sniff the apple, eat the pine...i mean eat the apple, sniff the pine

I am on the brink of leaving on yet another yosemite trip and figured it would be a good time to chronicle the details of my last jaunt, mainly for the purpose of reminding myself what I did. by far, the most fascinating detail is the fact that i went by myself. i could just casually slip this fact in as if it were not a big deal (i.e., "details of my last solo jaunt..."), and i go camping alone every day, but that would not be the truth. here's a few moments:

I set out early in the morning in the beat-down civic with all my gear, including a tent i would set up by myself, one chair, a cooking stove on which I would cook for myself savory smelling things that would attract the looks of passerbyers, and an axe, which i did not use, mainly because i was afraid of scaring the other campers. the drive however, was a drive filled with attempting to harmonize, and sometimes overpower, the voices of paul simon, sheryl crow, jack johnson and a twangy female band from the bayou. as soon as i reached the crest of the entrance to The Mountains (all happy and relaxed from singing and scenery), a beautiful fluttering of yellow and red leaves rained down on me with a well-timed breeze, welcoming me with their hot colors. it felt like coming home.

the drive into the valley on the 41 was embellished with red, yellow, orange, pink, light green - hot, firey colors of the last days of fall. yosemite valley was going into hibernation with a final, vibrant salute to life. i got there at about 2pm and set up my little camp. the ground was still damp from the recent rain, so i went and purchased a tarp. my cozy little set up included a large folded comforter, though it got so cold at night (bit below freezing) that everything outside my zero-degree sleeping bag felt damp and cold. i put my clothes in the bottom of my bag when i slept, which worked nicely. that first night i went and hung out in front of the large fireplace at the ahwanhee and read.

the second day i was there, i drove out to the giant Hetch Hetchy resevior, a valley often touted as "the lost yosemite" by violent conservationsts like myself. it most certainly was not, but it did have its own (sad) beauty. In order to get to the side with the trails, you need to cross the giant dam on foot. look over on one side, and you see a plunge of sloped cement, and a hole that the water violently explodes out of and falls to the churning river below. look over on the other side and you see water still and deep and pitch black. i have never seen water so black. the hiking was okay - i went out to a fall and snuck up on some people making out and then ate my lunch. did i mention i snuck up on a bear too, and was only about three or four yards away? i did. i'm a very silent, stealthy hiker apparently. The drive out to Hetchy Hetchy was gorgeous - dramatic scenery, windy roads, good music. that night i hung out in yosemite village for a bit and then went back and did homework in my tent. brrr!

on the way out, i stopped at the Maripose grove of giant seqoias. words cannot capture these trees, but as i was taking in the sweet scent of pine, it came to me that this smell was the equivilent of eating an apple - that light sweet, crisp, water-lock. smelling pine is the apples for the nose. like that? i tried telling the asian tourists about my enlightenment but they were much more interested in the trees. so i made them take pictures of me in front of the trees. did i mention i did not bring a camera?