Yosemite: Searching for Tuolumne Meadows

(Continued from Yosemite: Tenaya Lake (East Shore))

Featured Photo: “John Muir Trail, Tuolumne Meadows”  Yosemite National Park, California—2023

After our visit to Tenaya Lake, my sister and I were on our way to Tuolumne Meadows, and in particular, to see Soda Springs and Parsons Memorial Lodge. Why these specific destinations? I have to return again to my conversations with the Park Rangers outside the Visitor Center at Yosemite Valley the day before. After my interest was piqued by their description of the wonders to be viewed in the high country along Tioga Road, I’d asked one of them to mark the sights they’d mentioned on my official Yosemite National Park map.

Using an orange highlighter, she circled two of the major attractions for me—Olmsted Point and Tenaya Lake—each of which we had now already visited. She also marked Lembert Dome in orange, saying it was the best location for a good look at Tuolumne Meadows. Then she recommended two particular sights located in the meadows, which were not printed on the map. Worried I might forget the names, I asked the Park Ranger to add the details to my annotated map. She picked up a blue pen and wrote “Parson’s Lodge” and “Soda Springs” in letters that appeared upside-down, since she was standing on the opposite side of the table. Thus, our quest.

It did not occur to me to ask the Ranger what the unusual word “Tuolumne” meant; I had to look it up later. The meaning is, in fact, a bit vague, but the word is certainly of Native American origin. Depending on which Google search result you choose, Tuolumne means Many Stone Houses (or Stone Wigwams), People Who Dwell in Stone Houses (or Cave People), Land of Mountain Lions, or Straight Up Steep. One source agreed the name most likely had to do with Stone Houses, but whether referring to manmade structures or caves found in the area is unknown. Another search result—an outlier in my non-scientific survey—claimed the name comes from the Indian word for “squirrel”, adding: if you spend a few minutes in Tuolumne Meadows you are sure to see numerous Belding ground squirrels, better known as “picket pins” for the way they stand upright on their hind legs. Hmmm. I don’t recall seeing a surplus of standing squirrels when we were at the meadows; I think I’ll stick with the Stone Houses.

I should also have realized the “-s” at the end of “Tuolumne Meadows” was no mere accident. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew there must be a reason the name was plural, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. I had that feeling while I was first planning our trip, and again as I spoke to the Rangers, when they enthusiastically recommended we go there while exploring Yosemite’s high country. Unlike our prior visits to other sights in Yosemite, at a practical level the “-s” in “Meadows” meant the next stop on our Sunday drive was not a specific point—not a discrete destination.

Looking at Google Maps, there are multiple points named “Tuolumne Meadows”, with some locations adding “Visitor Center”, “Wilderness Center”, “Campground”, or “Footbridge” to the name; there was even a “Tuolumne Stable”. The red, center location pin in the map above describes the area as a “Lush, high land with a river & views”. The National Park Service Website puts it this way: “Tuolumne Meadows is a large, open subalpine meadow graced by the winding Tuolumne River and surrounded by majestic peaks and domes.” Another nps.gov webpage describes Tuolumne Meadows as “one of the largest high-elevation meadows in the Sierra Nevada”, which is “accessible due to the park roadway that crosses the southern edge of the meadow.”

We were driving on that “park roadway”—Tioga Road—and about 15 minutes after leaving Tenaya Lake, we decided to take a detour onto a small side road that seemed to offer a view. We soon reached a fence that ran parallel to the road, with several cars parked alongside, and found a place to pull off. We were looking directly across at Pothole Dome, fronted by a line of trees, with a pleasant field of gold and brown grass stretching between the dome and our car. I got out and took a photo…

…and zoomed in for a different perspective…

…then turned my attention (and my phone/camera) eastward and captured a different view of the field, as it stretched out to other granite peaks and domes rising in the distance, including Lembert Dome (the closest peak, sunlit beyond the far trees, just left of center in the photo below). Because our destination was not a specific location, my sister and I didn’t realize we’d just gotten our first glimpse of Tuolumne Meadows.

Perhaps the plural name—“Tuolumne Meadows” with an “-s”—is the result of peaks and domes, which create natural boundaries, separating the area into different sections. As to its size, the Visit California travel website states, “the pristine meadow extends for more than two miles along the Tuolumne River”, but it seemed larger to me that day. Even so—using the satellite image from Google Maps—the reported length of “more than two miles” is consistent with the distance measured from Pothole Dome in the west to Lembert Dome in the east, comprising the open area one might consider meadowland. Two miles indeed, but my sister and I had little more in mind than a short stroll for a broader view of the meadows, and hopefully a visit to Soda Springs and Parsons Lodge.

After our brief stop at Pothole Dome, we rejoined Tioga Road continuing toward our somewhat vague objective. The Tuolumne Meadows Visitor Center might have been a good place to stop, but we didn’t notice the side road that could have taken us there; we were looking toward the meadows on our left, while the turnoff was to our right. Fearing we’d missed our chance to walk through the meadows, I pulled off at a small parking area a bit farther along and got out of the car. I took a picture of trees and—since I didn’t know exactly where we were—some unnamed granite monolith. Or perhaps it was our first glimpse—a kind of sideways view—of Lembert Dome. I’m not sure.

Driving on, we turned left onto the first road we reached and definitely saw Lembert Dome towering ahead, with daring rock climbers—appearing small in the distance—clinging to its smooth, sloped surface, as they sought the rocky summit. Feeling somewhat lost in direction, I continued down the road, which seemed to lead nowhere in particular, until we had to choose to follow the paved road as it curved off to the right or turn onto a dirt road with an uncertain end. I chose the latter and went a short distance before we could go no farther—a locked gate stood between us and an open field.

I cautiously backed our car along the driveway—contemplating whether we should abandon our goal of walking through Tuolumne Meadows—then noticed a few cars parked along the paved road where it joined the dirt drive. Parking our own car in a somewhat shady spot, I consulted with my sister, rolled down the windows, and headed back down the dirt road toward the gate, this time on foot. I had decided to venture beyond the gate; my sister chose to stay in the car and rest a bit. We both hoped we were not parked illegally and that it would not get too hot for her while she waited.Passing through an opening beside the gate, I took today’s Featured Photo of the wide dirt road as it continued into the distance, for how long and to what end I wasn’t certain. I noticed the old, rusted sign just ahead, and continued walking until I got closer. With straight arrows pointing the way, and bold letters shouting out in no uncertain terms, I knew I had found John Muir’s Trail, where it joined the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). It looked like I would have my walk in Tuolumne Meadows after all!

Confident I was on the right track and full of anticipation, I kept going until I reached an open area and took my next picture.

Farther along the trail, the views became even more grand, as I looked out toward peaks…

…rising beyond evergreens and boulders, scattered in the green-gold-brown meadow…

…until I abandoned the trail to be in the midst of the natural setting.

At that point, I had the same feeling I’d felt many times throughout our exploration of Yosemite’s sights: this was going to be fun.

(To be continued…)