May 17, 2010

Have you ever had a day where you made a mistake and it turned out one of the better things you have done. Well that happened to Joyce and I. I made the mistake and missed a turn. Instead of taking a fairly quick and easy drive to Sequoia we took the scenic route. And I do mean the scenic route. We drove up Mtn 90 alongside of the Kern River. We steadily climbed higher but the rapids in the river were awesome. Maybe some of these young kayakers who can do anything might run them but for mere mortals no way. Joyce is seeing new wildflowers.

Somewhere along the way, I drove into a NFS (we were in the Sequoia National Forest) and asked the campground host if I were going the right way. He told me how to get to California Hot Springs, but said the road would make the Pacific Coast Highway look like and InterState. Well, it was quite that bad, but we climbed to over 9000 feet, some of it on a one lane road. We were in the snow for quite a long time. We started seeing sequoias then. Big, but as we found out later not huge. Took our time, stopping, taking pictures. But being above snow line it was quite chilly. Turned on Mtn. 55 and headed down to Ca. Hotsprings. I had the idea that it would be a sizable town. NOT!! Blink twice and you are through it Not a one blink town because there was no way I could make any speed.

One thing that you may not know. In CA if you are a truck or are towing a trailer the speed limit is 55 mph. And believe it or not the trucks obey it to within the 5 mph overage we all take. Finally got to Sequoia National Park. Coming thru one of the little farming towns with the big citrus orchards, we stopped to buy some fresh oranges and tangerines. Checked into the Potwisha Campground and set up camp. They are very bear cautious. You are required to keep all food, except what is in your Fridge or canned goods packed away out of sight, in Bear Boxes. Makes a little more work, but since there supposedly was a bear and cub near the campground it made sense. Went out and looked around a little and called it a day.

May 18,2010
Joyce wanted to go the the visitors center to buy Wildflower books. So while she did that I went and hiked partway up the trail to Crystal Falls. Would like to have gone the whole way, but had told her I would hike for an hour out and then return. Was not as steep as I had anticipated and the trail was in great condition.

Spent the day being amazed by the huge Sequoias. Visted the General Sherman which is the largest tree in the world. Is that thing huge. It is not the tallest, or the largest in circumference. But it contains the most volume. We had driven thru the Grove of Giants on the way. Those were mighty large too. After that we went on to Kings Canyon to see the Trail of the Giants. Here also, the trees were magnificent. While there we saw “White Headed Woodpeckers”. We have seen several birds that are not on the East Coast. A long drive back to camp. Eat dinner, get a good campfire going. Watch a group of Hairy Woodpeckers catching insects. Still no bear. :(


May 19, 2010

Left Sequoia and headed for the Coast. After a mostly boring day of driving Freeways we were treated by our GPS to a tour of downtown San Francisco. Pulling a camper thru large cities with a GPS that keeps getting lost is a real challenge. But finally we got to 101 and crossed the Golden Gate. Stopped at the Vista Point and took the obligatory pictures. Continued on toward what I hoped was a campground at Stinson Beach. That was not to be. No campground there. So we kept up Rt. 1, the Pacific Coast Highway. It was almost as bad as Mtn. 90 and Mtn. 50. Ended up in Olema at an RV resort. RV resorts are not cheap. This one is charging us $48.00 for mid-week rates. That is twice what we have paid elsewhere. But they have what we need. Laundry, showers and electricity. We need clean clothes, baths and to recharge this computer and all our batteries. It is now 8:50 and we are in the Laundromat. Showers next. Then to unload camera cards. Joyce has filled up two 1 Gig cards in the last three days. She is quick on the shutter. Talk to you tomorrow.