Part 2 of our Yosemite!
Aaaahhh. After a chilly evening it felt great to lay out on a warm stone and soak in the environment on our next hike. We set out on a slightly longer 4 mile hike around mirror lake.
There were plenty more big rocks.
Lots of interesting plant life...
Some very cool pinecones too
And then after a very hot hike we came upon mirror lake! The lake wasn't as big as I expected but it certainly was beautiful. We hung out here, had some lunch, took pictures, and got our feet wet. Boy that water is COLD. But it was refreshing. 
After that we intended to round the lake and head back...turns out we went the wrong way and ended up hiking 2 miles more than we planned. 
We hiked up the creek...across the creek...
And wound up at the north pole!!!Actually we were just above the 5000ft snow line. Pretty cool huh. Snow in April. After that we set off on our return journey and found a good spot for some rock climbing...sort of.
So our 4 mile hike turned into a six mile hike with not enough water. We did make it but we were thirsty...and hungry. So back to camp for a nice hot meal, a fire, and some s'mores. Yum.
Day 3: Our more intentionally ambitious hike to Vernal Falls and Nevada falls 6 miles.
I think that's the falls WAY over there.
Falls on the way to the falls.
Check out those steps. They go allllllll the way up. This part made me nervous because they were quite slippery from the spray.
That is Vernal Falls!!! Beautiful!!!
Good thing I didn't know.
Here's Tim with a great view and some wicked water right behind him.
we came all the way up from down there
But still have plenty to go. Let's take a quick rest.
OOOOhhh. There is the second phase of our hike...Nevada Falls
I think that's the falls WAY over there.
Falls on the way to the falls.
Check out those steps. They go allllllll the way up. This part made me nervous because they were quite slippery from the spray.
That is Vernal Falls!!! Beautiful!!!Good thing I didn't know.
More steps up to the top. These are slippery too. Hold on. At this point I was thinking "hmm...if I had known it was going to be like this would I have come up here?" 
Here's Tim with a great view and some wicked water right behind him.
we came all the way up from down there
But still have plenty to go. Let's take a quick rest.
OOOOhhh. There is the second phase of our hike...Nevada Falls
Up many many many more granite steps right next to the falls.
See how Tim is holding his hat. He's not tipping it to me he's keeping it from blowing off. It was really windy up there. There was nothing to keep us from falling right off except slow, sure footing, our will to stay on, and a gracious God that protects us on our greatest adventures.
We made it to the tippy top and stopped for a picture before setting up to cook an awesome mountain top meal.
Boil the water with our pocket rocket and then put it in the bag to let it cook w/the dehydrated food. I don't remember what the meal was but up there, after that long hike, it rocked!
Unfortunately we forgot the spoons! Tim is great to improvise, so improvise we did. Peeled sticks are actually really great utensils.
Here's a view from the top of the falls. As you can see it's starting to get dark. Remember how it was so steep and windy on the way up. It was even more windy now. We hoped to have an alternate route down so we didn't have to go the same way.
see all that snow on that ledge. That was our alternate route. Well, I guess we'll have to take the wind.
So, after we went back down and down and down all the stairs we went past a lovely creek again and the glow of the sunset through the trees was beautiful.
And Tim got a chance to say hello to the horses and mules that reside near our campsite.
Well, hay is for horses but also for us when we're really tired. Time to hit the hay.
Day 4: Upper Yosemite Falls Here we come!
After a nice vigorous hike up another steep hill we came to another waterfall. I know it seems a bit repetetive but really they were all different and beautiful. The pictures don't do it justice. I recommend that you all go yourself.
Be Careful Tim. I'm holding my breath as I took this picture.
This one takes my breath away. You get a really good view of the valley.
Well, after a total of 16 miles and 4 days it was time for us to head out. One last stop before we go back to the city. We were fortunate enough to have a gift (Thank you Dad) for a spa visit.
What better time to go to a spa then after hiking and sleeping in a tent for several days.
It was well appreciated. We both got massages and didn't ache the next day despite all our hiking. Thanks Dad. Thank you to everyone for travelling with us to Yosemite.
Much Love and Happy Trails,
Jenn an Tim
See how Tim is holding his hat. He's not tipping it to me he's keeping it from blowing off. It was really windy up there. There was nothing to keep us from falling right off except slow, sure footing, our will to stay on, and a gracious God that protects us on our greatest adventures.
We made it to the tippy top and stopped for a picture before setting up to cook an awesome mountain top meal.
Boil the water with our pocket rocket and then put it in the bag to let it cook w/the dehydrated food. I don't remember what the meal was but up there, after that long hike, it rocked!
Unfortunately we forgot the spoons! Tim is great to improvise, so improvise we did. Peeled sticks are actually really great utensils.
Here's a view from the top of the falls. As you can see it's starting to get dark. Remember how it was so steep and windy on the way up. It was even more windy now. We hoped to have an alternate route down so we didn't have to go the same way.
see all that snow on that ledge. That was our alternate route. Well, I guess we'll have to take the wind.
So, after we went back down and down and down all the stairs we went past a lovely creek again and the glow of the sunset through the trees was beautiful.
And Tim got a chance to say hello to the horses and mules that reside near our campsite. Well, hay is for horses but also for us when we're really tired. Time to hit the hay.
Day 4: Upper Yosemite Falls Here we come!
After a nice vigorous hike up another steep hill we came to another waterfall. I know it seems a bit repetetive but really they were all different and beautiful. The pictures don't do it justice. I recommend that you all go yourself.
Be Careful Tim. I'm holding my breath as I took this picture.
This one takes my breath away. You get a really good view of the valley.
Well, after a total of 16 miles and 4 days it was time for us to head out. One last stop before we go back to the city. We were fortunate enough to have a gift (Thank you Dad) for a spa visit.What better time to go to a spa then after hiking and sleeping in a tent for several days.
It was well appreciated. We both got massages and didn't ache the next day despite all our hiking. Thanks Dad. Thank you to everyone for travelling with us to Yosemite. Much Love and Happy Trails,
Jenn an Tim
