6/23/14: Redwoods

On the way back from Crescent City, we stopped at Walker Rd to walk the Simpson Reed Grove trail and the Peterson Memorial trail.

This tree is finding a different way to compete with the redwoods:

Girls on burls:

Even a fallen redwood is quite impressive:

This is a nice family photo, but it is much too normal:

Ah, now that's better!

:) Connie

6/23/14: Crescent City

In Crescent City, we went to the Marine Mammal Center and saw baby sea lions and seals. Then we walked to the Battery Point Lighthouse to take in the beautiful views of the coast. Next, we explored the tidal pools to look for marine life. After that we headed to the Kid Town playground and then dinner at the Good Harvest Restaurant.

The light house is only accessible during low tide, and we were lucky that our visit coincided with low waters.

View from the light house island:

 Green sea anemones in a tidal pool:

Kid Town playground:

:) Connie

6/23/14: Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park

On Monday we started off the day by walking some of the trails in nearby Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park.

The water was really cold in the river, but we gave it a shot anyway. :)

The kids had fun catching tadpoles and froglets in the pools along the river's edge.

:) Connie

6/22/14: No Training Wheels!

The next day we decided to hang out at our campsite in Hiouchi RV Park.

We finally got around to taking Jamie's training wheels off her bike. Here's a video of her riding:

:) Connie

6/21/14: Drive to Redwood National Park

On Saturday, we drove up to Crescent City, California to camp near Redwood National Park. During the drive, we stopped at one of the beaches to explore.

There was a lot of sea spray coming off the ocean, causing a cool fog effect on the beach:

Had to write something in the sand...

The kids had fun collecting interesting things on the beach. We saw shells, sand dollars, crab parts, cool striped rocks, and kelp.

I think I see a Tioga peeking out from behind the bushes...

:) Connie

6/20/14: Mud Pots in Volcanic National Park

Here's a video of Anna talking about the mud pots in Volcanic National Park:

:) Connie

6/20/14: Volcanic National Park

Volcanic National Park is home to many volcanic mountains and interesting geological features. It is the only park that has all four kinds of volcanoes: cinder cones, lava domes, shield volcanoes, and composite volcanoes.

The last large eruption in the park occurred in 1914, and the damage from that eruption still scars the landscape. It was the last in a series of eruptions of Mt. Lassen. The volcano is currently dormant, and there are nine seismographs around the park measuring activity to help scientists predict the next eruption.

Lassen Peak has an elevation of about 10,400 feet, and you can drive up to about 8,500 feet by car. We drove up there in the Tioga along steep mountain roads with switchbacks and no guard rails (hoo-wee!). Then we took a hike up the side of Mt. Lassen until the snow on the trail prevented us from going further.

On the way up the mountain side, we caught a glimpse of the Tioga down in the parking lot:

The girls had fun playing in the snow:

Views from our hike:

:) Connie

6/19/14: Drive to Volcanic National Park

On Thursday, we make the long drive to Volcanic National Park. Along the way we stopped at some orchards and picked up local nuts, sunflower seeds, and cheeses from the region. :) Connie

6/18/14: A Day in Mariposa

Mariposa is a quaint village just outside of Yosemite National Park. We decided to head into the town to have lunch and poke around in some of the shops.

We ate lunch at the Charles Street Dinner House, which was excellent.

At a nearby gift shop, the girls got some tiny Russian glass animal figurines, and I got two really cool marbles (one onyx, one glass). Then we headed to a local hiking gear store and both James and I got new hiking shoes.

:) Connie

6/17/14: Yosemite National Park, day 2

The next morning we decided to take the girls on a "real" hike. James and I were interested in hiking up to an elevation where we could see some of the beautiful vistas in the park, and we also wanted to see how the kids would do with more than a casual stroll on mostly flat trails. :)

We chose a moderate hike with an elevation gain of about 1,000 feet, to the top of Lembert Dome. We took a slow pace, talked to the girls about conserving energy, and took frequent breaks. We also packed snacks and a picnic lunch.

Here is Lembert Dome:

At the top:

We had a little friend hang out with us while we ate our picnic lunch on top of the dome. I love chipmunks; they are so cute. 

View of the forest on the way back down:

:) Connie

Tenting overnight in Yosemite

Our canvas tent was equipped with a wood burning stove and four cots. Bears are common visitors to Yosemite campgrounds, so we had to put all of our food and toiletries into bear boxes for the night.

As I was trying to fall asleep, I kept imagining that I had forgotten to remove a small snack or chapstick from our bags, and that a bear claw would suddenly come ripping through the canvas wall of the tent. I'm not normally afraid of bears, but for some reason I was on edge and didn't get much sleep.

Here's the tent:

The girls were delighted that we brought chocolate donuts for breakfast in the tent:

We survived the night. Lol, no bear attacks. ;)

:) Connie

6/16: Yosemite National Park, day 1

On Monday, we drove from our campsite in Mariposa to Yosemite National Park. Because it's a pretty long drive into and through the park, we decided to rent a canvas tent and overnight in Yosemite.

We had a fun day of exploring and hiking in Yosemite Valley. Impressive cliffs and massive granite domes surround the valley, and the forests are primarily tall pines. We also walked to two beautiful waterfalls (Bridal Veil Falls and Yosemite Falls).

James and I have fond memories of Yosemite; this is where he proposed to me about 10 years ago. In 2004, we were hiking up to do some wilderness camping near May lake at sunset when he popped the question. It was fun returning these many years later with our girls.

This is the approach to Yosemite Falls. Jamie LOVES waterfalls, so she was way ahead. :)

I'm usually behind the camera, but Anna wanted to take a turn snapping some photos. So, here's a nice one of me and James:

:) Connie

6/14 and 6/15: Visalia to Mariposa

On Saturday we enjoyed a rest day at the Visalia campground. It was a fun day of swimming, reading, and having s'mores by the campfire.

On Sunday we drove to Mariposa, which is near Yosemite National Park. The kids enjoyed the pineapple popsicles they had made the night before. :)

6/13/14: BEARS!

While walking on the giant trees trail in Sequoia National Park, I saw a large light brown furry animal out in a meadow. We soon realized that it was a bear.

We continued on the trail around the meadow, keeping vigilant as we walked. Then Anna spotted another darker brown bear heading into the meadow. A ranger on the trail told us that the second bear was a mama bear with cubs in a nearby tree.

You can see in the photo that the darker brown bear has been tagged by rangers (the other bear was not tagged). Bears that come in regular contact with humans are tagged so that their behavior can be monitored.

Here are some videos of the bear and her cubs:

What an amazing experience. We got to watch the cubs in the tree for a good ten minutes before mama decided to get on the move again. 

:) Connie

6/13/14: Sequoia National Park

After seeing the wonderful redwood trees last week in Muir Woods, we decided it would be great to see the giant sequoias in Sequoia National Park. It also got us wondering, "What is the difference between a sequoia and a redwood?". I found this on the National Park Service website:

So, the redwoods are really TALL, and the sequoias are really WIDE.

Ironically, the pinecones from the sequoia are very small. We left these pinecones in the forest so that more sequoias would grow here. :)

To get a sense of scale of these enormous trees, look at the size of the people in the photo below. The trunk of the tree in the center of the photo is 35 feet wide. The largest limbs are 6'8" wide.

Here is a video of the girls standing in front of the General Sherman tree, which is the largest tree in the world (by volume). It weighs 2.7 million pounds and is the largest living organism in the world.

I think it's difficult to get a true sense of scale from just photos and videos. Standing next to these trees is a unique and awe-inspiring experience.

:) Connie

6/10-6/12: Petaluma KOA

Next we stayed at the Petaluma KOA, north of San Francisco. This was a great campground with lots of amenities, so we took two days to clean up the camper, do some laundry, get groceries, organize our supplies, and relax a bit after all the traveling and conferences. It's time to begin our vacation in earnest! :)

The campground had a small petting zoo, and the girls loved holding the baby goats and bunnies.

So cute. :)

Connie

6/9/14: James and the girls visit Point Reyes National Seashore

While Connie was at Dust or Magic, the girls and I spent the day at Point Reyes National Seashore.

We stopped in at the visitor center to get our Junior Ranger booklets for the park. We then drove into the park along a windy road and up the cliffs to the light house.

Once we got to the top of the cliff, we hiked .4 miles up to the very crest and then 400 steps down to the lighthouse.

The fog was just coming in that morning, so unfortunately, the view wasn't great. After we went down the stairs, toured the lighthouse, and came back up the stairs, we drove back down the cliffs to the beach.

It was still pretty foggy, but that didn't stop the girls from enjoying the beach!

After we finished at the beach (including collecting 27 pieces of trash), we went back to the visitor center so that the girls could get their 22nd Junior Ranger Badges. Good job girls!