Great Basin Trip: Days 1&2

Sunday was Father's Day, and also Stacey's birthday! We celebrated in an atypical way: we got up and out and on our way to Las Vegas. We weren't interested in gambling, shows or the Strip, but we were instead renting an RV from El Monte RV in Vegas. It was our first time renting an RV. 

We drove our Mazda to a friend's house in nearby Henderson, and stopped at a local coffee shop for an afternoon pick-me-up. We also got a gift card for the friend who kept our car safe, to deliver when we returned to collect it.

The open road! Nevada is so much more than Las Vegas.

We spent our first night at Kershaw Ryan State Park, a beautiful, clean campground with full hookups. It made a great halfway point to stop at for the night, as we drove toward Great Basin National Park.

We drove to the end of the campground/state park, and found a lovely manicured area with a pond and recreation area. Then, we were on our way north.

We stopped in Caliente on the way, which boasts this lovely 103-year-old train depot. The station was a stopping point on the line connecting Salt Lake City, Utah, with Los Angeles.

The upstairs, shown here, once had 50 hotel rooms. Now, there are offices, along with local artwork.

We also took a slight detour to see Cathedral Rock State Park. As you can see, it was worth it.

We then went on to Baker, Nevada, and to our campsite in Great Basin.

Violet's Trip to Alaska

Violet thoroughly enjoyed her Alaska adventure. She flew up on Friday, and Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty picked her up. It just happened that cousin Alison gave birth to baby Harlow on Saturday, a couple of weeks early! So Vi got to hold a one-day old on Sunday, such a miracle.

On Sunday evening, my parents flew up, and on Monday, they were all off to Juneau!

Later on Monday, the crew took a half-hour flight from Juneau to Gustavus in a tiny plane, so they could spend the week at nearby Glacier Bay National Park.

Sunset on Glacier Bay - around 11 p.m.! In the far north of Alaska, the sun is up very early, and sets very late in the summer.

This pond was near the lodge, and Vi walked by it numerous times on their hikes. She said their trip was full of hiking

Here's a rainbow shining above the Lodge parking lot.

Hiking...

This photo shows a tree, next to a pile of pinecone shavings left by squirrels hunting for seeds.

A river that flows into the bay.

On Wednesday, the group spent all day on a boat ride into the bay, to see the glaciers up close.

They viewed the Margerie Glacier, which is 21 miles long!

Violet enjoyed learning about the glacier, and how it grew and receded.

This is Glacier Bay at very low tide - notice the tide marker stick.

This is the same tide marker! This was about a seven-minute walk from the lodge, where Vi got to experience staying in a room on her own

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Here's a view of the bay from the lodge.

This huna house, or tribal house, was in the national park, a five-minute walk from the lodge. In it were interpretive displays about the Glacier Bay clans, which were displaced in the 1700s as the glacier grew and intruded on their homeland. It since receded.

Carl the Porcupine lives near the lodge, and is a visitor favorite. Violet also saw otters, whales, harbor porpoises, bald eagles and a moose carcass.

A closeup of Carl, taken by another guest with a good camera.

On Friday, Vi and company flew back to Juneau, where they visited Mendenhall Glacier, a short drive away.

The glacier is in the photo directly over Grandma's head, where the two hills come together. 

Violet said that in Juneau, it was evident how tourism impacted the downtown, where numerous cruise ships dock. Lots of tourist shops!

Violet loved her trip. They flew home Monday.

Sequoia, Part IV: More Trees and Lakes

We woke up and had a good breakfast in the lodge dining room, and then Stace and I took a trip out onto the big pond in a canoe. Stace then got in a kayak and sped around on his own. Violet relaxed on the bench, and we admired the nearby large black cows that seem to roam wild around the area.  

We then checked out and headed north further into the park, towards Kings Canyon. We stopped at another hiking spot and looped around to see a number of sequoias. 

Stace and Violet are at the bottom of this photograph!

The stream here sounded amazing.

We drove to Hume Lake, walked around the Christian camp, and then walked along the lakefront.

Until next time, Sequoias! We loved marveling at you, once again.

Sequoia, Part III: Montecito Sequoia Lodge

 On Saturday night, we arrived at the Montecito-Sequoia Lodge, for our long-awaited return to the place we stayed on our very first trip to the park, when Cora was an infant.

It's a lovely place that hosts weeklong family camps all summer; it would have been great to do when the girls were younger, but it was always very expensive. Besides a room, you get three meals a day and activities.

On Saturday night, we arrived in time for dinner, and one of the activities was s'mores making and a campfire. There's also a pool and a small lake with canoes and kayaks.

The food was very decent and filling, with lots of choices, plus several desserts. We took our meal out on the deck to enjoy the view.

Our room was nice and big - king-sized bed, and bunks. 

We had registered for a night hike to look at the stars, and were on our way there, when I checked my email and learned it had been cancelled because of the weather. 

Instead, we took a short walk around the lodge property, and then went in and played Boggle. There were a number of games available for guests. Violet was pretty bummed to miss the hike, but we tried to make the best of it.

Sequoia, Part II: Crystal Cave

 We drove on to Lodgepole Village from the Gen. Sherman Tree, and found ourselves in a complete and total downpour - sheets of water rushing across the visitor center parking lot. 

When it slowed a bit, we went into the visitor center and and the market for drinks. 

Thankfully, the rain stopped, because we had a visit to Crystal Caves booked, and that involved a long hike to the cave entrance.

Above was the road we drove to get to Crystal Cave, including that bridge over a river.

We then reached the parking lot where we checked in for our hike. And on our hike, we came across the river and this pretty waterfall.

Once at the cave, our guide was a recent college graduate named Cora! Violet volunteered to bring up the rear of our group, which meant we could get photos without the crowds.

The cave was well worth the visit, and we even got to see bats at the end, flying back and forth. 

At the end of our hike back to the car, we said goodbye to my parents. They were spending the second night at the same hotel in Three Rivers, while we had chosen to stay in the national park at a lodge for the second night.

Sequoia, Part I: General Sherman Tree

 We joined my parents on a short weekend trip to Sequoia National Park, one of Violet's favorite places.

We all spent Friday night in Three Rivers, the little town on the outskirts of the park, and drove up Saturday morning. Our first stop was the General Sherman Tree, the largest tree on earth.

Just walking the trail near the Sherman tree is a great experience - the air is filled with the scent of sequoias, pines and clean dirt, if you know what I mean.

Waiting for a bus?

We did a lot of walking this trip - Violet was able to RACK UP the P.E. hours!

Rewind a bit to Friday night - we enjoyed a really good pizza at Pizza Factory in Three Rivers, with a nice and full glass of wine. We were fortunate - my parents tried to go to the same restaurant Saturday night, and there was a power outage and many restaurants were closed!