Yosemite: Glacier Point

 Stace and I woke up Monday, made coffee and tea and took a walk along the river. 

We spotted these pileated woodpeckers, which were crow-sized and "one of the most sought-after" birds to spot in the park. So we were lucky! Acorn woodpeckers, like we have at home, are more common in Yosemite, too.

We got back to our cabin and Violet was finishing up making breakfast.

We packed up the car again, and took a final bike ride before driving off.

We decided to go about an hour out of our way to Glacier Point, which offers a gorgeous vantage point of familiar sites from the weekend.

There's the Merced! We could also see where we stayed, both Housekeeping Camp and Curry Village.

Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls are visible in this photo.

We got back on the road, and made it home around 7:30 p.m. A beautiful little trip we'll remember.

Yosemite: Mirror Lake, and More

On Sunday morning, we checked out of our tent cabin and loaded up the car and our bikes, for a day's adventure.

We rode down to Happy Isles Nature Center, and admired the views.

Violet found this cool bit of wood.

We the rode down to Mirror Lake, a spot I remember visiting on our first trip, but Stace hadn't been before.

The bike routes around the Valley floor are so well done, and the weather and scenery were awesome.

Mirror Lake is nearly right under Half Dome, so the views were fantastic again.

But as for the lake? Missing in Action!

"It's so clear, you can see the bottom," Violet remarked. Love her sense of humor.

We found a nearby boulder to sit on, under the trees, for some snacks and drinks before riding on.

We stopped at the fancy, nearly 100-year-old Ahwahnee Hotel to look around. We checked out the shop and ordered nice drinks at the bar.
 

Cheers!

Violet found it amusing that her dad was enjoying his pricey gin and tonic with a PB&J from our bag.

We rode on to Yosemite Village, where we went in the big store and the Ansel Adams Gallery. 

By then, it was late enough to check into our night's accommodations at Housekeeping Camp, right by the Merced River. We got settled in and made dinner - at Housekeeping, you can cook food and have a fire pit near your cabin. We cooked up onions and sausages and put them in pitas with hummus - so tasty and a new idea for us for camping food. We took the finished result with our chairs to the river. 

Now that's a dinner view! After eating, we walked along the river, returned to our cabin and made a fire and read until bedtime. 

Yosemite: Fishing on the Merced

While Stace and I were tired and napping after our Vernal hike, Violet was ready to go fishing. We're so glad she pushed us to get up and going again, as we enjoyed a gorgeous evening together.

At one point, Stace had the hook caught in his own shoelace, and at another, Violet caught a tree branch. She was able to get the hook free, but alas, no fish were harmed that day.

We found ourselves near Half Dome at the Golden Hour, and many people had their fancy cameras out. 

We happened to hit Curry Village hungry for dinner at the same time as the rest of hundreds of others. It took a while to get our food ordered and delivered, but the bartender did compensate with a healthy pour.

Our burgers were very yummy, when they arrived.

Stace and Violet took the Canon and the tripod out before bedtime, and got these beautiful shots. The stars are incredible in the Sierras.
 

Yosemite: Vernal Falls Hike

Violet and Cora had a long weekend and Violet was anxious to get back to the mountains, so we planned a quick trip to Yosemite. Cora had to stay behind for rehearsals, so it was Stace, me and Violet on this trip. We were able to leave around lunch Friday, and got settled into our tent cabin that evening.

On Saturday morning, we got started on the hike to Vernal Falls and the Mist Trail to Emerald Pool. 

It's a hard hike for me, since I'm not really a hiker. Violet and I love our nature walks, but we're not going uphill to this extent. My calves were so sore later! Definitely a great accomplishment to reach our goal, though, and many memories made.

This is the bridge with a view of Vernal Falls - so pretty.

See the rainbow? 

Last time we were here, the falls were much more full, and we got quite wet on the Mist Trail. This time, we only had a bit of mist when the wind blew.
 

When we reached the Emerald Pool, we stopped for a lunch break. This squirrel wanted us to share.

This group of college kids from UC Berkeley was having so much fun, sliding on the smooth granite into the pool.

Another squirrel, eating acorns, like he should.

Violet was in her element!

Yosemite: Day 3

On Monday morning, Stace, Violet and I went back to the river for some quiet time and so that Violet could paint. What a lovely time!

Stace is hard to see here, but he's in the grass on the left side of the photo, doing his own pencil sketch of Half Dome.

Vi on the left, I'm on the right. Yes, she's reached my height, maybe a little more! And check out that Half Dome!

Here is Violet's finished watercolor - I'm in love!
 

We packed up and headed out. On our way home, we stopped in Tulare so Stace could get an up-close look at these random WWII planes at a strip on the side of the freeway.

And we also stopped at a local coffee shop for a caffeinated treat. These little tidbits are some of my favorite parts of road trips. 

All told, we had a GREAT time together and I'm so glad we were able to make this trip happen!