earthling life.

roseville community school 6th grade graduation. it was bittersweet to say goodbye to the alumni! it's such a tight community!

plus dance parties, pool parties, summer time parties. SUMMER.

the golden hot flatness starts to undulate, golden hills- gold hills with roads cutting through like ribbons. ancient oaks appear in the keypoints, the folds within the hills. now oaks, just yellow grass and humped oaks, sitting beside the black painted pools of their shadows. the jalopy climbs up the yellow foothills. (i journaled the journey from valley to sierra. so fun!)

 ALTERNATE TITLE: DOLLY'S FOOL PROOFIN' IN YOSEMITE TIPS. i'm going to guesstimate that i've gone 24 or so times, throughout different seasons. listen to an old timer, yo!

tin foil and cardboard= yum. this gets me excited!! solar cooking convention this july in sactown. studying up so i can teach more at an earth first! rendezvous and plus some!

fen, briar, marsh. i amble through, alone, the way the black bear does. listening to the song of the grosbeak and the sweet note of the spotted owl in the grey dawn.

 i understand the many critiques one could have after visiting yosemite. i do. the crowds. the corporate presence. the tacky gift shops. etc. and despite it all i still come.

bush lupin, california lilac.

 how could i not?

natural geometry. my favorite green water.

 the towering granite walls surround me as i traipse through this majestic stone castle. the roar of sacred falling water makes me feel like the wild princess.

 there are places where i am utterly alone. i know when and where to do this.

stone and wood.

 yosemite, especially mid-summer, is a multicultural/international city, where people hike in flip-flops or high-tech boots. (and everything in between.) people come from all over the world to be enchanted, mystified.

 a large part of me is impressed with the simple infrastructure, designed decades ago, which supports millions of visitors while keeping the overall health and biodiversity in the fragile valley thriving.

 we visit this wild place (sincerest apologies to those who once inhabited it) masses at a time... (yes the bears and squirrels are tame :( and there's a peet's coffee in the cafeteria..) BUT it's sustainable. yosemite will grind away under wind and water and there will be permanent cuts alongside the rocks as trails and roads and buildings, and millions of people will visit without the ecosystem collapsing, without skyscrapers, pollution, walmarts (we can pray), parking garages.

aboriginal names.

 modern humans come to this place without razing it down. and that for me (sadly?) is impressive. the granite commands awe and respect.

alone in the valley.

we sing kumbaya around campfires at night and ride on clean-gas shuttles that loop around this urban forest in the day. we all come with peaceful intent.

hello, solar cooked dinner.

it's the closet thing we've come to creating an eco-urban-utopia. it works somehow. it's true, there is none of the medicine of solitude one seeks out in the wilderness, BUT THE WILDERNESS. it beckons us all, and we pray collectively, in unison.

surrounded by vibrating stone walls.

 i come here, and i feel expansive. i feel genuinely glad to see all of my fellow earthling brothers and sisters huffing up the trails with their friends and young ones.

vernal. pi-wi-ack: shower of stars.

 seeking refuge, seeking beauty, paying homage to the Goddess with sweat, photos, and FB updates. (made it to the top!)

last one up the trail in the evening. listening to the roar of water.

 i love the feel of hiking in my body- my pounding heart, my burning legs, my panting chest- i know i am ALIVE!

 my body carries me up the face of steep climbs, i give my troubles to the river. we are all healed here, in this primal cathedral, in this granite temple. prayers are heard. this is a sacred place.

fat little fuc*ers. they pan handle amongst the humans.

 it's true, the social and political past of yosemite's formation is difficult, with it's white-washed manifest destiny land grabbing, but it still exists today. and it will tomorrow for anyone who wants to breathe there. the trees are still growing.

perspective. even still a giant tree.

so you want to go?
1. go in mid-late may. it's not too hot, the falls are still booming, the valley wildflowers are in full bloom, and although it's crowded it's not july crowded.

2. get a reservation! day trips aren't long enough considering the length most of us have to drive to get there. on jan-15 of every year go online to the reserve america dot gov site.

keepin' it caj (<----what is the best way to shorten "casual??") on the mist trail.

3. when online, look for camp sites in upper pines campground, which is in the valley. 204/206/207 are by far the best sites: outer loops, near streams and big rocks, big trees, and walking distance to the main trail heads. if you don't go online in january, keep on checking for what's available, because people do cancel. i've gotten sites this way. don't go over the weekend. :)

oh, refreshment! MECCA!!!!!

4. hodgdon meadows is also a cool campsite. it's outside of the valley, less popular, and next to an amazing meadow! this campsite is also near the largest old growth sequoias in the area.

prismatic love.

5. hike up to vernal falls. bring your kids, or don't. pack a lunch and eat it on top of the waterfall. easily the most magical hike in the world. it is my pilgrimage.

straight over the top.

6. see the magic! make friends! ask dusty hikers with big packs on the valley shuttle how long they have hiked, and what trails. everyone loves to share their most recent adventures. learn how to say hello in french, german, japanese, etc! like i said, it's a global community. :)

crest n credo

7. take a day to wander around the valley with the shuttles. visit the interpretive centers, watch the john muir movie, hop off of the shuttle at the emerald green merced river, wander through the oaks and pines growing from the valley floor, get an ice cream cone at curry village.

waterfall bloomer.

7. hike sentinal dome. seriously, best kept secret with the best views. you'll thank me.

8. if you're visit length permits, drive to tuoloumne meadows. keep on going for a trippy biome shock at mono lake.

...ummmmmmm.....

columbine near rainbow pool

9. take a swim at rainbow pool, right outside of the main park entrance. great for the heat one feels leaving the higher elevations.

10. come with me next may!

how to make linky cry: jump into water. :)

wild fields of bachelor's buttons in groveland.

the way home.

"i only went out for a walk, and finally concluded to stay out til sundown, for going out, i found was really going in." john muir.