In the spirit of finding adventure where you are, Lindsey and I had a two-for-one adventure last month. We rode the new YARTS bus to the Yosemite Valley floor to take a beginning rock climbing class. The first part of the adventure was to take the YARTS bus from Fresno to Yosemite. This summer is the first time a scheduled bus service is available. Taking the bus is a win-win because it reduces the cars on the two lane roadway up to Yosemite and lessens the traffic jams in Yosemite Valley. The buses are very nice and the bus drivers very friendly. Our climbing class started at 8:30 so we had to catch the 4 am bus at Fresno State (having my alarm go off at 3 am was the only down side of the whole day). The bus stops in several places in the Fresno area and on the way up the highway. Besides not having to drive, the best part is that it only costs $30 and that includes the National Park fee. The other cool thing about taking the bus is how high up we sat. I saw scenery along the way that I had never noticed before.

Once in Yosemite, we were dropped at Curry Village in the Valley floor. Curry Village is a hub of activity with shops, camping, restaurants and recreation. We headed for the Yosemite Mountaineering School to meet our instructor and get our equipment. We met our instructor Josh and the other two people in our group, then we were back on the bus, this time the Yosemite Shuttle bus with directions on where to get off. We were headed for a rock climbing area called the “Slab”. When we first saw the place we were going to climb, I thought is that all we are going to get to do. Once we started climbing I had complete respect for our beginning climbing routes. After teaching us about the climbing gear and safety, Josh set the climbing lines for three different routes. He started with the “easiest” one first and they progressively got harder. Lindsey went first on each one while I held the line for her. It was hard and I used muscles that the gym and cycling do not use but what an accomplishment to get to the top! As we were finishing our third climb a big thunder-storm rolled in and poured on us. By the time we scrambled to gather up the gear and ran for shelter we were soaked to the bone. It was an out-of-the-ordinary way to end a great day. Luckily we had dry clothes to change into and were warm and snug for our bus ride home.

We both fell asleep before we were even out of the Valley floor as our friendly bus driver took us home.