Petrified Tree
Painted Desert:
THURSDAY and FRIDAY, JUNE 10 & 11, 2010
This is Nanny reporting . . .This blogging is ending up being very difficult. We get in late from either a long day’s drive or a full day of sightseeing, and blogging is the last thing on our mind. I’m going to catch Max up and keep everyone informed, but I’ll stop at key points and let Max report also. He really wants to do it himself, but there just aren’t enough hours in each day.
The Grand Canyon was one of Max’s favorite places. We traveled there today and toured it the next day.
Magnificent Grand Canyon:
Grand Canyon-another view
Grand Canyon a panoramic view:
SATURDAY, JUNE 12, 2010
Hoover Dam was 280 miles from the Grand Canyon. We only drove around the dam awhile and got out places to take pictures. They are building a new bridge at the dam, and that was really impressive to Max. At each new spot, we stop and pick out post cards for Maxwell’s scrapbook, and we look for a souvenir penny press. He’s enjoying adding to his penny passport collection.
SUNDAY thru TUESDAY, JUNE 13-15
After 2 days of driving (421 miles), we arrived at Sequoia National Forest in Southern California. We were in the South portion of the forest and chose to tour the area called The Land of 100 Giants. The sequoia trees in this part are as large and impressive as the ones 4-1/2 hours away in the Sequoia Park, but they are not all named. Walking thru this part was not as crowded with tourists, and we found it very enjoyable because it was more natural and rustic. Max enjoyed exploring holes thru the some of the trees and climbing uprooted trees for pictures. The Sequoias are the largest trees in volume. They are biggest in their diameter and only grow in Southern California where the climate is more stable,less changing year round. We picnicked in the forest.
A Giant Sequoia Tree:
WEDNESDAY thru SATURDAY, JUNE 16-19
Yosemite National Park still in Southern California was next. It was a day’s drive of 231 miles. We actually toured Yosemite on 3 different days. A couple of the days were spent driving around and going to the different vista points where we would see beautiful water falls and giant granite mountains. One of the days we took a tour on an open shuttle (cars pulled by a big vehicle). The Ranger guide told us that between 30 and 40,000 people toured Yosemite weekly. He pointed out several teeny specks on the mountainsides that were climbers. It seems there is a subculture of climbers that come continuously to Yosemite. Our guide impressed Max by telling him the youngest climber on one of the summits was 11 yrs. old, and the oldest was a lady of 81 yrs. She, of course, had been climbing for over 30 yrs. The mountain they were climbing (El Capitain)was as tall as 3 Eifel Towers put end on end. Max really liked the Half Dome mountain. Driving into the park was mountainous, curvy, and very slow, and this wasn’t the peak season yet. We also visited an Indian museum and small replica village as well as the village at the floor of the mountain. The floor area had a lodge, an artist’s studio, eating places, and a small post office. Free shuttles took us from spot to spot because a parking spot was hard to come by.
Water Falls at Yosemite National Park:
Many Climbers brave these peaks called "El Capitan" at Yosemite:
SUNDAY thru TUESDAY, JUNE 20-22
Two days driving (589 miles), and we arrived at Redwood National Park in Northern California. Where we spent one of the nights was so funny. Max said it was a Wal-Mart shopping lot without the Wal-Mart. We had water, electricity, and sewer, but it literally was a giant parking lot owned by a Mexican. No one was there to check us in, and Julio told us to choose a spot & he’d come by that night or the next morning. We explained that we’d be gone the next day so he might want to come get our money before we departed. It ended up being one of our most enjoyable evenings for Maxwell. Our couple friends, Marge & Keith, played Mexican train dominoes until very late that night. We laughed and laughed.
Driving thru California has been a real experience in itself. Grape vines, almond groves, avocados, and olive trees are everywhere for as far as you can see. We were driving thru Napa Valley and Senoma Valley – both wine country.
The Redwood National Park and the drive to the park was full of more sequoias (redwoods). The difference between the trees of the Sequoia National Park and those of the Redwood NP is the size. Trees in Sequoia NP are the largest in volume, but the trees in the Redwood NP are the tallest. Gene, Max, and I hiked a trail and took Paco with us. We couldn’t have asked for better weather during our adventures .
Nearby we stopped at a very interesting spot called Trees of Mystery where we saw the Family Tree (one sequoia with about 6 or 7 other sequoias growing upward on the main tree’s branches). Even a fallen sequoia had others growing up from it. These trees, by the way, are over 350 to 400 feet tall and are around 1500 yrs. old. A local artist had carvings throughout the Mystery Trees, and the carvings told the story of Paul Bunyan. Max enjoyed climbing on a huge, talking Paul Bunyan in the parking lot. Paul’s ax was 14 ft. tall, so you can imagine how big he actually was, and a man spends all day answering questions and talking with the kids thru some very sensitive sound system in Paul. He can hear even the small children, and comments on everything they say.
Heading to the Redwoods, we took the scenic Hwy. 101 along the coastal route and stopped to play in the Pacific Ocean. Max was amazed at the huge waves and the dark, volcanic sand. In fact, California has a lot of volcanic land – black/gray sand and molten rock of black, gray, red, orange, and white.
A 250-300 foot Giant Redwood Tree probably 2500 to 3000 years old:
WEDNESDAY thru THURSDAY, JUNE 23 and 24, 2010
One day of traveling and we hit the Crater Lake area – 4 to 6 ft. of packed snow. It’s wild to drive from sunny California into Oregon to find snow 26 miles from our campsite. We had an extremely nice campground, and I would have wanted to stay an extra day, but the mosquitos were terrible! Oregon has had a very cold, snowy winter, and the land is wetter longer than usual, breeding mucho mosquitos.
The Crater Lake rivaled the Grand Canyon, our previous favorite. We drove 7 or 8 miles up the mountainside to the first vista point, got out, and all 3 stood speechless. W-O-W was about all we could say repeatedly. The lake, mountains, islands, and clouds, looked like a painted picture. They didn’t look real to any of us. Crater Lake is the bluest that you have ever seen. It’s a bright, light blue to a vibrant turquoise blue. Wizard Island and Pirate’s Ship are snowcapped islands that sit in the middle of this 5 miles wide, over a mile deep lake. About 7,000 yrs. ago a volcano Mt. Mazama erupted, spewing ash 10 feet deep in the area and as much as 6 inches over 400 miles away. The results of the volcano was an enormous whole that filled up with rain and snow years later, thur beautiful Crater Lake. We drove The Rim about halfway. Not all of the rim was open because of recent snow fall. Lunch was great at the Crater Lake Lodge, and the observation deck at the lodge gave us another breathtaking view. The lodge itself was very interesting. It had Ponderosa Pine trees growing thru the floor and up thru the roof in the dining hall and the front foyer. Max & I decided we’d really like to stay at the lodge for awhile, but the camper called, and we eventually had to leave. Max enjoyed some male pre-teen companionship at the campground that night, and we planned to leave for Shoshone Falls in Idaho the following day.
Crater Lake is one beautiful sight:
Another Veiw of this beautiful lake which the writer Jack London said it was the most beautiful site he had ever seen:
A Panoramic View of the Crater Lake:
FRIDAY and SATURDAY, JUNE 25 – 26, 2010
Last night we made the decision to have Maxwell’s tooth checked out. He’s been having some problems and a little pain on and off for a couple of weeks. He told us he had a hole in his took, but we didn’t see the hole until last night. The owner of the campground here in Burns, Oregon, told us about a dental group in town, and I called last night to see if one of them would see us on Saturday morning. We didn’t want to get to Yellowstone in the “boonies” and not be able to find a dentist. Dr. Jack Bauer met us at 10 A.M. in his office and had the tooth extracted in only a few minutes. The doc was about Gene’s and my age & had years of experience with fearful children. It was a baby molar & was easily removed. The hole was a filling that had fallen out because the new tooth was pushing the baby tooth out. It wasn’t a bad experience for Max at all. He didn’t have time to dread it, and Dr. Bauer knew just how to work with Max. We’re off now for Idaho and the Falls. After that we’ll head North to Glacier Natinal Park, Gene’s favorite spot.
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