2005 08 -- Yosemite Part II

Yosemite Part 2

My first recollection of Yosemite when I was about 11. Boy Scout Troop 5 of Berkeley was an adventurous troop and one of our annual outings was a winter camping trip to Yosemite. Usually held in February on President Lincoln or Washington’s Birthday weekend, up to sixty boys would meet at Cedar and Euclid Streets in Berkeley at 5 a.m. on a Saturday morning, load into station wagons and drive through the central valley on mostly two lane roads to Yosemite, about a six hour drive. We always stopped in Tracy at a little restaurant on the right hand side of the road for breakfast. Each of us was given a two dollar bill which was to cover our breakfast. Gas cost about 15 cents per gallon.

We’d arrive at our campsite on the valley floor in time for a sandwich lunch. Then we’d be called by the bugler to assemble by patrols. Each of the six patrols had up to eight boys. Then there was the Senior Patrol which we called Junior Staff which faced the Patrols to give instruction and outline the rules. The Junior Staff was very taken by their sense of responsibility and importance. Giving the Junior Staff responsibility for the well being of the younger scouts is how scouting makes boys into men. Attendance was taken by the senior patrol leader, usually a boy of about 17 years. “Rattlesnake Patrol?”…”All Present and accounted for, sir”. “Viper Patrol?”…”One missing, sir”. An explanation ensued. The other patrols were the Cobras, the Moccasins, the Pythons and the Boas. We were then instructed on the schedule and warned about bears, food storage and staying together.

We spent the better part of the afternoon setting up camp. Each patrol would figure out how to pitch heavy canvas tents on the snow. Sometimes this was a bit of a challenge since the patrol leaders were usually around 13 years of age. Then the staff called a work party where the younger boys went out in search of firewood. Finding dry wood was often a challenge under the snow. Then the patrol members had a bit of time to throw snowballs and generally get wet while the staff got a fire going and the “commissary” was set up. For the annual Yosemite trek, a supper of beans was cooked in a huge commercial pot. Usually on outings the boys cooked in patrols, but in the wet of Yosemite on our first day out, that was deemed too risky, as some patrols would fail to light their fires until dark, the meal would take too long to cook, and boys would go hungry. That was especially true because the staff ate with the patrols and they didn’t want to suffer without supper.

After dinner, there was a campfire and we all huddled around vying for a warm spot. Then we’d play flashlight wars where two teams tried to capture the each other’s baseball bat and run it back to the campfire without being named by name. It was lots of fun trying to outshine an opponent, get the light in his face and call out his name. There were lots of disguised voices calling out “rat or mocc?” (short for rattlesnake or moccasin, which were the team names). The honor system prevailed, and if you were asked, you were required to acknowledge which team you were on. After the game was over, there was always a lot of arguing about who cheated, or the strategy the winning team used to outfox the opponent. There was an occasional trip over a log buried under the snow, but we all had a grand time. We wrapped it up with some songs, a story, the scoutmaster’s minute and “By the Blazing”.

“By the Blazing council fire’s light,
We have met in comradeship tonight,
‘Round among the whispering trees,
Guard our golden memories,
And so, before we close our eyes in sleep,
Let us pledge each other that we’ll keep
Scouting memories strong and deep,
‘til we meet again.”

The scoutmaster would state, “Goodnight, fellas!” and we would respond “Goodnight, Ed!” Fifteen minutes later, the bugler would play taps. And we would try to avoid going to sleep as long as possible by telling stories and jokes under our breaths. Of course after a particularly juicy punch line, we couldn’t suppress our guffaws, so the staff would admonish, “Boa Patrol, go to sleep”. In hindsight, sleep was pretty hard. We did not have cushy air mattresses nor were sleeping bags of the technology they are today. They were pretty heavy. If they got wet, which they invariably did, we got cold. A few of the boys had featherweight down bags, but that was the exception.

In spite of the cold, we all had great fun. The next day started with a morning assembly and patrol breakfasts. The meal preparation took place in patrols which were judged by the Junior Staff for quality and cleanliness as part of a contest. The patrol which got their fire started first and showed good leadership by the patrol leader usually won the prize which was blueberries for the final morning’s pancakes, awarded at the morning assembly.

After breakfast, we packed up the station wagons and rode home. Usually the trip home was pretty quiet, as we had managed to expend significant amounts of energy on the activities of our snow adventure. We also had the reality that we had homework waiting for us at the other end of the ride.

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Several of my high school buddies and I planned a backpacking trip in Yosemite with some favorite young ladies, also of high school age. We just thought it would be fun to go backpacking together as a group. Initially, six of us wanted to go. All the parents were consulted and all agreed to the trip, save my parents. The rationale was that it was not proper to have young men and young women together in situations which would compromise the honor of any of us. So we investigated the possibility of a chaperone. We found a 21 year old who would be willing to go with us. Still not acceptable. What was acceptable was if just the guys went. Naturally, we were not happy about the decision, but after our best pleas, we acquiesced and decided to go stag. Now that we’ve raised two sons and a daughter, I better understand my parent’s reasoning and respect them for it.

We bought maps and decided that the place to go was the Southeastern part of Yosemite National Park. Five of us ended up being able to make the trip: Hugh Spitzer, Joshua Smith, Pat and Mike McCarthy (identical twins) and myself.

We obtained permission to drive over Tioga Pass, camping at a beautiful spot…Agnew Meadows. From there we hiked up past Shadow Lake to Lake Ediza. I was particularly taken with the beauty of the Minarets and Mounts Ritter and Banner. Especially in the morning. The second day out, we hiked almost to the top of Mount Ritter. I didn’t want to get caught late at night on the side of a rugged mountain and even though we were near the top, I suggested to my friends that we not attempt the top. Especially since Hugh had gotten elevation sickness and we didn’t want to leave him alone. So, disappointed about missing our goal, we turned back. It was the right thing to do. Even in high school we had some good judgment.

Our plan was to hike and camp for a week, covering about fifty miles of gorgeous high country. Lake Ediza was so spectacular that I later chose to share it with my bride on our honeymoon.

On the last day of our fifty mile outing we were planning to go over Donahue Pass and into Tuolumne Meadows. As we started up the pass, the wind got stronger and stronger and the clouds darker and darker. At one point it was blowing so hard that my gray Stetson hiking hat flew off and out of sight. Amazingly, the wind took it in a circular pattern and about 30 seconds later it came tumbling back again and we were able to grab it. In Tuolumne Meadows there was a dusting of snow on the ground and several of the “car” campers were planning to leave. One such person saw us and offered their tent which we gratefully accepted. It was one of those large heavy canvas tents which easily fit all of us and our gear. We fell fast asleep in spite of the cold. In the morning we awoke to clear skies and the beauty of a new day.

One of our parents came to pick us up and take us back to “civilization”. Our observation was that wilderness is in many respects the most civilized place on earth…certainly the most beautiful. As was the case with our Boy Scout trips to Yosemite, we returned home tired but exhilarated by our amazing world.

©Frank Bliss 2005 All rights reserved.20050801