September 30

I had a beautiful sunrise over my lakeside campsite this morning. It was great to eat breakfast and watch the colors change in the sky over my head. I hiked hard for Tuolumne Meadows, it was 27 miles away and I was hoping to get to the store before it closed in order to get some real food and my packages. I bounced the rest of grandma's cookies down here to have a big snack before going through the high country. The weather remained cool and made for great hiking. Of course, I had my solar panel out which meant it would remain cloudy all day. The sun showed itself a couple times, but would not remain for any length of time. I didn't see a soul on the trail until I was 2 miles from the first campground and only 8 miles from my destination. Three backpackers were headed out and sounded like they were trying to get to Sonora Pass. 

My day was relatively good until reaching the Tuolumne Meadows area. I found the campground, store and outfitters all of which were closed. This means my packages are all in Yosemite Valley, 56 miles away. I immediately started trying to get a ride and the second car stopped, only to inform me that I was hitching the wrong way. I laughed at myself and started trying to find a ride the other way. I made my way to the closed campground to see if I could find Louis who had left a message saying he would be trying to get a ride up to the meadows. I was just going to search for him when I heard him yell behind me. He had just been dropped off and was going to stay at the campground. We talked for a bit, and I realized it was 6:00 pm and still needed to find a ride. So back to the road I went, but have had no luck and am camped at the campground to try again in the morning. Since its closed there is no water and we can't use the restrooms, but it is free!