In 2022, Kyle and I completed a thru-hike of the John Muir Trail (JMT) - 211 miles through the Sierras. The JMT overlaps the PCT in the Sierra section, so for the last 200 + mile Kyle and I have been retracing our steps. While it’s been nostalgic to see these places again, and motivating to see how much stronger we are at this point in our journey, we were thrilled to hit Tuolumne Meadows and see some new terrain!
This section was all about rushing waterfalls, crystal blue swimming holes, mosquitos and of course the Yosemite Granite behemoths.
They call the area north of Tuolumne Meadows the Tuolumne Yosemite. After walking through Pete Valley following a slow flowing river, we climbed over 4,500 feet over 8 miles, at the end of which we followed the water is it spilled down the hard granite face. The spray was refreshing and the view was stunning!
We also hit a major milestone… Kyle and I have officially completed 1,000 miles on trail! We celebrated with a fancy sit down dinner complete with red and white checkered table clothes and a salad bar at Kennedy Meadows North (KMN).
As we walked off trail to catch a shuttle to KMN, we were greeted by “RETRO”, a trail angel who had trail magic for us! We got chili, buns, fresh fruit salad and cookies! Don’t forget the grape soda! I cannot express what it feels like to have a stranger show up with food like this when you’re hot and hungry! Witnessing the kindness of others has been perhaps my most favorite part of this trek!
