The first, and probably not last, Calvin Backpacking Expedition transpired between 25 July and 2 August 1999. The original plan was to take a long loop through Northern Yosemite National Park, but a variety of factors led the expedition to take different, and satisfying, directions. Although numerous intrepid mountaineers had expressed interest, the team included three people: Randy Bytwerk (CAS), Henry DeVries (IT) and Dan Vander Steen (a Pine Rest social worker who has taught part time for Calvin).
After flying to Reno on 25 August we drove to Lee Vining, on the east side of the Sierra. After exploring Mono Lake and a volcanic cone, we prepared for an early start the next day.
On the 26th, we drove up to Saddlebag Lake, elevation around 10,000 feet. We hiked around the lake and across the gentle country shown below:
After a stiff hike up to the top of a trailless pass, the expedition paused to consider:
Henry and I, gazing at Upper McCabe lake some distance beneath us, decided going down the far side of the pass was not a good idea.
We found a comfortable camping spot beneath the pass and spent the night. The next day, we hiked out and drove to Tuolumne Meadows, in the middle of the Yosemite high country. We set up camp, then headed down to Yosemite Valley for the day.
On the 28th, we headed toward Mono Pass, on the border of Yosemite. It is a pleasant 5 mile hike that climbs about 1200 feet. Reaching the pass, we found a good camping site near a small lake.
A fellow hiker snapped a picture of us after we had dumped the packs and begun to explore the area:
The next day we headed up the neighboring mountains. Henry decided that discretion was the wisest course of action once he saw what I had in mind, and resolved to explore the botany of the ridge top we had reached while Vander Steen and I went on.
Dan and I kept encountering ridges and peaks to climb. Here, I've got my back to Mono Lake, a mile beneath me.
We were over 12,000 feet up, with splendid views of the Owens Valley below and the Yosemite high country all around. While Dan and I were wandering about, Henry ran out of botanical elements to explore. Since we had agreed to meet at a certain point, he engraved upon a rock tablet the message that he had returned to camp.
On the morning of the 30th, we hiked down and drove the short distance back to Tuolumne Meadows. On the 31st, we headed up to Tioga Pass, the eastern boundary of Yosemite, and climbed over the pass to the Gaylor Lakes basin, but not before climbing Gaylor Peak:
We then took a pleasant hike down the basin, edified every hundred feet or so by Henry's delight in discovering yet another botanical treasure of the Sierra Nevada (those who think Henry's first professional passion is the computer have never seen him encounter an unusual flower or plant).
After another night in Tuolumne Meadows, we went to the campground services. To our surprise, one of the staff holding the services was Calvin student Lisa Laninga. We then headed for Reno, spent the night at the home of one of Henry's friends, and returned to Grand Rapids. We had not done what we had planned, but all we did instead went well.