Sequoia National Park

In August, 2010, Mike, Sarah, and Josephine drove to Sequoia National Park East of Visalia, CA in the southern Sierra Nevada Mountain Range.  The park was beautiful, scenic, and had historical significance.  The sites were large, well-kept, and had great bear lockers.  Really I have only great things to say about this amazing park.  Put it on your bucket list.
We took so many photos, I think it's best to tell this story in pictures.
Upon our arrival to the park, we decided to get out, stretch our legs, and make a beeline for the nearest photo op.

This looks like something a responsible parent would do.

Stretching legs, as promised.

Mike is tall, but this tree makes him look less tall.

We're really thrilled to be here.

Believe it or not, Josephine and I are actually at the base of the tree in this photo...

"Rock"ing this pose.  Get it.  Ha.  Ha.

Peek-a-boo!

We came, we saw, we bought the overpriced sweatshirt when it got colder than we expected.

A candid camper photo.

Me trying not to smile because we set the camera up on a timer, and then tried to make this look like a candid photo of the three of us.

This whole photo was just a mistake...

The happy campers.

Don't ever, ever, ever, ever...!  Leave your bear locker open unattended.

Tired hikers.

The obligatory looking up through the trees while the sun shines down photo.  Can anyone say "Thank God this camera has a built in light meter?"

The General Sherman tree is the largest tree by volume, though not height or width in the whole world.

The innards of a Sequoia.

Are you guys coming?

Lichen, meet Miken, while he's hikin'

We look like we like each other.

So big!  Mommy's shoes are So ugly!

Reading about Schist and Quartzite on the way to the cave.

Which cave did we go to?

Arrr!  Mateys!  Ready to go into the cave.

The happy couple while we were still young and...happy.

Sometimes I can't remember if I'm camping, spelunking, or posing for an Abercrombie catalog.

Caves, water...I think they have something to do with each other.

Bear in the road!  Bear in the road!

Don't drive through this unless you are in a compact car manufactured before 1991.

Obligatory looking up into branches of tree from below photo.

A Sequoia pine cone.  They sure are tiny.

A Sequoia seed.  I already feel like the Once-ler.

Our last hike, just beautiful.  I don't even have anything snarky to say.

Deer butt sighting!

Someday we will go to Yosemite and also Redwood National Park, home of the tall, skinny trees.  This was a truly unforgettable park and a great camping/hiking experience.

The scenic Mojave Desert

In May of 2010, we drove the the Mojave Desert and stayed at the Needles KOA.  Greg joined us for this trip.

Actually, this photo was not taken in the sixties, but in 2010.

 Our first stop was Mitchell Caverns, a series of limestone caves located in the Mojave Desert.  Fun Stuff.

 

 

 

Stalactites.

 

 

 

 

Exiting the cave, we took a look around at some of the desert life.  Mostly cacti.

 

Desert flora.

Desert fauna.

On our way home, we made a stop at Joshua Tree National Park.   Most people know this already, but I'll tell you anyway - Joshua trees aren't really trees, they are actually a type of yucca plant.

And here are the Joshua Trees.

San Onofre State Beach April 2009

In 2009 we camped just north of San Diego at San Onofre State Beach.  We stayed at the San Mateo Campground within the beach.  We also visited SeaWorld on this particular trip.  Josephine had a wonderful time and even brushed up on her photography skills!

Josephine trying out her first big girl camping chair.

 

Sarah and J getting dinner ready.

I wonder who took these photos?

Sarah and J @ SeaWorld in front of the Clydesdale stables.

Josephine loved this family of ducks that joined us for lunch in the park.

Mike and J visiting the duck pond at SeaWorld.

Estes Park Vacation July 2009

In the summer of 2009 we planned a week long camping trip that would end up in Estes Park, CO where we would meet up with Mike's sister and her family.
Our first stop on our way out of California was at the Barstow KOA.  We only spent one night here.  Not a great campground, but it served it's purpose we got there late and left early.

Josephine showing off the beautiful flower in her hair.

Hamlet, J and Sarah outside our camper. 

Hamlet at his usual post no matter where we go - ready to bark at anyone who looks suspicious.

Our next stop on our way to Estes Park, was at the Watchman Campground inside Zion National Park.  This was a gorgeous campground we were surrounded on all sides by high cliffs.  It really was a great find but it was extremely hot when we arrived, however, it did cool down at night very nicely. 

The view from our campsite, amazing views. 

Dinner time!

Josephine waiting for a fire that wasn't going to happen at this site.  Too HOT!!

Our next stop was in Colorado at the James M. Robb State Park.  This was our last stop before getting to Estes Park.  We arrived here rather late, and I don't believe we took any photos. Mosquitoes were particularly bad here. 

The next day we reached our destination - Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park, CO.  We chose to stay at the KOA in Estes Park instead of in the park itself because we wanted nicer amenities for the young girls.  We found out about two days after we left that Kate and James had car troubles in Missouri on their way over.  Unfortunately the issue was so severe that they had to turn back and could not join us in Colorado.  It was too bad, but we managed to still have a fun time while we were there.
To get to our Estes Park KOA campsite, we first had to drive through
Rocky Mountain National Park.  Heretofore referred to as RMNP.  Here is a
photo of the pit stop we made above the treeline in the "Alpine
Tundra."  The elevation is so high and the amount of oxygen in the air
is so low that trees actually cannot grow.  Very few plants and grasses
can actually survive at this altitude.

Don't mind us, we're just hauling this thing up a mountain with a V6 engine and crappy brakes.

 Our first pit stop in RMNP was...  The bathroom.  Luckily there were scenic views.

This is what a woman on the edge after 7 hours of driving in hypoxic conditions looks like.

Yeah yeah, we bought a sweatshirt.

And a jacket...

 After our photo op outside the bathroom and gift shop, we headed up the hill a little more.

Plants can't really grow here because of oxygen deprivation, but 60-year-old dudes on bicycles apparently function just fine!  Way to make us feel like slackers.

The Alpine Tundra.  Taken from the window of a moving van by a slacker who didn't want to get out of the car.  Unlike the dude on the bike.

We arrived at the Estes Park KOA and set up our camper.  Afterwards, Josephine wanted to play.

A cheap plastic playset is one of the many amenities KOA had to offer.

No dogs are allowed in RMNP, so we had to board Hamlet for the day in order to go hiking in the park.  It was well worth it!  What a scenic hike.  The three of us had a blast.

I wish I could remember the name of the trailhead!  But, if we ever have to Google it, apparently the elevation was 9,405 feet.

 We loaded Josephine up on Sarah's back and loaded the water on Mike's back.  Here we are, ready to go.

Hiking is so relaxing.  Also, do not forget your K-State dew rag when you are hiking in Colorado.  Very Important.

 We made a stop to take some photos and take a drink.  Here is Josephine flaunting her amateur photography skills.

Abandoned mineshaft with vintage goldpanner's bucket.  Had a heck of a time keeping Josephine from climbing all over this.

 Teddy stayed behind to rest while we did some sightseeing.

As of June 2012, we still have this bear, but he has been downgraded from 'excellent' to 'fair' condition.

 And, of course, we couldn't resist taking some photos of the scenery.

Pretty flowers.

Cool mossy stuff + the digital macro feature on my camera = sweet picture.

 After our hike, we took a picture-taking hiatus.  But we did meet the Bilotte family in Fort Collins.  Josephine got to play with Nathan and Meggan's son Oliver.  Here they are having a wagon ride through the park:

Maybe we can go camping someday when we are five years old!

 After a week of camping, hiking, and other types of aerobic fun, we decided to stay our last night in a hotel room for a little rest and pampering.

*wistful sigh* i can finally get some rest from all this barking.