I went to Yosemite in October 2020, when the world was still half-closed and the trails were emptier than I’d ever seen. I thought the silence would be healing. Instead, it echoed back everything I’d been avoiding—grief, anxiety, the sense that I was just filling time. I hiked alone past granite walls and gold leaves, pretending I was lucky to have it all to myself. But the truth is, I missed the noise—strangers’ laughter, the chaos of crowded viewpoints, the comfort of being invisible in a crowd. Sometimes, the most beautiful places just remind you of what’s missing. #Travel #TravelInIsolation #PostcardLoneliness