Before I begin reviewing, I want to highlight some of our goodies that really helped make this a somewhat successful trip (we'll get to the "somewhat" part later.) A few of these are new--see photo below--while the rest are part of our usual car camping basics!
Goodies & Gear!
- Patagonia Capilene baselayers
- 3L Hydrapak hydration system (which now replaces my very dated & not so great Camelbak bladders)
- 32 oz soft water bottle, the Nalgene Cantene
- UCO Original Candle Lanterns
- Neo-Air All Season Therm-a-Rest inflatable sleeping pad
- Neo-Air XLite Therm-a-Rest inflatable sleeping pad
- Two burner propane stove! (CAR CAMPING AIN'T THE SAME WITHOUT THIS, SEE THAT BACON?)
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It was early November; a perfect time and way to celebrate both of our birthdays. November babes, FTW. Unfortunately, this is also when temperatures begin to really drop. On top of that, we arrived just after a major storm.
Surely, we had sufficient clothing and gear, and we didn't have to pitch our tent in the snow, but that did not take away from the fact that the lows of mid 20°(F)'s and highs of 50°'s still chilled our San Diego bones. Aside from beers and campfires to keep us warm, we layered up A LOT--on hikes and especially while sleeping. Having the right type of clothing, base layers specifically, made the difference between getting some actual shut-eye, and calling the trip quits after night one!
KEEPING WARM:
I have a three-season down sleeping bag (Marmot Angel Fire) rated at 26°F and Jeff has a synthetic blend sleeping bag rated at 20°F (Kelty Light Year XP), which we brought along. We also used a three-person, three-season MSR tent (Thanks to Adventure 16, Jeff's employer) for that extra bit of roominess. Would that alone stop us from being cold at night? Nope. Our setup was kind of hilarious to look at, but it kept us warm! We first laid out two crash pads, then laid down our sleeping pads, one thick blanket, our sleeping bags--all atop one another in that order. I felt like the Princess and the Pea! We also had two comforters over us once in our sleeping bags. We hung up our UCO Candle Lanterns and let them burn throughout the night (they last for hours). At first, the idea of leaving a burning candle unattended seemed too sketchy. But after reading other users' hacks & reviews (aka evidence of their survival, haha) and methods for keeping warm, we decided to try it out. Some nights, we let it burn for a short while, enough to warm the tent, then blew out the flame before sleeping. It was pretty handy.
I brought my Patagonia Capilene 2 and Capilene 3 tops and bottoms. The Cap 2 is an extremely comfy lightweight baselayer which I like to use under hiking pants and sweats when it's a a little chilly out, around the high 40s-50s. I sometimes wear them at home like regular leggings/PJ's, too! I tend to get pretty overheated easily around my upperbody, so I don't wear the Cap 2 or Cap 3 tops unless I will be in a very cold, windy or snow-filled environment for hours at a time. For the past year and a half, I have been using my Cap 2's during nearly all my southern California winter/fall (non-climbing, outdoor) activities, but I picked up the Cap 3's right before this trip to test it out. I didn't think I would notice much of a difference between the lightweight Cap 2 and the midweight Cap 3, but the upgrade was just right for this. The wind didn't pierce through the Cap 3's material too much nor was it too stifling.
I've posted some material photo comparisons below, for a visual. When going between the different levels of the Capilenes, noticed a shift in the fit, I guess due to how thick the material is/how much it can stretch (btw, I'm petite/short ~5'0" with an average build). The Cap 2 & 3 tops fit me well in size Small without being too fitted (I like mine slightly looser). I have the Cap 2 bottom in size Small, and it's perfect for me; the length isn't even too bad for my stature, maybe only half an inch of bunching a my ankle! I got the Cap 3 bottom in X-Small because they run a bit big. They seem to fit me decently but are a little saggy and loose towards my ankles.
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| Bottoms: Capilene 2, Capilene 3 (black) - Tops: Capilene 3 (orange striped), Capilene 2 (black) |
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| Capilene 2, lightweight (striped) |
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| Capilene 3, midweight (black) |
The sagginess doesn't concern me since it's not affecting the calf or thigh area. Most times, I only wear the bottoms under my Prana Halle pants, which are a loose fit anyway. All in all, these guys saved me when it came to sleeping and just hanging around the campsite comfortably.
HALF DOME/SNAKE DIKE
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| Taking notes of technical parts of climb and mapping out our route |
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| Petzl Elia helmet, Patagonia Down Sweater Vest, draws and webbing |
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| Jeff, getting all the gear all neat and accounted for |
Around 5:30 AM on our second morning, we each packed up about 30 lbs worth of water, climbing gear (helmet, shoes, rope, cams, draws etc.), food, and other necessities, then started on our approach towards Half Dome/Snake Dike. The Nalgene Cantene was perfect for cutting down some ounces and for easy "compressibility" when emptying. The total weight was only a little over the bare minimum we should have brought. We had extra snacks just in case, and I brought too many clothes--typical. WE ARE FOREVER LEARNING HOW TO PACK LESS. Jeff wore his Cap 2 top under a shirt and jacket and Cap 2 bottoms under his Prana Stretch Zion pants. He was quite comfy and warm throughout. I, on the other hand, sort of regret wearing so many layers! As cold and crisp as the morning was, trying to hike up quickly with some weight on my back really made me sweat. I wore my Cap 3 bottoms under my Halle pants which was perf. But I also wore a tanktop, Cap 2 top, AS WELL AS the Patagonia Sweater Vest, all under my Atom jacket (Arc'teryx Atom LT). Safe to say, I was removing layers after 1 hour of hiking.
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| Handsome! He wore his Patagonia Ascenscion 35L pack, a perfect fit/size (but he had to rig his own hydration system) |
Now, for the "somewhat successful" part: after all this layering trouble and my struggle to hike quickly to the mountain base, we didn't even get to climb. We should have known when we saw the weather report at the Visitor's Center the day before. We should have known when we spied possible snow atop Half Dome from our campsite. We were definitely unprepared (and inexperienced) in ice climbing, and we didn't even have ice axes! Yet, when we woke up that morning, we decided to try our luck and see the conditions for ourselves before actually deciding. Unfortunately that meant hours of hiking just to find out.
We had already reached Little Yosemite Valley, just to where our trail would veer off directly for Half Dome, when we finally admitted to ourselves that this wasn't going to happen. The snow was too packed up top and we wouldn't have much sun left for the hike back down (the days were especially short between storms)--it was too sketchy for a wet, icy path... and not to mention THE FEARLESS BEAR ON OUR TRAIL, making us do a detour (that lil beast would not get off the path even with five of us whistling and clapping loudly).
Fortunatelyyyy (I guess) our path also coincided with the Mist, Vernal Falls, and Half Dome trails, so we did get to take in some amazing scenery--even if we had both hiked routes once before. For me at least, it was a pretty good experience and a huge wake-up call, urging me to significantly improve my endurance. If nothing, it was practice!
Fortunatelyyyy (I guess) our path also coincided with the Mist, Vernal Falls, and Half Dome trails, so we did get to take in some amazing scenery--even if we had both hiked routes once before. For me at least, it was a pretty good experience and a huge wake-up call, urging me to significantly improve my endurance. If nothing, it was practice!
We didn't get to finish what we went there to do. I didn't even touch Half Dome at all! But being in the Valley really felt great regardless. Jeff and I ate yummy food (I cook a mean bacon-filled car camping breakfast!), kept each other warm, bouldered, have some outdoorsy fun, and just enjoyed what the place had to offer: immense, awe-inspiring natural beauty.
Oh, and did I mention that we actually did get to hang on ropes on a mountain?! On our last day, we broke down camp, packed the car and made one last stop to swing off of El Capitan! Jeff had gone with friends the year before, and I had always hoped to do the same! I never thought I'd get on the swing so soon! I was ecstatic! It was definitely thrilling, amazing, wild... with an insane view of the Valley. Something I will always remember. There's a first time for everything (and luckily we got to try it more than once! :))
You know what? I take back the "somewhat" part. This was definitely a successful trip!
- Ashley
- 3/01/2016 08:26:00 AM
- 0 Comments
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