Yosemite Trip - Winter 2007

John and Mary are organizing a winter Murray Group trip to Yosemite this year. We'll be staying in heated cabins in Yosemite valley. This will be a fun and casual trip for all group members, there will be no special skills or special gear required.

Snowshoes, skis (downhill and cross country), and snowboards are available for rent at Yosemite for those in the group desiring to take part in such activities.

Details

Trip Date

We've selected the trip date based on people's availability and Richard's schedule:

• 16-18 Feb

If you are interested in joining the group trip, email John Carson or Mary Dunlop.

Trip Itinerary

• Friday - Meet early in the morning (early) and drive to Yosemite. Check into cabins and do a short hike.
• Saturday - Skiing! Yosemite has both cross country skiing and a small downhill ski area. You can rent skis, snowboards, and snowshoes there.
• Sunday - Day hike in the morning, return to Pasadena in the afternoon/evening.

Information about Yosemite

• Lodging in Curry Village
• Yosemite National Park
• Gear Rental

Participants

• Richard Murray - 3pm departure
• Mary Dunlop - morning departure (driving)
• John Carson (and Vanessa) - likely afternoon departure
• Julia Braman (and Kevin) - morning departure (driving)
• Stefano Di Cairano - afternoon is preferred, can go in the morning if necessary
• Elisa Franco - morning departure
• Tim Chung - morning departure
• Nok - ?
• Sawyer Fuller - ?
• Laura de Vargas Roditi - morning departure
• Daniele Tamino - morning departure

Meals

John will coordinate the group breakfasts, lunches, and snacks to help save on the trip cost. We will plan to bring two breakfasts and three lunchs. For dinners there is a local cafe where we can apparently get pizza and other food items. The following items are suggested for breakfast, lunch, and snacks. Please let John know if you want anything added to this list

• Breakfasts: bagels, cream cheese, butter, orange juice, oatmeal (variety of flavors)
• Lunches: sandwiches (wheat bread, pita, salami/cold cuts, cheese, lettuce, tomatos, mustard, peanut butter, jelly), lemonade, apples, bananas, carrots (peeled)
• Snacks: Granola bars, trail mix, apples, bananas, cookies, lemonade, dark chocolate! (and some milk chocolate too...), oh and Skittles for Richard.

There is supposed to be an eating area at Curry Village with a toaster and microwave, so we will hopefully be able to warm the bagels...

Packing List

2/12/07 update: Weather looks mostly sunny with a few snow showers towards the end of the weekend, mid-40s during the day in the valley (where we're staying) and in the 30s at Badger Pass (where we'll be skiing).

Yosemite Valley Weather

Head and Hands

• Winter hat
• Gloves or mittens
• Scarf (optional)

Upper Body Layers

• 2 t-shirts
• Mid-weight long sleeve shirt (long underwear is best, cotton is okay)
• Sweater or sweatshirt
• Fleece jacket or wool sweater
• Winter coat and/or a rain coat or shell if it fits over the fleece jacket

Lower Body

• Underwear as needed
• Jeans are okay for skiing if you're not planning to fall down a lot, fine for wearing at night
• If you're not an expert skiier I'd recommend snow pants or fleece pants/jeans with synthetic athletic-style pants over them
• Synthetic long underwear bottoms (if you have them)

Feet

• 1 pair hiking boots or sturdy sneakers (if you want to snowshoe you should bring boots)
• Socks

Travel Gear

• Small backpack for day hiking/skiing

Sleeping

• We have beds for everyone, but if you'd prefer to sleep in a sleeping bag on top of the bed or on the floor rather than sharing a bed then you should bring a sleeping bag and sleeping pad. You can rent both from the Caltech Y for a small fee.

Micellaneous

• 2 quart-sized water bottles
• 1 small flashlight or headlamp
• 1 toilet kit: toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, soap
• Towel for showering
• Sunscreen, lip balm, tissues
• Sunglasses
• Any medications you need
• Camera (optional)
• Board games to play at night (Pictionary, Cranium, etc.)
• Money for ski rentals, dinner, food on the drive up

Pictures

These pictures are from the 2003 Murray Group winter trip to Yosemite.

Richard, Lars, and Domitilla

Half Dome