California - 14th July to 23rd July, 2011

Our annual summer family vacation happened at Bass Lake in California this year. Bass Lake is about 45 minutes south of the Wawona entrance to Yosemite National Park as well. Many of the days just involved lounging around the house or on a beach at Bass Lake. Therefore, I don't have pictures for every day. But some of the days are outlined below with pictures.

July 16th: Hike on the Lewis Creek Trail

We hit a trailhead off highway 41 just north of Bass Lake called the Lewis Creek Trail. We were headed for some waterfalls when we got a bit tired and turned around. But not before seeing some beautiful forest and a few smaller waterfalls.

Check out the pictures below.  Remember you can click on each image to see a larger version.

Lewis Creek	Lowell and Devin	David and Lowell	David the Explorer!
Devin by the creek

July 18th: Visit to Glacier Point and a hike to Taft Point

Today we headed into Yosemite National Park. I visited Yosemite a long time ago with a friend and had always wanted to go back. For our first day in the park, we hit Glacier Point and did a hike to Taft Point. Glacier Point was a place I didn't get to visit all those years ago, so I was excited to see the sites from this perspective. Needless to day, the views were spectacular. After Glacier Point, we hiked 1.1 miles to Taft Point. Right near the end there is a unique geologic feature called 'The fissures.' Hard to describe, and hard to get a good photograph, but it was very cool. Taft Point itself, luckily, has a railing so you can stand right on the edge of the granite cliff looking down into Yosemite Valley. The views towards El Capitan were awesome. Superlatives just don't say enough for me.

Check out the pictures below.  Remember you can click on each image to see a larger version.

The view from Glacier Point	David with Half-Dome in the background	The view of Yosemite Falls from Glacier Point	David lounging on the rocks.
One of the fissures at Taft Point.	The view of El Capitan from Taft Point	A bit closer view of El Capitan	Upper Yosemite Falls from Taft Point
	David eating a snack at Taft Point.

July 19th: Visit to Mariposa Grove and Yosemite Valley

We headed back to the park today to see the giant sequoias of Mariposa Grove, then head into Yosemite Valley for a hike and to investigate renting bikes and/or rafts. The hike in Mariposa Grove was great fun. The sequoias are impressive trees, with HUGE trunks that made us feel tiny. There were remnants from past forest fires as well, and sequoias need fire to regenerate. It makes for some interesting scenes, with fire damage right next to thriving towering trees.

Our visit to the valley was a bit of a let-down. It was incredibly crowded. We waited in line to find parking. Then waited to take a shuttle to the visitor center (which is very small for how crowded the park is now). Then we waited in line to talk to a ranger about renting bikes and rafts. He told us to go to Curry Village. So we waited for another shuttle and went to Curry Village where we waited in line again to talk to somebody. Then we were told conflicting information based on a flyer we got at one of the visitor centers. Then we waited for a shuttle to get back to the visitor center and it was too full to take us. So we hopped a shuttle in the wrong direction simply so we could have a seat and rode all the way around until we got to our cars. Then we waited in traffic to leave. It made the visit a bit less enjoyable, to say the least. But we're planning on coming back with a bit more of a plan for how to handle the crowds.

One of the giant sequoias on the hike.	Upturned roots from one of the trees. The wait to get our pictures taken by the tree was a bit too long...so you don't get to see us by the tree. Instead, there's some couple from somewhere else.	David in the burned out part of a fallen tree.	The base of the Grizzly Giant.
David and Lowell by one of the trees.	A burned out tree on the forest floor.	One of the views on our hike.	David with his cousins Jude and Stella under the California Tunnel Tree.
David with a cone.	A view of some burned out trees.	David in the base of a burned out tree which we nicknames The Shark.	David taking a picture of some wildflowers.
Looking up a sequoia.	Another burned out snag.	Looking up the Faithful Couple.	The pattern of bark on a Ponderosa Pine.
Looking up at the sun through a burned out tree.

July 21st: Raft Trip in Yosemite Valley, Hike to Vernal Falls

Today we hit the valley early to get in line to rent rafts. After waiting in line for a while, we got our rafts and directions and hit the river. The water was pretty cold, but we had a great time floating down the river. There aren't any big rapids so it was mostly a leisurely float. We stopped at a sandbar along the way to play in the water, and had a picnic lunch at the end. Then Devin and David went to the pool at Yosemite Lodge while I hiked to Vernal Falls with my sister-in-law Cinda and her two kids, Jude and Stella. We hiked along the (appropriately named) Mist Trail, which gives spectacular views of the falls as you huff-and-puff your way up the stairs and get soaked in the mist from the waterfall.

    Check out the pictures below.  Remember you can click on each image to see a larger version.

July 22nd: Bike Ride in the Valley, Hike to Lower Yosemite Falls, and a stop at the Tunnel View (Sadly, our last day of vacation)

We rented bikes from the bike stand at Yosemite Lodge and spent most of the day biking around the valley. We stopped at the LeConte Memorial House and the Nature Center at Happy Isles, and had lunch at Curry Village. We all had a grand time riding around the valley. We also hiked to Lower Yosemite Falls, which is a nice easy hike.

David riding his bike by the meadow.	And Devin pedaling towards Happy Isle.	David and Lowell on a short hike to the Happy Isles.	David taking the Junior Ranger oath.
A squirrel trying to keep a rattlesnake away from its den. (On the Lower Yosemite Falls Trail)	Somebody has too much time on their hands.	The Lower Yosemite Falls.	The three cousins after turning in the bikes.
The view of El Capitan and the rest of the valley from the Tunnel View.	David sleeping in the car on the way back to our house after a long day in the valley.

Our time in California came to an end a bit too soon. But we had an amazing time at Bass Lake and in Yosemite National Park. Yosemite Valley is one of my favorite places in the world and I can't wait to go back.