Get Outside and Explore
I paid a visit to Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, located in eastern San Diego County, on the fringe of the Laguna Mountain Wilderness. If you're looking to get away from it all in the wilderness, the trails along Hwy 79 here are some of the least trafficked in the county. My goal was to climb to Cuyamaca Peak (Elev 6512 ft), one of the highest peaks in San Diego County. This peak is listed on the Sierra Club’s Hundred Peaks List, in the San Diego Section.
I planned to hike from Little Yosemite Valley, passing Nevada Falls and Ililouette Falls, on my way to Glacier Point. On the way up from Nevada Falls on the Clark Trail and the Panorama Trail, there was so much beauty along the climb. It grew tougher, the more the temperatures warmed.
I felt ready to hike to Half Dome solo, the silhouette of which was visible from down below at Little Yosemite Vally. But I needed to have coffee and breakfast before any decisions were made. The bugs were out and about early on. Aside from that, the river was peaceful, and serene, with a massive granite hillside towering above it.
I would be backpacking 30 miles in the Sierra in Yosemite National Park. If you're wanting to backpack in the Sierra, depending on the trailhead you wish to depart from, there can be restrictions. National Parks like Yosemite don't make it that easy to obtain permits. You must reserve them online and pick them up in person. The lines to enter the park can be very long, and it's not as straightforward as one would think. I will explain how I obtained my permit, and some tricks for getting a permit for Half Dome when you're planning on backpacking in Yosemite.
Follow me on my journey, as I complete PCT Section A. There is beauty in completion, and though I may never complete the whole PCT, I completed the goal set before me, to finish PCT Section A hiking from Sunrise Trailhead to Scissors crossing, on a 17.9 mile day hike.
Serafina Hikes 