I hiked down the Tuolomne River in Lyell Canyon today, a distance of 9.1 miles, 14.6 km. The trail was so flat and smooth that it only took 3.5 hours to get to Tuolomne Meadows. Once there I met Holiday and Hummingbird for lunch, then myself and Holiday took a surprise bus ride into Yosemite Valley. We bumped into some cool people at the bar there, spent the night hanging out with them and camped at their site in the valley.

This morning when I woke up, it was frosty at the head of Lyell Canyon. I packed up and headed down the trail, hoping to get in the sun soon. When I found the sun, the meadows stretched out in front of me with views towards White Mountain in the far distance.

As I approached Tuolomne Meadows, the trail became busier and busier. I saw JMT hikers starting their adventure to Mt Whitney, with brand new gear and pristine clothes. There were fishermen, day hikers, trail runners and dozens of people just exploring the trail. When I got close to the road, I had a view of Johnson Peak and Unicorn Peak over a wide meadow.

I reached Tioga Road at around noon. This is the first time the PCT crosses a road since Kennedy Meadows, 247 miles or 394 km ago. Just off the road I got a good view of Lembert Dome, a view I recognized from our road trip to Mariposa Grove – we’d napped in the carpark here 3 weeks ago.

Just down the road was the Tuolomne Meadows store and grill. When I got there, I joined Holiday and Hummingbird for lunch. While we were eating, a bus driver came to our table and asked if anyone wanted to go into Yosemite Valley, Holiday and myself both took the ride.

Our first stop in the valley was the pub, and the moment we got there, we had people coming to our side, offering beers, food, and a spot at their table. We had a big night here, bringing others from the bar over to the table and just having a great time.

The guys had room at their campsite for a couple more tents so when the night was over, we headed that way and set up. It was amazing walking through Yosemite under a nearly full moon and seeing the cliffs light up was a reminder of just where we were and how lucky to be there.