We sprung for a motel in Oakhurst that evening.    After hot showers Tom & I split two half-gallons of ice cream and a Key-lime pie. 

Then we went out for dinner.

The next day saw an uneventful drive back to Southern Oregon, after a huge all-you-can-eat breakfast at the Wawona Hotel.  Unlike last year Tom's truck performed flawlessly.

I can't wait till next year!

The next morning, after the usual last-minute packing chaos we hit the trail... downhill(!) to Chiquito Pass (8039').

Tom enters Yosemite National Park at the Pass through an ancient stock-control fence.

Just past Chiquito Pass we stopped for a breather at an unnamed trailside pond (below).  The water was incredibly still.

I relax after setting up camp near lower Ottaway Lake (9700').  We scoured the area looking for a "legal" campsite with a view, without much luck. 

We completely missed the huge camp nearby housing a trail crew. 

Lower Ottaway Lake (below).

The trek from Ottoway Lake up to Red Peak Pass (11,200') left me breathless, both the tremendous view and the rarified atmosphere contributing.

I had been carrying a single hiking pole for the last couple of years and on this trip graduated to two.  I was surprised by the positive difference it seemed to make. 

Photo (left) by

Tom Christensen.

Trail crew at work..

They were tearing out the old "crap-rap" of cobbles and building a real staircase of granite blocks.. some of which must have weighed hundreds of pounds. 

Marmot hoping for a handout.

(Above) Photo by Tom Christensen. 

A pond-turning-into-meadow along the long trail south from Post Peak Pass.  Water was scarce in this area, and we travelled a lot further than we intended looking for a campsite.  We found a nice spot in the trees, albeit without a view, a few hundred yards from this "pond'.

(left)  Tom & I at the last "high" spot of the trip.. looking east from Fernandez Pass (10,175') where we re-entered Yosemite National Park.

Alpenglow at our camp near Breeze Lake, west of Fernandez Pass.

There was no "breeze" to speak of, though it certainly looked as if it could really roar at times.

In the morning the water was like glass.

Alas... all good trips come to an end.  We awoke the last morning to driving rain.  I was soaked by the time I packed up.  My pack must have gained ten pounds from the wet tent, clothes, etc.

We sloshed our way back to the Quartz Mountain trailhead, at times wading ankle-deep in a trail-turned-creekbed.