2021-05-18 Bears can do What?

We were all happy to be able to move after yesterday’s hikes. We headed for the Yosemite Valley early to beat the crowds (a common theme with the group). The group had already decided not to do the Mist Trail or Yosemite Falls. Yosemite Falls has more switchbacks than they wanted and the Mist Trail route had changed due to Covid. The Mist Trail is 600 steps up, 500 yards across in full sun and then down. The hikers had heard of a lady being dehydrated the day before requiring an IV and help down. So again a negative from the hikers. (This is just to save you from asking did you hike the _______ trail and us going off for several minutes with more information that you wanted to know.)

So the quartet started off early and parked in front of a bear warning sign. The sign in a nutshell says that bears can look in your car, recognize a cooler or drink bottle and target your car. So basically bears can do smash and grabs. Debbie considered taking her food with her but can’t get her backpack off quickly and felt she might end up face down with a bear standing on her eating her sandwich. (Remember Debbie sometimes has vision). She did cover her drink bottle with a jacket but thinks the bear will be mad if he finds it and it is only water.

So off we went to hike lower Yosemite falls, Cook’s Meadow and Indian Village. . They watched rock climbers and picnicked on an empty camping area. Jerry, Joyce and Debbie started a hike but Debbie and Joyce started having flashbacks of the day before and all the climbing. So Jerry went alone.

Jerry was gone much longer than we thought he should be. Enough that we looked at our pictures to see what he was wearing. Debbie wondered if he had read the bear signs. Just as the group decided Jerry might be lost, he strolled up. Turns out that he had seen a bear but it was surrounded by park rangers.

Mark up another successful day without a bear incident.

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