Redwoods and Driving

     After staying at Mrs. Lee's and Mr. McQuiddy's house we headed out towards our next park, Redwood National Park. The drive was long and boring, we finally arrived in Redwood around 9:30 and slept. The next morning we woke up and went hiking and...
                                       IT WAS RAINING!!!! And Misty/foggy
     (But we have been blessed so far that it has been the only day with rain.) We first hiked up James Irvin Trail to Fern Canyon loop. Because there was so much mist it gave eerie feeling to the place, but also beautiful with all the rain sparkling when sun came through. We ate lunch near the beach and then walked along the Pacific ocean for a mile till we arrived at another trail. The beach was not pretty at all, and it was cold and windy. Miners ridge trail took us back to our car in time for dinner, it was an o.k trail but not as much green undergrowth, and mostly trees.
        Today we are back in the car again and are driving through Oregon towards Olympic national park. The ride has been ok but very boring. OH I forgot to add that we saw lots of elk right out side of our campground.

Pictures

                                                     General Sherman Tree

                                                Bear in the Meadow

                                                   Rattle snake close up (Zion)

                                                                             Big Baldy look out

Common Water Snake

  

                                              Pine Cones at Sequoia and Kings Canyon Camp Ground

                                                        Muscel Man/Woman

                                                            Going to Church

                                                  Climbing uo slippery Steps

                                              Nevada Falls

                                                     Hawk and Ground Squirrels

                                                 Yellow Bellied Marrmots

                                                         Pika

                                                  Secluded Lake

                                                  Where we ate

                                            Half Dome

                                                  Getting ready for Family Biking Trip

Wadding in Mirror Lake

Yosemite

              We arrived at our campground safe and sound on Saturday night. Then on Sunday morning we all got up at 6 and then drove for 2 hours to get to church. We arrived like an hour early so we walked to the visitor center but it was closed and church was starting soon so we had to run/walk really fast to get there in time. The church was on Yosemite property, the oldest building there, 135 years old and it was still giving services! After a lovely service we went to hike Vernal and Nevada Falls. The hike was very beautiful, but nerve racking because the stairs were so steep and slippery. There was no way we would be able to get down those stairs again with all the people and someone overheard us, they informed us of an easier way to get down. And we made it all the way down safely, after that hike we went home and had yummy spaghetti. The funny thing that we saw that day was a huge group of Valley people surrounding a deer taking pictures of it and 2 rangers with paint guns.

               Monday morning we headed out at 8 and the first thing we did was drive forever to get to the other side of the park and Tuolumne Meadows. We stopped on the way to watch people climb up half dome, which is literally a straight incline up a rock with 2 wires to hold on to. Then we hiked to see the Soda Springs which is where water bubbles up from the ground and they have no idea how it occurs. We also saw a hawk trying unsuccessfully to catch ground squirrels. It was hopping around trying to catch the squirrels which had surrounded it. The next hike we did was to Lembert Dome (The view was literally 360 degrees!) and Dog Lake (which was the clearest lake we have ever seen). The last hike of the day that we did was to Gaylorl Lake. The sun was setting as we walked back and all the animals came alive, we saw Pika (very rare), ground squirrels, and Yellow bellied Marmots. That night we ate at a gas station, at Whoa Nellie Deli in Tioga gas Mart, rated in the top 100 restaurants in the U.S. The food was delicious and filling; it made Dad ready for the long ride home.

               The next day we biked for a change, 13 miles around the park. We saw the upper and lower Yosemite falls, El Capitan, and Mirror Lake. El Capitan is a popular climbing spot in the park and we were able to view climbers high up on the 3000’ cliff face using scopes set up by the park rangers. The views from the valley were beautiful and we enjoyed the day. Then back to the campground to catch up on laundry and I gave Dad another haircut. (earlier I also gave Garrett a haircut)

               Yesterday we packed up and headed to Mountain View which is just South of San Francisco to visit one of my Dad’s college friends, Skye, and her family. On the way we made our first stop at a fruit stand for a yummy lunch. After 4 weeks without a pool Mr. McQuiddy was kind enough to take me to a local pool and I swam 4400 yards! I was thrilled to get back in the water. We had a great dinner and last night we slept in BEDS that were on wheels. Wow!

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park

   After spending a lovely night at the Bakersfield, CA we headed out again towards Sequoia and Kings Canyon National park. The drive was FOREVER, and Mom was annoyed because of the roads and wanting to hike. We finally arrived and set up camp, there were pine cones that were over a foot long, the boys had lots of fun with them. After a quick dinner of brats we went on a hike but... we couldn't find the trail, so instead we walked around the campground. I was so relived because there were bears there and I didn't really want to run into one in the dark (the sun was setting and Mom wanted to do a 8 mile hike!!).

     The next day we woke up early and went to the visitor center, learned about the hikes and headed out. Our first hike was to the Sherman tree, it was humongous, and short. Garrett loved it, we headed out then on the congress trail, saw the trees, walked crescent trail , circle meadows trail, Tharp's horse(cattle man who built his house out of a hallow sequoia). Sadly though we missed the bears in the crescent meadow, an Mom and two cubs, we walked right passed them! We did see a huge buck on congress trail, and some yellow bellied marmots on a log in one of the meadows. We hadn't had lunch yet and it was 3:45 so we decided to take the shuttle back. Overall it was a bad idea eventually we made it back though, ate lunch and headed to the Big Baldy trail head. one the way there we saw a BEAR eating plants in Halstead Meadow. On the way up I freaked out because ahead of me a I saw a bear cub  (we don't know what it was because we couldn't find anything, there was something there, so I will say it was a bear cub), eventually we continued on our way up mountain. The view was amazing and worth the hike. In total we hiked 10.4 miles, the most we had done. That night we took zero minute showers, literally, get in rinse, stop water, wash, rinse again, done. Only reason we did this is because we had no hookups (electricity or water).

      6/20/14, Friday, we went to Kings Canyon and hiked along Mist Falls trail. The water fall was amazing and truly lived up to its name... we were misted the whole time, and it was cold. On the way back all our feet hurt, mom got a blister (small). The normal hike length was 9.4 miles but we went a longer way back to see new scenes. Once we got back to the car Dad, Nathan, Garrett, and I went down to the river to soak our feet. IT WAS SO COLD!, our feet hurt when we put them on the water. We did 20 second dips till our feet were numb and we left them in. Nathan spotted a common water snake which we observed till it was time to leave. The drive home was like 2 hours, halfway we stopped at a Lodge to get gas, Mom toke a shower because she couldn't stand another zero second shower with no hot water. Finally we made it home, the boys made a fire and we roasted hot dogs on it for dinner. While we were roasting smores I heard twigs breaking, (this was a high activity bear zone by the way before I go on.) Looking up I saw a large animal with 4 legs, dark fur... as it came closer to the fire I froze, and inhaled deeply. We then realized that it was just a deer walking past us into the trees. I was still shaking for twenty minutes after. The boys loved it, I didn't so I left and didn't come back out.

       Now I am finally caught up to today. We woke up really early today packed up and drove to Kings canyon. We left an hour earlier than planned so when we got there, we got our Junior ranger badges and hung out. Eventually we left and headed towards the stables... we were going horse riding. Here were our horses:

Nathan = Goose, a kind loving horse that followed the trails expertly

Garrett = Zack, a short horse who also obeyed well

Alise = Bill, slow and liked to eat, sensitive, kind

Dad (also Bill) = Levi, well mannered

Mom = Walt, just a good horse

      We all enjoyed the ride a ton, it was very nice and peaceful. Now we are on the road heading towards Yosemite National Park. It has been long, boring, and dry so far. We are almost there though. :-)

Brutal day on the Road...

The good news is that we are safely in Bakersfield, CA in a cozy campground with electric and water. The bad news is we didn't make it as far as we hoped yesterday due to continual 25-35 mph headwinds the entire day of driving. Uggghh. Twas rough. Dad was fried by the time we got here at 9 PM after 10 hrs on the road. However, the day had its bright points. One, we found a Costco and refueled the pantry...plus lots of samples were consumed for a pre-lunch feast. Two, Mom decided we should have lunch in downtown Las Vegas. Well, the lunch part didn't work out as downtown Las Vegas is not conducive to a 54' rig, but we did 'cruise' the strip so the kids have now officially visited. Needless to say, we stuck out a bit in the traffic as we marveled at the casinos and shops on Las Vegas Blvd. The highlight was seeing the 'World Famous' Pawn Shop where Discovery films their reality show. And third, we found the most expensive Subway in the universe just south of Las Vegas with a 12" Turkey sandwich ringing in at $10.60. We have 140 miles left in our journey to Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. We will have no electric and no water and I assume no cell connection or internet so we're likely heading towards another gap in our postings. We'll update as soon as we can. Take care.

P.S. Going to try to post a video below with our River Walk. Fingers crossed.

Bryce and Zion National Park - 'Adventure' for Sure!

Today marks 2 weeks since we started our journey from St. Louis. The trip continues to go very well. We'll be packing up this morning to start our journey West to King's Canyon Sequoia in California.

Bryce Canyon was as I remembered it and then some - spectacular. When I was here in 1992 we faced clouds and rain but this time we had bright blue skies! Amazing. We did a trail combination of the Navajo trail and the Peekaboo trail. Pretty tough hiking with 1500' of elevation change and 5.9 miles. Our most aggressive hike so far and the kids did great. Lots of water consumed.  All agreed that this was their favorite trail so far on the trip. Pictures don't adequately capture the scenery. Every 100' you are greeted with another perspective of the rock formations. I took 60 pictures! A great day! The next morning Garrett and I went for a mountain bike ride in the early hours. It was a bit frustrating at first with loose sand but the views and downhills justified the effort. Then Mom and Alise took a hike while the boys readied the camper for our next journey. The drive to Zion had two options....Interstate with some nice views or on a 'Scenic Highway' with narrow lanes, limited guardrails, mountain climbs, sheer cliffs, tight turns, up to 14% grades, etc. Yup, we took the Scenic Route and it was amazing. Dad was a bit worn mentally after all the driving concentration but well worth the investment.

Heading down into the canyon. See the trail in the bottom left. Heading into what is called 'Wall Street'.

Group shot in Wall Street.

Up, up, up!

Looking back over the switchbacks we just conquered to escape the canyons...

The last two days in Zion National Park have been quite the adventure. Sunday we headed out early as crowds are quite heavy here, so heavy you can no longer drive through the majority of the park in the summer and have to use a shuttle system. Hats off to them, however, as the shuttle system is quite efficient. Zion has lots of short hikes, few 'medium hikes', and then it jumps up to significant hikes. We chose a significant hike, Observation Point, with the thinking that we'd simply turn back when the kids got tired. Well, it seems our hiking in the last few parks has increased the stamina of the family as we were able to complete the entire hike without protests! We then enjoyed lunch on top of the peak. Beautiful views of the canyon. Plus, a few additional views. First, we saw a Mule Deer Buck up close and personal. Second, one of Nathan's goals for the trip was to see a Peregrine Falcon. At Bryce the Ranger suggested this hike to see one...and viola, we were blessed to see one soaring in the thermals. Awesome. Lastly, not one of our goals, but quite the experience nonetheless, Garrett stepped within 1 foot of a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake who hissed and shook his rattles at him as we walked by leading our troop. He was pretty upset understandably. Mom didn't understand what was going on and walked right by it as well but didn't see it. Alise, Nathan, and I cautiously crept down the trail and then we heard the rattles so we stepped back. Thus started 15 minutes of observing our new friend as he separated the family and the brush was so dense there was no way through but the trail. He eventually tired of us, crossed the trail, and headed on his way. We then warned the first few people (by the way, we saw relatively 'few' people on this more strenuous trail - good!) of our new friend. And then Nathan found great joy in sharing with most of the rest of the English speaking travelers on the way down. And French. And German. Some of those didn't go as smoothly but I think he got his point across. All in all...we hiked 8 miles and ascended 2148 vertical feet. Did I mention the high was 97 degrees? Needless to say, we didn't see any other kids younger than teenagers on the trail.

Flash floods are a real problem on this trail. You have to check the flood forecast before setting out...

Zion Valley view from the top of 'Observation Point'.

Garrett's new friend. 9 rattles on his tail!

Lots of flowers encountered on most hikes.

Yesterday we took it a little easier with a nice hike to some spring fed pools at lower elevations. The highlight of this hike was our 3rd snake of the trip...a nice sized Gopher snake basking in the sun on the trail. We again patiently waited for him to exit stage right and then we advanced to the 'Narrows' trail where you actually walk up and through the Virgin River in a tight, tight canyon. Downside was lots of people. Oh, yeah, and the water was 56 degrees so a bit cold. Judith is not typically wired for 'cold' but she did great. Upside was gorgeous views of the canyon where you walk to the edge of the canyon and look up as sheer walls tower hundreds of feet above you. Plus mild rapids for the kids to overcome and enjoy. All were wet, laughing, and happy. We hiked about 8 miles altogether yesterday as well. Two full days and we're letting the kids sleep in this AM and recover. Next campground has no water and no power. It will be different than our experiences to date. Hope it is cooler!

This corner is called the 'Subway' as the erosion looks like a subway tunnel.

Video LINK to see kids braving the river....

http://youtu.be/Wqssb3Jb4pU