Our hike begins in Tuolumne Meadows which is the heart of the high country above Yosemite Valley.  As we pass through the backcountry the vast majority of our hike will be along well established trails.  We'll be hiking through or along side all the places pictured on the Yosemite Valley page.  You can expect to see high granite peaks, deep valleys, lakes, streams, meadows, and wild flowers.  We'll be seeing many different types of wildlife as well including birds, squirrels, chip monks, deer, and raccoons. During the past 20 years I've encountered a number of bears while backpacking in Yosemite and I guarentee that they will be around our camp at night looking for food scraps.  Although the bears don't pose a threat to hikers they do sniff around any areas where food was prepared or eaten.  Because of this fact we'll be setting our tents up well away from our cooking areas.  It's worth noting that bears are very afraid of people.  Loud noises send them running into the woods.  In the past I've had friends bring whistles for extra security but they've never needed to use them. We'll be using topographical maps and a compass to find our way.  If you've never seen a topographical map before then you can see small samples on the right side of each   The Hike: Day 1..4  pages.  I'll be happy to teach anyone who's interested how to use a topographical map to find your way.