Where were the bears?

One of my favorite places to camp is in Yosemite, not down in the valley but up on the Tioga road. We frequent a campground there that's 'unimproved' which means you have to bring or sterilize your own water, and the road is rough, but that just makes it better in my opinion. Ponderosa pines, wildflowers, granite boulders, a clear mountain stream - it's kid (and me) heaven. Industrial strength bear boxes are provided, which helps with the peace of mind.

We spent a week there in early August. We climbed Pothole Dome (an easy climb with kids) and played on the Tuolumne River. That day was overcast, and the river was cold, but it was gorgeous. Walking back along the edge of Tuolumne Meadows we saw deer grazing, and many wildflowers.

We spent a day in camp, with our longest expedition being a 1/2 mile 'hike' up the creek that runs through, to a field full of wildflowers where we found a mini swimming hole. We saw the BIGGEST bear poop on the trail, but that was the closest we got to a bear on this trip. Apparently they were down the road at White Wolf.

We braved the valley one day, and the crowds, and the exhaust. Carson, Reed and I swam in the pool at the base of Yosemite Falls, which was just a trickle but the pool was cold & clear (and full of people). We picnicked at the El Capitan picnic area, which doesn't have a good view of El Cap, and the bus driver forgot us there. But then he remembered us, and we ended with a lovely swim in the Merced River with a much better view of El Capitan.

And we went to the most beautiful lake, Tenaya, where you could walk out in knee deep water for such a long ways. The lake bed was sandy, the water icy, and the kids played and played. It was a perfect place to spend the last day.