Mt. Rushmore and the Badlands National Park

We left our hotel at 7:40 a.m. for the 20 minute drive to Mount Rushmore.  Arriving, we were immediately struck by the size of the monument and the work involved in the mountain transformation.  We toured the visitor's center, saw a file and then looked at the various exhibits which took us through the original idea to the completion.  Its hard to believe men using dynamite and rills, could make a jagged mountain look like four presidents.
From here, we left for the Badlands National Park.  We drove most of the scenic drive, saw bison, pronghorn deer and lots of prairie dogs. This park was very diverse with prarie grasslands to canyons to large rock formations, it reminded us of the national parks in Utah. 

The realization that our trip was about to end brought mixed feelings of eagerness to be home but, already missing adventures on the road and seeing new places. 

We have estimated, in our lifetime, we have visited about 20 national parks.

The rest of the day and tomorrow will be long driving days home.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/2011612MtRushmoreAndBadlands?authkey=Gv1sRgCPq0xtOF9aHhzAE&feat=directlink

More later . . .

On the Road to Mount Rushmore

We had breakfast in the Jackson Lake Lodge this morning.  Our waitress told us that a grizzly bear had been seen recently just North of the lodge.  Our route to Mount Rushmore was South from the lodge.  So, we decided to go North anyway on the chance that we might see a grizzly on our last day at the park.  Boy were we happy when just North of the lodge we saw what appeared to be a bear jam.  We parked along the side of the road and sure enough, there was a grizzly in a meadow.  We took some pictures and watched the bear dig for food.  It was about 40 yards from us and very visible.  It was quite exciting.  We learned from a local bear watcher that this bear was named Blondie because of it's blond fur.  We have been on bear watch for the past six days.  We probably will no longer need to pack our bear spray when we hike.

We got back into the car and turned around for our eight hour 475 mile drive to Custer, South Dakota.  We had pizza at a local resturant and got comfortable for the evening.  We will visit Mount Rushmore and the Badlands tomorrow before heading home.

More later . . .

Grand Teton National Park

We left Yellowstone NP around 8:00 a.m. and headed South to Grand Teton.  Before leaving Yellowstone, we stopped at the Kepler Cascades.  This is a series of small waterfalls that are located within close proximity of each other.  The fast moving Firehole River provided a dramatic view.  We drove on South and into Grand Teton NP.  We stopped at the Flagg Ranch information center on the John D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway.  We picked up maps and hiking information from the ranger and set off on our day. 

We stopped at many locations during our 62 mile drive around the park.  These included:  Mount Moran, the towering Cathedral Group, Jackson Lake, Signal Mountain Summit, Oxbow Bend Tournout, Jenny Lake, and Hidden Falls.  We stopped into many different tournouts to look at the Grand Teton range.

At Jenny Lake, we took the ferry to the West side of the lake in order to visit Hidden Falls.  We then hiked the 2 1/2 mile trail back to the East side of the Lake.  The trail ranged from snowy and dry to muddy.  It ran close to the lake in many areas and provided very dramatic views to the East of the lake and to the West of the Teton mountain range.

Throughout the day we saw moose, a black bear, bison, elk, trumpeter swans, pelican, geese and marmots.  

We spent time after dinner in the lodge that has floor to ceiling windows looking out over wetlands and the Grand Teton mountains.  


We leave Grand Teton in the morning for a long day's drive to Mount Rushmore.

Pictures can be found at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/2011610GrandTetonNationalPark?authkey=Gv1sRgCKDR9r7Zvqy_fw&feat=directlink


More later . . .

Yellowstone National Park - Day 2

Our plan for the day was to hike in the Old Faithful area.  We stopped at the lodge front desk and asked for trail suggestions.  We decided to hike the Fairy Falls trail after first visiting Midway Geyser Basin.  As we were driving down the road, we saw a group of bison lying down just off the roadway.  We stopped and took a couple of pictures.  It is hard to believe these very large animals simply roam free absolutely any where they want.  We have seen them walking down the middle of the road and in the lodge parking lot in addition to the meadows and woods.

Here is our tour book description of Midway Geyser Basin.

The Midway Geyser Basin extends for about a mile along the Firehole River.  The major attractions here are the Excelsior Geyser, the third largest geyser in the world and once the park’s most powerful geyser, and the well known Grand Prismatic Spring, the largest hot spring in Yellowstone and the second largest in the world.The colors of the springs surrounding area were like a beautiful rainbow on land.

We next hiked the Fairy Falls trail which took us about 2 ½ hours.  There is a section of the trail that passes to the West of the Midway Geyser Basin.  Just off the trail was a high slope that we climbed in order to get a high view of the Grand Prismatic Spring.  The climb was difficult over fallen trees and loose terrain.  It was worth it for this upper view of the geyser area.  We met a couple from China who had the same idea as us.  The wife asked if she could have her picture taken with Ellen.  Her husband took the picture and then got into another picture with Ellen and me.  It was very cute.  I gave them our email address and asked that they send a copy of the picture to us. 

The Fairy Falls trail was easy, but muddy in spots.  Some of the trail was very narrow and passed through a new growth area of pine trees.  We were a bit concerned about bears in this area.  We tried to make noise and shouted out loud on a regular basis.  The falls were beautiful and the long hike was worth the effort. 

We finished the day by visiting other sites in the area.  Specific locations of sites visited can be found in Frommer’s National Park of the American West, pages 413-418. 

We returned to the lodge which is located less than 100 years from Old Faithful.  It erupts approximately every 90 minutes and was right on schedule.  The eruption lasted less than five minutes.

We got back to our room and spent a relaxing afternoon in the lodge.  Ellen took a tour of the lodge, which included how it was built and  almost destroyed by both fire and an earthquake.

This has been a wonderful visit.  The geysers reminded us of many coffee pots perking at once.  The problem is that the geysers smell like sulfuric acid instead of Starbucks.  It reinforces the fact that we have been on top of a live volcano.  Since this place could blow at any minute, we leave for the Grand Tetons in the morning. 

Pictures can be found at  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201169YellowstoneDay2?authkey=Gv1sRgCKeTnfHGtKuf5AE&feat=directlink

More later . . .

Yellowstone National Park - Day 1

We left the city of West Yellowstone and entered Yellowstone National Park at 7:30 a.m. with plans to see as much North to Norris, Mammoth Hot Springs, West to Roosevelt and Tower Fall, South to Canyon Village, Fishing Bridge, Lake Village, Bridge Bay, West Thumb arriving at Old Faithful.  This loop was a total of 152 miles and took 11 hours.  We make lots of stops along the way and saw lots of wildlife including bison, elk, bald eagle, coyote and a sandhill crane.  We saw numerous geysers, waterfalls, mountains and steam vents.

Specific locations of sites visited can be found in Frommer’s National Park of the American West, pages 413-418.
 
The weather prediction was for cold and rain.  We have learned to not alter our plans based on the weather prediction.  The day ended up being partly sunny and comfortable until around 3:30 p.m. when we had rain.  However, the rain was short lasting and soon the sun came out once again.  It was a very full day.

We checked into our room at the Old Faithful Motor Inn.  We were not sure what to expect based on the description on the web site and our conversation with the reservationist.  We believed our room was going to be in a cabin and not connected to the lodge.  We were quite surprised to learn that our room was in the rustic main lodge.  We grabbed dinner in the lounge and then wandered around the lodge. 

We have plans to hike some of the trails in the Old Faithful area tomorrow.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201168YellowstoneDay1?authkey=Gv1sRgCPbBtfWr4vnwgAE&feat=directlink

More later . . .

On the Road to Yellowstone National Park

We left Glacier at 8:00 a.m. for Yellowstone.  We stopped in Helena at a Starbucks to make our room reservations for the next three nights.  We decided to spend the night at West Yellowstone just outside the park and the next two nights at the Old Faithful Inn.  We were lucky to get these rooms as most of the lodging in the park was unavailable.

As we were driving into West Yellowstone we saw groups of kayaks traveling along the very swift running river which ran along side the roadway.  It looked like fun, but only for those with a high skill level.

Since leaving Painesville on April 16, 2011 we have driven 6206 miles to date.  The balance of the day was doing laundry and resting up for our adventures to come.

More later . . .

Glacier National Park -- Day 3

We learned that the drive time from West Glacier to East Glacier was about an hour.  So, we decided to move our location to East Glacier so that we could see this section of the park.  We made our evening's reservation at the Glacier Park Lodge which is constructed with huge 40 foot long Douglas Fir timbers supporting the lobby. This historic building was called "Oom-Coo-La-Mush-Taw", The Big Tree Lodge by the Blackfeet Indians. 

East Glacier is described at the Switzerland of North America and is very beautiful.  We drove to the St. Mary's Visitor's Center and watched a video about the park and talked with the park rangers about possible hikes.  We drove 13 miles on the Going to the Sun highway to St. Mary Falls and hiked the .8 mile one way trail.  We then hiked the Sunrift Gorge trail which was .3 miles one way. Our final hike of the day was Baring Falls which was .7 miles one way. 

We then drove to the Many Glacier Lodge.  Here we saw a mountain goat right on the roadway and big horn sheep up on the mountain side.  The lodge look very pretty.  We could not go inside since is was not yet open for the season. 

We returned to St. Mary and stopped into a grocery store to pick up some food.  The shelves were very bare and there was very little fruit and vegetables.  We asked why there was so little food and were amazed to learn than the store had only opened for the season last week.  The Going to the Sun road is not yet open and there is very little tourist traffic in the town.  Therefore, little food at the grocery store.  

We were very tired and happy to return to our room at the Glacier Park Lodge.  We changed for dinner and had a view of the mountains from our window side table.  It was quite beautiful.

We leave for Yellowstone in the morning.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201166GlacierNationalParkDay3?authkey=Gv1sRgCO2z76Dsz4jGqgE&feat=directlink

More later . . .  

 

Glacier National Park -- Day 2

You know you are not in Ohio when you carry bear spray repellent in your bike backpack.

The lodge where we are staying is very rustic with a large fireplace and a hunting lodge décor.  We drove to Avalanche Campgrounds on the Road to the Sun to begin our day.  This is the 50 mile long road that joins the Western to the Eastern parks.  It is considered one of the most scenic drives in the world.  This road is not fully open this time of year due to snow and or avalanches.  We learned at breakfast that on weekends before the start of the main season the road is open to bicycle traffic only.  This is a unique opportunity to bike on this road without having to be concerned with car traffic.  We took advantage of this chance and road our bikes 8 miles one way up this road.  We stopped many times along the way to take pictures of the surrounding snow covered mountains, the many waterfalls, and the raging McDonald creek which runs parallel to the road.  The water in the creek was crystal clear and we could actually see the creek bottom.  We were very lucky to see a black bear crossing the road in front of us just 2 miles into our ride.  Fortunately, the bear was not very interested in us and we did not have to use the bear repellent.  We stopped at the Loop and decided to hike the Loop trail.  We left our bikes at the trail head and proceeded to hike about 30 minutes into the trail.  Once back at the trail head, we got back onto our bikes and proceeded to ride the 8 miles back to the car.  Fortunately, this mostly downhill.  We had our second bear sighting along the way.  This time we were able to get much closer which resulted in some very good pictures as the bear was crossing the road.  What a thrill!!

We lunched at the lodge and decided to hike the Avalanche Lake trail.  This 2 mile one way trail took us along the Avalanche Gorge and river which is fed by Avalanche Lake.  This hike through a heavily wooded area with many up and downhill sections cumulated at Avalanche Lake.  The lake is surrounded by several mountains which make for a very picturesque sight.  We returned to the car very tired, but pleased with our efforts.

On the way back to the lodge we stopped at McDonald Falls to once again see and hear the raging crystal clear water of this river.

We had a full day.  We will be leaving in the morning for East Glacier where we will spend the day and night.  This will give us the opportunity to visit this side of the park.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201165GlacierNationalParkDay2?authkey=Gv1sRgCLrPsPeiuIeS_wE&feat=directlink

More later. . .

Glacier National Park -- Day 1

We said goodbye to Seattle at 8:00 a.m. this morning to start what would be an 11 hour drive to Glacier National Park.  We make several stops along the way to take a break and to have lunch.  There were no signs on the highways leading to the park entrance so we were glad to finally see the sign marking the entrance to the park.  The visitor’s center was closed so we drove to a boat ramp on Lake McDonald.  The view was wonderful and the water was crystal clear.  We continued up the Road to the Sun to the Lake McDonald Lodge where we will be staying.  The lodge is located on the North end of the lake and is very rustic.  The views from the lodge and the boat docks include the snowcapped mountains in the background.  We are staying in a cabin just down the shoreline walkway from the lodge.  It is quite cozy.  We had dinner at the lodge which included a glass of Moose Drool beer for me.  We paused during dinner to reflect on how fortunate we are to be able to be in such beautiful surroundings. 

We will be going back to the visitor’s center at the park entrance in the morning.  We have gotten information from the lodge employees about possible hiking trails.

BTW, there is no internet or cell phone access at the lodge.  Not sure how we (I) will survive.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201164GlacierNationalPark?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCIWsw7KQjequqQE&feat=directlink

 

More later . . .

Seattle

We began our day by taking an underground tour of the Pioneer Square location of Seattle.  This subterranean tour begins in a restored 1890's saloon and took us below the storefronts and sidewalks of the city.  It was very interesting and certainly a bit unusual as we learned the history of how this city was developed.  After the tour, we took in Pike Place Market.  This is many times bigger and nicer than the West Side Market of Cleveland and more on the scale of Faneuil Hall in Boston.  There were lots of people and all of the vendors were quite busy.  The market includes numerous restaurants, shops, fruit, produce and flower vendors.  This is where the Pike Place Fish Market is located.  When a customer orders a fish, a market worker will select the fish and then throw the fish being ordered to another worker who weighs it and completes the sale.  It is quite a show. 
We decided to have lunch at Lowell's restaurant which offers views of the waterfront including Elliott Bay and Puget Sound.  The food was great and the views wonderful.  After lunch, we visited the original Starbucks restaurant.  This is where it all began.  The line for coffee was out the door.  Next was a trip to the Space Needle.  We walked to the monorail station stopping along the way at several stores.  Fortunately, the line and wait was short.  The ride to the top took only 40 seconds and the view was spectacular.  We were able to see the entire city and the surrounding waters along with the Cascade Mountain range including Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helen's.  We were told that there are only about 40 days out of the year that you can see Mount St. Helen's.  We felt quite fortunate to have visited Mount St. Helen's yesterday and then be able to see it again today all the way from Seattle.

The weather the past week here is Seattle was quite rainy.  We were very lucky to have a clear and sunny day today to tour the city and have such great views from the Space Needle.

We leave in the morning for Glacier National Park.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201163Seattle?authkey=Gv1sRgCM2foKzxz86HjQE&feat=directlink

More later . . .

Portland, Columbia River Gorge and Mount St. Helen's

We started the day with our own city bike tour around the waterfront and downtown area of Portland, OR.  The city is very bicycle friendly.  The Williamette River flows along Portland and the city as taken full advantage by locating parks, restaurants and other buildings along the waterfront and it's many bridges. 

We left Portland and headed for the Columbia River Gorge area and visited many waterfalls including the Multnomah Falls which is the fifth highest waterfalls in the United States.  We stopped at Vista House Crown Point to view an overlook of the gorge area.

Our next stop was North to Mount St. Helen's Monument National Park.  It was a 52 mile one way drive from the interstate into the park along a windy road with beautiful views of the Cascade Mountain range.  We visited the Johnston Observatory Center which faces the North rim of Mt. St. Helen's.  We watched a movie on the events which lead to the eruption of the volcano and its aftermath.  We listened to a ranger talk about the changes which have occurred since the volcano erupted. 

The weather throughout the day was off and on rain.  At Mt. St. Helen's the low cloud ceiling created an eerie fog which made driving difficult at times.  We felt we were on top of the world at 4000 feet elevation with nothing but some of the most beautiful mountains we have seen surrounding us. 

We left the park and drove to Seattle where we will be spending the night.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201162ColumbiaRiverGorgeAndStHelens?authkey=Gv1sRgCNfVud7D08yuiwE&feat=directlink

More later .  . .

Crater Lake

We left Crescent City, CA this morning and drove to Crater Lake in Oregon.  We were surprised to drive into a snow storm as we approached the higher elevations of Crater Lake.  This area receives an average of 44 feet of snow each year.  The snow mounds along the highway were very high and it felt as if we were driving through a tunnel. 
We stopped at the visitor's center and then went on to the Rim Village.  We had lunch at the cafe and stopped into the gift shop.  We then drove to the Crater Lake Lodge.  This historic 71-room lodge originally opened in 1915 and is located on the edge of the caldera overlooking Crater Lake.

We had received information regarding a couple of snowshoe trails from the ranger at the visitor's center.  So, we decided to take a hike.  We drove to the location on the West Rim Drive where the roadway is closed for the winter and began our hike.  It snowed the entire time during our hike and it was quite beautiful.  We were disappointed to not be able to actually see Crater Lake due to the falling snow and fog.  Just as we got back to our car, the snow stopped and the fog lifted.  We climbed up the snowbank and looked out onto the beautiful Crater Lake.  We learned that the lake was formed as a result of a volcanic eruption leaving a collapsed crater which eventually filled with water from the snow melt.  It is the deepest lake in the United States. 

We left Crater Lake and then drove to Portland where we are spending the evening.  It was another great day.

Pictures can be found at: https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/201161CraterLake?authkey=Gv1sRgCJizoJjRyf7SFA&feat=directlink

More later . . . 

Redwood National and State Park

It is never easy leaving our family.  We are already counting the days until we will see everyone again.

We left Los Altos at 9:00 a.m. for the start of our return trip home.  We drove North about five hours to Redwood National and State Park on the Pacific coast near Crescent City, CA just South of the Oregon border.  The redwoods here are very large and beautiful.  We took the Coastal Drive which is an eight mile road that winds through stands of redwoods with great views of the Klamath River and the crashing surf of the Pacific Ocean.  For the most part, we were the only ones on this coastal trail.  We stopped along the way at the High Bluff and Klamath River Overlooks for views of the ocean and the rocky shoreline.  We also took a very short hike into the woods on the Lake Hope trail in order to get up close to the redwood trees. 

We continued driving North on Highway 101 to Crescent City, CA where we had dinner and are spending the night.  It was a great start of our trip back home. 

Pictures can be see at  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/2011531RedwoodNationalAndStatePark?authkey=Gv1sRgCPGUq7nar9C3mAE&feat=directlink


More later . . . .

Making Our Way Back Home

Unfortunately, it is time to begin our drive back to Ohio. 

Our return trip has been delayed twice now, once for a sad reason and once for a happy one. 

We make a quick trip back to Ohio on Sunday, May 22 to attend the funeral of Alton Madden.  He was a great grandfather, grandfather, father and friend to many.  Ellen and I are so pleased we were able to spent time with him this past winter in Florida. 

We returned from Ohio on Wednesday, May 25 which allowed us to see Elise's first Nova softball tournament. We got to see her play in five games over Memorial Day weekend.

It has been very enjoyable being here with Jen, Dan and the kids.  We have seen many of Thomas' baseball games, Elise's softball games, Julia's preschool, swim team practice and the Almond School Play.  We have biked, played, read, held hands, kissed, hugged and tickled.  Our days have been full.  We don't want to leave, but know that we must. 

Tomorrow morning we leave for home back in Ohio.  We have an 18 day return trip planned.

More later. . .  

Big Sur - Day Fourteen

We left Monterey Bay and drove the 17 mile drive to Carmel.  We stopped along the way to take pictures of this beautiful drive which includes two golf courses.  The roadway going South ends at Pebble Beach golf course.  We continued South on Highway 1 to Julia Pfeiffer State Beach Park.  We hiked the Canyon Trail which ended at a waterfall.  We had to cross the stream as we hiked up the tral.  It was very beautiful.  We decided to next hike the slender but dramatic McWay Falls.  The trail takes you along the high cliffs overlooking the ocean.  From this vantage point you can see a stream tumbling a hundred feet from the granite cliffs into McWay Cove on the oceans edge. From the overlook you can also see the former site of the Waterfall House.  We finished our hiking day by taking another trail which lead to a camp site high on the bluff overlooking the ocean.  It would be a great place for a camping trip.

We saw a U.S Forest Service ranger and asked about hiking trails which were closer to the beach.  He mentioned the hard to find Pfeiffer Beach Park.  It was on an unmarked road about 5 miles North.  We drove there and found the entrance which was a two mile very narrow road leading down to the ocean.  We paid our entrance fee and then walked to the beach.  It was a very dramatic location with the high winds blowing the waves against the rocks. It would be a great place to spend the day near the water.  Unforturnately for us, the winds were very strong so we did not stay very long.

We got back on Highway 1 heading North which took us back through Monterey Bay on our way to Los Altos.  We arrived around 3:30 p.m. to lots of hugs and kisses.  We were glad to finally reach our most important destination.

This will be the last posting for the the next couple of weeks.  We will resume our blog on our return trip to Ohio.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/20110429BigSur?authkey=Gv1sRgCI-4rdT2jqGLsAE#



More later . . .

Montana de oro state park & Monterey Bay - Day Thirteen

We passed through the downtown of San Luis Obispo on our way to Morro Bay.  Along the way, Ellen remembered having a brochure for montana de oro state park which is listed as the third largest park in the state.   Since it was on the way, we decided to check it out.  We were very pleased with this discovery.  We hiked Bluff Trail which took us to high scenic overlooks of the ocean.  There were fields of wildflowers all around us.  It was very beautiful.  We were able to get down close to the water's edge after climbing down some rock formations.  The power of the ocean and the sound of the breaking waves was a sight to behold. 

We left the park and continued on to Morro Bay.  We visited the shops there and had lunch at the same outdoor restaurant we ate at two years ago.  The clam chowder is still the best and the outdoor atmosphere was unbeatable. 

Since Highway 1 was closed due to a landslide near Big Sur, we had to take another route North to Monterey Bay.  We passed along the way through numerous fields of produce and vineyards.  This area is one of the fastest growing wine regions in the state.  We arrived at our hotel and quickly got on our bikes for a ride to Cannery Row.  We passed by Seven Gables Inn from the VISA commercial.  It still looks like a wonderful place to spend the night.  We got back to our hotel and quickly left for dinner at The Fish House.  We knew from having eaten there in the past that it fills up quickly.  It was packed but we were able to sit and order at the bar.  The food was great and the conversations with the other diners enjoyable.  One gentlemen gave us many suggestions of places to visit on our drive back home.

Tonight makes the tenth hotel we have stayed in during the past thirteen days.  We are getting pretty good at the check-in / check-out process.  Tomorrow after a visit back down the coast to Julia Pfeiffer State Park we will be at Jen and Dan's.  It will be nice to be able to be in one spot for longer than two nights.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/20110428MontanaDeOroStatePark?authkey=Gv1sRgCOXd_8Hv7-6wWA&feat=directlink

More later . . .

Santa Monica - Day Twelve

We left the Long Beach CA area for a short drive to Santa Monica.  Unfortunately, it was rush hour and the 25 minute drive took close to two hours.  The freeways around LA are busy with fast moving, fast stopping traffic.  We were glad to get to the beach at Santa Monica.  We parked next to the Shutters Hotel and right next to the bike path which runs along the beach.  We rode as far as we could in both directions and covered close to 18 miles.  We saw many different sights along the way including:  beach volleyball players, surfers, roller bladders, dog walkers, bikini clad women and the Santa Monica Pier amusement park.

Ellen was in search of the movie actor Matthew McConaughey thinking they might be Matthew that I simply lost count. 

The bike path route included the Venice Beach area which is quite the spectacle onto itself.  It has been described as a freak show, but there just are not enough adjectives to describe this subculture of hippies, street people and everything in between.  There is an area about one mile long where street vendors are selling their items.  You could buy everything from botox on the beach to tattoos to body piercings to medical marijuana.  There were many handmade crafts for sale by very unusual people.  We loved it!  It is a one of a kind experience.

We had lunch at Shutters Hotel and sat at the same table we were served at two years ago during our previous trip.  The food was excellent and the view of the beach made it very special.

We left for San Luis Obispo with stops on Oceano Dunes at Grover Beach.  This is the only beach in California on which you can drive your car.  We stopped at Pismo Beach and watched the surfers from the pier before having dinner.  We continue onto San Luis Obispo and found our hotel for the night.

Tomorrow we are going to explore the area before continuing on to Monterey Bay.

Pictures can be seen at:


More later . .

Catalina Island - Day Eleven

We took the morning ferry from downtown Long Beach to the city of Avalon on Catalina Island.  The crossing took about one hour and the boat had many more passengers then either of us had anticipated. 

There two towns on Catalina Island, Avalon on the Southern end of the island and Two Harbors on the Northern end.  Avalon is the larger of the two cities.  It has a unique feel to it and lots of charm.  There are houses that wrap around the hill side overlooking the harbor.  There are many shops and restaurants. 

We had lunch at a fish restaurant with a table outside looking over the harbor.  The shrimp linguine was great and the view wonderful.  We rented a golf cart and took a one hour tour of the city and the surrounding hill side streets. The views from up on the hills overlooking the city were great.  After some window shopping, we found a spot to relax while people watching and observing all the boat traffic in the harbor. 

This was a very enjoyable day for us.  No long drives.  No strenuous hikes.  Just a relaxing day on a charming island 26 miles across the sea from Long Beach.  We caught the afternoon ferry back to Long Beach and took in an early movie.  

Tomorrow we are off to Santa Monica for a day at the beach.

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/20110426CatalinaIsland?authkey=Gv1sRgCN-at7bl-rXuSA#

More later . . . 

Long Beach, CA - Day Ten

Today was a travel day for us.  We left Sedona right after breakfast and traveled all day reaching Long Beach CA  around 3:30 p.m.  We have made arrangements to travel to Catalina Island in the morning.  We are looking forward to visiting this island 26 miles across the sea.  Sound familiar?

More later . . .

Sedona Arizona - Day Nine

We completed two great hikes today.  However, being Easter Sunday, church came first.  We went to the 8:00 a.m. mass at St. John Vianney this morning.  It was a beautiful church with two large windows flanking the altar.  The view of the red rock mountains was a continuous reminder of the existence of a Higher Being.  We left church and drove directly to our first hike trail head.  We hiked the Huckaby trail beginning at Midgely Bridge.  This trail descended into the Oak Creek Canyon and ran along side the Oak Creek.  The rushing water along this moderate rated 2.5 mile trail was very beautiful.  We met a U.S. Forest Service ranger along the trail who took the time to point the local vegetation and especially the poison ivy.  We asked him for a suggested next hike and told he us that West Fork was one of his favorites.  As it turned out, we had plans to hike West Fork already and this only confirmed our plans.  We completed our hike of the Huckaby trail and the drove North on 89A about six miles to Call of Canyon and the trail head for West Fork.  This three mile trail was listed as an easy wilderness trail.  This was one the best trails we have every hiked.  It was located in a canyon with the Oak Creek running through the middle.  The trail took us across the river 15 times on the way out and once again on the way back.  It was very beautiful with many picturesque locations along the trail.  We were very tired after this hike of three hours.  We then stopped in Sedona for some shopping on our way back towards our hotel.  We found a Mexican restaurant and had a very good meal.  We got back to the hotel for a very needed hot shower.

Tomorrow we leave Sedona.  It is a destination that we will want to return to again.  The red rock mountain formations surround the city which is nestled in the valley.  There were lots of cacti, juniper and pine trees.  The stores and homes were built using pueblo architecture which lives up to the southwest flair.  The Oak Creek river flows all through the area making for a beautiful setting for all vantage points.   

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/SedonaDay2?authkey=Gv1sRgCOCD_5Wol8H9xgE#

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Sedona Arizona - Day Eight

We said goodbye to the Grand Canyon this morning at 8:00 a.m.   What a beautiful national park.  We got to Sedona in about two hours and stopped in at the Visitor's Center.  We got a lot of good information from the ranger on the various hiking trails and area sights.  We changed into our hiking clothes and hiked the Bell Rock Pathway and a portion of the Courthouse Butte Loop.  These were listed as easy and moderate trails.  The trails were not marked very well and at times we were not sure where the trail was taking us.  We climbed up onto Bell Rock and had a great view of the area.  

We drove down the road a short distance and visited the Church of the Holy Cross.  The chapel has a cross that juts from a 1,000 foot high rock wall and soars 90 feet into the air.  We spent some time in the chapel before moving onto our next hiking location.

We decided to try to hike Catherdral Rock.  This is a short .6 mile trail that is listed as being strenuous.  It was short and strenuous and involved a lot of rock scrambling.  We got about 3/4 of the way up the trail and decided to turn around. While going up was difficult, the coming down was going to be even more challenging.  So, we decided to end our day while the going was still good.

We had a pizza dinner and decided to call it a night. 

Pictures can be seen at:  https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/SedonaDay1?authkey=Gv1sRgCM35kKf-q4yMuQE#

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Grand Canyon Rim Trail - Day Seven

We decided to hike the Rim Trail this morning since there were many areas of it we had not seen before. We are glad we did. We started at Kachina Lodge where we are staying and followed the rim to Mather Point. The trial had numerous locations that provided great views of the canyon. We stopped in at the Visitor’s Center and purchased a couple of books on the Grand Canyon. The author of one of the books was there and signed our book. We then took the shuttle bus back to our room. After lunch, we decided to try out the bikes. We took Hermit Road (which is closed to car traffic) to Hopi Point the highest outlook on this road. We stopped at all the outlooks along the way. Each provided a different view of the canyon. We could clearly see Bright Angel Trial a portion of which we had hiked yesterday. We could also see Phantom Ranch and the bridge leading to it with the binoculars. We then rode to the grocery store for a few items before returning to the room. In all it was a very full day of hiking and biking. The weather was beautiful with sunny cloudless skies and temperatures in the upper 60’s. We are happy that our last day at the Grand Canyon was so wonderful.

Tomorrow we will be up and gone early for Sonoma.

Pictures can be seen at: https://picasaweb.google.com/tschick62/GrandCanyonDay202?authkey=Gv1sRgCMjj6dChhMCLGw#

More later . . .