I hereby refuse to apologize for any granite puns. When you’re in Tuolumne (“too-ALL-um-mee”), in the high country of Yosemite National Park, you’ll know why.

The Mate and I hadn’t been to Yosemite for–yikes, had it really been 11 years??? But that last trip, in spring of 2014, was only to the Valley. Tuolumne, at 9,000 feet, was still buried deep in snow then.

So, really, the last time we’d been in Tuolumne? We realized, to our chagrin, it had been DECADES. Thanks to our California cousins, who scored a couple of tent cabins (thanks to someone else’s cancelled reservations) and invited us to join them…we fixed that.

Oh, the backdrop of that swim?

Here’s what The Mate & I noticed right away about the contrast between Yosemite Valley and Tuolumne: the Valley makes you look UP–at Yosemite, Bridalveil, Nevada & Vernal Falls; Half Dome, El Capitan. All the beautiful, famous stuff is UP. But it also makes you look OUT: for buses, kids on bikes, tour groups on their phones, gift shop souvenirs…you get the picture.

At Tuolumne, the beautiful stuff may be less famous…but it’s EVERYWHERE. Up, down, all around…with about 1/6 the # of people competing to be in it.

(Not all potholes were this inviting.)

Speaking of potholes, one of the best walks I took was right up a modest, 200-foot dome called…Pothole Dome. The view from up there captures the granite world better than words.

Tuolumne’s famous for plenty besides granite, of course: its meadows, best seen in spring, thick with wildflowers…

…and the famous John Muir Trail, the Sierra section of the Pacific Crest Trail.

But let’s face it: those granite faces are really what the place is all about.

One morning I got up, pre-cousins, and took myself for a stroll along the creek. Something grey caught my eye–a baby dome I hadn’t even noticed–appropriately named (I learned later) Puppy Dome.

On the way out, we stopped to visit a handful of giant Sequoias, where the high Yosemite slopes down toward the Valley.

Big trees are always inspiring; I was happy to meet Big Red.

But leaving Tuolumne, it was Big Grey I took with me. I hope it’s not decades till I see these rocks again…but I know they’ll wait for me.