Time Flies - April, May 2008

When you’re having fun, it’s sometimes hard to find the time to write it all down. We’ve kept very busy since we left Yuma. Our first stop was at a great RV park right on Mission Bay in San Diego. We always enjoy coming to San Diego – not just for the weather and the beaches – but also to visit with son Matt, his lovely SO (significant other) Amy, and family. Of course, there’s always time to check out the sights.

Pompeii was one of the high spots of our trip to Italy last year, so we were looking forward to seeing the Pompeii exhibit at the SD Natural History Museum at Balboa Park. Of course, we paid more to get into the exhibit than we did to get in to the actual city of Pompeii (!!) but we did enjoy seeing the artifacts and the dramatic body casts of some of the volcano victims. They also featured a fascinating video program about what might happen to the nearby city of Naples if (actually when) Vesuvius blows again. Scary!

We also made our first visit to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. It’s cool to see giraffes, antelope and other animals roaming freely over the hillsides instead of being penned in cages. Of course, seeing these lions made us wonder what might have happened to the park employees who were driving this vehicle. Har Har!

Two years ago we traveled down the California coast, so this time we decided to explore the eastern half of the state. From San Diego we headed to the little town of Tehachapi at the southern end of the Sierras. This is pretty country – lots of rolling hills, oak trees and fruit orchards. Next we traveled up into the mountains to the town of Three Rivers which bills itself as the Gateway to Sequoia National Park. Both RV parks were located in spectacular settings where we enjoyed doing lots of bird watching and adding to our life lists.

We had a great day driving through Sequoia and Kings Canyon Parks. We saw lots of the giant trees, including the 275-foot tall General Sherman, the largest living tree on earth. (That's us - the two little specks in front of the tree!) Other trees are taller, but sequoias can grow up to 40 feet in diameter. And you’ve gotta love a place where they give names to the trees! We were here early in the season so there was still snow on the ground and not many visitors.

The good weather fairy followed us as we drove north to Groveland. We’d always heard stories about the glories of Yosemite, but that didn’t prepare us for the reality. After our first visit, Yosemite National Park zoomed into our Top Ten Most Beautiful Spots on Earth. There are so many iconic scenes – Bridal Veil Fall, El Capitan, Yosemite Falls, and Half Dome – all packed into a few short miles. We spent one day just exploring Yosemite Valley, ending with a light dinner and drinks on the patio at beautiful Ahwahnee Lodge in the shadow of Half Dome.

Another day we hiked into a grove of giant sequoias where we enjoyed a picnic lunch and walked through a tunnel built through the huge stump of one of the trees. (That's it at the top of the post.) A few days later we drove back to Yosemite Valley with our folding chairs, a bottle of wine, and some lunch. We spent the afternoon reading and gazing at Bridal Veil Fall on one side and Horse Tail Fall on the other. With our binoculars we could see rock climbers scrambling across the face of El Capitan like so many ants. What a life. .

But it gets better! A few days later we were in San Francisco watching proudly as our daughter Jennifer collected her doctorate in Pharmacy from San Francisco State. Woo hoo! We’d rented a house close to the university and most of the family showed up for a three-day party. Great fun, great food, surrounded by our nearest and dearest! Who could ask for more? We’re headed for Gold Country next, but even if we find the next mother lode, life couldn’t be better!