The big hike has arrived. The Mist trail is the signature trail of Yosemite National Park. If you were to hike all the way to the top of Half Dome (Amber will not allow us), this trail is your route there. It’s called the Mist trail because you hike next to two roaring waterfalls that will get you wet. Many people wear ponchos. The round trip hike, using the John Muir trail back, is a 6 mile streneous hike with a 2000 feet elevation change. Amber’s back is feeling ok. She still plans to go the first 0.8 miles to the base of Vernal falls. Again, like rafting, it’s an adventure just to get there. We get to the correct parking area, but national park workers do not allow us to enter sending up back to where we started. The parking lot is full or closed. Too many people. Thus, we head back to our hotel to shuttle to the trail head. Not surprisingly, the shuttle buses are packed all day long, only standing room. We finally get to the trailhead about 1 1/2 after our desired arrival. This trail is crowded. I will repeat. This trail is way too crowded. It’s almost like being in line at Disneyland. People are everywhere. This trail is up. It almost feels straight up. It’s a tough hike, and I am worried about Amber. After a slow start, we arrive to the base of Vernal falls. There is a foot bridge across the creek and the view is not great. Trees block the falls. Amber decides she wants to go farther. Her back is feeling better. The next part of the trail is up the side of the mountain right next to the fails. This is the heart of the Mist trail, and we do get wet. It’s mostly refreshing. Still the trail is very crowded, slick because of wet rock, and 1500 elevation gain. I am still worried about Amber, but she is stubborn. She does not like to miss out and always wants to be with her family. Therefore, we go, but take the trail slow. It is beautiful. I am enjoying the mist, the hike, the waterfall, but not the crowd. At times, we have to wait our turn as people are going up or down in the same small section of rocks. Along the way, we get several beautiful views of the falls. The water of a falls like this is powerful, mesmerizing, loud, and stunning. Finally, we make it to the top of Vernal falls. Here there is a great spot to look over and just before the falls, a tranquil pool of emerald green water fittingly called Emerald pool exists. We take pictures, stop, eat snacks, drink water, and rest. Again, this was a difficult trail. From here we split. Amber and Eli take the loop back down. Josh and I climb on to the top of Nevada Falls. The crowd has thinned out a lot, but there are still more people than I would prefer when trying to enjoy God’s creation. This part of the hike is not right next to the falls, thus not as wet, not as much mist. However, it is still steep, with beautiful views. Hiking with Josh, I become the slow hiker. We pass many others, which makes me proud that I still hike pretty well at 52, but I do not have Josh’s stamina. He is good to me, letting me rest when I need it. He only calls me slow 4-5 times. At the top of this falls are stunning views of the valley and a great overlook of the falls straight down. Here, many people rest, they seem to be sun bathing, maybe just recovering from the hike. Josh and I take time to enjoy the view, the falls and some beef jerky. Then we hike down. I thought Josh was fast on the way up. On the way down, he was hiking at a lightning pace. I was definitely the second fastest hiker down just because I was trying to keep up with Josh. We passed everyone. In fact, we got down the mountain and met Amber and Eli for a snack only about ten minutes after they arrived. Besides Josh’s speed, this was a wonderful hike, two beautiful waterfalls with great overlooks. The only problem. The crowd.
We are now back in the room. I begin to wonder, “How sore am I going to be tomorrow?” Amber’s back held up very well. The hiking has loosened her back better than sitting or lying around. She is not perfect, but a lot better. Getting older is not great. The body is not what it used to be. However, the body is still a gift from God. I like the scenery and the peace of hiking, but I also like the feeling of using my body. I don’t always, sometimes I do, but I don’t always mind being sore or exhausting my body. God has created us wonderfully. However, I do need to be in shape better. That’s on me.