Big Rocks

It takes a lot of guts to climb these big rocks. Yosemite is one of the top three "world class" climbing challenges in the world. It's not unusual to see climbers on the face of these monoliths or spending several days on some of them. They "hang" on the face and sleep overnight in primitive hammocks or tents.

The very best of the climbers "free climb". John Muir was know to do this. The modern day equipment makes this much easier now.

Our Hotel had some of the most beautiful views anywhere to be found. 

Yosemite Park

After wandering around the big city and the redwood trees a few days, we were ready for the "high country". I now realize why John Muir thought this was one of the most beautiful places on earth. This is the view first a person sees after driving through a highway tunnel into the valley.

This summer has been extraordinarily hot and it's taken a toll here this year. The entire state of California is under drought conditions. The last time I was here, water cascaded over the main ridges much like an entire swimming pool. It crashed and rumbled like a rocket taking off into space.

If not for a short shower upstream last night, there would be nothing cascading along this path today. Fortunately, we saw a small "trickle". It was to disappear this next day. I was shocked at this! We decided to do some hiking a few days later to a waterfall we knew would have a strong current. Little did we realize the tragedy that would await us.

Big Big Trees

The Sequoia tree grows differently, from other trees. They reach a certain height, and then begin to widen as they grow older. Sort of like getting fat and bunchy, like a rabbit. Some of them are centuries old. It's a humbling experience to walk among them. John Muir was known to climb some of them during a strong storm just to feel their strength as they swayed in the wind.

The biggest of all the Sequoia's is called the General Sherman Tree. It's VERY large and VERY wide. We walked down to this giant from a trail above it through the woods. Although this is a populated place, it's possible to see just about anything around here.

As we walked through the woods to the tree, we came upon a female black bear with two cubs. This is potentially a dangerous situation and concern for everyone. She avoided us and the cubs followed behind her down the hill through the woods. When we arrived at the big tree, she once more appeared with the two cub trailing behind. There are mountain lions is these woods also. Best to always keep an eye open...

The mother is difficult to see, but the two cubs are quite obvious. 

Cool Foggy Weather

Marilyn and I have always enjoyed walking, as a slow mode of travel. It forces a person to see the real things in a town. We had originally planned to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge but every evening, the fog just rolled across the city around 5pm and often was still around as late as 1pm.

We decided to cancel this attempt in order to see more in the immediate city. Here's what the Golden Gate Bridge always looked like in the early morning traffic.

Our trip was divided into different segments and we were soon headed to a different place where John Muir found true wilderness. I was looking forward to seeing nature up close and personal.

Go Car Tours

These might look like toys, but they're not. I first thought they might be fancy golf carts, or maybe bumper cars, but they are much more. These "Go Cars" are a three wheeled, two person carrier. They're an amusing GPS, self guided driving  machine. Rented by the hour, it's a unique experience.  

Here's what they look like in action. 

If you listen closely, you can hear the "pre programmed narrative"  of the stopping point in the background. Needless to say, they're illegal on bridges and freeways, but in town, they're quite functional.

Getting Around as a Tourist

The price of these machines keep dropping as economics kick in. I've never ridden one but they sure look like fun. I never saw anyone take a fall the entire time we were in San Francisco. I'm assuming all these folks were "first time riders". After a few hours on these machines, they were masters.