OK...a couple of pics of the boys...Mack going huge off of the curb.
Bodie riding the "Circle of Death."
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Bike Porn
Sorry...no kid pictures this time, just a little bike porn. This is my new Cannondale Cyclocross Optimo - check out the disc brakes. I'm guessing it weighs 1/2 of what my mountain bike weighs.
OK...a couple of pics of the boys...Mack going huge off of the curb.
Bodie riding the "Circle of Death."
OK...a couple of pics of the boys...Mack going huge off of the curb.
Bodie riding the "Circle of Death."
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Sequoia National Forest
Andrea and I thought the boys would enjoy a visit to John Muir's old stomping grounds, high in the Sierra Nevada Mountains to experience a different side of California. Leaving the high desert environment of Simi Vally behind, we drove for 3 and 1/2 hours, north and east to the park entrance near the village of Three Rivers. We stopped briefly to have lunch at the Gateway restaurant, overlooking the rocky Kaweah River.
DAY ONE
At the Park entrance: Over the next 20 miles or so, we snaked our way up into the mountains, eventually reaching the Sequoia groves at 7000 feet. The boys nicknamed the two-lane road, "Intestine Highway," due to its "130 curves and 12 switchbacks." Large amounts of Dramamine were ingested by Andrea, Mack, and Zeke.
The General: Here is the sign posted next to this ancient wonder with all of the details.
It was difficult to get a picture to show the scale of General Sherman. Mack and Zeke are standing well in front of the tree here.
Looking up between two of the smaller trees in the grove. It is difficult to come up with words to describe this Sequoia grove..."spiritual" is the best I can do.
This is a cross section of one of the fallen trees measuring approximately 14 feet across. General Sherman, by comparison, measures 36.5 feet across at the base.
The sapling(Bo), the junior pine(Zeke), and the Giant Sequoia(Mack).
Guess who didn't take Dramamine?
Bodie called this our new home(The Wuksachi Lodge). Snow cover was light for this time of year, but still visible at the higher elevations. The lodge sits at 7000 feet.
After a quick check-in, we decided to head over to Moro Rock, a large granite dome that juts out of the Giant Forest, with views of the Great Western Divide. On the way there, the animal sightings began. This mule deer had an adolescent with her, eating grass on the side of the road.
Shortly thereafter, we saw our first bear. This sow was with cub, and surprisingly, did not give us much notice at all. In the second picture, the cub is right behind the large rock in the foreground.
Another bear sighting on the way to Moro Rock. If you look closely you can see the cub peeking out from behind the tree next to the electrical box. In all, the boys counted seven bear and nine deer for the trip.
The path up Moro Rock is comprised of approximately 400 steep steps, approximately 300 feet elevation gain, and approximately 700 different spots for a careless toddler to fall to his death. Moro Rock sits at 6725 feet elevation, but has sheer drops on all sides. About half way up, I experienced a severe case of vertigo, imagining Bo slipping though one of the many holes in the fences. We stopped for a few minutes, and Andrea wisely decided to take Zeke and Bo back down while Mack and I headed to the top.
At the top of Moro Rock: The mountains behind Mack comprise a section of the Great Western Divide, with most peaking at 12000+ feet. This view was spectacular.
Same mountains, zoomed in a little.
Mack with Castle Rocks off in the distance. We are on the spine of Moro Rock here with sheer, several-hundred/thousand feet drops on both sides. I never really thought I had an unhealthy fear of heights, but this stuck with me for a while, and even entered my dreams that night.
A closer view of Castle Rocks, across the valley.
On our way back from Moro Rock, another bear sighting. This one was pretty big(I'm guessing a male, but I did not feel it was necessary to do a close inspection). Since he was on Andrea's side of our truck, I tried to draw him closer by doing the: Smooch, Smooch, followed by "Here Bear, here bear, come here little fella." Andrea was not pleased with me, so she uttered some words that I will not repeat here and drove off. The boys were silent the whole way to the lodge, fearing that any verbal miscue might cause the "Witch of Sequoia" to return .
DAY TWO
We started off our second day at the crack of 10:00 AM, deciding to take a hike to Tokopah Falls. Much of the hike followed the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River up to the falls.
Near a small waterfall on the hike.
Zeke: Next week he is trying out for "America's Next Top Model."
Mack showing the guns.
While the hike was only a couple of miles, the elevation, rocky terrain, and Bo's stumpy legs, forced us to slow down and enjoy the views.
About half way there, another bear, digging for bugs in the rotten wood. None of the bears we saw gave us a second glance. They kept their distance, and paid us no attention.
Mack near the river.
Looking through the trees, towards the granite dome on the right side of the falls.
Zeke and Bo were so overcome by the natural splendor that they had to pee on it.
Another view of the granite dome, bookended by pines.
Tokopah Falls in the background. When we reached the falls, it became clear that we were hiking up a canyon boxed in on three sides.
Closer to the lower falls. This place was truly heaven.
Mommie and Bo snuggling on the mountain.
Finally, the obligatory group shot. The sign to the left essentially says to stay in front of it. Thankfully, Darwin was no where to be found.
Unfortunately, my photography skills are limited. I tried to get a shot of the entire waterfall, but this was the best I could do.
One of the several Troll bridges we had to cross at our own peril.
Later in the day, we took another shorter hike around Crescent Meadow.
Twin guardians of the high alpine meadow.
Many of the trees had burn scars from the numerous forest fires that have burned through the area. The Sequoia tree's keys to survival are it's quick growth rate and its bark, which can be 30+ inches thick. The bark forms a natural barrier allowing the trees to survive the fires.
Bodie and Mack overcome by the splendor...again.
I would love to say the boys were on model behavior, but alas, twas not to be. There was some whining(Bo), some not listening(all three), and some lying(Zeke). All in all though, it was a great trip, and I'm sure we will go back soon.
Bodie, again overcome by the splendor.
DAY ONE
At the Park entrance: Over the next 20 miles or so, we snaked our way up into the mountains, eventually reaching the Sequoia groves at 7000 feet. The boys nicknamed the two-lane road, "Intestine Highway," due to its "130 curves and 12 switchbacks." Large amounts of Dramamine were ingested by Andrea, Mack, and Zeke.
The General: Here is the sign posted next to this ancient wonder with all of the details.
It was difficult to get a picture to show the scale of General Sherman. Mack and Zeke are standing well in front of the tree here.
Looking up between two of the smaller trees in the grove. It is difficult to come up with words to describe this Sequoia grove..."spiritual" is the best I can do.
This is a cross section of one of the fallen trees measuring approximately 14 feet across. General Sherman, by comparison, measures 36.5 feet across at the base.
The sapling(Bo), the junior pine(Zeke), and the Giant Sequoia(Mack).
Guess who didn't take Dramamine?
Bodie called this our new home(The Wuksachi Lodge). Snow cover was light for this time of year, but still visible at the higher elevations. The lodge sits at 7000 feet.
After a quick check-in, we decided to head over to Moro Rock, a large granite dome that juts out of the Giant Forest, with views of the Great Western Divide. On the way there, the animal sightings began. This mule deer had an adolescent with her, eating grass on the side of the road.
Shortly thereafter, we saw our first bear. This sow was with cub, and surprisingly, did not give us much notice at all. In the second picture, the cub is right behind the large rock in the foreground.
Another bear sighting on the way to Moro Rock. If you look closely you can see the cub peeking out from behind the tree next to the electrical box. In all, the boys counted seven bear and nine deer for the trip.
The path up Moro Rock is comprised of approximately 400 steep steps, approximately 300 feet elevation gain, and approximately 700 different spots for a careless toddler to fall to his death. Moro Rock sits at 6725 feet elevation, but has sheer drops on all sides. About half way up, I experienced a severe case of vertigo, imagining Bo slipping though one of the many holes in the fences. We stopped for a few minutes, and Andrea wisely decided to take Zeke and Bo back down while Mack and I headed to the top.
At the top of Moro Rock: The mountains behind Mack comprise a section of the Great Western Divide, with most peaking at 12000+ feet. This view was spectacular.
Same mountains, zoomed in a little.
Mack with Castle Rocks off in the distance. We are on the spine of Moro Rock here with sheer, several-hundred/thousand feet drops on both sides. I never really thought I had an unhealthy fear of heights, but this stuck with me for a while, and even entered my dreams that night.
A closer view of Castle Rocks, across the valley.
On our way back from Moro Rock, another bear sighting. This one was pretty big(I'm guessing a male, but I did not feel it was necessary to do a close inspection). Since he was on Andrea's side of our truck, I tried to draw him closer by doing the: Smooch, Smooch, followed by "Here Bear, here bear, come here little fella." Andrea was not pleased with me, so she uttered some words that I will not repeat here and drove off. The boys were silent the whole way to the lodge, fearing that any verbal miscue might cause the "Witch of Sequoia" to return .
DAY TWO
We started off our second day at the crack of 10:00 AM, deciding to take a hike to Tokopah Falls. Much of the hike followed the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River up to the falls.
Near a small waterfall on the hike.
Zeke: Next week he is trying out for "America's Next Top Model."
Mack showing the guns.
While the hike was only a couple of miles, the elevation, rocky terrain, and Bo's stumpy legs, forced us to slow down and enjoy the views.
About half way there, another bear, digging for bugs in the rotten wood. None of the bears we saw gave us a second glance. They kept their distance, and paid us no attention.
Mack near the river.
Looking through the trees, towards the granite dome on the right side of the falls.
Zeke and Bo were so overcome by the natural splendor that they had to pee on it.
Another view of the granite dome, bookended by pines.
Tokopah Falls in the background. When we reached the falls, it became clear that we were hiking up a canyon boxed in on three sides.
Closer to the lower falls. This place was truly heaven.
Mommie and Bo snuggling on the mountain.
Finally, the obligatory group shot. The sign to the left essentially says to stay in front of it. Thankfully, Darwin was no where to be found.
Unfortunately, my photography skills are limited. I tried to get a shot of the entire waterfall, but this was the best I could do.
One of the several Troll bridges we had to cross at our own peril.
Later in the day, we took another shorter hike around Crescent Meadow.
Twin guardians of the high alpine meadow.
Many of the trees had burn scars from the numerous forest fires that have burned through the area. The Sequoia tree's keys to survival are it's quick growth rate and its bark, which can be 30+ inches thick. The bark forms a natural barrier allowing the trees to survive the fires.
Bodie and Mack overcome by the splendor...again.
I would love to say the boys were on model behavior, but alas, twas not to be. There was some whining(Bo), some not listening(all three), and some lying(Zeke). All in all though, it was a great trip, and I'm sure we will go back soon.
Bodie, again overcome by the splendor.
THE END
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