.

Place: CA-Inspiration Point (Yosemite)

Inspiration Point-5,381' (El Capitan) (37.7138160, -119.6879465)
Old Inspiration Point-6,532' (El Capitan) (long, lat)

Description:
Old Inspiration Point is where Major Savage first saw Yosemite Valley. Hutchings came in later and saw Yosemite first from here as well.

From GNIS:

Inspiration Point: In Yosemite National Park, north of the Merced River at mile marker 120 and on the southwest wall of Yosemite Valley, 1.4 km (0.9 mi) east of Turtleback Dome and 1.4 km (0.9 mi) northwest of Old Inspiration Point.
Old Inspiration Point: In Yosemite National Park, on the far southwest wall of Yosemite Valley , above the Mereced River at mile marker 120. Also called:
- Open-eta-noo-ah: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p208
- Mount Beatitute: Browning, Peter. Yosemite Place Names. Lafayette, California: Great West Books, 1988. p105

An easier way, but longer to arrive at New Inspiration Point is to go up the Old Wawona Road.If you pass by the Pohono junction, eventually it curls back onto New Inspiration Point.

Gary-Summer