Pate Valley

It's been a long three weeks.  I've had a work backpacking trip each week.  While I love this park, I love backpacking, and I love seeing new places, my last trip just about did me in.  I feel like I've been run over by a truck.  Fool me once, shame on you.  There will be no fool me twice!

One of the places we monitor visitor use is on the western end of the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne.  You can enter from the east end at Tuolumne Meadow and hike 20 some miles to the west end, or you can hike in only 10 miles from White Wolf.  Ah, you say, take the shorter route, of course.

Our route.

Don't take this route.  In about six miles you drop 4,000 ft in elevation.   It was hot, it was exposed, and I saw more snakes (the majority rattlesnakes, big ones) than you see in the reptile house at the zoo.  For anyone who knows me, I don't do snakes.  The mosquitoes weren't as numerous as last week in Lyell, but they were more aggressive.  We went down day one, put up our equipment, camped, and hiked out day two.  It took us about three hours to hike in and exactly six hours to hike out.  And we're both in decent physical condition.  Tells you a little bit about the grade of the trail.

Okay, now that I've listed the negatives... This was a new part of the park for both me and another seasonal, Martina.  It was beautiful.  We parked at White Wolf and made our way to Harden Lake.  I thought it was a bit puny, but it was still in a lovely setting.

Martina contemplating the view of the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne.

 The views were pretty spectacular.  Once we got down into the valley, Pate Valley, we were along the river the whole time.  We found a little stream that fed into it and used it to refill our water.  Some of the best tasting water I have ever had!  Delicious!

 You can see the east end of the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir as well from the trail.  Lovely!

 On the hike out we startled a mamma bear and her little cub.  The cub was coming down a tree and then the mom saw us and she sent that cub back up the tree.  It was pretty cute.  Mamma was pretty tense, but we told her we just wanted a quick photo and we were on our way.  She was a beautiful honey colored black bear.

Martina and I were thrilled beyond belief to see the car.  We were both really sore, really tired, incredibly dirty, and we both had multiple blisters from the trail, despite our tried and true boots.  I'm thrilled I've got a long weekend to recover.

A place to see, but if you come visit, Pate Valley will not be on the list of places I'll take you.  You're on your on with this one.