Racing for the Holiday

After Kings Canyon, I found out that my possible Thanksgiving in Phoenix was not possible. So the Road Trip has become a cannonball race home. It is more important to be with family for the holiday than to be meandering across the country. The end of the road trip is approaching.

Thursday night was in Las Vegas (no comment), Friday night I slept in Kingman, AZ, and by last night, I had made it to Gallup, NM. While in AZ, I sped in and out of my former home town of Phoenix stopping only long enough to cram Pre to the max with stuff from my storage space, and to drop by TreasonPal's for a brief hello.

Tonight I have made it as far as El Reno, OK having driven I 40 for nearly 10 hours, and close to 700 miles. It wasn't awful, just a bit monotonous. I expect much of the same for the remaining 1,500 miles. But this will get me home by Thanksgiving and also give me a bit of prep time before heading out on my next adventure. Unless plans change, I will be joining family and going abroad to Honk Kong, China and Bali, Indonesia.

(BTW, I stopped here in El Reno because it is the home of the Onion Burger. Of the 3 onion burger joints here described in the Road Food book, I chose Johnie's. The cook took a handful of burger meat, not a ball or patty, but a handful, and threw it on the grill. After a quick tap from the spatula, an equal sized handful of onions were dropped on top. With a few squishes of the spatula, the sliced onions were half combined with and half hanging out of the burger. When nearly cooked through, the burger was flipped in order to brown the other side and caramelize the dangling onions. As an onion fanatic, I was thrilled to experience them in an original and delicious new way...I'm going to try to do this at home.)

I may blog again before going, but if I get the chance I will blog from overseas also. Bon Voyage!

Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park(s)

Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks were made national parks separately in 1890 and 1940 respectively, but sharing a large common border, they began being jointly administered in 1943. I don't know whether I was in one or two national parks today, but it doesn't matter because either way it (or they) was (or were) so much better than expected.

Sequoia was the second National Park ever after Yellowstone, but it's remoteness and the fact that it is close to amazing Yosemite have perhaps left it a bit unknown. And Kings Canyon is pretty cool, but compared to Bryce or Grand Canyons, it just doesn't compare. Add to that, 99% of the two parks are not accessible without overnight hiking and camping, , heck, a backpacker can hike to a spot that is farther from a road than any other place in the lower 48. I really didn't think I would be amazed. Especially after Yosemite.

But turn after turn on the General's Highway was stunning, and multiple short hikes provided spectacular treats. Perhaps the best treat of the day was hiking up Moro Rock. The hike was only about a quarter mile, but included steep inclines and over 400 steps. It was straight up - not a rock, but a mini-mountain. The whole hike was precarious and provided above-the-clouds views of the valley before summiting with an endless panorama.

After Redwoods and Yosemite, with their immense groves of giant trees, I didn't think I could still be awed by more trees, but I was wrong. In these parks are some of the worlds largest and oldest living things. At 2,200 years old, a birth date around 110 BC, the General Sherman tree is the world largest and, depending on the way you measure, the worlds most massive living organism. (There are arguments about the great coral reef, as well as some mushroom in Oregon, but Sherman stands as an individual specimen.) Likewise, the stroll to Grant's Tree, America's Christmas Tree, proved perhaps more impressive. It's a more aesthetically pleasing tree.

Add to that a few other stunning treks and scenic viewpoints, a fair amount of deer and millions of non-human fearing squirrels, and it was a complete day of wonderful National Park excursions. Were it not for the expected sub-freezing nightly temperature, I would be camping out. Alas, I am in a Motel 6 in Portersville, CA. Having started out this morning in Fresno, I only covered 60 miles as the crow flies, but more than 200 miles were covered most of it switchbacking along beautiful mountain sides.

Yosemite!

Here's the new Top 5 list of my favorite National Parks:

5. Carlsbad Caverns

4. Big Bend

3. Bryce Canyon

2. Yosemite

1. Yellowstone

Yosemite has bumped the Grand Canyon off the list and jumped to number 2. From the moment I entered Yosemite Valley it was immediately a place of wonder. Like Yellowstone, it is plentiful in variety, curiosity and stunning views.

The immense El Capitan and Half Dome tower over the valley, majestic waterfalls storm out of the glacier carved mountains, hikes into the wilderness are filled with ever changing dramatic scenery, and in the end, just as I was heading for the southern exit, they threw in a dizzying grove of Giant Sequoias.

I camped out last night in the Upper Pines campground with Glacier Point as my backdrop. The stars came out early and brilliantly. The milky way was clearly visible all night. And the night was capped by watching the meteors of the Leonid shower burn up on entry into the atmosphere. I'd been hoping for a night of star watching since I began this trip, and I can't imagine I will ever beat this night. Really it was a stellar evening of camping.

I could write so much more, but I am exhausted and will let the pictures do the talking.

Redwoods and SF

During this second road trip, I've averaged around 7 hours of sleep a day. But since I've arrived here in San Francisco, I have been down for 11 hours a day. I'd love to blame it on the endless energy of niece and nephew RiMax, but I think I may be a bit under the weather, and catching up on Z's while warm and cozy in the cave suite in the basement. I've even decided to stay a day more than planned, and play a bit more soccer with Max, and read a few more princess stories to Ries before heading on the slow route to Phoenix.

Getting here to this rambunctious oasis, I did pass thorough another majestic Park, Redwoods National. As far north and west as you can be in California lies a coastal redwood forest that is well deserving of National Park status. Driving along the park routes is dizzying as I nearly brushed my side mirrors from the towering monoliths of coastal redwoods. If I had a convertible, I could have seen the treetops, but even craning forward I could see just the bases of the massive trunks. But when you park and take just a few steps into the groves of redwoods you begin to swirl while looking straight up.

"THIS is the forest primeval," said both Longfellow and Looney Tunes. And Redwoods NP is a pristine example of old growth forests, and easily gives you the feeling of walking into another era, which in fact you are as some of these trees were here when that guy Jesus walked the earth. And the environs of this park may be no different from when dinosaurs roamed through them.

Besides the groves of giant redwoods, this park is also on the Pacific Ocean, providing completely separate astounding views. You get two-for-the-price-of-one stunning and solitary beauty. I wouldn't include this in my top 5 parks of all time, but it is in the top ten, and I'd love to revisit it during different seasons of the year. Just walking through the towering redwood groves and scanning the immense Pacific is both humbling and exhilarating.

Anyway, tomorrow I will be getting on the road again after a wonderful family visit, and if the weather is good, I should be camping out tomorrow night in what many consider the second best National Park in the lower 48 - Yosemite!

Crater Lake Redux

This day consisted of non-stop scenic driving. From start to finish I was following the little green dots on the map that indicate beauty and more beauty followed by beauty. But today's main event was a return to Crater Lake NP.

During Road Trip part 1, I wrote the following: "In my ranking of greatest sites I've visited based mainly on their aesthetic beauty, this (Crater Lake) is now number 2, behind only the Grand Canyon Southern Rim, and moving in front of Monument Valley." While Monument Valley has been bumped by the caldera at Big Bend, the Big Room at Carlsbad Caverns and multiple sites at Yellowstone, the top two remain as is. Besides the first breathtaking views of the Grand Canyon, nothing compares to the first peeks over the volcanic rim and into Crater Lake.

The first time I was here it was summer, and the big change to this visit is the added tranquility of the winter setting. First I was subdued by the snow capped fir trees on the approach, but the idyllic nature of the snow encircled lake nearly brought me to my knees. Sure, the Grand Canyon is better...I doubt it can be beat...but Crater Lake has a majestic halo that must be seen to be appreciated. The rim road that circuits the volcano was closed by snow, and the campground was also closed, this left me with just a short stroll around the entrance area. None the less, experiencing the tranquility in winter of this special place was well worth the diversion. Make an effort to get here...it's worth it.

Continuing my National Park-a-day routine of late, tomorrow I will be seeing some big trees. In dark I drove through a route I am sure to retrace. Following that, I'll be visiting with the Sis and family for a few days.

Click on the following links for my RT part 1 descriptions of the amazing Crater Lake:

Crater Lake Part 1
Crater Lake Part 2