Creamsicle and the Beardless Woodsman: Day 7

6.5 miles from Glen Aulin to Toulumne Meadows; 4 miles round-trip to Lembert Dome and Dog Lake

Vaughn woke me up in my tent this morning with a napkin full of French toast and bacon from their breakfast. This is how I imagine the Queen gets her breakfast in bed. At the beginning of the hike, Vaughn told me that he heard it’s supposed to be 200 ft. downhill total on the hike today…bull poop!! Well, it probably was, but we had a lot of uphill with packs that I did not appreciate after the hike from the day before. We did walk through the most idealistic meadow I’ve ever seen on the way, as well as some spots that looked amazing from swimming. We got to Toulumne Meadows at a decent time and found the tent cabins. We then went on a hike up Lembert Dome which had wonderful views of the meadows and the surrounding mountains. Vaughn’s mom couldn’t stop yelling at Vaughn and Maggie to get away from the edges and watch their step and all that stuff that moms worry about. It’s a good thing for my mom’s sake that she doesn’t see half the things I do on hikes. From Lembert Dome, Vaughn and I continued on to Dog Lake, which was pretty, but nothing spectacular and very mosquito filled. So we didn’t spend too much time there. On the way down from the hike, I started to feel my right knee go, which I was expecting at some point, but was still bummed when I first felt it. Oh well, a bum knee isn’t gonna stop me from doing anything (at least not until I hit the ripe old age of 23). When we got back, we showered in nice showers because Toulumne Meadows is accessible by car which means they have all the amenities. They have a “high sierra” camp there but it’s not really high sierra. Also because it’s not a real high sierra camp, they didn’t have pre-paid meals so we all ate at the restaurant in the lodge. Before dinner we played cards, and that’s where John showed me his videos of when him and Michelle went to Iguazu Falls. I immediately moved it up on my travel list (it was already on there before, just not as high as it is now). Vaughn and I both had the meatloaf with potatoes and veggies, and I added on to the meal with 8 rolls (all free, no worries). Our waiter, Steven, was an interesting character who was not shy about divulging his true feelings about dishes. But I didn’t care because he kept bringing us rolls and butter. I then had a chocolate mousse cake for dessert. Calories aren’t bad if they make you happy, so I don’t worry about limiting myself…I’m a self-labeled fatty and proud of it. After dinner we relaxed for a bit and then went to bed.

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” – Joe Lewis

“Above all, try something.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt