Lyell Creek - Tuolumne Campground 7/10/10 12.4 miles

Started out the morning in a great mood, knowing that we would have a chill walking day and pick up our box from Bob and Ann. The walk was great. We along the Tuolumne River all day in a green grassy meadow. WE took some breaks along the river, sat out on some rocks and munched down on some chocolate and peanut butter. WE continued walking and thinking. The two really seem to go hand in hand out here. Today I thought alot about family and friends, but I as lo thought about more than ever, of how lucky I am to have the opportunity to be out here. This place is amazing and just seems to get better everyday. They guy we spoke with yesterday, Oh Nature, described the Sierras as a "sanctuary." We laughed about it, but he was right. He have had challenge after challenge while taking in her beauty, but nothing good comes easy (as my dad actually quoted to me :) and it is worth it 100 times again. As we took another break, many day and section hikers passed by. The most memorable was a dad with his very young son, who had to have only been about 7 years old (carrying a good-sized pack.) I commented to his dad on what a cutie his son was and he informed us that their total hike would be about 35 miles. Amazing! I would love to see more parents with their young kids outdoors more often! I had a good feeling that the little guy would make it, with many more to come. We arrived at the store/post office in Tuolumne and picked up our package. Thanks Bob and Ann! We were in hiker heaven with all of our delicious treats-and even ranch dressing packets...yum! With intentions on hiking 4 miles to another spot, we stayed at Tuolumne for the remainder of the day. WE ate burgers and ice cream and caught up with some of our buddies we'd seen along the way. We saw sky, Marianne and Pony, as they had been hanging out here for a couple of day, doing some hiking to Half Dome and river floating. WE then hung out with Choc Bandito, Your Mom, Fester and a few new faces - Double Check, Mover and others. A random older man by the name of Vince striked up conversation and told us many stories. He had been everywhere! He was into Old Time music and even sang us a tune. He was just so enthusiastic and interested in telling his stories and hearing others. AS soon as we knew it, we had sat at a picnic table under some shade trees, talking and munching, for five hours! It was 6pm and we decided to stick around and camp at the campground with some familiar faces. It was worth losing our 4 planned extra miles. -KB