WildLink August 2025: Fresno Building Healthy Communities Second Group
Fresno Building Healthy Communities works with youth from all over Fresno bringing together a cohort of thirty plus interns every summer. Having had a successful trip for about half of their interns, they were invited to bring the rest to Yosemite for their own six day expedition. This time heading up to Yosemite's high country, the team ventured into the Poly Domes area.
The group came together on a mid August morning in Fresno. It was early in the morning, but you could already notice the central valley heat rising. The students were excited to feel the temperature drop and the wind get chillier as they made their way up the foothills and into the Sierra Nevada mountains. Arriving at NatureBridge's National Environmental Science Center (NESC) their first comments were about how much colder it was and how grateful they were for it. Welcoming the cool evening the group settled in for their first night in Yosemite and woke early the next morning to gear up for their four day backpacking expedition. Ready to start their journey the group made their way to Yosemite Valley where they prepared all the gear, layers, and food they would need for the next four days and three night backpacking trip. After a full day of preparing gear and packing in Yosemite valley the group headed back to the NESC for one last night indoors.
Tuesday morning arrived, the group had some breakfast then cleared the bunkhouse and loaded up the vehicles, ready to begin their adventure. It was a lovely clear sunny day as the group made their way to Yosemite’s high country, driving past Yosemite Valley and up highway 120 until they arrived at Tenaya Lake. The day was clear and warm, and the lake looked too good to pass up a swim. The group had lunch on the shores on Tenaya lake then cooled off in its waters before beginning their hike up Murphy Creek.
After a steep 2.5 mile hike in and some off trail navigating the team made it to Poly Dome lake, where they set up camp for the next three nights. Arriving with enough time to take in the views and look around for the best sleeping spots. The participants were excited to explore and quickly found out the top of the ridge next to the lake just behind the campsite had amazing views and great stargazing potential. After dinner the group went up to the top of the ridge to catch the sunset and star gaze.
Wednesday morning was clear and sunny. The lake looked inviting as the morning steam fog formed on top making it look warmer than it actually was. After breakfast the group was met by a wilderness ranger who led the team in a restoration effort around the camping area by the lake. The most used fire rings in great spots were restored and some of the less used fire rings in spots that were not so good were removed. It was a warm day and fire ring cleaning and removal can be hard dirty work. The group made quick work of all the fire rings and soon enough it was time for a mid day dip in the lake. The wilderness ranger spent some time with the group by the lake before they had to continue on with their day. The team spent the rest of the day enjoying the lake and the fruits of their labor by making a fire in a freshly restored fire ring later that evening. The end of the day was welcomed by going up to the top of the ridge by camp again and watching the sky light up with stars. That night brought the brightest of all the shooting stars in the trip, beaming across the sky for several seconds leaving behind a thick bright green stripe and forcing a loud “woooow!” out of everyone watching.
Thursday morning was another beautiful clear morning and the group prepared early in the day to go for a long day hike and explore some of the landscape. The group set out heading north towards Tuolumne Peak. The sun was warm and the trail steep but the view got better and better as the group made their way up the trail. Finally, when the group had reached the side of Tuolumne peak they stopped for lunch on a small rock outcropping overlooking Tuolumne Meadows and with great views of the Yosemite high country. After a nice break and some much needed refueling the team took in the views one more time and began their descent back to camp.
That evening the team gathered around a fire for a bit before going up to the top of the ridge again to soak in the night sky one more time. Some of the group liked that spot so much they decided to sleep up there the last night of the trip.
The morning of Friday brought a bittersweet feeling as the team said goodbye to the place that had welcomed them the past four days. Camp was packed up efficiently and before we knew it we were ready to hike back to the trail head. The group took one last look around the campsite and wished they had time to jump in the lake again, then they remembered Tenaya lake awaited at the trail head. The hike in was tough with full heavy packs going up Murphy creek at high elevation, the hike out felt better going down with lighter packs and soon enough the trail head was in sight.
After dealing with the gear the team gathered again on the shores of Tenaya lake to reflect on the trip and take one last dip in the cool alpine waters. Afterwards, it was finally time to head back home having filled their minds, lungs, and hearts with as much wilderness as they could, hopefully to return again on their own or with loved ones.
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