February 9, 2016
Rockefeller Grove Trail
Total distance: 1.25 miles
The day dawned cloudless and bright. Chris and I arrived at the trailhead ready for a leisurely jaunt up to Rockefeller Grove, the only sugar pine grove in Yosemite National Park.
We attempted this hike in February 2014, but there was no snow on the trail. This time it looked promising.
With snowshoes strapped to our feet, we began walking uphill through the sun-dappled forest.
The air was fresh with a scent of pine. Large cones buried in the snow were evidence that sugar pines grew nearby.
We progressed along the quiet path where the winter sun turned the snow soft. It shone through the bare branches of blackened trees, burned during the Rim Fire of 2013.
The snow-filled path tapered off. We removed our snowshoes, leaned them against a tree and continued walking on the hard-packed dirt trail.
Eventually, the snowy trail returned, piled a foot deep. We trudged through without snowshoes postholing a couple of times.
At the top of the road we looked down on the north end of Yosemite, the area ravaged by fire two and a half years ago.
The trail to Rockefeller Grove continued up a snowy switchback, but we hiked back down to the snowshoes, refreshed by the quick winter walk in the snow.
Hiking Yosemite and Beyond 
Janet, looks like a beautiful and perfect day. There is nothing like snowshoeing. It is so peaceful and you get back in where most aren’t and haven’t been with the snow.
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I still enjoy reading your blogs and looking at the photos of where you’ve been and what you’ve seen. Very nice!
Dad
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Thanks, Dad. It’s a long way from the e-mails I used to send you after my hikes. 🙂
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The emails were great, too. But the blog is better because so many more people get to enjoy them.
Dad
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What a great day! Thanks for sharing. A snowshoe hike is something i have never experienced–and doubt I will.
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Thanks, Patti. My husband calls snowshoeing “hiking in the snow”. He doesn’t much care for it but is a good sport and comes along with me.
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Honestly, for a moment I could smell that sugar pine cone. Only for a moment, but it was enough. 🙂
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The little amount of snow that accumulates here must make you laugh compared to what you get there. 🙂
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