At last, it was time to break camp and leave behind the roost that served us so well, both as a campsite and a vantage point, and hike down to rejoin those left behind at Barney Lake. Our descent took little time, and finding the rest of our party exactly where we left them, we began to relax and enjoy the serenity of the aspen grove surrounding us. The sun approached zenith and the heat of the afternoon baked away all shade from our campsite, prodding me to move toward the cascades and waterfall nearby. I was only too happy to wade into Robinson Creek, cooling down while I composed that perfect shot, the shot that could only be taken with my feet firmly planted in the creek, its cold water rushing by the two new obstacles in its path.
As the afternoon stretched on, we decided to move our camp closer to the north side of the lake, hoping that the one good campsite near the juniper grove was unoccupied. Not only was the campsite occupied, tents had been pitched right under the junipers, forcing us to look elsewhere for inspiration and for our last night’s photography. Reaching the sandy beach on the north side of Barney Lake, we realized that there was a large campsite that doubled as a pen for horses and mules far enough from lake, stream, and trail to be acceptable. We would stay here tonight, a short walk from the beach, and shoot well into the night. Before everyone else arrived, I decided that I’d atone my mistake of the previous week, when, exhausted from my long hike, I’d refrained from jumping into Lower Sunrise Lake or Tenaya Lake before heading out of Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite’s patch of paradise in the summer months. The water in the shallow portion of the lake was quite warm, but grew colder with depth, but that didn’t stop me from diving in, cleansing myself in the process.