Que Sierra Sierra

From Yosemite Park we headed south to the Sequoia National Park, in the southern Sierra Nevada. It’s just so amazing how they think up names for these parks – who would have guessed that this park is full of Giant Sequoia trees? Well it was, lots of them too. We did several walks in the forest looking at trees and discussing the quintessential philosophical question: “If Mike burps in the forest, does anyone hear?” The answer is a resounding (and I do mean that literally) YES. He did a beauty which ricocheted around the forest, doing a number of laps before the sound died out. Several small animals died of fright. 

Tunnel Tree in Sequoia

Deirdre beside the Triple Tree

Deirdre is stumped.....

Speaking of fright….we continue to confront our fear of edges and heights with more winding roads, and a climb to the top of Moro Rock, a granite outcrop. Safely on the ground, we went walking in the forest and came across a bear paw print in an area with no other people and lots of blind corners. The way to confront this fear was to sing campfire songs loudly and tunelessly to let the bear know to crawl into a deep hole and plug its ears rather than eating us. The risk was that it would eat us just to make us shut up.

Note the death grip while trying to look cool

Here's why, a nice roll off the edge to another abyss.

On to Lake Tahoe, a ski resort on the edge of a huge, deep, cold lake, straddling California and Nevada. The Californian side is low-rise, with Swiss-chalet style architecture, low-key and tasteful. As soon as you hit the Nevada Stateline - welcome to high-rise casino tackiness.

Lake Tahoe from Heavenly Gondola

At Stateline looking back to California

Looking at the state border, and tacky Nevada instantly is in your face

We had planned 3 days of lakeside adventure – kayaking, sailing and mountain-biking. However, on our first day there was a severe weather alert for gale-force winds with a small boat advisory to avoid being on the lake. The kayak hire place was shutting down and didn’t plan to re-open for 3-4 days due to weather.   No point asking about a sail-boat then.

We then had to consider other extreme-sport options which included mini-golf. We thought about going to the cinema but thought that was too dangerous (we didn’t want to get shot).  Visiting the supermarket (what fun we have!) we amused ourselves at the sight of the Personal Watermelon display. Is that like a pet? A Service watermelon? A confidante? The mind boggles.

Our first Bear sighting was a little unexpected

We went on the Heavenly Gondola from Heavenly Village to the Heavenly Ski Resort (delusions of grandeur anyone?) at the top of the mountain above the town. Although sunny it was pretty windy and very cold, with areas of snow. Now what do you think would be good to wear in these conditions? This is what Mike wore….

And this is what the latest entrant in the Inappropriate Outdoor Attire Contest wore….

In lieu of kayaking we booked a lunch cruise to Emerald Bay on the following day which dawned clear and sunny but quickly deteriorated to rainy and freezing. We didn’t see much on the cruise unfortunately due to misty rain, but at the end we were gripped by the drama of a sailing boat losing someone overboard then struggling to get them back in the boat while the sail flapped madly and the boat turned around in circles. They eventually managed without needing any assistance from our boat. We were glad not to be out sailing.

Our last day in Lake Tahoe was gloriously sunny although still a little chilly. We drove to Emerald Bay and saw what we missed from the cruise due to weather – a gorgeous bay with crystal clear water. We visited Vikingsholme, a grand home built in the 1920’s in Scandinavian style, which has been kept in a beautiful condition. We walked to nearby Emerald Falls and Eagle Lake and enjoyed the stunning scenery. Now who would want to be holed up in a casino when there are places like this to see?

Emerald Bay

Eagle Falls

“Too much of a good thing is wonderful” (Liberace)

Yosemite Valley from Glacier point.

3 days at the spectacular Yosemite National Park brought some firsts for the trip:

·         First pair of stilettos seen on a walk. We decided that they could be quite useful as they would ease the stretch on your calf muscles as you go uphill. Different matter coming down though.

·         First sighting of a predator – a coyote.

·         First National Park traffic jams (those bl**dy tourists again!)

·         First experience of freaking out about driving on steep winding mountain roads – plenty more of that to come.

Yosemite Valley is an extraordinary place, with massive cliff faces, incredible waterfalls and beautiful meadows. We did several shortish walks to Vernal Falls, Yosemite Falls and Bridal Veil Falls. We walked to Mirror Lake and had to walk across the river in water so cold that it hurt. I’m sure there were icebergs hiding in there. Apart from the scenic wonders, we continued to be amazed at the sight of ill-prepared folk – including our stiletto wearer. What are they thinking?

Deirdre Crosses the Merced River in front of Half Dome

Vernal Falls

Yosemite Falls

Upper Yosemite Falls

Yosemite is such a popular place that accommodation is hard to get. We had to stay in the south part of the park at the historic Wawona Hotel, necessitating driving 20 miles of winding road to get to and from the Valley each day. You drive along a cliff edge with virtually no road shoulder, no guard rails or kerbs winding around sharp curves with drop-offs of thousands of feet to the valley floor – terrifying! I found it slightly less terrifying doing the driving as I wasn’t closest to the edge. It also helped to drive with my eyes closed. (I’m joking!) But I did have to get Mike to prise my hands off the steering wheel with a crowbar. On our way back one day we decided to take a short detour to Glacier Point which has a spectacular view of the valley and views to the snow-covered High Sierra Mountains above the valley. The last bit of this road was super-terrifying with hair-pin bends right next to the huge drop. As I crept around the last bit some loony tail-gated me with his hand on the horn and waving his fist out of the window – not sure what he was holding the steering wheel with?

The last hair pin bend to Glacier Point. Half Dome to the R, and 3,000 ft drop off the edge.
Don't look at the scenery or you will become part of it.

On the last day we did a long walk from the valley floor to Glacier Point with a climb of 3300 ft and return distance of 16 km. Much less scary than driving, but more effort - we certainly earned our ice-cream that day! On the way up Mike was constantly distracted by a helicopter practicing hovering next to the giant El Capitan cliff face – we agreed that the pilot must have steel cojones!

Deirdre summits Glacier Point. Everyone else drove.

Lower Yosemite Valley with El Capitan on R. More drop offs to make you concentrate

We hired an inflatable raft and took at short trip down the Merced River, which had a couple of small rapids – so small we should really call them “quicklies” not rapids. It was a beautiful day and we had some great views of Yosemite Falls and Half Dome.

Rafting / floating down the Merced River. Yosemite Falls in background.

The Wawona Hotel is a gracious old hotel from the grand old days of the 1890’s. They did use that as a bit of an excuse for things not working – “we’re a historic hotel you know” – not sure how that explains why the toaster didn’t work??   Still, it had loads of character and charm so we shall overlook these things. 

Wawona Hotel

Thomas Hill was a famous landscape painter of the 1890's who lived at Wawona

Beggars can be choosers

Having finished up our South-West Desert circuit, we flew to Chicago so that Mike could attend an Aviation Medicine Conference for a week. The timing was great as we had started to accumulate some ‘housekeeping’ issues to be attended to – repairs and maintenance on equipment, clothing and hair that needed a Big City to resolve.

Out and about in the streets of the city, we saw many, many homeless people begging. The first few days we were there were absolutely freezing so we couldn’t imagine life on the street. 

Looks sunny and warm, but it was freezing. At least this guy has picked a pretty spot.

One night we ate at a Pasta Restaurant and had the most enormous serves of pasta – each dish would have served 4 people. So instead of just leaving it, we decided to get a doggy bag of each meal and see if we could give it to some people on the street.  It turned out to be harder than we thought (naïve do-gooders that we are!) First problem was finding some people – they seemed to have all disappeared. We walked and walked until we found a guy settling into his sleeping bag in a doorway and asked if he wanted some fresh, hot pasta.

-What sort of pasta?

- Gnocchi.

- oh. What’s the sauce?

- meat sauce

- oh (screwed up nose) no thanks.

Guy No 2:

                - Would you like some pasta?

                - Don’t you have any pizza?

                - (we’re not a restaurant!!) no, just pasta

                - oh, alright then (took the meal)

No 3: approached Mike asking for a cigarette. He got pasta instead.

Anyway, it was an interesting social experiment, and you can discuss the rights and wrongs of our actions amongst yourselves. And ask - can beggars be choosers? (submit answers for marking)

Apart from harassing homeless people, we went on a boat cruise along the river, hired bikes and rode along the shore of Lake Michigan and generally sighted the sights. Oh, and Mike attended his conference, in case you thought he was wagging.  Chicago, according to the hairdresser I went to, is number 1 in the US for obesity and crime. We heard many sirens, no doubt indicating that one or other of those issues were being addressed.

The hairdresser also highly recommended that we go to see the musical “The Book of Mormon”, which she said was hilarious (!!!) So I went and bought tickets, and after handing over the money saw the billboard joyously proclaiming “A cloudburst of profanity”…….oh oh, what have I done? It was indeed hilarious, and it certainly was profane! And it made us think a bit too.

Now it’s time for some photos. 

This fountain projected faces which then spat water from their mouth.

"The Bean"

"I told you to paddle left"

Lake Michigan wildlife

Grand deZions

Our last stop on the “Grand Circle” loop was 3 days at Zion National Park. We think we saved the best til last – it’s a really beautiful park with spectacular peaks lining a narrow canyon. We had a great apartment with a fantastic view, right on the edge of the park. We finally had the chance for a home cooked meal which allowed for portion control rather than meal servings big enough to feed the five thousand. Can’t believe that I am excited about cooking!

On our first day we caught the National Park shuttle bus through Zion Canyon, getting off at various points for some walks. Zion walks are either easy-peasy or incredibly strenuous involving perilous narrow edges. We stuck to easy-peasy for the first day. The weather was pretty marginal with intermittent thunderstorms and hail, a quick dive for cover was needed on a couple of occasions when the rumble was a little too close for comfort.

Court of the Patriarchs

Emerald Pools

Start of the Narrows, a slot canyon only wide enough for the river. Really cold, and with thunderstorms about, not really a good idea to tackle.

Zion being Tourist-Central, competition was stiff in the “Most Inappropriate Hiking Footwear” contest. The fact that the tracks were wet and muddy added an extra dimension. The nominations are (in no particular order):

1.       Crocs – in a variety of colours including hot pink

2.       Smooth-soled leather dress shoes

3.       Red pointy toed ‘pixie’ boots (worn by a male) with laces artfully loosened and undone, seen on a very steep downhill trail

4.       Thongs

5.       Socks and sandals – several sub-categories here. Socks appeared to be uniformly white (until they got to the muddy bits that is)

a.       Adventure sandals (eg Teva, Keen)

b.      Homy-ped and similar orthopaedic sandals favoured by elderly women

c.       German sandals – you know what I mean

d.      Flowery dressy sandals with a heel

The winner was a young man demonstrating the complete ensemble of beige slacks, grey suit jacket, leather dress shoes and to top it all off……… a green zip-through cardigan 2 inches too short so that  we were treated to a fine display of pale, fleshy roly-poly tummy fat. (Be still my beating heart…)

On day 2 we travelled to the western side of the park for a lovely walk along a stream that we crossed 84 times (yes I counted!). We ended up at the end of a canyon with a huge arch and cave.  On the way to this part of the park, we passed through the town of Virgin (not many people live here) and pondered the irony of the Virgin “Used Goods Store.”

Taylor Creek Trail. 

One of the major walks in Zion is the Angel’s Landing trail – the last part of the walk involves a precipitous walk clinging to chains on the edge of a 1400 ft drop. We didn’t want to meet any angels today so only walked to Scouts Lookout which is a steep walk to the bottom of the Angel’s Landing bit. That was way good enough for me to earn my ice-cream for the day – no need to scare myself silly on edges.

Start of the Angel trail, really steep, but wheel chair accessible!

Where the Angel Trail really kicks off from Scouts lookout. 

After leaving Zion, we headed back to the madness of Las Vegas to return the hire car – suitably filthy by now – do some laundry and get an early night in preparation for our flight to Chicago. Some folks have all the fun! On our way out for dinner we were disappointed to see Spiderman going up in a glass elevator – why wasn’t he scaling the outside of the building??? 

A Dam Fine Time

We’ve just spent 5 days in Page, Arizona on the shores of Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Dam. Page continues the desert landscape but with a whopping great big lake to make things interesting.

Our first excursion was a Photography Tour of Upper Antelope Canyon. This canyon is a beautiful, narrow slot canyon (down to 1 metre wide at spots) with gorgeous light and colour. The problem is that it is chock full of tourists – why is it that tourists want to go to tourist destinations??? In the peak season they have 200-300 people going through every hour. We were slightly early in the season so there were only 199 -299 people. It was busier than paisley wallpaper. Our guide did a pretty good job of getting us into the right spots to get good photos, but there were some moments of frustration it has to be said. We managed to take 1400 photos between us, and managed to cull this down to a couple of hundred for the slide show. Here’s a couple to whet your appetite……..

The Sand Fall. Wind blows in sand from the top to create this "sandfall".

At the right moment, sunlight filters in from above through the 100m slot.

This shadow is called "Monument Valley" since the shadow looks like a  Butte from said valley.

Next on the list was a 2 day kayak trip on the lake with Jim from Kayak Powell. We set off in glorious weather - mild temps, no wind and glassy water making for easy paddling. Jim had planned to take us into a canyon, but as we neared the entrance, a big power boat approached and a man with a megaphone told us to back off as the canyon was closed for a “live firing exercise”. Next thing we know, shots are ringing out from the direction of the canyon. Time for Plan B which was a much safer walk to a cave and lunch. Post lunch we paddled on in a leisurely fashion and watched the coast guard practising high speed chases across the lake with lights flashing and sirens blaring. The coast guard boat was much slower than the ‘villain’ it was chasing so the villain had to go round and round in circles to give them a chance to catch up. Bit silly really.

We camped in a canyon called Ice-cream Canyon, and I was very disappointed to find no such refreshment. No Baskin-Robbins, no Mr Whippy, not even a man with a wheeled ice-cream trolley. Bummer. It was a great spot even without ice-cream.

Deirdre in front of Lone Rock.

Next day we were doing the “aggressive option” which was a long paddle to the river end of Antelope Canyon. Gone were the glassy waters and easy paddling. The water was churned up with wakes from every imaginable type of water craft, and the swell reflected off the walls of the river canyon making for hard paddling in choppy, confused water.  I found that I had put on my Cranky-pants which are hard to paddle in (they are quite burdensome). Eventually we made it into Antelope Canyon and were rewarded with spectacular cliffs and calmer water. We were able to walk further into the canyon at the end of the watery bit, and enjoy a much quieter experience than the upper canyon of a few days prior.

Paddling into the lower Antelope Canyon.

Speaking of pants, here’s one from the “are you for real?” files. In Walmart we came across a specials display of “Dog Pads” - incontinence pads for “ailing, incontinent or Senior dogs”.  Across the way, there was a display of nappies for puppies. Maybe you dog lovers have seen this before, but it was pretty weird for us!

Other activities in Page included a fairly dull float down the Colorado River below the dam, and a tour of the dam itself.

Glen Canyon Dam

Horseshoe Bend of the Colorado River. Mike had to stick his head over the edge of a  1000 foot drop off for this shot. 

We’re now in Zion National Park but we’ll tell you more about that in a few days time.