Yosemite, Take Two

Well, we made our second attempt at Yosemite yesterday. Success!

We hiked part of the trail around the Mariposa Tree Grove. You wouldn't believe the size of these trees, especially when compared to the already huge hemlocks in the grove. We stretched our arms across the width of many of the trees and it still wouldn't reach the diameter. One of the first places along the way that we stopped was a fallen tree. The root system on the tree was pretty impressive, but apparently the trees actually have really shallow root systems. The roots only go three to six feet underground, but can extend up to 150 feet horizontally. And the thickness of each root is crazy!

Sequoia trees reproduce via cones that contain 200 – 300 seeds. When we first drove into the park, you could see several of these cones hanging from the very ends of the branches and they're monstrous! They grow on the trees for 20 – 30 years before falling. And even after they fall, only one in a million may germinate. In order for them to do so, the conditions have to be absolutely ideal. They need soft, mineral soil; sufficient light, and adequate moisture. The tress rely on external forces to help the trees drop the cones and spread the seeds. Many of the trees in the grove have portions that have been burned by fire. Apparently the park used to work really hard to control natural fires, but later learned that fires actually help the trees reproduce. And in addition, other plants in the grove benefit from the fires as well because the burned out branches allow more light to get in.

A sequoia's bark is a real pretty red color that has deep grooves in it. It's a very distinctive bark and really beautiful. You can look up to see the tops of the trees and just about fall over backwards because of the height. We stopped at the Grizzly Giant tree and the California Tunnel tree. It's truly shocking to see the sheer size of both. The first branch (not the trunk) on the Grizzly Giant is seven feet wide! That's almost an entire foot taller than Phill. And then the California tunnel tree you can walk right through...easily! It's not as if you have to hunch down or anything. You just casually walk right through. The early pioneers used to walk their horses through. And as recent as the 1960s, people used to be able to drive their cars through a similar tunnel in a tree in the park that has since caved in. Obviously this was before the SUV generation, but even so, can you imagine!?!

After the hike, we drove to Glacier Point – a viewpoint at about 7200 feet in the park where you can see Half Dome (the park's most famous cliff) and the two waterfalls. Of all the viewpoints I've seen in my life, this one definitely makes it near the top. It was so spectacular! The contrast of what you can see from that point is unreal. You have gray and black mountain cliffs that have been rounded by glaciers, so they appear kind of like bald mountains. Then 7200 feet down you have a lush, bright green valley. On either side of Half Dome are two gushing waterfalls. And of course the blue sky. The panoramic view seems to go on forever on all sides. It looks so rugged and untouched in many ways.

American Indians believe that Half Dome and North Dome (the predominant cliffs in the park) were once a husband and wife that argued incessantly. As a result, the spirits turned each into stone at each end of the park to forever face each other. Geologists, on the other hand, are still wondering how the cliffs in the park have been formed. They believe that the walls of Yosemite formed into hard stone nearly five miles underground and eventually the top layers have been eroded away exposing what we see today. And it seems to be a work in progress. I'm not sure how part of Half Dome fell off, but I've at least heard that it was due to the immense weight of it that it eventually just fell. When you look into the woods, you can see these enormous boulders (like three times the size of a vehicle) that have just landed in the middle of the woods. Beware of falling boulders...

We came back down to the valley from Glacier Point and headed back to Sacramento. Somehow we managed to take the long way around. Oh well. It was beautiful and sunny out and the right temperate to drive with the windows down. It felt great to have some fresh air. There's so much more that we missed in the park due to our short time to be there, but we certainly feel like we got a good overview and would love to go back and explore more.

When we decided to take this whole trip, we promised ourselves that we would take our time places to explore and really see things rather than rush through. Unfortunately, the past couple of parks have been somewhat rushed, but overall, we feel like we've been true to our promise. Yosemite and Death Valley will have to be parks that we return to another time.

No Room in the Inn

Well, we made it to Yosemite, but what a nightmare all of this has been.

We got to Yosemite around 5:00 and not a single camping spot was available. The park was insane with people! After being on the road for so many days, we've completely lost track of the day of the week. Note to self – do not visit Yosemite on a weekend. It's crazy! So, we drove to the south entrance to see if we could find a place to sleep. The campsite outside the park was full, hotels in the town 12 miles south were completely booked, hotels 25 miles south were booked...it was looking like we might sleep in the truck again. We finally found a state park with campsites available 45 miles south of the park. We set up our tent in the dark which really creeped me out because of snake warnings. I'm ready to get to the land where creepy things aren't as prevalent (no rattlesnakes in Seattle). We finally got the sleep around 11 and then Phill woke up around 1AM to a horrifying screeching sound as if an animal was being mutilated. Luckily I didn't hear the animal at all, but I did hear Bailey go nuts over it growling and barking. We both layed there quietly for a couple of minutes after it was over and I looked toward Phill and said - “are you asleep.” And he responded - “not a chance.” We were hearing every little noise at this point which was really creepy. So, we got all of our stuff and climbed into the truck to sleep a while. An hour later, we were sweating to death, so we ventured back into the tent. An owl was hooting at this time, which was a really nice sound to fall asleep to. I'm not sure if I've ever really heard an owl hoot.

We both felt pretty silly once we woke up and saw our surroundings (we didn't have a good sense of it since we set up in the dark). The site was right by the edge of a lake and the trashcans were close by with no lids. They obviously don't have a major animal problem. I don't know what Phill heard being eaten, but I don't think we should have felt as threatened by it as we did. Small children were walking around that had apparently slept soundly all night. Meanwhile, the two adults with their tent crawled into the safety of our vehicle halfway through. Yeah...we were feeling a little wimpy.

We got back to Yosemite around 9:30 AM and the park was packed! People were flooding in the gates. We couldn't drive to the giant tree grove because the parking lot was full, and the overflow parking lot was becoming too full as well. It was looking like it was going to be a miserable day fighting among people. So, we decided to can it and drive up to Sacramento to see the Faulkners. We'll be staying with them for a few days and will probably use one of those days to make a side trip down to Yosemite. I hope it's slower mid week so that we can actually see it. So, that's where we headed. It's probably good because we're ready for a nice bed, good company, and hot showers! Faulkers and your doggies...look out, here we come!

Record Temperatures

Things haven't gone nearly as smoothly for the past couple of days as they did for the first part of the trip.

Friday we left the Grand Canyon and headed to Death Valley. On our way, we stopped at Hoover Dam which is the state line between Arizona and Nevada. Oh my gosh it was hot! The radio was saying they were experiencing record heat and would probably hit triple digits by the end of the weekend. They wouldn't let us park and leave the dog, so Phill had to just drop me off and turn around and come back for me. I didn't see that much, but I got the basic idea. Damn...that's a big dam. Pressing on...

We got to Death Valley kind of late in the evening. We kind of went around Las Vegas and then through this tiny town called Death Valley Junction. It was a complete ghost town – I mean, completely abandoned. It was almost eerie. Since we got to Death Valley so late and it was so hot, we did a really rushed drive through the park. It was kind of unfortunate, but we haven't felt rushed through any other park yet. So, we're calling Death Valley the one that got away. But we did make it out to the first point which had an incredible view of the valley. The plaque up there said that the entire land is tilting. As the mountain tilt upward, the basin tilts toward (further below sea level). The only thing that keeps it from sinking too much is that the “stuff” eroding and blowing out of the mountains fills it up as fast as its sinking. The basin is 282 feet below sea level – the lowest elevation in North America. We raced from our viewpoint in the mountains down to the Badwater Basin itself. It reminded me of Yellowstone a little bit in terms of how harsh and strange the land is. And there's actually a kind of sulfur-ish smell there also, just like at Yellowstone. The sun had already set, and the temperature was still ridiculous. And there was absolutely no breeze whatsoever. It honestly felt like a consistent heat like you would feel with an oven door open.

The valley used to be an old minor's destination. Apparently there are still thousands of old mines in the park. We noticed remnants of things that looked like they could have been miner's equipment at one time. Apparently many were extremely successful at finding ore at one point.

When we read through the literature that you get at the front gate of the park, we learned that pretty much the only things that live n the park are kangaroo rats, scorpions, black widow spiders and rattlesnakes. Great.... I decided that it might be a good night NOT to camp. Unfortunately, we had a real challenging time finding accommodations. There's a reason this place is called Death Valley. We had to drive out of the park and just get out and ask every single hotel along the way. Finally, we found a place in Independence, CA. I feel like I've been a pretty good sport this entire trip in terms of “roughing it,” but I was clearly at my maximum for the night. I was tired, hot, nervous about critters, etc. So then the only motel left in townwas the Courthouse Motel which looked like the hotels you see in the horror movies – dark, U-shaped parking lots where you pull right up to your room and you're not sure the lock functions real well on the door or the window. I was being really judgmental about the place, but I felt really out of my comfort zone. However, when we woke up the next morning with a good night's sleep, a hot shower, continental breakfast and free internet, I was actually quite pleased with our choice. They're just little tiny fishing towns with old fashioned hotels. In the day time, it appears a lot less creepy!

Anyway, then we pressed on toward Yosemite. On the way out of town, we saw a sign that said the pass we needed to get to Yosemite was closed. Ugh! Instead of taking a straightforward route there, we had to go all the way north of the park, around the top and in toward the east. It wasn't quite how we had planned, but it worked out. And we tried to stop and see Devil's Postpile on the way, which was also closed. Goodness, things just aren't quite going right it seems.

We drove on the pass to where the closed sign was just for a nice side drive. There was a ton of snow up there and what a pretty drive! Bailey had a blast playing in the snow. Talk about extremes. We started in cold rain, then hot desert, beautiful lake front and now snow. What's next!?!

We'll hopefully get to Yosemite tonight around 4 or so.

Death Valley

We're kind of in a hurry to get to Yosemite today, so I don't have a lot of time to write. We spent the evening in Death Valley last night. What a weird place. More on it later...

One Huge Ditch

If anyone tries to tell you – “once you've seen one canyon, you've seen them all” - it's just not true. We've seen quite a few canyons in the past couple of weeks, and they are all so unique.

The interesting thing is that most of our sightseeing in the southwest area is interrelated and connected to one another. The canyons make up what is called the Grand Staircase. About 10 million years ago, the Earth pulled apart, moving huge blocks along the fault lines. Streams began to remove the sediment removing top layers and exposing bottom layers. The staircase begins with Bryce Canyon and makes it way down the Colorado Plateau (Zion Canyon, Vermillion Cliffs, Chocolate Cliffs, etc.) until the final “step” of the staircase – the Grand Canyon. And all of them are quite distinct.

I think the most impressive thing about the Grand Canyon is its sheer size. It has 277 river miles running through it, it's 18 miles across and a mile deep. And the land surrounding the canyon is flat as can be for the most part, so the stark contrast is almost eerie. It appears as if the Earth just opened up and swallowed whatever had been standing there prior.

We picked out our campsite (which Phill was pretty certain was the same site he and Garrett had the first time he was here), and then went to find a spot to watch the sunset. We were at the east end of the canyon looking west. I found the color of the rock formations in the canyon fascinating. Our eyes perceive the color as blue, with the darkest blue in the foreground and the lightest blue against the horizon. Once the sun started setting, some blue colors turned to shades of red and orange. It was spectacular! I don't know if I've ever seen so many layers of color. The canyon appears to go on forever until is sort of disappears into the horizon. It's just amazing how large – and old – it is. Some of the rock at the bottom dates back as far as 1,800+ million years.

After the sun set, we returned to our campsite, made a fire, poured ourselves some good ol' Carlo Rossi wine, and chatted until midnight. We talked about everyone that we wish was here with us seeing this stuff. We miss all of you and wish you could experience these things with us.

We left through the main entrance this morning and stopped at Mather Viewpoint on our way out. Phill remembered a ledge that he and Garrett had discovered last time that he wanted to get our picture on. Again, I'm not normally afraid of heights at all, but by the fourth or fifth picture, I'd had about enough fun for one morning. I heard a Ranger this morning talking to some tourists that were asking how many people fall into the canyon in a year. He said only two or three on average. I don't want to be part of that statistic! It's amazing – you're completely on solid ground, yet knowing how high up you are and how far you could fall suddenly makes you walk a little wobbly. I don't know what that phenomenon is, but I didn't like it.

We're headed now to Death Valley. It's going to start getting even hotter...

One Dog Night

I think we just about froze to death last night. I woke up at 2:45 AM and Bailey was shivering. Here we have a one-dog night, and our one dog can't even stay warm. I had to tuck her under the blankets with me. Isn't that a sign to pack up and head to a warm hotel bed? Around 5:45, we finally decided we weren't going to be able to get back to sleep again, so we got up and went and watched the sun rise over the canyon. Several other people were already up and about watching the sunrise as well, but I was the only one toting a wool blanket to keep warm. Does that mean I'm weaker, or just more intelligent? I'll go with the latter. The light into the canyon from the sun was really pretty. It casts such interesting shadows and brings out a very orange color in the canyon walls.

We ended up looking at Lake Powell again, except we were in Arizona on the very south end of it. We stopped in Page, Arizona to get groceries and also took a mile and a half hike to Horseshoe Bend. It was hot! The river has cut out a huge gorge and left the canyon wall standing in a horseshoe shape. Looked kind of like a smaller version of Goosenecks state park.

Next stop: Grand Canyon.

Bryce Canyon

We packed up from Lake Powell on Tuesday morning, went for a swim and then caught the noon ferry across the lake. It was this tiny little ferry that took us across. Nothing was open on the Halls Crossing side where we stayed and the ferry only accepted cash. With only $17 in our wallets, we had to scrounge up the last bit in loose change. So, we paid our way with our $17 in bills and a sandwich bag of coins – complete with 45 pennies. Money is money, right?

We took this ridiculous road toward Bryce Canyon. It was so skinny and twisty with no guard rails on the edges. When you get to the top and see how far you've come...my goodness. I'm not afraid of heights at all, but at the edge of this gravel road mountain pass, you can't help but imagine all the 'what ifs'...

We got to Bryce Canyon Tuesday night. It was such a spectacular place that we decided we probably wanted an entire day here, so we explored today and we're camping here tonight as well.

We took the Navajo Trail Loop hike into the canyon this morning. It was only a mile and a half, but it was pretty much straight down the canyon and straight back up with tight little switchbacks. It's not what I expected at all. It reminds me of an exposed cavern with giant stalagmites as far as you can see. From a bird's eye view, it appears like castles in the sand, or like the remaining walls of an old cathedral or something. The columns are called Hoodoos. Frost and ice erosion cracks and breaks the canyon walls and flood waters go through and remove the loose sediment and create these spectacular hoodoos. The whole thing is really fantastic. This park is definitely highly recommended.

After our hike, we just drove around the park and stopped at the scenic outlook points. They were all very cool, but our favorite was Bryce Point. There are hundreds of thousands (if not more) of these columns sticking up from the bottom of the canyon everywhere – for as far as you can see. And what was amazing to think about was that earlier that morning on our hike, we felt so minuscule down among the hoodoos. And as we're standing there, now hundreds of feet above them, they look so tiny. I'm beginning to feel like a broken record with all of these sights we've seen, but it truly was breathtaking.