1. High along the John Muir Trail .. from Whitney toward Starr King .. Lon and me set pace, to reachYosemite that spring. 2. Then, like some dream of Gulliver, we spied El Capitan .. wild gables, spires and granite walls .. not shaped by any man. Night fell like talus from the stone, and Loni said to me, "Douse the fire .. but keep the flame .. 'till morning warms old Tuolumne." 3. Black bear roamed the Tamarack to Cloud's Rest and Cockscomb .. where silent snowmelts filled the streams that burst and thundered down. And when Tenaya caught the moon .. Loni said to me .. "Douse the fire .. but keep the flame .. 'till morning warms old Tuolumne." 4. From Dogwood and Sequoia stands, we climbed the Vernal trail. By Big-leaf Maple, shined with mist, we scaled the Bridalveil. And when Half Dome, the hooded hawk, set his shadow free .. we doused the fire .. but kept the flame .. 'till morning warmed old Tuolumne. 5. Now, I know .. around Cathedral Peak the seasons cloud and clear. And it seems, I can't quite count the years since Lon and I were there. Still, when all the darkness falls, it's Loni calls to me .. "Douse the fire .. but keep the flame .. 'till morning warms old Tuolumne."