Goodbye Yosemite, Hello San Jose Today we said goodbye to Yosemite. Yosemite was great but crowded with people. There were cars at every pullout, walkers and bicyclists all through the valley and huge buses giving tours everywhere we went. It was hard to find the quieter places, but we did it. No mountain lion was ever found. We did learn today that the emergency we saw the responders for yesterday was a climber that was fatally hit by a rock while climbing the mountain. We also heard of a hiker who was washed over one of the waterfalls on Saturday, but he has not been located. It is beautiful in this park but dangers are also very present. We were up fairly early, packed, ate our continental breakfast we purchased last night and were on our ... read more

Going to Yosemite Today began early as most all my days do, but to my surprise the rest of the family also got up early and we were on the road by 7am. It probably had something to do with how uncomfortable the hotel beds were. Regardless of the reason, we were headed to Yosemite and the extra time just meant more daylight hours to see more of the park. We stopped at a local bagel shop and grabbed breakfast and hit the road. After reading a about the various ways to get in to Yosemite, we decided to take the scenic route. After all, we were here to see the sights. The scenic route takes us on the interstate for a few miles with tons of windmills on the hillside, then it takes us on ... read more

Ready or not, we leave for our summer trip in 5 days. I still do not know what we will be doing, which is so unusual for me. I am a planner - usually planning every detail of each day so that I can get the most out of a trip. I always think that I will not likely come to this part of the country again, so I better get the most out of it that I can and see as much as I can regardless of how tired it makes me (or the rest of the family). After all, this is probably a once in a lifetime experience. But this year, the trip is a bit different. My husband has to travel to San Jose for a business trip so we decided the whole ... read more

Day 10 The Bridge, The Wharf, & The Prison Day 10 means that our trip is coming to an end. Though I long for my own pillow and bed, I am not ready for the trip to be done. But reality is setting in and knowing that I have to go back to work in 2 days, is a sad, sad truth. We started the day by checking out of yet another hotel (we have visited many on this trip) and heading over the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco. We stop at the bay/port area before crossing over to capture a few shots of the bridge. We then head into the big city, pay our toll for using the bridge and head toward Pier 33. The bridge is big and attractively built. But for some ... read more

Day 8 Redwoods and Gray whales Another day, another park – Today’s travels took us to Redwoods State and National Parks where we saw the forest and the trees. And today we learned that we are among Oregon’s list of criminals. After leaving the hotel, we stop to fill the car with gas before getting on the next scenic (sleepy, curvy, hilly) highway and are informed that it is illegal for customers to pump their own gas. Well the guy didn’t tell us that yesterday when we filled our own tanks – so we are now lawbreakers. After a pleasant conversation with gentleman pumping the gas for us, we offer him a tip for his services. It is apparently against the law to accept tips – so the guy who we tipped 2 days ago is ... read more