Day 3. Aug 5. Tuolumne Mdws to Upper Lyell Canyon : 12.5 miles

Last night was our incredible lightning storm. It rained for hours and made a wet mess out of the entire campground. Actually it was kinda fun being in big flannel bags during the rain CW and I somehow got our filthy wet tent into a bag that was much larger than the one it came in. Soon we said goodbye.
She headed east for Hwy 395 and I headed back to the Visitors Center where I had left the trail.

The JMT crosses the meadow and heads towards Parsons Cabin. It was one of the first meeting places of the new Sierra Club. Although the SC has many agendas today, their sole purpose then was to save all this land from mining, logging, grazing and homesteading. Parsons Cabin therefore was a must see.

It was about 1100 before I made it into the forested part of the trail which then follows the beautiful Lyell creek for miles. I had my eye on the sky but a repeat was not to be. Passing Kuna creek you could see the Forest Service Crews riding their air mattresses down the creek. There is a remote crew camp nearby for the crews that repair the trails. The work they do with a hammer and a pry bar to move the granite stones is just unbelievable.

I finally made it to the nice bridge at 9600'. I decided to call it a day about 35 minutes short of the lake at 10,000'. The sky was full of stars until the moon came up about 3am. Temps were in the low forties with no wind. It was nice get back on the trail and hear the noise of the creek near your tent.