This year we let Calvin decide where we would go on summer vacation since he's our Senior. He decided we should explore some of the National Parks in California. He also wanted to take the trip over "dead week" (the sports summer moratorium), so he wouldn't have to miss any of his weights/practices. This meant that we would go the week of July 4, and leave about 12 hours after the boys returned from their FBLA Nationals trip to Atlanta. It was a little crazy, but it all worked out, for which I am very thankful! Now before we got to exploring any National Parks, we got to explore the new KCI! Of course, the boys had just been there literally the day before, but it was new to Russ and me, and SO pretty!
Our flight was at 5:30 a.m., which meant we left home at 2:30 (did you notice the yawns in the picture above?). This vacation wasn't necessarily relaxing, but it was AWESOME!
We flew into Sacramento via Las Vegas. This was the first time I'd been to Las Vegas since I was 21, and I'd forgotten that there were so many slot machines at the airport. We pulled one, doubled our money ($1 --> $2), and called it good. Our layover was exactly over the hour of church back home, so we were able to "attend" church (via Zoom) while in Sin City, which was really nice.
The flights were smooth and we Uber'd to Antelope, California, home of Diane, our Outdoorsy Host. Outdoorsy is a sort of VRBO for RVs and Diane was a great host! Her RV was totally stocked and worked great throughout our trip. Our first stop was the Walmart just down the road where we got our groceries for the week.
Even though we'd just filled our fridge/pantry with food, the boys said a trip to California could never be complete without a stop at In-N-Out. Turns out, the food was really good! And cheap! Like less-than-$3-burgers cheap -- great recommendation, boys!
Next we had to hit the California state capitol, of course. It was not open on Sundays, but the outside of the building was sure pretty anyway.
We had planned to do a little more exploring in Sacramento, but it was HOT that day. And we'd been up since 2 a.m. So ultimately we drove on to our campground for the night, Horseshoe Bend on Lake McClure.
It was the strangest feeling, swimming in the this lake. The air temperature was over 100 and the water temperature was less than 70. We couldn't tell if we were hot or cold while swimming! At any rate, we were glad to cool off in the water.
After dinner, it was still triple digits -- yuck.
But we were still smiling, knowing our vacation was just getting started. And the temperatures would be cooling down as we went up into the mountains.
The next morning started really early for Russ and me. Our plan was a full day in Yosemite, and everything we'd researched said you MUST get to the park early to avoid long lines at the entrance. With a couple hours drive from our campsite, we woke up at 3:30 and hit the road to try to hit the park before sunrise. Dawn was really pretty as we drove, and the first views of Yosemite were stunning!
"Wake up, kids! You gotta see this!"
The kids eagerly watched out the window until we made it into the park.
It was funny, but we didn't see hardly any wildlife on this entire vacation. In fact, these deer in the gas station parking lot were it!
More amazing views as we drove in. . .
Once again we utilized our "Talking Tom" tour guide (was GyPSy guide, now called Guide Along -- highly recommend!) and he told us to be sure and pull off for Bridal Veil Falls as the first stop. Look at that! It was a really heavy winter for snowfall and the falls in Yosemite were GORGEOUSLY FULL of water.
There were also some amazing early-morning views of El Capitan from this stop.
Next we drove on to find a place to park. Everything we'd read said you should get to the park early to find a parking spot and then DON'T move your car. This was really good advice. We passed the chapel on the way to the Yosemite Village lot.
The Visitors Center wouldn't open for a couple hours yet, so we set off hiking on our own. Yosemite Falls -- the tallest waterfall in North America -- would be our first destination.
We hiked to the lower falls and got sprayed pretty good!
The sound of the rushing water and the rainbows the sunlight produced were truly stunning. God was really showing off!
The Yosemite Falls trail was one of the few times of the day that we ran into very many people (and even then, it was nowhere near as bad as I was planning on).Our hike back was so peaceful.
We went back to the RV to eat a little something and pack lunches for later. (At this point, the parking lot was CRAZY. There were cars everywhere, blocking in other cars, up on curbs, you-name-it! So glad we were there early and had our pick of spots.) Then we went to find the Visitors Center, which proved to be really tucked away. The park ranger was very helpful in guiding us to our trails for the rest of our day.
We headed out toward the Mirror Lake trail and the kids found plenty of rocks to climb on along the way. The boys had watched the documentary called "Free Solo" about a crazy guy who climbed El Capitan with no ropes of any sort. I just hope they aren't getting any ideas.
On the way to Mirror Lake we passed the historic Ahwahnee Hotel. We walked the red carpet and checked out the cool inside.
What an amazing view from this 1927 hotel!
On to Mirror Lake!
This water was FREEZING. Like seriously. I'm pretty sure the only reason it wasn't actually frozen is because it was running. I could only put my feet in for a couple seconds before they started to go numb.
We ate a picnic lunch here. Have I mentioned how perfect the weather was?? After the scorching heat in Sacramento the day before, we were spoiled with mid-70 degrees temperatures and a slight breeze. Even with lots of hiking, we didn't get too hot.
Next we found our way to a nature center where we could refill our water bottles and rest for a bit.
Next we hiked the Vernal Falls/Mist Trail. This was probably the most strenuous hike of the day. Once again, we were thankful for the very mild temperatures.
The views all along the way were really spectacular, though, so the hike didn't seem so bad. After Vernal Falls, we headed back to the RV. Thankfully it was late enough in the day that the parking lot had opened up a bit and we were able to get out without difficulty. We drove to Tunnel View, where you could see Yosemite Falls, El Cap, and Half Dome in the background! Seriously, God's creativity is on FULL display here. How could anyone look at a site like this without recognizing a creator??
Our next stop -- Glacier Point -- we almost didn't get to make, as the road had just opened up from the winter only 2 days before we were there. I'm so thankful we were able to experience this! We traveled up, up, up, to find THE MOST AMAZING 360-degree views of Yosemite Valley! I mean, seriously, the pictures don't even begin to do it justice.
We loved looking down at all of the places we'd hiked throughout the day. It was an incredible bird's-eye-view!
We decided the views from Glacier Point just might be the most beautiful views we've ever seen. Ever.
Calvin got an epic panoramic pic from up here.
Our final stop in Yosemite was Mariposa Grove, home of some pretty awesome trees.
Even the trees that had fallen were impressive!
Once we were done admiring the humongous sequoias, we called it a day and headed to the Kelty Meadow, our campground for the night. My legs were tired, but my heart was full after such a great day!
When we were researching campgrounds, Oliver liked this one because the meadow looked SO Kelty. . . and there were cows in the pictures. Unfortunately, we saw zero cows during our time there. But the meadow did look nice, and our site was so peaceful and secluded.
We made dinner on the campfire and went to bed early after such a long day -- remember it started before 4 a.m. for Russ and me!
Yosemite did NOT disappoint! I think of all of our planning, I was most nervous about our day at Yosemite because I'd read so much about the crazy crowds and traffic, etc. As it turned out, we never once dealt with traffic at all, and we really didn't see many people during our FULL day. The kids said Yosemite may be their favorite National Park, even over Yellowstone -- it was THAT good! I thank God for his protection and this beautiful day full of his blessings!
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