It's not every Thursday I'm sat by a boulder pool contemplating life while looking at Tibetan prayer mats swaying in the breeze next to an enormous Southfork Dallas type house but that's exactly what's happening right now. A take it easy Thursday rather than a throwback one.
Yosemite the last two days has lived up to the hype by slapping me round the face with her wilderness beauty demanding to be noticed. She screamed, never mind Sequioa with her f-uck off giant trees & cute bears! I have all those, MOUNTAINS & then some you know! I get it, I really do get it.
It's no wonder Yosemite is the mecca for climbers, the rock here is on another level. El Capitan, Half Dome, Royal Arches (Fallen Arches as I kept calling it!) & all their mountain mates just seduce you with their grandeur. They make you want to go up them & witnessing the hard core few who were actually climbing these iconic rocks was just incredible. They looked like tiny ants scrambling up the side in search of something better at the top. Amazing. As were the posh binoculars we were using - best Christmas present in a while & finally put to good use.
The 360° view at top of Sentinel Dome was certainly worth the sweat- soaked effort. It's so magnificent up there, by the time you catch your breath from the climb, said 'wow' a few times all you can do is drink in the view in front of you. And take a million & one photos.
Just like the most inappropriately dressed person for being on a mountain we met up there. Wearing a black summer dress split to the thigh on both sides, bright pink jacket & headscarf & pink plimsols she looked like she had just wandered off a yacht party. Countless panoramic shots later, she was off as were we as it was getting hot up there.
I'm still trying to work out how she missed the trail down & ended up on a higher unmarked path but she did. We only found out she had when we heard her yelps of help. She at first refused offers from Mat to assist her down but when she realised her outfit wasn't exactly conducive to skipping down a mountain, she did so holding on for dear life. And safely down she went .... as her dress got caught by the wind and pulled it over her head showing off her big pants in the most unladylike fashion!! Christ on a bike! My eyes nearly bled from the sight of it. A thousand blessings & thanks later, she was off to continue her travels. How we didn't laugh I have no idea. I think we were just shocked at the ridiculousness of it all!
Mat completed his guided climb with someone called Nate and I'm pretty sure if I wasn't his travelling companion, I would have lost him to one of the climbing camps in Yosemite such was the look of sheer delight on his face when he returned.
I had also never seen the Milky Way so clear, so big and so bright until I was sat on a rock on top of Glacier Point. Yes, late night hiking up somewhere high wearing head torches isn't particularly health & safety conscious but as I had my own ranger in the form of Mat guiding me, it was fine...?!
It was so beautiful up there. Yes I did have a little tear in my eye as I looked up at the sky & marvelled at the spectacle in front of me. Billions and billions of stars in galaxies beyond my comprehension making me feel humble at the enormity and beauty of it all.
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