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Published: August 7th 2007
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Bo on the TrailIt's August 6th and the Travel Blog site has been down for a while. All of our previous blog entries were lost, however, I have recovered and re-published the last two of them. If you notice breaks in the text or photos, it's due to the restoration process.
This next entry was to have been posted yesterday. Now that Travelblog is restored, here goes...
8/4
Here I sit in the misty pacific morning at Sonoma Coast State Beach pondering which highlights to give you. Since leaving Zion on July 29th, we’ve been through a lot of territory. On a personal note, although I’ve always been thankful for hot showers, I will say that waiting through 4 days of dusty hikes while slicked up with sunscreen, and up to 105 degree temps, with only baby wipes for hygiene, makes a free hot shower a highlight in itself!
I’ll now check in with the way-back machine, (my little notebook), and catch you up…
Day 21, 7/26
We all enjoy the River Walk and the Emerald Pools trail in Zion. Although we had considered the popular Narrows hike up the slot canyon of the Virgin River, all of the thunder
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Bill & Kate storms lately have made the flash flood danger too great for me to expose my loved ones to this possibility. (The very next day the river raged through the canyon during another storm system - I’d gladly attempt this hike at another time of year).
After a long soak in the pool and a grilled steak dinner, we are ready for the big Angel’s Landing hike tomorrow.
Day 22, 7/27
While Bill & Bo hike, Kate and I elect to be completely lazy. My mom sent Harry Potter #7 to Zion, so we both start to read. In the afternoon, Kate, Bo & I drive to Hurricane, pronounced by the locals as ‘hurr-i-k’n’, to see the new Harry Potter movie. We enjoy the movie and the day of civilization while Bill enjoys a well deserved nap. (Don’t you believe that stuff about ‘no sweat’!) Returning to Springdale, we can see that the Virgin River has become a raging red torrent, flooding into the shrubs and carrying loads of debris. When I say red, I mean a deep opaque brick red. The soil in this river valley has been brought down from the coral and vermilion cliffs for eons. The
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Through the rocks to the upper pools river was moving at an impressive speed - obviously we missed some wild weather!
Day 23, 7/28 Mile 3580
Today we choose Beatty, NV. for our destination so we can easily meet our friend Jill Stewart on the 29th in the White Mountains. To please Bowen, we make a stop in that sinful oasis of the desert, Las Vegas. After cruising the strip, we park at the Luxor, our wedding hotel, and check out the casino floors of the Luxor, the Excalibur and Mandalay Bay. Having seen the excitement portrayed in movies like Ocean’s Eleven and Austin Powers, Bowen got the reality check of sleazy atmosphere, grim faces and the stench of cigarette smoke. I got the sense that the scene did not meet his expectations. He later confirmed this, saying that watching the gamblers was somewhat mesmerizing, but a little sad, the atmosphere contrived and suspicious. Since it was 106 out, we contented ourselves with the short tour and got the heck out of town.
By 4:30, after some coyote sightings, we arrived in Beatty, an odd little town in the middle of nowhere: ‘Gateway to Death Valley’. We have a reservation at the Motel 6. This was
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The trail under the middle Emerald Pools noted in our book as the best place in town - that’ll tell you something about Beatty.
After dinner, we drove out to the ghost town of Rhyolite. As the moon rose, we prowled the remains of this gold mining town that lived less than 15 years as a viable city. Featuring a train depot, an opera house, a school, 18 grocery stores, 2 churches and 50 saloons, it started to go bust after only 10 years. I was hoping for something a little bit spooky to happen, being in a ghost town on the night of the full moon, but alas, we escaped unscathed.
Day 24, 7/29 Mile 3817
First stop - Death Valley. We alternate cooling the engine on the down hills, while driving in low gear to keep from burning up the brakes, with cooling the brakes on the up hills, while driving with no A/C to keep from burning up the engine. Radiator water stops are marked on the maps. We go from the Funeral mountains at 4317’ to -30’ on the way to Stovepipe Wells Village, back up to 4956’, then down to 1800’ at Panamint Springs, then back up to 5200’ on the
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Water coming over the edge from the middle pools way out at the Darwin junction. At last, we see ahead of us the Sierra Nevadas.
Jill, driving up from LA, hooks up with us in Big Pine. From here we caravan up a tortuous climb to the Shulman Grove of Bristlecone pines at 10,030’. Some of these trees are over 4000 years old. Errors in the Carbon 14 dating process were discovered after tree ring dating on trees from this grove. Some European artifacts were determined to be over 1000 years older than previously thought when re-dated using information learned from studying these most ancient living things.
That evening, we feast on steaks and ice cream,( thank you Jill!), and while away the evening with stories of Jill’s ‘forced march ‘ childhood camping adventures with her rock-hound parents, Bill & Jill high school reminiscences, and California current issues, courtesy of the news editor of LA weekly - especially ‘Arnold the Govenator’ stories. Jill - we all love you!
Day 25, 7/30 Mile 3996
After a leisurely morning, we say goodbye to our guest and head north to Yosemite. Tuolumne meadows campground is pretty rustic, but gorgeous. We enjoy a late afternoon stroll towards Soda Springs with a view
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Ruins at sundown of Lempert Dome.
Day 26, 7/31
We hike to Elisabeth Lake, a reasonable 5 mile walk. What can I say - wonderful.
Day 27, 8/1
Bowen elects to enjoy a day alone while Bill ascends half way up Lempert Dome, testing the famous Yosemite granite traction on the Dome’s smooth surface. Then he, Kate and I walk along the Tuolomne River. Later we all drive out to Olmstead Point for legendary views. The glacier polished granite slabs, dramatic erratics and tenacious trees enchant me - I can’t get enough of this environment.
Day 28, 8/2
Today is our most ambitious hike. We drive 2 hours down to Yosemite Valley in order to catch the hiker’s bus to Glacier Point. Our bus driver is fabulous, giving us history and geology lessons en route, as well as climber stories, back-country legends and jokes. The one hour drive flies by. From Glacier point, at about 7300’, directly above Yosemite Valley, we will hike 8 ½ miles down to the bottom, passing Illouette, Nevada and Vernal falls. We will drop about 4000’ and climb about 750’. We’re walking the well named Panorama Trail. The weather is gorgeous.
Around each corner the
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The bottle house view changes. From a classic view of Half Dome on the top, we work our way around to Liberty Cap. Above each falls are series of polished granite slabs and pools. The delight and relief of that cool water on our hot tired feet is magical. I could have whiled away hours scrambling barefoot on the granite, its surface perfect - gripping, cool and soothing.
After Illouette falls comes the 750’ elevation gain to Nevada falls. Bill paces Kate on this, the tough part, and we all make it to the next set of pools. Here one can take the John Muir trail to the bottom, or the Mist Trail, which runs right alongside both Nevada and Vernal Falls. We head down The Mist Trail and so begins the most knee punishing walk of my life. The kids scamper ahead, their young supple joints doing their job perfectly. Bill follows them and I find myself making an ever more distant last, as I carefully navigate each of hundreds of rough-hewn granite steps. By the time we reach the top of Vernal Falls, we’re out of drinking water, so we cool ourselves in the pools again, and continue down.
Now, despite
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The train depot the pounding I’m giving my knees, let me state that this is one of the best hikes I’ve ever been on. The photos don’t do justice to the beauty around us and I feel strong. I would do this again without hesitation, (though perhaps take the Muir trail from the falls). All the while we are heading down, we stop to make way for those ascending from Yosemite Valley - this I would never do. By now its mid-afternoon and these folks are making the grueling climb in the heat of the day.
Near the bottom of vernal falls is a water station. After replenishing our supply, we finish the last mile, climb aboard a valley shuttle and head for a well earned dinner in Yosemite Village. We replenish our bodies with loads of pepperoni pizza, enrich our minds with a quick tour of the Ahwahnee Lodge, and get blessed rest on the drive back to camp.
Day 29, 8/3
Today is one of the major drives of the trip. From the Sierra Nevada mountains we will travel across California’s central valley through Merced, (their slogan: We Grow It, You Eat It), and hit the coast in Watsonville. From
there we will drive up the Pacific Coast Highway through San Francisco and up to Sonoma Coast State beach near Bodega Bay.
This became an epic 12 hour drive day, as both Bill and I underestimated the twisty curvy nature of Highway 1. Driving through the central valley was interesting and enjoyable, but driving the PCH is fabulous. Our real regret was missing a good chunk of it in the dark, as we didn’t get to our camp until 10:00 p.m.
Here is a temperature summary of the day:
Tuolmne Meadows 46
Merced River Valley approaching Mariposa 105
San Luis Reservoir 106.7
Gilroy 90
Up Hecker Pass 90 - 88 - 85 - 82 (dropping by the minute)
Down Hecker Pass 75 - 72
Watsonville 68
San Francisco 55
Bodega Bay - can’t see thermometer - too dark!
Day 30, 8/4
Beach bum day.
Note to Alli - Bowen lobbied hard to make a visit with you possible, and we hoped to pull something off, but when our estimated hour and a half drive north from San Francisco turned into 3 hours, we knew there’d be no going back. We’ll do everything we can to get home quickly on
the 10th so you two can see each other as long as possible before Bowen leaves again with his mom.
Day 31, 8/5
I’m plugged into the bathroom, blogging furiously so that we can hit the road and dispatch this missive from an internet coffee house.
Up next: North Cal. coast, Redwoods, Oregon Caves, Crater Lake, Wilson Ranch and…. Home.
Later - Dana
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Jill Stewart
non-member comment
Great to see you folks!
Thanks a million for helping me gulp down some smog-free air and gin-and-tonics with fresh juniper berries right off the tree! What a delight to hang out with a family that's halfway through a marathon summer vacation who ... like each other!! I had a terrific time talking to Bowen around the campfire, seeing Kate create neat drawings under the juniper trees, and watching the truly precision drill that is a Bill and Dana camp take-down. Love you all.