Type: Snowshoeing
Trail head: Badger Pass Parking Lot
Trail: Glacier Point Road, Summit Meadow Trail, Old Glacier Point Road,
Destination: Loop and possibly Tempo Dome
Actual Destination: Ridge where Tempo Dome is
Distance: 3.94 miles
Start Time: 10:52
End Time: 3:07
Travel Time: 4:15 (0.93 mph)
Moving Time: 3:01 (1.31 mph)
Elevation Rise: 692'
Descent: 719‘
Maximum Elevation: 7,653'
Minimum Elevation: 7,250'
Sherri cannot come today-she has an appointment. But Steven and Rachel can. We decided that it looks like we can go to Badger Pass today. It does not look like we will have fog in Fresno, even though in the morning, it looked like the temperature is 20 degrees up at Badger Pass. But by 10 it will be at least 40, at least that is the forecast.
We planned to leave at 8 so we could get a full day up at Badger Pass. Rachel got hung up, so I started driving about 8:40, but with all three of us. When we got to the Yosemite entry station, Rachel had her first opportunity to use her digital Park pass. It worked! The road is dry and there is no concern with there being ice on the road. We did stop at Chinquipin before going up the Glacier Point Road. We get to the parking area, parking close to where we will start off.
Our snowshoes touch the snow about 11. But we do not get too far before we get in conversation with a couple of young ladies who are on cross-country skis for the first time. At least they are upright. Their friend gets up and then falls, repeating that a couple of more times. It turns out they are part of a group.When the group comes along, we leave.
One
of the things which I want to do is to see if I can identify why I
get shortness of breath when going uphill. I have brought along an
Pulse-Ox meter to measure both the oxygen saturation levels and my
heart beats. We are at 7,200’, so that is also a factor. About the
time we are at Summit
Meadow,
I am at 90%, a bit low, but reasonable. By the time we hit lunch
time, it is up to 94%. That is a bit unusual since between Summit
Meadow and the trail back to the parking area is the steepest part.
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| Rachel with Mt Clark |
To go back to the start, once we leave those who are going to learn to cross-country ski, we start up the snow-covered Glacier Point Road. The slope up is gentle and in places we can look north across the Merced-but not into Yosemite Valley. Once we reach the top, it is a short descent to Summit Meadow. There had been a couple options which we rejected. There are a couple routes to Dewey Point-the site of my debacle last Spring. We would not have made it there, but Sherri and I have gone a ways on them and found routes back. Then there is continuing on down the Road, but that means a long uphill return. We decided to go south out of Summit Meadow up to a return route to the parking lot.
When we get to the trail, we found a log to sit on and have lunch. One of the good things about being outdoors and doing things with people whom you like, is that you get to talk with them. And by talking I mean more than just “how are you doing” type conversation. Rachel was talking about some training she is doing with yoga. Part of it is recognizing and responding to trauma. This brought up a conversation about trauma, the type and causes of trauma and how you could respond to it. It is good to be able to talk with both Steven and Rachel as adults.
After lunch we take the trail starting towards the parking lot. In about a quarter mile, we come to a junction with what looks like a service trail to the top of Tempo Dome. I think this is also part of the Old Glacier Point Road. Also at this junction is the true Badger Pass.
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| Cloud's Rest and Half Dome |
We debated for a minute about what we should do. All of us felt like we wanted to do more. So we followed the road which goes up the ridge. But first, it goes on a small, gentle descent. Along the way, we noticed places where the snow had settled, leaving large cracks where snow sank. We take a little detour around these.
The
road curves to the south before heading up the ridge. That climb is
pretty steep-later looking at the stats, the slope was at a maximum
of 13%. I definitely am huffing and puffing and stopping on the way
up. Rachel is trying to pace us by keeping her heart beat within an
aerobic area. Somehow that pace just does not suit me-even though it
would have been better for me. My O2
saturation is still OK at 91%, but the heart rate is in the upper
140’s.
When we reach the top, we turn around and see across the Clark Range. There we play the game of trying to identify peaks. The one just to the east, I say is Mt Starr King, but Steven and Rachel think it is Clark Peak. I suspect they are right and may King be behind some trees. Just looking over all of this would be breathtaking except the climb up already took my breath.
Extra Photo's
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| Shadow Snoeshoers |
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| Gary, Steven, Rachel |
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| Half Dome and Cloud's Rest |
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| Father and Daughter confering |
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| Steven and Rachel going up the Summit Meadow Trail |
