Hiking – BOOTS on the TRAIL

Nine Mile Creek (Bloomington, MN) 25-Sep-2022

2022-09-252022-09-26Posted in Hiking, MinnesotaTagged Bloomington MN, Day Hiking, Hiking, Minnesota, Minnesota River, Nine Mile Creek Minnesota3 Comments

Recently I found myself concurring with BIT|Hiker’s musings about the unsung merits of hikes that …are neither rigorous nor lengthy. Although some undoubtedly do, I’ve never thought of hiking as a competitive sport – where if you haven’t endured X miles with Y feet of gain you’re not in the league tables. The main point (to me at least) is to just get out into Nature and do something that’s good for your body, mind, and soul! 😁

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Baker Park Reserve (Maple Plain, MN) 21-Sep-2022

2022-09-212022-09-22Posted in Hiking, MinnesotaTagged Baker Park Reserve Minnesota, Day Hiking, Hiking, Lake Katrina Minnesota, MinnesotaLeave a comment

Baker Park Reserve, Maple Plain, Minnesota

We returned from our John Muir Trail trip to find Minneapolis surprisingly hot and steamy. But no matter since we had various mundane details of living to catch-up on – bills, trash, dentist, yard work, etc., etc. Plus a miffed cat to mollify with extra attention until she was (again) bored with us. Unlike a dog, a cat is not a creature designed to feed your ego with excessive attention or unwarranted praise. But Sofie is sooo cute… 😻

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John Muir Trail Revisited (7) 14-Sep-2022

2022-09-142022-09-22Posted in California Wilderness Areas, Hiking, Sierra Nevada (California)Tagged Ansel Adams Wilderness, Devils Postpile National Monument, Hiking, John Muir Trail (JMT), Mammoth Lakes California, Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), PCT, Reds Meadow California, Sierra Nevada (California), Tuolumne Meadows4 Comments

Day 7: Lyell Canyon (Kuna Creek) to Tuolumne Meadows

With the clouds now gone and only blue sky above, the night cooled appreciable. This cooling wasn’t too noticeable when we were cocooned in our tents under the trees, but it sure was when we emerged for an early morning walk in the frost covered meadow. 🥶 But it was going to be a fully sunny day! And we only had 9.6 miles (15.6 km) of essentially flat hiking ahead to Tuolumne Meadows! 😃

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John Muir Trail Revisited (6) 13-Sep-2022

2022-09-132022-09-22Posted in California Wilderness Areas, Hiking, Sierra Nevada (California)Tagged Ansel Adams Wilderness, Devils Postpile National Monument, Hiking, John Muir Trail (JMT), Mammoth Lakes California, Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), PCT, Reds Meadow California, Sierra Nevada (California), Tuolumne MeadowsLeave a comment

Lyell Canyon near Kuna Creek, Yosemite National Park, California

Day 6: Lower Davis Lake to Lyell Canyon (Kuna Creek)

Today was to be the toughest day of this trip, some 8.8 miles (14.2 km), with 1,400 feet (427 m) of gain up to Donohue Pass, then down its steep, rocky northern side into relatively flat Lyell Canyon. It would be a day that started dry, got unpleasantly moist, then ended sunnily 😎 in the welcoming (flat) confines of Lyell Canyon.

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John Muir Trail Revisited (5) 12-Sep-2022

2022-09-122022-09-21Posted in California Wilderness Areas, Hiking, Sierra Nevada (California)Tagged Ansel Adams Wilderness, Devils Postpile National Monument, Hiking, John Muir Trail (JMT), Mammoth Lakes California, Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), PCT, Reds Meadow California, Sierra Nevada (California), Tuolumne MeadowsLeave a comment

Mount Ritter and Banner Peak over Garnet Lake, Ansel Adams Wilderness, California

Day 5: Clarice Lake to Lower Davis Lake

Well, we made good use of our layover day yesterday, what with lounging around in the sunshine and all. Now, to reach Tuolumne Meadows on schedule, we’d have to hike longer distances, and cross a major pass, in the next three days. I’d like to say that the weather accommodated us by being warm and sunny for all of those three days. It did not, choosing instead to grace us with rain (but not hail) on two of them. There may be a drought in California but it wasn’t here for us. 🤨

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