The Back Side of Yosemite (07-11-15)

In theory, we headed to Fresno CA  through Yosemite because we really love the area and wanted to spend more time there.  In reality, our visit was almost literally a “drive by”.  Its quite a long drive and we didn’t have much time (or good enough weather) to hike.



Our route took us around the “backside” of the park, and our first major stop was Mono Lake.










Mono Lake is 2.5 times saltier than an ocean. There are calcium rich springs under it and when the calcium combines with the carbonate in the water, it forms a type of limestone, called Tufa. 











 

The Tufa only actually grows under water, which begs the question- why is so much of it on land then?  Well, many years ago, the city of Los Angeles diverted the rivers that feed the lake, seriously lowering the water level and drastically increasing the salinity.

The lake has been protected since the 1980s, and the water level is very slowly recovering.
There is a one mile long interpretive trail that we walked- but we almost had to run.  The skies were very threatening, with loud thunder and lightning nearby.  We didn’t dally too long, and we still got rained on!





I have never driven on Tioga Road in Yosemite- its a beautiful drive but it sits at an elevation of almost 10,000 feet, so its closed a good portion of the year.

In fact, we spent the night at a campground along the road, and found out afterwards that the road had actually closed after we traveled it.

By the time we got on the road the next morning, it was 37 degrees out, and half sleeting, half raining.  I felt really bad for the tent campers.  It had rained most of the night.

There was plenty of leftover evidence of the cold temperatures mixed with precipitation!

We stopped for lunch in the shadow of the massive formation known as El Capitan.

The views are amazing, but  no hiking for us this time around- with all the rain, the trails were a mess, and it was still darn chilly!

Fresno was a brief stop, on our way to Kirk and Karen’s cabin by Shaver Lake, in the Sierras.

We spent a couple of days catching up on everyone’s news…

And going for walks.  The rules say dogs must be on a leash- they don’t say that the dog shouldn’t be the one holding the other end!

Of course the guys had to find a few projects to work on, so the heater was pulled apart, examined, fixed, and put back together….

Eating is always high on our list of “must do”s when we’re with friends and we had some extra special treats this time:




Bill and Nancy own a farm so we had buckets of peaches, tomatoes and almonds.

and Kevin volunteered to make Aebleskivers for breakfast.  They are a Danish pancake, and way too yummy!

We always have a great time with Paul’s fraternity brothers and look forward to being within a day’s drive of them!

House Update 

All of the cement has been poured…

and the wood has arrived.  At 5 am tomorrow, they start building.

 

Camper VS Trailer (04-19-14)

We took the camper for our weekend test and spent 3 nights out on the road to check out all the systems etc.  Here are my thoughts.  First, many people name their rigs or RVs.  If Paul and I have names for them, its “the trailer” and “the camper” and of course, “the truck”. Sometimes we call the trailer the Ranch, as in “lets head back to the Ranch”.  On a rare occasion we’ll call it Porter’s Place.  But mostly, it’s just “The Trailer”.

Our destination for the weekend was an RV Park in Coarsegold CA, a mere 45 minutes from where we are staying in Fresno, but it felt like a whole other world.  This Park is essentially a membership park, operated by other full timers like us and has a forest like setting.

We chose a small spot-one that would never have fit the trailer, and one without hookups, so we could test out the generator etc.  As it turns out- the generator is a joy- simply press the button and it starts.  The only downside is that you can practically see the propane being sucked out of the tank.



My first surprise came when it was time to back into the site.  Usually it’s my job to stand in the rear and help direct Paul so that the trailer lands in a good spot, without hitting anything. Well, with no trailer, I kind of just shrugged my shoulders and told him to keep backing up until he was off the road at which point I said “ok, stop”. He got out and said  “That’s it???” Yup, with no trailer, it was just that easy.

My second surprise came when we stopped to look around, breathed in the fresh air, sighed, and realized that Yosemite National Park, one of our favorites, is only “down the road”.  I started thinking about taking a day trip to the park the following day and realized….it doesn’t work that way!  There’s no “dropping the trailer to go off exploring”.  If we wanted to go to Yosemite, we should have looked for a campsite in Yosemite!  This is a totally new way of traveling, and will take some getting used to!





Once we were set  up, we relaxed with Margaritas.  We had to rough it and drink them out of wine glasses, since we aren’t bringing our Margarita glasses with us in the camper.  We looked over the calendar of events for the RV park ( we happened to show up on “Stagecoach Weekend”) and found out there would be a dinner, a dance, and an auction while we are here.  The dinner was just ok, but I have never been to an auction so I was looking forward to that.

In the hour or so before the auction we could check out the merchandise that was going to be up for grabs.  Most things were used, but some were brand new. We also took advantage of the time to search the web for prices on items we were interested in.  We made a list of things we wanted to bid on, how much we were willing to spend, and waited for the auction to start.

Four hours later we were exhausted, but proud owners of “new” chairs, a Blue Boy, a 30 amp extension cord, hydration backpacks, and a few other smaller items.  We originally  bought a ladder but it was too short so we brought it back.








That night, and the next morning, I figured out several of the major differences between the camper and trailer.  I had forgotten how…..luxurious…for lack of a better word, our trailer is. Being in the camper for 2 nights was already making me appreciate the shower in my trailer, the size of  my bedroom, and the thick insulation that keeps out the sounds of birds and trucks, both of which can be heard quite clearly from inside the camper .  The trailer feels huge compared to the camper.  The camper is really only one space.  Paul can’t watch TV without my noticing, and even the coffee perking sounds loud.  Climbing in and out of the bed is probably going to get old pretty quickly ( and Sandie, it would NOT have worked for you!!). But hey, we’ll get used to it. I’m not complaining, just making note of the differences.  It reminds me a lot of our boat.  Everything you need, but in a compact space.





As much as we enjoyed the dance on Saturday night, Yosemite was beckoning.  I had looked online and discovered that there were two sites available for Sunday night- maximum length: 27 feet.  We top out a 26 feet so I quickly booked a site and Sunday morning- off we went. It was very strange parking in and among the tent campers.

One of the excuses for heading to Yosemite was to test the truck and camper on a long, windy road.  From the main turnoff, its a 1.5 hour trip to get into Yosemite Valley.  The road is narrow and difficult.

The last time we were here, we didn’t come into the park as much as we would have liked, because the daily drive in and out was over 4 hours long.  Extremely tiring for Paul.  So being able to spend the night in the park was awesome!

Springtime in Yosemite means incredibly beautiful waterfalls- like this one- Yosemite Falls.

Our first day there we headed to Vernal Falls- a hike we’ve done before.  We didn’t plan on hiking all the way to the top of the falls, but once we got started, we were inspired.

By the time we were done hiking, we had climbed about 1200 feet in elevation and hiked about 6 miles or so. It felt awesome to be on the trail again!












The next day we discovered two major perks to having a camper instead of a trailer.  Check out time is noon, and ordinarily it would be difficult to spend the day in the park, since we would have to pack up and be gone by noon.  Well, this time, we packed up and drove to a Day Use parking lot. 




We took the tram to the hiking trail and were able to spend a good portion of the day hiking to Mirror Lake.

We’ve never hiked this trail before but after the elevation gain of yesterday, we chose it because although it’s about a 5 mile hike, it’s relatively flat.

Once we were done with our hike and got back to the camper, it was simple to open the slide and make ourselves some sandwiches, another perk to having the camper with us all the time!

  Both before and after our weekend, we made some changes to the camper.  The old, analog TV is gone, replaced by a larger digital one.  The bathroom faucet has been replaced, and Paul is in the process of installing the new shower head. Using a camper for weekends or the occasional week long vacation is different from living in it for 5 months, and  there are some changes that are being made because we will be living in it for so long.

We’ve had a fun time buying stuff for the camper, and have, of course, moved some things over from the trailer. 

For pictures of the interior of the camper, here’s a link to my blog post that has those pictures:

Truck Camper Post

Exciting Day!

What's better than hiking to the top of Yosemite Falls on a beautiful sunny day? Hiking to Yosemite Falls on a beautiful day, accompanied by a family of bears! Talk about the thrill of a life time! Yesterday Paul and I started up the trail to Yosemite Falls at about 9:30 am. Less than 30 minutes into the hike, we were joined by a mama bear and her two cubs. They meandered out of the woods and onto the trail about 40 feet ahead of us. Mama bear knew we were there, but showed no concern unless someone started to walk towards the cubs. Then she would just turn her head and stare at the offending person until they backed up enough to satisfy her. Since they were walking up the trail to the Falls, we were stuck behind them. After a little bit, there were more and more people backed up behind the bears. We were all vying for the best vantage point for taking pictures, without irritating Mama. We really didn't have to worry- there was plenty of time to take pictures! Once the bears went ahead of us, we slowly followed them up the trail. At times they would cut the switchbacks (the zig zags in the trail that make it less steep to climb) and we would think they were gone- but then we'd catch up to them in a minute or two. Several times they stopped to eat along the way, blocking our progress up the path. Mama kept a watchful eye, and soon got very upset. The cubs were on the trail and hikers came around the corner, headed down the mountain. It was obvious that Mama felt her cubs were being threatened. She visibly tensed and started making a swiping motion with her paw. The descending hikers immediately headed back up the hill, and those of us behind her backed off even further. She finally took the cubs up the hill aways, off the trail, and they were able to get down. We caught up to them again in a couple of minutes. By this time, the bears have been around for close to an hour and some of the hikers were getting antsy to get past them. One man tried to cut the switchback to sneak ahead of them, but to Mama it felt like a threat- she headed towards him (still about 50-60 ft away), reared up on her hind legs and made a swatting gesture. Boy did he fly back down that hill. Eventually she pulled them off to the side long enough that we were all (by this time, about 25 people) able to get by (very quickly, keeping a close eye out!). It was an interesting bonding experience with the people we were with, as we discussed our options for passing the bears, cautioned each other about getting too close, and discussed picture taking. We met a couple, Les and Pat, who we spent most of the day with, on and off, as we rested and hiked to and from the falls. They are from Utah, near Zion National Park, so we got some good tips on what to do when we get there next week. This hike to Yosemite Falls, is, without a doubt, the most difficult one I have ever done. Round trip we hiked about 9-10 miles total, with an elevation gain of 3000 feet. That's the equivalent of climbing the Empire State Building more than twice. We (I) had to stop frequently towards the top, and for a while, I wasn't sure I was going to make it- but I did! Once at the top we were astounded to see that there were people tightrope walking across the falls! Paul got a good look at the Falls and guys doing the "walking" but I elected not to go down that pathway...a shear drop with a tiny railing. He came back pretty quickly, since the wind started picking up. As we headed around the corner, we ran into Pat again. She was completely distraught, unable to find her husband Les. She was convinced he had fallen over the falls (no railings- could happen, but of course, not likely). I stayed with her while Paul went ahead to look for him. Eventually we found him ( he had not heard her say where she would be, and thought she went on without him.) A pretty tense time for her, but with a happy ending. After resting for a bit, we headed back down the mountain. By that time it was already 3 pm and the day was starting to feel long. The views along the way were as beautiful as most view are in Yosemite, but as we looked into the valley, we could see was a haze- as it turns out, it was a haze of pollen, adding a slightly green tinge to everything. We made it down without incident, but didn't get to the bottom until almost 6 pm. We were so hungry and tired at that point, we ate at Yosemite Lodge instead of leaving the park for dinner. I also got a T-shirt with a bear on it. The drive back to our trailer is almost 2 hours and most of it was done in the dark. We arrived at about 10 pm and we were both (especially Paul)too tired for words. Driving those roads, 4 hrs a day, especially in the dark, takes a toll. All in all yesterday was one of the most strenuous,yet rewarding days of our trip. I feel extremely lucky to have spent so much time with the bear family. Today we canceled our plans to drive Tioga Rd, which is supposed to be beautiful, but would be about a 5 hour drive. Paul is done in, and we'll just relax today before heading out tomorrow.

Bass Lake and Yosemite National Park

Bass lake is a beautiful lake in the Sierra National Forest. It’s a great lake for water skiing, swimming, and whatever other water sports anyone might have in mind. We arrived at the campground early Friday afternoon, and took the time to set up camp and pre-prep some food. Kirk and Karen showed up next- It was Karen’s last day of teaching this school year, so she was ready to get out of town. Once Kevin and Suzy showed up with their pop up trailer, we settled down to dinner and a campfire.
Saturday didn’t go quite as planned, since Kirk and Karen got “the call” Friday night, to alert them that their daughter-in-law was in labor, and their first grandchild was on the way. They headed back to Fresno Saturday morning to make sure they would be there to greet the new baby (Lauren!).

          After a lazy start, the 4 of us went for a ride, up and around the surrounding mountain area. We couldn’t make it all the way to the top- the snow got in the way. Kevin did a little fly fishing along the way, and we walked a few trails, but nothing energetic.
     Once we got back to the lake area, we headed to lunch at Ducey’s- a restaurant with a great view of the lake. Dinner that night was appetizers- once we started eating them, we decided we couldn’t eat a real dinner. Kirk and Karen arrived shortly thereafter and showed off the pictures of their new granddaughter.
         We had until 2 pm Sunday at the campground, so after fixing a delicious breakfast, we opted to rent a pontoon boat and take it around the lake. By then it was warm enough that a couple of us went for a dip in the lake. I got my first glimpse of a Bald Eagle while on the lake! It was just a glimpse, but I did note the white tail- no time to get the camera out unfortunately.
     Once again it was lunch at Ducey’s, and then it was time to pack it up and head out. We had a great time, as usual, with these friends, and are trying to make plans for Yellowstone next summer.
          After looking at the weather forecast (hot today, cool tomorrow) and the Yosemite brochure again Monday, we opted to check out Mariposa Grove, and then head to Glacier Point to watch the sunset. Mariposa Grove is home to Giant Sequoias and Ponderosa Pines. There are miles of trails that bring you past some of the more interesting and spectacular specimens. We took one of the longest trails, about 7 miles, and made it to Wawona Point, where the view was beautiful. Walking through the forest, I tripped about 4 times, trying to walk while looking up. These trees are so tall and wide and majestic, it’s hard to ignore them as you walk by. Sometimes there would be 2 or 3 trees growing together. We found out that they share nutrition by fusing their roots together, so that they can all survive. There were a lot of areas that showed evidence of fires- some seemed pretty recent. It was in 1970 that the change was made that allowed fires that were started by natural causes to continue to burn. It seems Mother Nature takes care of her own better than we knew. The fires serve the purpose of keeping the ecology of the forest balanced. The bark on the Sequoia trees is so thick and porous, it takes multiple fires to do serious harm to the trees. One of the trees we saw is 1800 years old.
           From the Grove it was another hour ride into the park to get to Glacier Point. Glacier Point Rd. is a long, narrow road, uphill most of the way, but once you get close to the top, the views are beyond spectacular. I would say that the views from there may be the best I have ever seen. We could see the whole valley, complete with views of Nevada and Vernal Falls, where we had hiked a few days ago. Half Dome is a prominent feature of the landscape. Sunset at Glacier Point was our goal, so we brought food for dinner with us. We ate while we waited for it to get late. As the shadows lengthened, contrasts in the landscape became more pronounced. On this night there was some pink in the sky, but I think on other nights it could be even better. Not that I am complaining. I think I took 100 pictures, but none of them will do it justice.

Yosemite National Park- Day 1

As we drove and walked through Yosemite National Park, I tried to decide what words I would use to sum up the park and what my impressions of it are.  That's very difficult to do when you have a limited vocabulary!   I guess if I had to use one word, it would be "huge".  Not "vast" like Big Bend, because in Big Bend there are no trees to block the "vastness".  Here, there are trees, huge ones, and  huge rocks, and views, huge views, everywhere you look. There really aren't words that convey the feeling I got.  There was a feeling of excitement of course, of feeling insignificant, but also the feeling that there have been  so many people  here exploring this wilderness, and I couldn't wait to be one of them, and how great it is that this place is being preserved so that we can all enjoy it.
    The RV Park we are staying in is about an hour and a half from the visitors center. On the way in, that was no problem,  I was captivated by the views anyway.  On the way home, at 8 pm though,  it got old since I was so tired.  Plus we then had to stop to go food shopping and eat dinner.  It was one long day.
      There were two hikes we were particularly  interested in doing, but we decided to do the shortest of the two on our first day.  We hiked the Mist Trail (appropriately named) up past Vernal Falls to Nevada Falls, then back down Muir Trail, for a total of about 7 miles and 1900 ft elevation gain.  Luckily the views were spectacular and the photo opportunities many, since we had to stop frequently to catch our breath along the way. The plus side to the fact that we can't hike Half Dome, due to snow, is that the waterfalls-and there are lots of them- are positively gushing with water. As we were hiking, whether we could see a waterfall or not, we could always hear one.  It was never quiet in the forest.  There were also lots of people, but not to the point where it felt overcrowded.
All in all it was a great, but tiring, first day in Yosemite.  This morning I am doing laundry, how fun.  This afternoon we are leaving this park for 2 nights, and meeting Kevin, Suzy, Kirk and Karen at a Federal campground to spend the weekend.  We'll come back to this campground on Sunday.

Yosemite National Park

 We have cancelled our reservation for inside Yosemite National Park. It snowed there again a few days ago, which means the cables for Half Dome will probably not be up before we leave the area, and we won't be able to hike it. I am really disappointed, but we'll just have to try again next year.  We'll still be here for a week, and do a lot of hiking, but not Half Dome.