But the drive was beautiful. A wrinkled-looking hillside, like a Colorado-Hawaii mix, but these mountains were much older and softer than we were used to seeing. And very pretty in the setting sun. It’s always so neat to experience different landscapes!

The drive was uneventful until we got into the national forest, and then into the park. Then the mood took a dramatic change. It was nearing midnight by now, no street lights, and a windy hilly road that wound through an endless forest of what appeared to be giant trees. In the dark all we could make out was the ghostly bottoms  of their massive trunks.

Everything was silent and still and black, like we were invading some sort of sacred space where we did not belong, and we were unwelcome there. Rarely did we pass another car or see signs of civilization. It was downright creepy, but hauntingly cool at the same time.

After what seemed like hours of wandering in the dark forest, we finally made it to Wuksachi Lodge, a sudden haven of light in the middle of the darkness. We got checked in, van unloaded, and settled into bed, just before 1am. I did notice as we walked up the hill to our building how magnificent the stars were. Maybe we should just sleep in tomorrow…

Chapter 2. Some Really Big Trees (Sun 5/27)  

So much for sleeping in. I was awake by 6, with everyone else following soon after, and we were up and about by 7. We had breakfast in the Wuksachi Lodge Dining Room, and headed over to Lodgepole to get Crystal cave tickets, and Lily’s Junior Ranger book. Lodgepole was the nearest visitor center to our hotel, fortunately it was only about 10 minutes away.

Then it was on to the Giant Forest! We did the short Big Trees trail, which makes an easy loop around a meadow, and most of the park’s largest Sequoias are there. We brought the stroller, but Owen spent most of the time walking.

He was especially attached to Lily this morning, and wanted to copy-cat everything she did. Running, grabbing sticks, stomping in puddles, etc. It was cute to see how well they were getting along and enjoying each other, but could be exasperating at times too. But the trees were beyond amazing. They were completely humbling! Talk about feeling like a dwarf next to one.

After we finished the trail, we stopped by the Giant Forest Museum, where they had some cool exhibits about the geology and history of the area. Apparently there used to be a huge resort built up there with cabins, restaurant, etc, until they realized how much damage it was doing to the ancient trees, so they tore it all down. Definitely encouraging to see the parks make sacrifices to do the right thing. It had been a very pleasant morning, and a great start to our vacation so far!

We headed back to Lodgepole for lunch, but of course Owen fell asleep on the way. Waking him up for lunch was difficult, and probably a mistake, because of course it meant that getting him to go back to sleep in the room later would be next to impossible. The food options there were less than impressive here, but we made-do and picked up a few snacks from the store too.

Chapter 3. Owen Conquers the Cave (Sun 5/27)  

Now it was time for Brian to set out on his first solo hike, while the rest of us headed back to the room, hopefully for a nap. Brian was going to hike the Tokopah Falls trail which lead back to the hotel after hiking up to a waterfall, about 6.5 miles total. As I had feared Owen was not ready to sleep yet back in the room, so he and Lily played for a while first. Lily was very antsy for Brian to get back, but finally laid down and rested for a while too.

After a short break in the room when Brian returned, it was time to head to Crystal Cave for our tour! It was a long, windy, and somewhat precarious road that lead to the cave entrance, and then another 1-mile hike from the parking lot!

 

 

 

 

 

 

They have to be very careful there about White-Nose, a disease that affects the bats that live in the cave. We carefully cleaned our shoes before entering, and made sure that nothing we were carrying could possibly be contaminated. While we waited outside the entrance for the tour to start, Owen became convinced there was a bear in there, and we all had fun growling.

He must have been serious about his fear of the bear though, because he was pretty nervous throughout most of the tour. Especially during one spot where all the lights went out – the only way I kept him calm was by quietly singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star in his ear! It was a trick we would come to use many times after this night. A little later in the tour, Owen was making goofy noises, and the tour guide was so amused by it that he started laughing and totally lost his train of thought about what he was saying.

The cave itself was very impressive, with many large rooms of flowing water! Lily especially enjoyed it. We had to constantly remind Owen to “don’t touch”, and by the end of the tour he was repeating the phrase to us! It was one of many new words he would learn on the trip, including “cave”, which he also used to refer to tunnels, for many months. By the end of the tour he was quite fascinated with the whole cave concept, actually. What a great experience for him!

The hike back to the parking lot was all uphill, and Owen refused to let brian carry him -only Mama would do! So I got my workout indeed. Now we had to hurry back for our dinner reservations at the hotel, we were starving!

Unfortunately, back at the hotel, it turned out that they had put our reservation down as 8:30 instead of 8:00, after we rushed so much to get back on time. There was no chance of being seated early, as lots of people without reservations were being turned away completely. That would be my one complaint about Wuksachi, the lack of dining options. The main hotel restaurant was it – and if you didn’t have dinner ressies, you were simply going to go hungry. The next nearest lodge with food was almost 2 hours away.

But finally we were seated. Our waitress was new, and still training, but she was very nice and took good care of us. The food was decent, but Owen was so tired and grumpy that it was hard to appreciate it while dealing with him. We didn’t get to bed until after 10pm, and all collapsed after a fun but exhausting day!

Chapter 4. Kings Canyon is Grand (Mon 5/28)  

We were up early again, too early in fact for breakfast at the hotel, so we headed on to Lodgepole, planning to grab a quick breakfast from the snack bar. At least breakfast and lunch had this an an option, as it was only about 15 minutes from Wuksachi, but not open for dinner unfortunately.

Here, we realized one minor disadvantage of visiting the parks so early in the season, almost all the employees are new and in training! So breakfast ordering was more complicated than it should have been, but finally we were fed. Picked up a few supplies from the store, and Lily bought her first souvenir of the trip- a bear backpack that she named Midnight.

We were headed to King’s Canyon (about 2 hours away – the farthest north area of the park), but realized we had let our gas supply dwindle way too low. Our map indicated a “seasonal gas station” at Stony Creek, almost an hour north of us. We were right on the border of the start of the summer season, so it was a nervous drive, but fortunately they were open!

All along the highway there were stunning views of the canyon, so we stopped at several overlooks. We couldn’t believe how empty this part of the park was – I thought it rivaled the Grand Canyon for sheer beauty, and yet it seemed so undiscovered. I had read that this was one of the less-crowded areas of the park, so had intentionally planned to do it today (it was Memorial Day, a typically busy day for national parks). People just didn’t know what they were missing apparently!

We made a short stop at Grizzly Falls, which was right by the road. The kids played for a while, climbing and exploring,  and we got a nice family picture here. Lily had fun seeing how high up one of the hills she could climb, and Owen was getting good at bouldering. A couple briefly stopped by while we were there, but for the most part we had it to ourselves. It was a good stop for sure.

We were planning to eat lunch at the Cedar Grove Cafe, but again – so early in the season it hadn’t quite opened yet. (In my defense, I had thoroughly researched all this ahead of time, but most places simply didn’t state officially when they opened, only that they were seasonal. I suspect it’s one of those cases where they just decide on a whim when it’s busy enough to justify opening). But the small store here was open and we managed to scrounge around for enough supplies to make a picnic lunch.

We found a table outside next to the river, and it was very peaceful. The kids played some more by the river. Lily got in the habit of sailing “boats” every time we were near water, which usually consisted of whatever twigs or leaves she could find nearby. We were ever mindful of the fact that rushing water was just a few feet below Owen, and it definitely made me nervous, but the time we spent enjoying it, and watching the kids enjoying it,  was more than worth it. Still not sure where they expect visitors to eat though – we certainly aren’t used to having to “forage” quite so much on vacation!

We drove all the way through Kings Canyon, to the end of the road, and dropped Brian off at the Mist Falls trailhead. We agreed to meet back there in 4 hours. Of course our cell phones were useless here, as they usually are within most national parks.

Chapter 5. Small Adventures and a Great Afternoon (Mon 5/28)  

The kids and I drove back the way we came (about 20 minutes) to the Roaring River Falls trail. It was just a short walk up to the falls, and we could see why they got their name – it was LOUD! Lily climbed around some more, and wanted to do more boats. I was definitely a little more nervous now, being out alone with both kids. And hoped we wouldn’t have anything so adventurous as a bear sighting.

We drove on to Zumwalt Meadow, which seemed to be stroller-able at least from the trailhead. The easy trail follows the river, and we took our time, stopping to play and do more boats in several spots. I couldn’t help but think how lucky we had gotten with the weather! After last year’s unfortunate run-in with a tropical depression in Jamaica, we were being treated to calm skies and pleasantly warm temps.

Owen was just fascinated with the rushing water, and I was amazed at how clear it was. Unfortunately, after about a mile or so, the trail suddenly became more difficult and there was no way were were going to get the stroller over some large boulders in the middle of it, so we had to turn back. We spent some more time at a large opening by the river on the way back, and while we were there, a family told us that there had been a bear playing in that exact same spot about 15 minutes ago! Yikes! Hopefully he had moved on for good now. Again, not looking for any adventures today while I’m solo with the kids.

It had been a great outing with them though – it was nice to be able to just take our time and enjoy whatever spot we were in, and not be focused on “finishing the trail”. Just letting the kids enjoy the outdoors is the most important part.

Back at the car, we were out of water and thirsty, so we drove about 20 minutes in the opposite direction back to the store for some more supplies. We still made it back to the trailhead where we were to meet Brian a little early, so Lily and I spent some time reading while Owen napped. Lily was in the middle of her Warriors series, and I was reading Space Chronicles, by Neil DeGrasse Tyson, one of my very favorite celebrity-scientists.

Brian actually got back a few minutes earlier than he had predicted, which is highly unusual, and had really liked his hike. It went to a waterfall, and was very secluded especially towards the end. About 10 miles roundtrip. We really loved how peaceful everything was up here! Of course we knew that Yosemite was going to be even worse, but even the larger villages down by Giant Forest seemed to be teeming with people compared to Kings Canyon. A real treat for sure!

On the way back, we stopped at Grant Tree, and took the paved trail to see more giant sequoias. We even got to go through a tree tunnel! Owen was running everywhere and just having a blast! The sun was just starting to set making the light kind of eerie but beautiful on all the tops of the giant trees. Both kids were busy exploring from one spot to the next, and we could barely keep up with them. One of my favorite memories from the trip, for sure!

We would be stopping at Grant Grove, which was on the way, for dinner tonight. At least there were more options for food here. I was actually kind of wishing we had stayed here. It wasn’t quite as fancy as Wuksachi, but definitely had better dining options. It turned out that it was located on national forest land, but not technically national park. Which is why it hadn’t been listed on the park’s lodging website. Definitely one to remember for next time.

For once we would get back at a decent time, before 8pm, but everyone was falling asleep from our big day. The whole area was beautiful in the dusk-light though, and we stopped for a few pictures along the way.

Chapter 6. The World’s Biggest Tree (Tue 5/29)  

We had the usual 6am wake-up, and headed to the hotel buffet. Owen was challenging as usual, but breakfast was good. We went back to the room for a bit so that Lily could finish her Jr. Ranger book, she needed to sit and observe from a quiet place so she chose the mossy meadow outside our room.

Then we headed to Lodgepole so that she could get her badge (she’s getting quite a collection of these now – I believe this was number 6!), and we even bought her a Jr. Ranger vest to start keeping her badges on. I needed to do some laundry, so we got it started at the laundromat here, then headed out to the Sherman Tree, which was toward Giant Forest where we had ben on Sunday.

The trail was paved, but had lots of steps so we put Owen in the backpack carrier. This is the largest tree (by volume) in the whole world! The top of it looks so old and frail, that’s it’s almost hard to believe it could hold such a record. Lily was having a little trouble understanding how it could be the biggest, when it wasn’t the tallest or the widest. We used the example of a triathlon, which she is more familiar with, to help her. (You don’t have to win any single event, just be very competitive in all of them, to win the whole thing.)

We got a couple of mandatory family pics in front of the tree, and Owen as usual loved running around and exploring. We would have done more trails, but had other things on our list that we didn’t want to miss.

Moro Rock was next. It was a very pretty drive through the forest – we’ll never look at trees at home like they are big again! We put Owen in the backpack here too, mostly just because we wanted to be able to keep him contained since the trail looked rather precarious.

There were steps and steps that seemed to keep going, and winding, forever. Lily got nervous when I would stop to take a picture, certain that I would lean too far out and fall over the edge! At the summit, the view was positively breathtaking! But a little scary too. I even found myself being nervous that Owen would somehow wiggle out of the backpack. I’ve never been one to be overly scared of heights, but it’s such a different scenario with kids. On the way down, Lily wanted to go behind me to “make sure I didn’t fall”. She is so sweet 🙂

We made a quick drive to Crescent Meadow and through Tunnel Log, we might have explored longer but a disaster was on the horizon in the backseat, we needed lunch asap! So back to the snack bar at Lodgepole. Again, not the best lunch, but the best we were going to find within a couple hours drive anyway.

We also finished up our laundry which was still here, and got everyone back in the car. Lunch hadn’t totally done away with the nearing meltdowns, and we almost went back to the hotel for the afternoon. But everyone finally managed to calm down, so we headed out for our last hike in Sequoia, at Big Baldy.

Chapter 7. A Hike, then a Problem (Tue 5/29)

It was a pretty hike, alternating forest and rocky vistas. Lily was reluctant for much of it though, still not having shaken her bad mood from earlier and we dealt with a lot more whining and drama than I would have liked. She often seems to like the idea of hiking more than the actual thing unfortunately.

But the kids also had some fun playing and climbing in several places, and we even saw a marmot up near the summit running around on the rocks. As usual the summit sported some incredible views of the valley below, and we got some nice pictures, though I wouldn’t let Owen out of the carrier here for fear he would plummet off the side.

We went to Grant Grove for dinner again, having much preferred their more laid-back options to the upscale restaurant at Wuksachi. (And since I hadn’t made ressies there it’s unlikely that we would have been seated anyway). We had pizza this time, and it was turning out to be a great evening together. Then it was time to head back to the van, for our last night in Sequoia. That’s when the trouble started.

Brian asked me for the keys as we got to the van, and I was surprised, because he had been driving. Why would I have the keys??? Because he didn’t have them. Oh boy. They must have fallen out of his pocket – searched the restaurant, the bathroom, then I spotted them. Sitting right there in the driver’s seat. Well, I guess keys-locked-in-the-car is better than missing keys… right???

Grant Grove has a store, a couple of restaurants and some cabins- pretty significant civilization for the middle of a national forest… but definitely no locksmith. That was over 2 hours away in Fresno. Fortunately, one of the employees inside suggested calling the park rangers first, and a very nice ranger interrupted his own dinner to come help us out.

Within minutes, we were back in the van, and thanking him profusely. It kind of felt awkward not to give him a tip or something… but he is essentially a police officer within the park… a tip would probably be considered more of a bribe. So we just kept thanking him instead.

Even after that adventure, we still made it back by 8:30, it could have been much, much worse. We were too tired to pack up, but Owen was now hyper, after sleeping all the way back from Grant Grove, and took a while to settle. It was our last night here before heading to Yosemite in the morning!

Chapter 8. Don’t Miss the Train! (Wed 5/30)

The 5am alarm seemed WAY too early, but we managed to get up and get everything packed and loaded. The 3-hour drive to Yosemite was tedious. The kids were grumpy and fought over toys in the backseat. We were running a little late, and consistently ended up behind slow trucks and rv’s on the windy 2-lane road.

The reason for the stress was that we had tickets on the 11am Sugar Pine Railway logger train, just outside Yosemite National Park, and I was going to be bummed if we missed it. Fortunately, even though traffic had conspired against us, we made it with a few minutes to spare.

Owen was clearly nervous while waiting to board, so many new adventures on this trip! He clung to Brian pretty hard for the first part of the ride, but seemed to be fascinated too. The cars were open but covered, and we all enjoyed the conductor’s narration about the history and geology of the area. Lily especially seemed to be hanging on every word, nice to see her really into something. It was also during this time that she noticed she and I were wearing matching shirts. I had done it intentionally of course, but somehow she hadn’t caught it until now, ha!

After a while, the train made a stop and we got off. The kids played and explored. There was a small amphitheater and stage that they spent a lot of time running and climbing on, and a small creek down below. Most of the other parents seemed really nervous about it for some reason. I guess we are a little more free-range than most.

Owen was much more confident this time getting back on the train, and enjoyed the rest of the trip a lot more. Train would become another one of his new words, and new fascinations from this trip. He didn’t so much say the word as make a funny sound that represented it. It was too cute!

We ate lunch at the cafe outside the depot. It was slow, but we had a nice time anyway. Owen was still pointing at the train the whole time – so great to see him overcoming fears on this trip. We were almost at the Yosemite entrance already, now it was time to head on into the park and start phase 2 of the vacation!

Chapter 9. Getting Acquainted with Yosemite (Wed 5/30)

We stopped first at Mariposa Grove, on the southern edge of the park. It was the only time we were planning to be down here near the south entrance, so I wanted to at least make a quick round of the trails, even though we had seen lots of giant sequoias already.

Owen was being such a boy, running around with a stick and pretending it was a sword! Most people thought he was very cute, after being a little nervous of him at first, lol! Lily was back to being a little grumpy, and I was getting more skeptical of sending her on the backpacking expedition with Brian.

The forest was pretty, but not quite as impressive as the ones in Sequoia. It’s easy to lose perspective after having been there for several days! It was definitely more crowded here, as we expected, but we managed to find a few of the more isolated paths coming back. I had specifically planned our itinerary to avoid the major crowds for most of the week, hopefully my plan would work.

It was finally time to head to our hotel – the Yosemite Lodge at the Falls. The kids were so tired of being in the car, and for the first time I was not at all regretting our decision to fly. I had gone back and forth, thinking that maybe driving would have been better than all the hassle of flying and renting a car, but 2 days in the car with them (each way) would have been unbearable. Even in our new Outback, though I much preferred it to this awkward rental van.

We went through a tunnel, that Owen got very excited about, and stopped at the very scenic overlook on the other side, Tunnel View as it’s aptly called. Lily wasn’t interested, being much more absorbed in her book at the point than the scenery, but we got a nice picture with Owen anyway.

At our hotel, we got checked in and were glad to see that the pool was open! It had been unseasonably warm so far this year, so they were able to open a little earlier than usual. The lodge is composed of many different buildings, most of them 2-stories. Initially I was disappointed to see that our room was in one of the older, single story buildings. But it turned out that our location was really good – very close to a lot of the main parts of the lodge, without being in a high-traffic area so it still felt isolated and peaceful. And the room, while older and maybe in need of some updating, was very spacious and yet cozy feeling at the same time. And one of the best views in the park of Yosemite Falls was right in our parking lot!

We quickly changed and headed to the pool, hoping to wash away the frustrations of car travel. The landscape here is so dramatic, the view of the mountains from the pool was really something! The pool was cold, apparently they were having trouble with the heater, but Owen still had fun.

I had planned to eat at the lodge food court, but Brian was determined to go to The Mountain Room, the nicer restaurant. At least there was no shortage of dining options here. I had a feeling Owen was not going to cooperate though, and ended up having to leave early with him because he got to be too difficult. But we had a relaxing evening in the room, getting unpacked and settled in.

Lying in bed that night, I could see headlights of cars out the window, and was having flashbacks to our haunting late-night drive into Sequoia. So glad to be safely tucked into bed right now instead.

Chapter 10. STOP Feeding the Wildlife! (Thur 5/31)

We slept in a bit more this morning, vacation fatigue must be setting in! We had breakfast at the food court, but sat outside. You have to be very careful to guard your food around here, lots of wildlife waiting for an opportunity to sneak in and grab it. The rangers of course are very strict about this, but sadly a lot of people don’t seem to take their warnings seriously, and I could tell from the animals’ behavior that they get fed by humans way too often. It would become a major pet peeve of mine over the next few days.

We got a later start than I was hoping, but maybe we could make the time up on our morning hike. We were headed down Glacier Point Road, to the trailhead, about an hour away. At this time last year, the road had still been closed due to an unusually bad winter. I had been so nervous that we were going too early and it might still be closed on our trip, but this previous winter had been unusually dry instead (making up for last winter apparently), so everything in the park was open!

We stopped along the way at the McGuire trail, a short hike through a meadow. Owen almost got hit by a car in the parking lot while we were getting out and getting the backpacks ready. (Maybe “almost” is an overstatement, but a closer call than any parent wants to see at least) He was unscathed, but it haunted me for a while.

It was a very peaceful walk through the forest though, and the kids had fun playing in an abandoned cabin along the trail. Owen and Lily were still on their quest to find the “perfect stick”. Lily got a little grumpy again on the way back though. One would expect that vacationing with a 1-year old might be challenging, but as difficult as he had been at times, I’m pretty sure the 8-year old had caused us more grief so far. Still hoping this backpacking trip isn’t a mistake.

I have to take a minute now and tell you about my shoes. Yes, that’s right, my shoes! For many years I have battle Rheumatoid Arthritis, and have a very hard time finding shoes that are comfortable for excessive walking. I gave up hiking boots a while ago, because they are just too rigid for my often-swollen feet. In looking for some good shoes for this trip, I had the idea to try a pair of trail-running shoes. I happened to find a pair of Brooks Cascadia that I immediately fell in love with! They were absolute heaven on my feet. And even after all this hiking at this point in the trip, I had dealt with relatively little discomfort. They had good traction and decent support, but still felt light and flexible. Sooo glad I found them or I wouldn’t have been able to do nearly as much on this trip.

We drove on to Glacier Point, and had a picnic lunch at the overlook. Owen didn’t like being contained, but there were huge drop-offs into the canyon not far away so it made me nervous. And a family next to us was feeding the squirrels. I thought I was going to lose it on them for a minute!

I couldn’t help but notice that all the wildlife around here was unnaturally fat and aggressive. No wonder with idiots like this. I so wished a ranger would have happened to come by on the trail. It would have made me shamefully happy to see them get busted.

We climbed around on the rocks and took some pictures, the scenery of course was too amazing for words! Looking down into Yosemite Valley and over at Half-Dome. But after a bit Owen was getting grumpy so he and I headed back to the car while Brian and Lily got ready for their hike back to the valley floor.

They were taking the 4-Mile Trail (that was actually it’s name) that led back to Yosemite Valley, so they would just meet us at the hotel. I was a little worried about Lily for sure. It was a hot day out, and she hadn’t really been impressing us with her attitude and endurance so far. This was only a warm-up for their big backpacking trip, so it would be interesting to see how she did.

It was so crowded driving back to the valley, I had tried to time our trip so that we beat most of the crowds, and by everything I had read, this was still considered the “slow time”. How much worse would it really get later in the summer???

Chapter 11. The Night Before (Thur 5/31)

Owen woke up after a bit and played in the room. I had a problem though. The camera memory card was almost full. I had been downloading pictures to Brian’ iPad, but it was almost out of room too. We had internet, but it wasn’t fast enough to be able to upload a considerable number of photos to offsite storage in short time. What to do, we were barely half-way through the trip!

So we went over to the store, which was practically right outside our door thanks to our great location, and bought a new card for the camera. We were successful but Owen is so hard to shop with, he’s into everything these days! Must bring the stroller next time. Even if he screams, at least he’ll be contained.

Brian and Lily got back not too long after, and said they enjoyed the hike. But they had been able to see the hotel pool as they hiked in the heat, all the way down the valley wall, and were desperate for a swim. Owen always shouted Pool as we went by it, and was excited to be getting to swim this time. So many new words from this trip! We couldn’t swim long because we needed to get to the Wilderness Center and pick up their permit before they closed, but everyone had fun splashing around, despite it still being cold. Lily found some friends there, and they all loved watching Brian dive in and swim.

We headed out to find the Wilderness Center, which was more difficult than we expected. Yosemite Village can be a confusing place! It’s definitely more civilization than we are used to having in a national park. And more crowds to go along with it, unfortunately. But they were able to pick up their backpacking permit, and rent a bear canister, and after a long talk with the ranger, were finally all set for their trip tomorrow!

There was a large store in the village, so we gathered up some necessary supplies. The cashier was very talkative, and chatted with us for a while about our plans, warned us to drink lots of water, etc. We did something a little different for dinner and drove over to Curry Village to try their buffet. It was okay, but everyone was tired. It definitely felt more like being at a resort than a national park, but that was becoming an inevitable theme here.

Back in the room, the kids played a little before bed… had to make them stop finally because their “ice wars” game was spreading melting ice all over the room! Finally it was time for bed, but it was a long time before I could sleep. I remember when we went to Glacier, I had worried for months about doing the Highline Trail with Lily, on this trip it was the backpacking adventure that had caused me to lose many hours of sleep. And I wasn’t even going with her! It was going to be a long two days, for sure.

Chapter 12. Backpackers Away! (Fri 6/1)

We slept a bit late again, until almost 7:30, and had breakfast similar to the day before. Then took a short walk to Swinging Bridge, where I was hoping to get in a little beach time if it wasn’t too cold. It was a nice walk, but I realized too late that we should have brought water.

The river, as it turned out, was VERY cold! Brian couldn’t even stand it for more than a few seconds. Lily, however, was having a blast, and didn’t want to come out even though we were a little worried she would get hypothermia. She went in all the way to her waist and claimed not to be cold at all. But finally it was time to head back, no more delaying. They had a backpacking trip to get ready for.

Brian was feeling stressed. Lily was nervous, but also excited. There was some chaos in the room rounding up last minute things and trying to make everything fit in their packs. Then a quick lunch at the food court, and then heading to the shuttle. The AC on this particular bus was broken so it was a hot and slow ride to Happy Isles, on the other side of the Valley. They were getting a little later start than I had wanted, but they should be okay. Today’s hike was only 4 miles, but very steeply uphill. It was a little after 1pm, so plenty of daylight left.

At the trailhead, it was finally time for good-byes. I put on my happy face and wished them luck. Lily was bursting with excitement now, and just wanted to get going, so no long, drawn-out goodbye from her, lol! Watching them walk away, loaded up with packs, was a whole mix of emotions. Nervous, sad, excited, relieved, etc. But their fate was out of my hands now, I might as well make the most of the next 2 days and have some fun with Owen. I had thought he and I might do some of the nature trails there at Happy Isles, but I could tell he was tired so we caught the next bus back. He had also started saying bus now. I think his vocabulary tripled on this trip!

Chapter 13. A Lonely Evening (Fri 6/1)

He slept in the room, while I read more of my Space Chronicles book.  (I know, who reads a geeky non-fiction book on vacation? Lol, me I guess!) After he woke up, we walked over to Yosemite Falls. Strangely enough, in the 3 days we had been there, we had yet to take advantage of the lodge’s incredible location, almost right at the base of the falls.

Owen had a great time, climbing on all the rocks and exploring the short trail. I took lots of pictures, and several people even stopped and offered to take a picture of both of us. He seemed to be really charming the other visitors tonight! We walked on to the actual falls, it was very crowded of course. Mostly couples and families, which made me suddenly lonely, so we didn’t stay long.

While we were there, I got a text from Brian – they had made it to camp at Little Yosemite Valley! (cell service was spotty and not really good enough to support a phone call, but a single text message could often get through). That was a relief at least.

We went back to the room and hung out for a bit, finally decided to go to dinner just because we were bored, even though it was a little early still. The food court was going to be challenging with Owen – but less daunting than any of the nicer restaurants, so we braved it and managed to eat our meal with only minor stress, and no real disasters.  Back in the room he took a bath, and I started thinking about how much of a little boy he had become on this trip. No one looked at him as a baby, or even a toddler anymore. Just a wild little boy 🙂

Not surprisingly, I had trouble sleeping. There seemed to be more noises than usual. And I worried about Lily. What were they doing? Were they hot, cold, lonely, did they have enough to eat, was the campground too smokey, had they been attacked by a bear… so much could go wrong. I tried to comfort myself with the knowledge that Brian was an experienced and capable backpacker, but sleep still did not come easy.

Chapter 14. A Fun Morning of Biking and… Laundry? (Sat 6/2)

Owen and I slept in again, we must not be on Pacific time yet! For breakfast we just snacked in the room, the food court was expensive and difficult to manage by myself with Owen anyway.

The bike shop opened at 9, and we were there waiting! My main plan for the day was to rent a bike and go exploring in the valley. Unlike most national parks, Yosemite has a pretty extensive bike trail system in the valley. Plus it would make hauling our dirty clothes over to the laundromat something of a fun adventure.

We were all set up and ready to go before long, though I did have to leave my driver’s license with them, even after protesting a bit. I hoped this wouldn’t be a problem later, since I didn’t have much cash and all the stores and restaurants had been asking for ID with credit cards. Oh well. Not going to let it stop us.

We picked up the laundry from our room, then headed out towards the village. We needed to get to the other side of the valley to Housekeeping Camp. I got a little lost at one point, and found that the path required me to go over some steps to a bridge. Not going to work on a bike, especially pulling a kid-trailer! A little backtracking and I realized I had simply taken a wrong turn, there was another bridge further down that had a ramp.

Then got lost again going through the village, it was so hard to tell which way the bike path went everytime the trail forked! But we finally made it after several turn-arounds. It was a nice ride despite the confusion. It was early enough that the massive day-crowds hadn’t arrived yet, and the view of the falls was just stunning. Biking around the valley that morning would end up being one of my favorite parts of the trip. No rush, no stress, just me and Owen out exploring.

At housekeeping camp, we got the laundry started, then hung out until it was ready for the dryer. That part would of course take longer, so we headed on back village for lunch. This time I was able to make much better sense of the trail and saw where I had gone wrong a couple of times on the way there. Loved riding through the wooded parts of the trail, it was so peaceful!

In the village, we explored the visitor center exhibits for a little while. They had a really neat set up inside, and Owen loved running around and touching everything. As I feared, getting lunch with no ID was hard. The snack bar wouldn’t take my CC without it, but I managed to scrounge up just enough cash after putting a couple of things back. Hopefully we would have better luck in the store. But this was really frustrating – did the bike shop not understand that people needed their ID’s when they were out and about??? Fortunately after explaining my situation to the cashier in the store, I finally talked him into letting me have the milk and snacks I bought for Owen.

We took our milk back to the room – I was afraid it would get too hot if we didn’t do that first. I found a better, less crowded path this time and was glad to be out of the crowd of the village. Back at housekeeping camp, I got our laundry all folded and ready to go. Owen fell asleep on the ride back, and I wondered if he would nap later back in the room. It was HOT today, and I worried again about Lily.

We took a quick swim in the still-cold pool back at the hotel, and finally he fell asleep for a real nap after that. I had finally finished reading Space Chronicles so started a new book, Message and the Kingdom, which was an interesting analysis of history and politics during the time of Jesus. I know, I’m a dork! I also got another text from Brian, they had finished their day’s hike and were at their new spot for the night. Didn’t have any more detail than that, but at least I knew they were still alive!

Chapter 15. Just One More Night Alone! (Sat 6/2)

I woke Owen up around 5, so that we could get in one more quick ride around the valley before we had to turn the bike in. It was more crowded this time, but still nice and I was glad we got one more ride in. We had an early dinner again at the food court and sat outside like we had at breakfast a few times. Owen was more interested in climbing on the rocks than eating, and I wistfully remembered him and Lily climbing together on those same rocks a few days ago. But I was starting to feel like we were on the downhill side now – Brian and Lily would be back tomorrow, we just had to get through tonight!

I didn’t want to go back to the room though, so after dinner we went for another walk by the falls. We took a different trail this time – Owen loved climbing and saying “hi” to everything. Still couldn’t believe how much more he was talking all of the sudden! I so often hear the argument that there’s no point in taking young kids on vacation since they won’t remember it – but clearly he was learning so much on this trip, even if he doesn’t remember the actual events. Definitely making a lasting impression on him!

We happened to find a very special place by the river, that was totally isolated even though the general area was quite crowded. Back in the trees, by the bubbling creek we sat and played for a long time, without another soul in sight. We got some nice pictures here, and I was hoping to come back tomorrow, when the lighting was better with Brian and Lily.

We made a quick stop by the store before returning to the room, and the cashier wanted to play 100-questions with me about our USAA credit card, what our military connection was, what exactly did my father-in-law do in the AF, etc. For once I was glad that Owen was being a handful and I had an excuse to brush off most of his probing and make a hasty exit. The grief of recent events was still fresh, and I was not in the mood to turn a simple transaction into an emotional scene.

Later that night, I wondered what we would do tomorrow – swim, walk, bike some more? Brian and Lily would hopefully be back by lunchtime at least. Then I started thinking about how Lily would be going away to camp shortly after we got home. I could see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if this was camp week, we wouldn’t even be half-way through!

I watched more car headlights on the road, late into the night and wondered what they were all doing. Where had they been, where were they going? Had they meant to be out so late? So many people here, from so many different places, doing so many different things. It all made me feel very small suddenly, a feeling that was rather comforting actually. But I still wondered if Brian and Lily were having any better luck sleeping than I was.

Chapter 16. A Happy Reunion (Sun 6/3)

I didn’t sleep very well, and we didn’t get up until almost 8. I tried to hurry and get us ready, and eat breakfast so that we would be ready before housekeeping came. They had been coming by 9am most days. We were just on our way out when she came knocking.

I decided to go biking again, since we had enjoyed it so much yesterday. I once again begged to not have to leave my driver’s license, and explained the trouble it had caused me the day before. But the guy was rather indifferent and made it clear that I could either have my license or the bike, not both. Sigh. At least I didn’t expect to need to buy anything this morning, but still left feeling frustrated. It seemed totally ridiculous that they made you ride around all day with no ID, is that even legal??

We had a nice ride, but as I’ve discovered with most things, you can’t ever duplicate an experience. It was somehow missing the magic of the day before. I didn’t care for this particular bike as much as the one I had the day before, and Owen seemed a little grumpier. But we were going to make the most of our few hours anyway. We rode to the Mirror Lake trailhead on a nice path that was better than going through the crowded village.

We turned the bike back in before too long, having just done an hourly rental since I didn’t expect to need it all day. Finally, around noon, I got a text from Brian that they were on the bus – headed back!!!

We had a very happy reunion in the room, and they told us all about their adventure! Lily was immediately in the floor playing with Owen, they had clearly missed each other. And I noticed how filthy she was, ha! Two nights in the wilderness will do that, I suppose. A bath was going to be in order, very soon.

It turned out that the first night, they had indeed seen a very large bear in their campground, but fortunately didn’t have any confrontations with it. Brian was surprised how steep the Mist Trail was the first day – it was beautiful but had been very slow going. But they were both impressed with Vernal and Nevada Falls. The second day, the trail they took into the Illilouette Basin was completely empty, leaving them to wonder if they were even still going the right way! Not as scenic, but they definitely found isolation.

But then he realized that he had miscalculated and not brought enough food, so they had to share a couple of meals and were now quite hungry. So we headed off to lunch, happy to be back together. And me feeling glad that I hadn’t known about much of this until now!

Lily said the whole experience was awesome, and wants to go again sometime. Guess there was no point in me worrying about her that whole time!

Chapter 17. A Night of Deep Thoughts(Sun 6/3)

After lunch we swam some more. Owen was getting very brave, and would go totally under water. He and Lily were having so much fun splashing and bouncing, definitely good to be back together again. After a while, Owen was ready for a nap, so I took him back to the room while Brian and Lily stayed. Later, I thought someone was breaking in, turns out they were confused about where the ice machine was, lol!

After nap, we took a short trip to Bridalveil Falls, also in the valley. Owen wanted to climb but it was too dangerous so he had to stay in the stroller. We had dinner at the Mountain Room again (the fancy restaurant at the lodge). It went a little better this time, since we put more effort and preparation into entertaining Owen.

We had tickets to the Starry Skies program tonight. A naturalist interpreter led us to a school baseball field where he taught us about constellations and other astronomy topics. Most of it was stuff I already knew, but it was a really fun night. Owen got a little antsy a couple of times, but for the most part he did really well and enjoyed being out at night. Lily was having a lot of fun too. The moon was lighting up the falls beautifully, and made me start thinking about the water coming over them.

It always looks the same, but suddenly the thought that every time you see it, it is different water molecules, just amazed me for some reason. Most water molecules will only ever get one trip over the falls. Or will they? What do you think are the chances of a single molecule making the trip twice? What other adventures have those water molecules had, and what ones will they have after they leave? Do you think any of them are water molecules that I’ve drank before? Big thoughts, indeed.

We had to walk back to the hotel in the dark, since the busses had stopped running. Thanks to my explorations the last 2 days, I now knew my way around well so it wasn’t a problem. It felt like we were a big group after it just being me and Owen!

Chapter 18. A Day in the High Country(Mon 6/4)

We were all running a bit slow this morning, everyone was tired! Today’s adventure was waiting for us up in the high country. We were taking Tioga Road up to Tuolumne Meadows. The scenery was dramatic for sure, and it was much less crowded, both on the road and the trails. We stopped at several scenic overlooks, but the kids were not at their best.

We stopped for lunch at the Meadow Grille and ate outside, since that was the only seating. It was cooler up here, and almost uncomfortably so for our picnic. Our main hike for today was the Gaylor Lake trail. It was very pretty and peaceful, but again Lily got grumpy pretty quickly. So much for thinking that the backpacking trip had cured her of that.

Owen was doing well though, and hiked much of the steep trail on his own. The scenery was certainly dramatic! Huge vistas that included cliffs and valleys. It was getting colder though, and started to rain as we were getting back to the van. Can’t complain, we had such good luck with the weather for most of the trip.

It rained much of the way back, and the misty clouds were even hiding part of Yosemite Falls, making it look like it had disappeared! We went into the village for dinner, still in the rain. The kids liked splashing in puddles though. We went to the pizza place, which had a long line, but it was very good once it finally came, and Owen did unusually well. But got mad afterwards that we weren’t going to the bus yet, had a stop by the store to make first.

After being tired all day, the kids were now wound up back in the room and wouldn’t sleep. Maybe this trip was just too long. I wondered what the perfect length of a vacation was. They usually feel too short. There is just always so much to do and so little time! But tomorrow was our last full day, the end was definitely upon us.

Chapter 19. Junior Ranger, again! (Tue 6/5)

We had breakfast with Brian, and then he headed off for his all-day solo hike to Eagle Peak. The kids and I got organized and headed out to the bus stop. Lily was needing to do a Junior Ranger program to finish the requirements for her badge, and there was one that morning at Happy Isles, where they had started their backpacking trip.

The shuttle took a very long time, and the stroller was really in the way, but nothing I could do about it. At the nature center, Lily got a very bad case of the “I wants”, making us both a bit grumpy. She cheered up when the ranger started their program though. They got to pet bear fur, and then headed out toward a marsh. Owen had a tantrum at some point so I had to leave the group with him. The I lost track of where they were and couldn’t find Lily when it should have been over. Finally met up with her at the nature center. The ranger had taken her back there when she realized I wasn’t with them at the end.

It turned out she had gotten her badge already, that was part of the program! I was sad to have missed it, but she was beaming and proud of herself for having done it on her own. So it all worked out. Owen had fallen asleep by now in the stroller, and not wanting to wake him up, we explored a little more on the trails and in the nature center. Lily was in a much better mood now. After Owen woke up, we took the bus back to the room.

Lily donned her Jr. Ranger vest with her new badge and we headed to the village. There we explored the Indian Village, which Lily loved. Lots of history and education here – she seems to really enjoy that kind of stuff. A chip off the ole block, I guess, ha!

Owen was being a little difficult though. We also toured the Visitor Center exhibits, and watched the park movie. Walking back from the village, we got a text from Brian that he was back and met him just across the street from the hotel. He had absolutely loved his hike to Eagle Peak – some of the best views in the park and lots of solitude. This had been his substitute for half-Dome, when I wasn’t able to get the permit, so I was glad it hadn’t disappointed.  

We relaxed a bit in the room, then went back to the village one last time. We still needed to return their bear canister, and gave the rangers our gas can (that they used for the stove) since we wouldn’t be able to take it home with us on the plane.

We had dinner in the Lounge, the only restaurant we hadn’t tried yet. Then I took them to our special place over by Yosemite Falls– it was the first time Brian and Lily had been over there. Unfortunately, Owen was asleep in the stroller by then.

Back in the room, Lily lost one of her new toy bugs, and caused a huge meltdown. After another stressful trip to the store, we were ready to settle into bed for the last night. The trip had definitely had it’s share of challenges, but we had also had some really amazing adventures! Lily had overcome some big hurdles, and Owen had learned so many new words and experienced so much new stuff.

Chapter 20.The Long and Unfortunate Trip Home(Wed 6/6)

We were up early to pack and eat a quick breakfast before getting on the road. We still had a long drive back to the airport. The drive was scenic though – passing through a varied terrain of mountains, country, fields of citrus, quite unlike what we see at home.

We decided to take the slightly longer route through San Francisco so that we could go over the Bay Bridge, and ended up in a major traffic jam. I was worried we would miss our flight, but we just made it, only to find out that it was delayed because of weather.

Once we were finally able to board, they hurried us in hopes that we would get out before Air Force One, which was about to shut down the whole runway for 30 minutes. We didn’t make it, so we were delayed a bit more.  This particular flight was filled was some rather, interesting people. I’ll just leave it at that. Instead of getting annoyed, I tried to just find amusement in their antics.

We were several hours late landing, and then couldn’t get the first shuttle that came for our lot because it filled up (even though we had been waiting longer than some of the people that jumped on in front of us, oh well). We made a stop by Village Inn for dinner, realizing that we were going to be very late getting home. It was already after 9pm.

At dinner, I checked in on Facebook and noticed several people talking about a huge storm that had just gone through the Springs. I kind of jokingly commented that I hoped our newly-finished basement hadn’t flooded. When this concerned Lily, I very confidently assured her that it wouldn’t have. I was just being funny. Right.

Soon after, on the interstate, the storm caught up with us, and we were stuck in the middle of the road for about 15 minutes, getting pounded with hail. No shelter in sight. On our brand new Subaru. Sigh What can you do? We had left it parked in covered parking the whole time just so that it wouldn’t get hailed on, and now, here we were. Lily spent much of the time screaming that we were going to die, and from the chaos going on around us, I can’t totally blame her. But at last it subsided, and we drove on home.

Once home, we sadly looked at the damage to our shiny new car, then went inside to find that our newly-finished basement was, in fact, flooded. Vacation was over. Indeed.

Chapter 21. A Quick Wrap-Up

So, ignoring the very last bit about our misfortunes getting home, it was really a great trip. The big question – did we like it better than Glacier? For me, the answer was definitely no. I’m glad we went, but it doesn’t measure up. It lacked the “magic” that I found at Glacier for sure. Brian said that while he still thought Glacier was more scenic and peaceful, the adventures we had on this trip made it his favorite ever.

As for favorites, I think mine would be the Starry Skies program at Yosemite, followed closely by the Grant Tree Trail in Sequoia, and my afternoon with the kids in Kings Canyon. Overall, I think I preferred Sequoia to Yosemite, so I’m really glad we added on that part of the trip.

Brian and Lily both loved their backpacking trip, and of course Brian still raves about Eagle Peak. Lily loved getting 2 new Junior Ranger badges, and often says now that she wants to be a Park Ranger when she grows up. So glad to have found something that motivates her! And he can’t really tell us, but if I had to guess, I think Owen enjoyed the train ride and the cave, once he got past his initial fear of both!

Would I change anything if I had it to do over again? I think I would definitely stay at Grant Grove in Sequoia. But the Lodge at Yosemite was a perfect fit for us. I would love to come just a little earlier in the year when it’s not so crowded, but of course then you run the risk of roads not being open yet, depending on what kind of winter they’ve had. All in all, I think we found a good balance of crowds vs. weather.

Definitely a vacation that goes down in the books as a success!