Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Sacramento

IMG_1394 sac I didn’t get out of the hotel soon enough again. I assumed the museums would open at noon, but when I checked the website they opened at 10am. When I got to downtown Sacramento the traffic was nuts. There was a Pacific Rim Fest. and the exit was backed up. I found a place to park not too far from the festival, The California Railroad Museum, and the Crocker Art Museum. The festival was fun with some great entertainment (video). I wanted some Thai food, but the lines were too long. The railroad museum was incredible. An older gentleman on a Yosemite shuttle recommended it.  It had all varieties of full size locomotives and railcars, life size dioramas, and a nice display of toy trains. There was trestle above the other trains that had a narrow gage train. The Crocker Museum had some interesting pieces, but most of the works were from local artist for a silent auction. The interior of the house was beautiful. I was only allowed to take a picture from inside the lobby, the ballroom was stunning with the railings, molding and woodwork. When I left Sacramento I got some shots of the Crocker house and the state capital, it’s ironic that with all the pictures I took (1200+) the last four were overexposed. I mean completely blown out. (click photo for slideshow)

When I got home it took me two days to recover, just tried and rundown. And maybe just a little melancholy because I’m headed off to someplace new everyday.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Ceres, CA

IMG_3091RS It  was a nice drive out of Yosemite to my hotel in Ceres. The canyons, waterfalls and cliffs turned into low rolling hills of grasslands. It look like parts of Texas or Kansas.

Dinner was at Jenny’s Family Dining. I had a new waitress and I asked for the large prime rib. Another waitress came over whispered, “That’s L, G...”

I interrupted, “Are you teaching her how to spell large?”

“She’s new and I’m teaching her abbreviations.”

“So, one blonde teaching another how to spell?”

They both pointed their index fingers at me and said, “HEY!”

It a good dinner, but the restaurant had shrines for Elvis, Marilyn Monroe and George Strait. Also a wall of honor to those service in the armed forces. (click photo for slideshow)

Panos

Here are some panos I shot, but couldn’t edit until I got home. (click photo below) Many of them have 6-7 shot merged together in Photoshop. z grassland Panorama1RS

To see each pix full size click here

San Joaquin Valley

IMG_0948 On my drive Sacramento to Sequoia and back, (those green squares on the map are groves) I  noticed miles of groves growing everything from: oranges, almonds, plums, peaches and grapes. What Kansas is to wheat and Indiana is to corn and soybeans, the San Joaquin valley is to everything else you eat. My third hotel was in the town of Dinuba CA. The GPS would tell me I was only two miles away, but all I could see in the distance were trees, vines and green. Sure enough there was a fair size small town in the middle of all this growth. (click pic for video)

Monday, May 24, 2010

Yosemite Vernal & Nevada Falls

IMG_1246yose Saturday was my last day in Yosemite. My plan was to hike Vernal Falls then to the top of Nevada Falls. Yep, that was the plan. The hike was no where near as tough as Upper Yosemite Falls. Though still 3.4 miles one way (compared to 3.6 for UYF) it was not nearly as steep and hardly any switchbacks. It was a pleasant, mild, clear day for a walk. As I got to the base of Vernal Falls the spray from the falls covered everything. Climbing up to the middle of the falls the over rough hewn steps the chill of the water, runoff of melting snow, being driven against my face was numbing. (video) When I got to the top of Vernal and back into the sun I had to dry off my soaked hoody. There was an incredible rainbow in the mist and as the water droplets moved through it, the rainbow looked like flames being stoked in a fire. From Vernal I made my way up to Nevada Falls and I got to within half mile of the top and I turned around. I doesn’t sound far, but I had already been on the trail two and a half hours, it would have been 45 minutes to the top, 45 at the top and 30 down to where I turned around and I wanted to see some other things before I made the three hour trip to my next hotel. On my way down the day had turned from sunny to snowy, You couldn’t tell the mist from the flakes. The trail had become considerable more crowed and less enjoyable. It was still a great walk with two spectacular falls, plus Illilouette Falls in the distance coming off the side of the cliff face.  (Here I attempted to track with my iPhone again)

(click photo for slideshow)

Back in the Yosemite Village the weather had changed. One side of the valley was sunny and the other was dark and in a snow storm. The one landmark I had ignored for the past three days was El Capitan. An incredibly magnificent megalith. I walked up the base just to stare 3600 feet straight up at it’s shear north face. A marvel to look at and I can’t comprehend the the climbers that spend days ascending to the summit. I made one last attempt at getting a valley shot from tunnel view, but that snow had engulfed the most of the park.

Yosemite, what a beautiful place. It had a little of Kings Canyon and Sequoia inside it’s borders. I will try to get back here real soon.

Sunday it’s Sacramento for some museums and the Pacific Rim street festival. I will post that, probably my last for this trip, in a few days.

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Yosemite Half Dome

IMG_1101yose No, I didn’t climb it! The cables to the top are not up yet. And honestly if they had I doubt I’ve would have been able to do that one. Again, I got an early start and took an easy stroll today around most of Mirror Lake in front of Half Dome. Half Dome looks like it is peeking (or would it be peaking? How cleaver of me) it’s head over the two mountains in front. I tried to catch some photos (without much luck) of tree swallows skimming bugs off the surface of the lake.

Then I went to Lower Yosemite Falls. There’s a bronze model of Yosemite trail. The climb looks a lot shorter on the relief sculpture.  On the walk up it’s a very beautiful view of upper and lower falls. It was loud with the roar of the falls and wet from the spray. I got wet again when I tried to get some shots of Bridal Veil Falls. (video) The bride was crying. Nothing but a torrent of water, blowing against me from the wind generated by the fall. I had garbage bags in the car, not for me, but for the cameras. Of course, I forgot them.  

Leaving the park I noticed some people looking up at El Capitan. There were watching rock climber on their accent to the top. And yes, I would like to do that, but not at that height. Maybe something like Red River Gorge.

I tried again to get a shot of the valley from the tunnel view, but I’m not having much luck with the sun.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Upper Yosemite Falls

Upper Yosmite Falls Climb Slideshow What’s the saying? The greatest of journeys begins with the first step.  My first step was getting out of bed. Up at six am to beat the crowds and because I wanted to hike to Upper Yosemite Falls. The trail starts off with switchbacks (180 degree turns) that snake all the way to the top. I was huffing from the gitgo. I was on the trail at 8am and there were already people coming down. I kidded one couple about running down part of the trail. They said there were trying to make three falls in one day. I asked another couple where they were from. When they said Denver I commented ‘you must be use to this.’ The girls said they were use to the altitude, but not the climbing. Well that’s my problem, I live at 700 feet and I’m climbing a 7000 footer. On one section of trail the mist from the falls covers everything. It’s dripping wet with puddles all over. It was interesting to hear the falls close-up; the roar, mist hitting the leaves, the deep drumming as the water hits bottom from 1500 feet. There were points where I was so winded I ignored the scenery and just concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. It took me three hours to reach the top, but what a spectacular sight with the green water vanishing over the cliff. Then as I peered over the edge half the water turned to mist and the rest collided with the valley floor. Since I was already up there I decided to trek over to Yosemite Point one mile and 45 minutes away. An incredible view. I thought it would be easier to hike down, but the trial is so steep it was a little precarious. At the end I had spent 8.5 hours on the trail, covered 10 miles total with a 2700 change in elevation. That, I think, is a good day. Except, I think I’m going to lose two toenails, Maybe I should save them as kind of a medal. (click photo for slideshow)

I also ran across two more snakes. This time without the dancing. The same black and brown snake, I found out it is a California striped racer, as from Kings Canyon and a Kingsnake (red-touches-black-venom-lack) at the end of the climb.

Most of the pictures in slideshow are from my iphone. I was test driving an app call GPS Motion X. I was able to download the tracks to Google maps, but not the pix. You can see where the iPhone lost GPS signal. Here’s an iPhone video.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Do You Know the Way to Yosemite?

click for Yosemite Day 1 Slideshow Today was pretty much a bust. I got a late start outta Dinuba and thought I was making up some good time. But after I got into Yosemite Park they had construction off and on all the way to the valley floor, around the visitor center and parking areas. Two hours to the park entrance and 90 minutes to the visitors center. At lease I know where the stimulus money is going.  And yesterday day I had Kings Canyon almost all to myself. Not the case today. At the valley view overlook there may have been 20 people. As I was taking some shots, I heard airbrakes behind me and out poured 80+ from two busses. I’ve three more days in the park though and I plan to get out real early tomorrow morning. I finished the day off with some really good BBQ at Todd's Cookhouse Bar-B-Que and a really good brew, Firestone Double Barrel Ale. (click photo for slideshow)

Kings Canyon Day 2

IMG_0824 KC Much nicer day Tuesday in Kings Canyon, bright, sunny and warm. Realized that the part I was in yesterday is a part of Sequoia. Kings Canyon is at the very end of of the road. Kings Canyon is an even deeper valley than the front of the park. The cliffs rise sharply in a very narrow valley that millennia ago was a glacier. There are miles of rapids and some some falls, Grizzly and Roaring River, on the drive in, but I decided to take a deeper look into the valley. So I took a nine mile hike to Mist Falls. It really made to rest of the park look a little tame. Off the main trail I moved into a side gorge. I saw a couple looking at two bears about 50 yard off. They were just wrestling at first then it got a little rougher. Kinda like my brother Donald and I when we were young. It always started out with laughs, then….  Two miles, or so, in the rapids became cascading falls for the rest of the hike. It was an elevations gain of 900 feet over uneven ground for the trek. I was tired and my feet were sore, but Mist Falls was well worth the time.  It cascades down the falls which then drops about 100 feet to even more cascades. And it was, to use one word, misty. On my way back I was on the trail, that was cut through a boulder field. When just as I getting to step a three foot long black snake crawled across my path. SCARED THE CRAP out of me. Now I’m not afraid of snakes, unless then suddenly snake across my hike. I did an impression of a football player running through tires while trying to play Dance, Dance Revolution. 30 minutes later I came upon another bear about 30 yards away. I stopped. Then I went to change camera lens to get a close up when the bear turned and looked right at me. We were both motionless for at least 10 seconds. Then he turned away, walked, then started running away from me. I am just that intimidating. The whole hike took four hours total, but it was incredibly enjoyable. I am just surprised and glad that today that I’m not sore and my feet don’t hurt. (click photo for slideshow)

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Sunny & 60

Beautiful day in Southern CA.

Kings Canyon

IMG_0692KC Misty dreary mornings, most people would complain that it’s not a good day to take picture. But a photographer would say, drizzle adds an atmospheric element that creates a dynamic mood. Well, that’s the BS we tell our friends that think your nuts for going out in the rain. The mist in Kings Canyon on my first day would have been more upsetting if it wasn’t for that I was going to be there an additional day. Besides it gives it a Lost World kinda feel. (click photo for slideshow)

Monday, May 17, 2010

Gateway

IMG_3027 Went to eat Sunday at Gateway Lodge, mostly because it was located next to some river rapids. They were full so they asked if I would mind sitting with some other people.

“Nope.”

IMG_3025 Four people (one guy and three ladies) from all over CA were there to see a friend play. Teresa Russell was her name and man could she play. She had prerecorded backup instrumentals, but with a push a foot pedal she would sing background lyrics that would loop. Live she would play and sing. Teresa was quite the picker.

Hotel Three Rivers

IMG_0499seq It’s a tricky thing, hotel ratings. You check Expedia, Hotel.com ratings and their users, but they don’t tell the whole story. Sierra Lodge is a unique, quirky. For my room you park under the room and walk up a spiral staircase. None too easy with luggage. There’s a sliding glass door (with opaque glaze) to get into the room and the decor is a faux cowboy cabin circa 1970. Complete with grizzle bear bedspread and pillow case. The staff was incredibly friendly and chipper. The view from the patio was nice, though my room was less than 20 away from the highway. The road noise after dark was not bad, but the earplugs didn’t hurt either. Always be careful of ‘free wireless’. It’s freely roaming somewhere just not in my room. It is very iffy. I am not disappointed I stayed here at all. (click photo for slideshow).

Yosemite Flight

IMG_2249 Continental flies out of an incredibly small terminal at CVG. It was delayed 30 minutes, but I didn’t miss my connector in Houston. Almost didn’t get out of Houston though. A nasty thunderstorm was bearing down and we took off just as heavy rain started to come down. When our flight turn onto the main runway I could see planes lined up on the taxi way and lighting bolts were striking behind them. We had to go south to avoid the storm and that put us 50 minutes behind. Pilot told us that they close the airport for 90 minutes after we left. Serendipity, I got to see some really beautiful sunset cloud from above. I love the window seat there are some incredible sites.

Sequoia

IMG_0466seq I have read magazines and seen the TV shows, but none of it compares to seeing it in person. The Sequoias are huge and majestic. They make the biggest trees back home or even the pines I saw out west look miniscule. One of the plaques stated that looking up at a sequoia is like a mouse looking up at me. I do know how the Lilliputs felt around Gulliver. Some interesting facts: their roots only go down six feet, but out about a 100 feet. The bark is about two feet thick and a 300 foot tree grows from a seed less than the size of an oat flake. After the 2nd & 3rd day though… nope still the same feeling. I had a chance to walk along through some groves, then lay on my back and look at trees that go on forever. (click photo for slideshow).

Kings Canyon CA. A misty day, but still some great sites. Coming back
tomorrow.

The Internet at the hotel has been iffy the past two days. So here's a
post before I head off to Kings Canyon today.

Friday, May 14, 2010

On the ground in Sacramento 50 minutes late, but we out out of Houston
in time. Pilot said the airport closed just after we left due to
thunderstorms. It was some nasty lighting at take off.
at the gate. Looks like I'm gonna make my SAC flight.

CVG to Houston?

Yep. Of course. Delayed 30 minutes. Maybe, just maybe. I'll make the connector in Houston.
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