Bakersfeild to Yosemite

Bakersfield.. I came out of my room at about 8:30 and the parking lot was close to empty.. I guess I slept through all of those people leaving. I figured everyone had eaten the free waffle bkfst, but I went down and checked anyway. Wowie.. I got to make my own scrumptious waffle.. I got some coffee and a donut too!! I got packed up and got out of there by 9:15.

The road from Bakersfield to Fresno is flat and goes through the heartland of where we get a lot of our food. There were corn fields, tomatoes and COWS. When I say armpit, that is what I mean. I kept checking my breath and my pits.. but it wasn’t me. Those poor cows.. they all clump together and have to eat through these metal bars. I can’t imagine eating while standing in my own poop! There many are billboards all along the freeway in SPANISH reminding people to drink water?!?!?! I am not sure what that is all about, but the images on the boards looked to be of Hispanic immigrant workers. (I will probably have more to say about this laters)

I stopped at a place called Traver, that makes cheese. The cheese was good, but not good enough to buy since I already have my fave cheese in my ice chest. (Triple cows milk cheese from Costco)(I bet those cows I saw helped make that cheese) I did buy some jalepeno stuffed olives, wasabi almonds, Turkish dried apricots and blueberries! I got some ice for the ice chest and was on my way again to Yosemite.

The road to Yosemite is one lane in each direction. People are good about pulling out if they go too slow. I went through this really long tunnel and emerged to the most awesome view. It was breath taking and brought back memories of my History of Photography class that I took my first semester at the UofA. Funny thing is that I pretty much slept through that class in the darkened auditorium after lunch, and it is the ONLY class I failed at the U. I must have seen some of the images through my eyelids because I frequently see them now and remember about them. Unfortunately, Saturdays in Yosemite leaves little room to park.. ;( I hung my camera out the window and took a photo and kept going.

Second problem for me… I can’t parallel park. So, finding a place to park was horrible. I finally found a place that I nosed into then backed up. I wanted to go on the rafts, but you have to have two adult people at least per boat. Plenty of people in line wanted to give me their kids to take, but no adults. SO, I took my blanket and sat on the side of the stream ate a peach and enjoyed the sun for a bit. I went in the water, but snow melt run off is freakin’ cold, I went all the way in only once.

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Cooper, my cousins’ son, recommended Vernal Falls. I went and had an ice cream and got on the free shuttle to the trail head. I had my running shoes on and started the trek up. UP UP UP UP UP UP UP… This is a vertical climb up. Sometimes it felt I was bent so far forward I could touch the ground. I could definitely touch the steps in front of me as I got closer to the falls. There is a point where you go across a bridge and you can see the falls. I thought that I would just stop there.. I didn’t have the right shoes or the right clothes to go, but once I saw the falls and it said that it was .3 miles to the top I had to go for it. That is the LONGEST and HARDEST .3 miles I have ever hiked. (I should have trained at Wasson Peak at home for this) They were also the most beautiful and breathtaking.. tears and mist were falling from my face as I gazed over the falls. This is where I really can see what an awesome earth it is that we have. This is why people fall in love with this place. The falls spray all over you it is beautiful green and there are rainbows everywhere. The trek is treacherous, I have to stop crying and focus. The steps are slippery and narrow.. there are tons of people coming at me, because I have started this trek very late in the day. Not too many are going up. I pause several times to let people pass and to rest. I really need to be in better shape, but I look at some of these people and I am totally surprised they are still standing!! There are lots of kids too.. and I think of bringing Blaze here.. The sound of the falls is thunderous.. there is so much water and so much of a drop. I get to the top and it is breathtaking to look back.. mostly all I can see is mist. The sun is setting and it seems to reflect off of all the water droplets to create this great cloud. I look around at the top and see the trail goes to a wooden bridge over a smaller fall.. I can see the next falls and Half Dome. People are hiking up there and there are backpackers going up there to camp. (Later in the evening looking up I see lights there, a man asks me what it is and I say campers and he argues with me, and I ask him, “Why ask me then??”, he saw the error of his ways an shuts up) Not to worry, I am not going any farther, at this point in time I am not sure how I am going to go down. My legs are shaking. I sit for a bit, and realize I should head down before it gets dark. Step, step, step, down, down, down… I come to the bridge.. I take my shoes and socks off.. I empty the sand from my running shoes… I think sheesh.. I surely broke them in. I am a bit sad because until now I had saved these shoes ONLY for running. I cool my feet. I turn and see the falls with the light of the sunset. They look so different now. Almost warm and friendly as opposed to cold and treacherous. (dang I love spell check).. I am reminded again of how light changes what you look at … There is still more down, down, down, and more leg shaking. The forest is becoming darker.. it is about 7pm and I wonder if I can still see things in the twilight. Important things like BEARS. I get down to the end of the trail… YIPEE!! I made it and I jump on to the free tour bus. It takes me through several spots I didn’t get a chance to see.. like Yosemite Falls… I do see it from the bus window.. it is awesome.. water dropping that far over a sheer rock wall. I see all the other touristy stuff .. like group camp grounds.. all they way from tents to tent cabins, to motorhomes.. luxury and not so luxury..and some of those 1-800 RV’s. Fancy resort hotels.. and a few info places about the park. THERE ARE SOOOO MANY PEOPLE!! I guess I keep myself very isolated. I cannot believe the density of people everywhere I have been during this trip. AND I am not so sure that Yosemite is as pretty as where my Mom took us camping as kids.. arrgg.. did I say that out loud? The view is more amazing at Yosemite. But I don’t think I would want to camp around that many peoples. Plus there is something about the density of the forest that is very different here.

I ride the bus till dark. I get off at the stop closest to my car. This is where the man questions me about the lights up on Half Dome. It is quite dark and I am very thankful for the miniflashlight my father gave me for xmas.. because this is a mini “Lions and Tigers and Bears, OH MY” walk. It is about ½ mile to my car. The stars are just starting to twinkle and I can tell that the nite sky will be awesome as soon as the sun crosses to the other side.

I jump in my vehicle and realize I have no phone service or GPS. Hmmm.. 8:30pm.. I think I will get out of the park and head toward my destination. I go through hill and dale.. I am thankful I cannot see because I bet there were sheer cliffs off to the right side of me. I see some amazing things in the dark. A lake with the moon rising above it, the reflection across the lake is to die for. I climb to 9000 feet or so a few times.. one time I pulled off to go to the bathroom, and it was so cold I stayed in and shut the door and kept going until I was at a lower elevation. It was freaking cold.. so, as I travel along, I am getting tired. I pass motel after motel with NO VACANCY. I am tired.. I am hungry.. I want to sleep. NO VACANCY!!! Finally.. 200 miles and almost 5 hours later… I find a hotel on the Nevada state line. I walk in.. it is 1:30am. I ask the gal.. how much for the nite? $90 she says.. she askes me.. just you?.. no pets? .. no smoking? Yes.. I say.. I am figuring in my head that I will be paying like $10/hr to stay in this hotel. YIKES!?!? I must have looked tired or something.. and she says.. $55. Yeah!!!! I GET TO SLEEP!! I sleep till 7… I get up and take a long hot tub bath.. I must get the lactic acid out of my legs so I can sit at the wheel on Monday. I get my act together and hit the road at 11. On my way to the college I stop and get some stuff I seemed to be missing.. like dental floss and the like. I was actually only about 50 miles from the college when I stopped for the nite.

I didn’t work this into my story… I was quite lost after leaving Yosemite. My GPS was not working.. no phone service.. no XM Radio.. NO map reading skills.. I got out my print out from Google Maps and it said what road to look for, I found it. I wish that when you looked up roads in google, it told you what kind of road and what kind of speed to expect to be going. I think that I assumed that every 60 miles took 60 minutes.. but it really doesn’t on a treacherous mtn. highway that closes every winter?!?!?!. Driving that in the DARK took some big balls on my part. I didn’t want to burn up my brakes coming down out of 9000 feet so I only went 35 t 45 most of the way.. I got hungry part of the way through and stopped to have cheese, tomatoes, prosciutto at about 9000 feet. I realized at that time that I could not sleep with just the blanket and pillow I brought, at that elevation. The drive was hard on my back.. I took the donut pillow (I use for my boney butt) and put it at my lower back. I kept hoping along the way that I knew where I was going. It seemed to take forever. Once again my Big Girl Pants had to be cinched up around my waist and I had to deal with my circumstances on my own. I was just starting the slapping of my face and the wild dancing to the music when I crossed the border from CA to NV.. talk about a cross to the dark side.. NV has smoking in their bars!!! They are up ALL NITE.. it was nothing to the hotel clerk that I was there. I was happy to find a place to rest!!! I still had no phone but was able to briefly connect to the internet. I was still lost in the am.. but followed my clipboard instructions and headed in the right direction.

I tooled around, went to a bkfst at about 12. This is my hardy blfst, 3 eggs OM, Hashbrowns sliced potatotes with a bit of onon, hand formed hamburger patty medium rare, two nice hunks of sourghdough toast, with whipped butter and marmalade on one . SEEDLESS boysenberry jelly on the other. Coffe to my fill with French vanilla and plain cream. This is my ideal bkfst!!! It hit the spot!!

AND I had phone service. The Bitch in the Box guided me in. As I got closer I pulled over to get my paperwork on the event I was about to attend.

12 NOON.. Onward through the fog!! I cannot find my paperwork!!! Sheesh.. I call MOM and Brenna.. Brenna is close to my house.. she goes by and looks for my handy dandy clip board.. (I have many depending on what it is pertinent to) She CANNOT find it!! Yikes.. everytime I put Sierra Nevada College into my GPS it takes me somewhere new… OK.. Calm Down.. Hmm.. there on the rt. Is a sign.. mm.. this is looking promising. Sierra Nevada College… I have found it… I start checking Dorms to see which one I am in.. I find a desk and VIOLA’ there is my name and a card for a DORM room!!

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LOVE, LOVE, LOVE,

Jada