We went to bed that night a little deflated. Just our third night out and we were tired and a little grumpy - I was having my doubts. Luckily, Drew and I communicate well and by the time we actually went to sleep we had talked it out - the expectations, what we each needed to do for each other to make it the best experience, and how we were going to approach the rest of our trip. I love him - I really do! Never have I met a man better able (and willing!) to take the time to get me to talk about what I'm thinking and feeling.
The next morning we were all smiles (and somehow less sore - weird) as we headed out back onto the never ending trail. Knowing what were in for for the first few miles - all went smoothly. As I was leading the trail up and over a crest a young buck was doing the same on the other side. We met in the middle to our mutual surprise. I love deer in Yosemite - it's like they pose for pictures. We got some great ones, and I could hear Dad in my head as he would no doubt look them over. :) We stayed put until he could make his way off the trail, and as we moved on we realized quickly why he was hesitant to move. Oh, there's his girlfriend! And his kids! Hi, everybody! Okay, let's have a big ol' photo session! I just kept creeping closer, and they just kept ignoring me...check it out in the photos above.
After a while we met up with my sanity-saving signage from the day before (see yesterday's post!) and took a new path - STRAIGHT UP! But this time I was well prepared for the climb, thanks to Drew. We saw some new wildlife (Grouse maybe? Help us out here, Dad!), enjoyed some shaded forest walking, encountered another human (yes, it was that infrequent as to be noted specifically - and we loved it), laughed at the tiny lizards doing "push-ups" on the rocks (I don't know what they were doing - a mating dance, a get away from me dance?) and made our way for about five miles.
At one point we hit a "not on the map" climb that just kept going. Knowing myself, I called for a break before gumption was lost. We stopped for some CLIFF bars and water and then moved on - attitude restored. A couple of miles later Drew and I started looking for a campsite - not a group one in this case since there were no backpacker campsites on this part of the trail - but an individual one. I spotted an awesome one across the creek. We checked it out, approved, and set up camp. A while later after dinner I had a taste for a snack - from the bag that we soon found out was lost along the trail. Remember that "gumption stop" I just posted about? We're pretty sure that's the last known location of the snack bag. Oh, well. Good thing we still had our dinners in the bear canister...
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