• AT HAND: Deuce Lee, BBJam
• LOCATION: Yosemite National Park, CA
• DATES: June 19 & 20, 2024
• STATS: 2 days/2 nights, 19.5 miles – 4,786 feet EG

Ahhhh… generational wealth… the legacy of the well-heeled go-getter measured in inverse to his golf score. That mottled, coddled egg left to mature in the proverbial nest is never sufficient to fill the over-fed but insatiable mouths of one’s nestlings after you’ve been rigorously mortised. It’s not enough to place your trust in your trust and assume that cool heads will prevail. Consider leaving something far more abundant, meaningful and soul-satisfying than eggshell pieces to those that remain once you’ve urned your rest: a love and appreciation for the outdoors, and a skill set that can facilitate exploring all that it has to offer. A wealth of experience, spiritual fulfillment, physical and mental resilience and pervasive self-confidence is greater than any amount of coin stuffed dispassionately into a homemade duct tape wallet.

The “up” from Yosemite Valley past Mirror Lake is no joke. It’s the most elevation gain of any trail out of the valley into the backcountry, and on a hot day it’s exposed and exhausting. Miles of switchbacks numbering in the triple digits offer you unparalleled views of half dome and the granite cathedrals Yosemite is famous for, all of which you have plenty of time to ogle as you stop for frequent rests to catch your breath and reapply sunscreen during your march into the sky. Once up top, though, you’re rewarded with Tenaya Creek splish/splash and plenty of tree cover. The route toward the top of Yosemite Falls meanders reverently through burnt out forest, deep, wet basins, and desert-like scree and rock fields. You’re near water almost the entire time, and the background gurgle propels you forward like a motor, greasing your tired wheels and keeping you in gear. A side trip to North Dome is there for the taking if you have the energy. It’s a shared experience that changes the way you appreciate your hiking compadre. Beauty and misery are both communicated in the exhausted smiles on your faces at the end of a long, challenging day, and it’s all the emotional currency you need for the short hike back down to a familiar and tentative reality. Legacy secured.

Of consequence: Sleeping above the falls; watching the sun set majestically below the horizon and the light change minute-by-minute with one of the few people in your life that you can’t live without; surprisingly exceptional pesto chicken pasta; reluctantly eschewing short cuts; marmot!; Fresno DG.