Summer is for Hiking Part 3: Yosemite National Park, Mono Pass Trail to Spillover/ Spillway Lake, July 26, 2014
Trail Map and info for Mono Pass Trailhead – highlighted in yellow below. This map can be enlarged by clicking on it.
I highly recommend this hike – on the day I traveled, the temperatures were in the upper 70s and low 80s. Compare this to the Valley floor topping at 99 plus the smoke from the many fires – this was an outstanding meander into the wilderness. The hike is a steady upward climb – but nowhere extremely steep. The elevation gain is about 1000 feet over about approximately 4 miles.
Multiple meadows – one meadow after another currently full of wildflowers named appropriately Dana Meadows.This time I went to Spillover/Spillway Lake – next time I plan to go straight up to Mono Pass as there are a few additional lakes near the Pass (small ones), one named Summit Lake and just a bit further The Upper and Lower Sardine Lakes. It is also said you can view Mono Lake from up there as well. You can also take a trail /loop over to Mono Pass trail from Spillway Lake.
Below is the sign for Spillover Lake at around 2.3 miles. Go to the right for Spillover/Spillway Lake, go to the left for Mono Pass. 
The trail to the lake was still a bit marshy on spots – but most was dried out making late July a good time to do this hike. There are meadows and wildflowers everywhere.
The trail often runs alongside Parker Pass Creek with Kuna Crest, Mammoth Peak and Mount Lewis which are above 12,000 feet tall.
From the lake – or before the lake, you can take a trail over to the Mono Pass trail. The lake itself is quite beautiful and in an amazing secluded setting.
Snow still lies along the mountain tops facing East and Southeast – this is the end of July so am not sure it ever melts.
In the photo below, look carefully to the right of the patch of snow and you will see a distant waterfall. It extends quite a ways and then disappears – one cannot see it descending into the lake.
On the return, going West. 
This should be Mount Dana to the North on the return stretch. It is above 13,000 feet. Next time, a trip to Dana lake from Tioga Lake. 
On the drive back down Tioga Road there was even more smoke and additional plumes – there seems to have been one the way up/ just one plume of smoke. Closer to the junction of Tioga Road and 120 there were visible flames and the surrounding air at times a mysterious greenish cast and other times this golden reddish cast. This was close to Yosemite Creek Campground. The NPS had highway 41 closed at 120 due to a new fire which had begun around 3:15 PM and is called the El Portal Fire and so could not get to 140 out so traveled out on 120, took the extension to Coulterville J20/ 132 then 49 over to Mariposa. Have done this once before – a route that is good to know. for backup plans such as this. Otherwise one needs to go over to 99, which is almost back to the Bay Area.
On this drive there were multiple fire crews traveling in and two trucks with bulldozers.
For fire information:
http://www.nps.gov/yose/blogs/Yosemite-July-Lightning-Fire-Update-1.htm
http://wildfiretoday.com/2014/07/26/two-fires-in-yosemite-one-threatens-structures/
Summer is for Hiking: Cathedral Lakes, Yosemite National Park, September 8, 2012 (Tuolumne Meadows area)
A week after Glen Aulin visited the Cathedral Lakes during September 2012. This trail is in the Tuolumne area of Yosemite. Lovely to have had nice-looking clouds in the sky to mirror in the water. A very beautiful effect happens as the wind travels upon the water creating rich ripples into that sky mirror (the water) and I have posted just one or two of the photos which hold that effect. Many stop at the nearest bank to have lunch/snacks but if you walk around the lake you will get a magnificent view of Tenaya Lake. The trail can go either way around the lake – the photos included here are lined up as going around the Lower Lake to the right and then wrapping along the left bank on return. Discovered a marmot who posed for multiple photos before heading along to the upper lake. The upper lake is surrounded by solid rock and interspersion of trees. A cluster of tents indicating campers were along the far side of the upper lake. A thunderstorm began while there so scurried back down to get below the tree line. I have pasted some information below describing location and altitude of the area. The hike itself has a few climbs but overall not bad at all.
“The Cathedral Lakes are two lakes located In Yosemite National Park, Mariposa County, California. The lakes are situated 1.6 km (1 mi) southwest of Cathedral Peak and 3.2 km (2 mi) east-northeast of Tenaya Lake. The lower lake is located at elevation 9,288 feet (2,831 m), while the upper lake is located at elevation 9,585 feet (2,922 m). The John Muir Trail is nearby, with a 7 miles (11 km) round trip hike of from the trailhead in Tuolumne Meadows.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathedral_Lakes
The trail to Cathedral Lake is part of the John Muir Trail,
http://www.yosemitehikes.com/tioga-road/cathedral-lakes/cathedral-lakes.htm
View of Cathedral Peak from lower Cathedral Lake on September 8, 2012, photo by kathryn arnold
Trail sign to Cathedral lakes on Sept 8, 2012
Trail sign to Cathedral lakes on Sept 8, 2012
Lower Lake from a distance, photo by kathryn arnold
Approaching Lower Cathedral lake on Sept 8 2012, photo by kathryn arnold
Walk around the lake to the right, photo by kathryn arnold
View of Tenaya Lake from Cathedral Lake on Sept 8, 2012, photo by kathryn arnold
Walk around the lake returning along the left bank , ripples in the water. Photo by kathryn arnold
Marmot at Cathedral Lake on Sept 8, 2012, photo by kathryn arnold
Along the way to Upper Cathedral Lake, sept 8, 2012. photo by kathryn arnold
View of Upper Cathedral Lake, Sept 8, 2012. photo by kathryn arnold
