The Bug

Just outside of Yosemite, there's a quirky little spot that attracts all the quirky little people. That must be why my friends Aidan and Steph decided to book a handful of cabins at the Yosemite Bug, a hostel about 25 miles outside of the park, and invite the inner circle up for some tree-hugging fun. This was also the first getaway they had planned, post birth of their little three-month old bundle of giggles, Aine.

I am always a little bitter when I have to leave the beautiful city of San Francisco on a day when the weather is perfect. Contrary to popular belief (held by people who have never lived here), the weather in this city can be pretty damned crappy. The more beautiful it is everywhere else, the colder, foggier, and windier it is here. So when it's actually nice here, as it was on July 4, it's most likely an oven everywhere else. As we passed through Livermore, Tracy, Modesto, on the drive up to the mountains, the thermometer kept rising. When we pulled up at The Bug, it was over 100 degrees...in the shade.

Things move pretty slowly in Bugland, and since our tent cabins were not yet ready (because tent cabins require soooo much cleaning), we had a few beers and followed Aidan to a watering hole only to find that it had nearly dried up. Really, it was just a mosquito brothel, but that didn't stop Aidan from tearing off his cloths and jumping in, bombs away! I can't blame him, it was really hot, but still...after, we drove down to the Modesto River and had a little swim in the gorgeously clear water as the sun was going down.

Water levels in Yosemite are low this year because there was little rain/snow during the rainy season. So the next morning when Aidan proposed that we follow him to a different watering hole, we were dubious to say the least. Temperatures were already over 100 by 10am, and we needed cooling like a pint of ice cream left on the counter. The pressure grew as we got out of the car and leered into the gorge which had no site of water anywhere below. "It'll be worth it," Aidan reassured us in his Irish lilt. How could we be suspicious of that? Sure enough, there was a lovely hole of water at the bottom and we wasted no time jumping in...and jumping off of any and all of the surrounding rocks over and over. Good times.

On Friday, the heat was really getting to us, so we headed up to the safe elevation of Tuolumne Meadows. We spent most of the day lounging at Tenaya Lake, taking in all of the beauty and making fun of all of the hippies (white people with dreadlocks = endless hours of entertainment!) Then we got an ice cream, sat in Tuolomne Meadow and let the "life is good" feeling wash over us. Sigh, it's just so beautiful there.

By Saturday, it had cooled down to a tolerable 90's, but we were heading home to a foggy, frigid city. We'll be back again before the summer's done, I'm sure. In the meantime, some memorable moments...
1)Aine's pooping demonstration at the Happy Burger
2)Game of Taboo, Steph says, "What do you use to call Ireland?" The correct answer is "calling card", Aidan answers, "My accent".
3)The staff at The Bug threatening to charge us corkage for the bottle of wine we brought.
4)Dominick, gay enough for the entire Yosemite Valley.
5)The two brothers from Antioch and their dog Nacho. Classic.