As I write this, I’m thinking about our last vacation. I really noticed over Christmas that my posts were missing something. I kept thinking about the snarky comments my father used to leave on my Facebook posts. I find myself checking for the comments that don’t come. I miss you dad.

Tunnel View

Last weekend we went up to Yosemite to experience some winter. Last January at Epic Experience I tried out cross country skiing for the first time since cancer treatment. I had no idea if I could do it. I was impressed that I managed 7km and could have skied longer but we were running out of time. So, I was encouraged to think that I could cross country ski at Yosemite, this time with my husband and no limits on our time.

Badger Pass Cross Country ski area

Becky taking a picture of Scott taking a picture

It was warm out, and we forgot the wax at our condo, which meant we opted for a no wax skies. This turned out to be a really good choice as the conditions were typical spring skiing conditions – which means the snow in the shade is much colder than the snow in the sun, and this variability makes it really difficult to find the right wax for wax skies.

Not exactly well marked or used trails.

At one point during the ski we decided to explore some of the trails in the woods, rather than the groomed roadway. we expected the trails to be a little more defined and a little better marked. At several points we got lost, and had to backtrack to find the trail. Eventually we turned back the way we came, and tried another route.

Becky navigating a small hill on an unmarked trail (another word for being lost)

It was a lot of fun but turned into a much longer ski that planned. In the end we skied 16 km (10 miles). I was exhausted and very much pushed myself to the ends of my energy. But I did it. I was a lot stronger than I’ve been in a long time. I skied further than I would have the first time out before cancer. My regular 2-3 hour hikes and hour long swims are making a difference.

Upper and lower Yosemite Falls

On the second day it was overcast. It has rained in the night. Rather than skiing, we opted for a hike. Again, we ended up on a path that was more challenging than I expected. Because we were hiking in snow, we were wearing winter boots – which turned out to be useful when negotiating various puddles and small streams of snow melt that crossed the path. At one point we came to an area where the path was completely flooded out. The route around the path involved climbing up a large rock (about 12 feet tall) and then down the other side. The hiking was technical but I managed it quite well. I certainly pushed myself. We hiked 9km around Mirror Lake. It was a beautiful hike, made very pretty by the snow.

Mirror Lake

Where’s Becky?

Mirror Lake from the other side

Feature image and all photos taken by my husband (c) Scott Drennan