Sentinel Dome

Just a moderate hike, they said. Just 400’ altitude climb, they said. What they didn’t say: That 400’ was the last .1 mile, up to the top of Sentinel Dome. I hadn’t hiked to the top of Sentinel Dome since 1973. The distance was 1.1 miles (one way). A moderate hike, only 400’ of altitude increase. Hah!

Well, I did it, mostly to take a picture of the Jeffrey Pine that was an iconic symbol of Yosemite. I took this picture in 1973 when the tree was healthy and growing well into the granite at the top of the dome. You can see Half Dome on the right, under the outstretched limb.

Here is the same tree and (nearly) the same view today. As you can see, Half Dome is almost hidden by the smoke from the current fire. The tree is down, where it fell in 2003. It died during the drought of 1975-1977 and took until 2003 to actually fall. It had lived for a long time, but couldn’t endure the drought and lack of snow during those years. So tragic. But new, younger trees are growing so far. Hopefully, the current drought won’t kill them, too.

The fire. It isn’t close (Little Yosemite Valley, below Half Dome on the right – you can see the heavy smoke from the fire), but the smoke was hard on the lungs. I coughed all the way home, trying to clean out my lungs. My eyes burned for a while, until I was able to get out of the smoke. The valley was almost impossible to see because of the smoke. Two paragliders took off from Glacier Point and disappeared half-way down in the smoke.

Most of the smoke seems to have hit the valley. I’m so glad I was able to visit the valley last week when it was clear. I got home shortly after 1:30 and my left knee is really feeling the hike – thank ceiling cat for ice!

Relaxing in Fresno

It rained last night, for about 10 minutes. Hard and short lasting. Also very warm for being so late in the evening.

It rained again a couple of seconds ago. For about that long. It is very cloudy and still very warm, so it is feeling more humid than usual.

Not doing much of anything today except cleaning and reading. I realized that I don't have to do anything or be anywhere at any particular time, so I stopped worrying about doing nothing. I'm enjoying it right now. I may not feel the same later, but right now, I'm learning to enjoy it!

Have a lovely day.

Sequoia National Park

Yesterday, I drove to Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Park(s). What a change from Yosemite.

Yosemite Valley is set up for tourists. Its popularity is probably its downfall, but with the changes to limit the impact of people, it may do better. There are still too many places where the environment is less important than giving people a pleasant experience. However, everything is in a limited area. Yosemite Valley is the valley. One way in and out. Glacier Point on one side is a very long cul-de-sac. Tioga and Tuolumne Meadows are the other way out of the park, to the east, separate from the valley.

SKC is a trip around the mountains on the west side of the Sierras. No way across the mountains to the east. No one localized tourist area, it is spread over the whole road. At several places, there were pictures of how the tourist areas have changed over the years. Very few areas are as extensively touristy as in Yosemite, but no large areas of development are evident in SKC.

One of the first places I stopped was at the General Sherman Tree. It is called the largest tree by volume in the world. There is a trail from the parking lot to the Tree and along the way are markers indicating how far up the tree you would be located if you could walk up the tree.

The trail was paved and all down on the way to the bottom. There were stairs situated all over the trail to make it less steep, but it was still hard on my knees.

It was a gorgeous walk (can't call it a hike, because it was so beautifully maintained). The atmosphere was clear, clean and smelled wonderful. Until some fool came along with his cigarette. Who walks in the forest smoking? How disgusting.

Made it to the bottom and was overwhelmed by the hugeness all around me. Some people feel small when they look at the stars. Some people feel small when they see long-lived, huge trees. Some people feel they are too powerful, rich, whatever to feel small compared to anything else. Sad.

My next stop was at the Giant Forest Museum. Reading all the exhibits and standing inside the hollowed out (replica) tree was fascinating. There was a short trail over to the Round Meadow/Grove area, so off I went. It was another easy walk, but a bit longer. Also, no steps, it was mostly level. This is an area that has been reclaimed since the meadow had been ringed by cabins, and the museum had been a market with a gas station nearby. The gas station was gone, as were the cabins. According to the exhibits, the property had been purchased from local owners and turned over the NPS in 1916.

It was a quiet, interesting walk. There were a lot of signs showing information about the area - fires scarring trees, fallen trees, wet meadow land, etc. It was an informative, easy walk. I apparently was walking in a different direction than everyone else, but it was not crowded.

I saw this tree next to a boulder and wondered if the tree was trying to eat up the boulder. Just a funny on the way back to the museum.

Left the park after this little hike because it was getting very warm. The road shown on the park map was very twisty and the sign indicated a steep road with lots of squiggles. It was fortunate that I was driving because I would have been a very car sick passenger. The squiggly sign at the top doesn't begin to do it justice. In several places, I felt a small frisson of terror because the road dropped off with very little shoulder and the road was not that wide.

This is a view from one of those drop offs. No trees to catch a slip off the road and a long way down. I had never been to SKC before, so it was an interesting experience. I think it is one that needs to be shared at the time with someone else. That is one of the problems with traveling alone!

Yosemite - Finally

Correction: I attached the whirlygig to a CHAIR, not a CAR.

At 0-Dark-30 (actually 6:00 am) I was on the road to Yosemite. Cool and no traffic! Lots of traffic going the other direction, though!

I watched as I was driving at the sky turning pink over the foothills and into the mountains. Driving past the dry, barren flatlands up to the dry, barren rolling hills, I realized that part of the problem was that it was hot and getting close to winter and another part was the severe drought. Poor California!

I reached Yosemite fairly quickly, and made a stop at Inspiration Point. The valley was nestled in a covering of either mist or smog/smoke – either of which looked kind of pretty. Mist would burn off, smog/smoke would get worse. It got worse later on. Other than that, it was a gorgeous day – no clouds, kind of cool, at least in the morning.

I reached the valley an hour later and drove on the north side of the valley. I parked near Yosemite Village and took the shuttle to see where I should go. I decided the Mist Trail (or at least to the bridge) would be the trail I took.

A brief word here about Yosemite and the changes that had been made. The last time I was here (late 60’s?), National Park Service was giving a survey to every person who came through the valley to find out what they would like to see changed or remain the same in the Valley.

After a flood, earthquake and lots of rock slides, changes were made. Lots of changes. Roads were closed, parking limited and a shuttle is the best and easiest way to get around. Trails were rearranged and parking areas removed. It is no longer possible to drive to Happy Isles or Mirror Lake. Yosemite Falls has an entirely different arrangement now.

It used to have a huge parking lot at the end of the path to the falls. The path was a straight shot to the falls, so once you passed the canopy of trees, the falls opened up. Now, the parking lot is gone and the path has split into two, neither of which has the same open feeling it used to have. That is so sad. The fact that there is no water in the falls is even sadder.

The Rangers were saying that even Bridalveil Falls didn’t have water, but I took a picture early in the day that showed a small amount coming down. But you can see where the water was supposed to be, especially Yosemite Falls. This is a picture of Bridalveil Falls. Doesn't look like a bridal veil, does it!

So I rode the shuttle to Happy Isles, after stopping at my truck to get a walking stick and my small backpack. I went to the Happy Isles and ate a little lunch. Then I went up the trail to the bridge below Vernal Falls.

The .80 mile trail is .75 miles of up with .05 miles of down on the way to the bridge. It was hot and I did a lot of stopping on the trail, always trying to stay in the shade while sitting. There were a lot of sunny places and it was just too hot to sit in the sun.

I discovered that I am hideously out of shape. Disgustingly out of shape. Sorely out of shape. But by putting my treadmill on stroll, I was able to make it to the bridge. If you look closely on the left side of the granite between the trees you can see Vernal Falls, maybe an eighth of its normal size.

Then came the real problem. Going down. That .80 mile was .05 miles up and .75 down back to the road. My left knee isn’t well enough to support that much downhill, so I had to sit and try to work out the pain on the way down.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Bitch and moan. I met a lady and her 70 year old sister who had just had two operations within the last year and she bravely made it to the bridge and back without complaint. I stopped complaining after talking to the two of them.

Although I was tired, hot and hurting, I tried to visit a couple of other places, but it was beginning to get to be too much. I did stop at Inspiration Point (now called Tunnel View) on the way out of the park and got some afternoon pictures to match my early morning shots. You can see the clouds in the distance just starting to come in.

Thus ended my first foray into my great adventure.

Start of My Great Adventure

First full day of Fresno. It is really hot, but I am finally able to use the canopy that I paid to get replaced on the trailer. Sitting in the shade, in my rocker, reading my Kindle is the perfect way to do absolutely nothing. Of course, that is exactly what I will be doing the rest of the day and maybe even tomorrow.

I bought a whirlygig at the Alameda County Fair and attached it to one of my cars. It mostly is still, but every once in a while it whirls into a blur.

Here's a picture of my new setup.

As you can see, lots of concrete with some lawn (being watered early in the day). Not a lot of shade, not like Eddos!

The biggest problem is the almost constant traffic noise during the day. Don't notice it so much at night. Actually the biggest problem is the heat. Running the air conditioner even at night is not fun (very noisy). 

Further plans include a trip to Sequoia as well as one to Yosemite. Because it is so hot so early, I will have to leave before sun-up to keep cool. The cats have it made - they will be staying behind in the air-conditioned trailer. Lazy beasts!

Leaving Eddos Behind

The first day of my excellent adventure. Finally! I left at 9:10 am (only 10 minutes late based on my desire to leave early). No traffic, all the way to Fresno. Arrived in Fresno around 12:30, but by following the directions given on the web site of this place, I got lost. Didn't actually get to the park until around 1:30pm.

It was pleasant until I started setting up and all of a sudden it was super hot (probably because I was working so hard!). I went shopping and got some stuff to eat for tonight. I plan on doing absolutely nothing for the next day or so. I found a GMC dealer close by, so I'll be getting the truck's alignment done. Then, Yosemite and Sequoia for the next couple of weeks.

I discovered something when I arrived. EVERYTHING in the refrigerator fell out. And in doing so, broke the glass shelf above the veggie drawer. The ice part stayed closed and mostly frozen, so that's good.

There is a lot of stuff in the trailer and I've decided I've got to do some serious weeding. There is just too much stuff - not needed stuff.

I'll be writing more later and I'll include pictures of my current setup. Right now, I'm just too tired to do much. I didn't sleep well last night and I'm relaxing myself into a state of ennui. Lovely!

Maks is trying to help me type. The cats were not happy about the trip, but during the last 1/2 hour of the trip, they finally shut up!

The Beginning - August 28, 2014

Today is the first day of my excellent adventure . . . sort of. I've left my job with some misgivings: like, am I making a mistake; this is a scary proposition; these are good people, I'm going to miss them; etc.

However, this is a choice I have made. Saturday afternoon I plan on hitching up my truck to the trailer and on Sunday I will hit the road (at least as far as Fresno). I've been asked why Fresno. Mostly because it is close to both Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks, and it is cheaper than staying closer to either Yosemite or Sequoia.

I got my Canon Pro-100 yesterday and the thing is HUGE! The instructions say "two people should move it". Oh, well. Only one old lady. I'm still not sure where it is going to sit, but as I travel, I'll figure it out.

I've loved being at Eddo's since June (but full time since July 1) because it is quiet - well the wind does make a whole lot of noise most nights. The road closest to the Antioch bridge is possibly the worst road on the face of the planet - even worse than some dirt roads I've been on. The other direction isn't as bad, but is narrow - since the road is on the top of the levee. The people here are really nice. Talking to some of the other residents has been nice, but since the neighbors on either side of me have both left in the middle of the day while I was at work, I thought maybe my deodorant wasn't strong enough.

 My trailer is that tiny little speck in the middle of the picture. The trailer is nestled under the trees, so I'm not sure what the top of the trailer looks like, what with the birds and all!

This is a picture of the slough leading to Eddos. I took the picture at sunset, with Mt. Diablo in the back and the Antioch Bridge in the middle. The wind was blowing quite vigorously, but it didn't seem to hurt the picture. I will miss seeing this once I head east - Nevada and Utah are not known for their rivers (except the Green River/Lake Powell area of Southern Utah).

I'm going to miss California (for a while, anyway) and will have to resist the urge to return. I have every other time I've left.

So the question I am asked is why? My answer is usually along the lines of "this is something I have wanted to do for the last 35 years" but that isn't all. I watched my mother sit around waiting to die from the day she retired. I paid for a weekend in Yosemite for my mother and father and they never did anything but sit at home, watch TV and go to church. Thinking back on things, I don't even remember my mother being happy, or laughing or enjoying life. I don't want to be like that. I am lazy (well known fact) but I don't want to sit around waiting to die, dreaming of visiting places, doing things, meeting people. So, this trip.

I never learned how to be friends with others. For my parents, if they didn't go to our church, they weren't good enough to be friends. So we never had anyone over, except for my sister's birthday parties (school friends and neighbor kids). I am endeavoring to meet people and trying to learn how to be friends.

BTW, Margie - thanks for your help and being a friend. Loved going to the movies with you and being on the Grand Jury that year was a truly wonderful learning experience!