Tenaya Canyon

[dereid]

I'm wondering whether anyone has any August plans for this Sierra classic? I have done it before and have beta for anyone who needs it. If someone is doing it, I'd like to hear about the conditions they find--it is a beauty!

[catware11]

Oooo, Tenaya Canyon was the very first canyon I ever did! Sep '03. My friends and I followed Chris Brennen's route description here:

http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/tenaya.htm

It was such a great writeup, and such a beautiful canyon, I decided to try Chris's other canyons and then got hooked :)

Amazingly(!) we ran into another group doing it at the same time. The guy who's done it every year for 30 years (and had taken Chris through the year before) was guiding a group of recently ex-Navy SEALS and their kids -- about 15 people total.

Well, if anyone does do it send me an e-mail and I'll tag along! :D

-michelle

P.S. For those who don't know, Tenaya Canyon is the upper portion of Yosemite Valley (in Yosemite NP of course :) ) It takes about 10 hours to do, with only a couple short rappels. But oh so beautiful!

[Kirk]

A friend of mine has tentative plans for Aug 4-7 that might include backpacking in the Cathedral Lakes area. I'm curently trying to persuade him to "do" Tenaya:

Thu - Drive north and Cathedral Lakes Base Camp
Fri - Tenaya Canyon!
Sat - Half Dome and return northerlish
Sun - Hike out and Drive home

Interested? Let me know and I'll keep you informed.

[catware11]

OMG!! If Kirk and I had done Tenaya Canyon last weekend like we were supposed to, WE likely would have found this guy's body!!

http://www.nps.gov/yose/news/2005/asar0809.htm

http://www.news10.net/storyfull1.asp?id=12471

Instead we've postponed until mid-Sep.

[dereid]

My wife and i were the first to come through the canyon, and did find the poor fellow. WHile we were hiking out to Mirror Lake, I guess some park searchers also found the body and radiod it in before we called ourselves. It was quite strange to come upon...otherwise wonderful canyon descent.

[Kirk]

Hi cat, dreid,

The trip's on again. Probably some SD friends joining.

dreid: beta would be great.
cat: I'll work out the details.
Definitely Sept 17-18.

Anyone else interested in this :eek: Sierra Classic?

http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/tenaya.htm

Kirk

[dereid]

K,
No problemo with Tenaya, follow CHris Brennen's beta and you'll have no trouble. Water level will be NO prob. and route is easy to follow. I think Brennen's beta is very easy to follow and technical challenges are not very difficult if you can handle the very basic stuff. Route finding is not too tough through the lower bouldery areas and the worst part by far is the hike from the mouth of the Inner Gorge down to the valley. After a mile or so, look for a trail on river right, good luck finding it. FIrst time through a few years back i did, but this last weekend it was a thrash. All in all a great time though.

[catware11]

where did he fall? was he trying to climb up the 2nd (60') rappel? bizarre that he would be going through Tenaya Canyon, so far off the JMT...

[dereid]

hard to know where he fell, but he was below the last rappel when we found him. His stuff that we found, tent, fly, stuff sacs, were about a mile up stream, near the head of the "lost valley"--

[fourfa]

Two friends and I descended Tenaya last weekend and had a great time. We found the guy's daypack at the mouth of the Inner Gorge, in the water under a rock. Gave it to the rangers. Had his passport, wallet, food, headlamp, map in it. Otherwise had a great time, some trouble routefinding in the forest as mentioned. Mega poison oak this season.

Andy Radin

[catware11]

Wish you would have posted prior! :mad: The 'definitely' trip that was supposed to be this weekend (17th) is no longer happening. Unless somebody wants to sign up! I'm still willing to drive out to Yosemite. :D

I don't remember *any* poison oak in Sep two years ago when I did it. Was it on the hike out to Mirror Lake?

[fourfa]

yes, exactly. closer to the Mirror Lake end than the Inner Gorge end. Very wet season this year, looks like it usually does in July.

[ndreon]

I went from the Valley to the Meadows through there on 8 Sept and found the worst bushwhacking of my life up on the slabs to the right of the stream. Next time I will look for a partner, one who has done it before the right way, too bad I found this site after my trip. A great trip all in all but those bushes are brutal.