Death Valley

There weren't a lot of visitors to Death Valley at this time of year (imagine that!), but we wanted to stop and take our picture by the sign. I was just setting up the camera on the car to try to snap the picture on a delay, when another car pulled up. I took their photo and they took ours. The timing couldn't have been better.

One of the first things we saw on our way into Death Valley was this gas station. The gas prices were a full dollar and a half more than they were in Lone Pine. I guess if you don't have a full tank of gas and you are on your way through Death Valley, you'd pay just about anything.
What I really like about this picture is the lady who was also so amazed that she got out to take a picture. This may be the most photographed monument in Death Valley this summer.

Grant was SO prepared for his visit to Death Valley. He's been planning to buy that hat since we started talking about this trip last November. He made sure to have light colored clothes and sunglasses as well.

We didn't get to the lowest point (-282 ft) but after traveling roads as high as 10,000 feet earlier in the trip, being at sea level was low enough.

Yosemite

After San Francisco, we drove to Yosemite, another winding but scenic drive. Our first sights were Bridal Veil falls and El Capitan.

Grant and Julia at Bridal Veil Falls.

El Capitan

Our home for the night was a "tent" cabin with three sides made of cinder blocks and the fourth just a canvas curtain. We had to make sure that all of our food and toiletries (anything that smells good) was put away in a bear-proof storage container. We even had to take Julia's booster seat out of the car because bears have learned that car seats often contain some yummy leftovers! Fortunately, we did not have any run-ins with a bear, but we did kind of hope to see a bear while we were in Yosemite.

Half Dome

Ewww, what is she touching me for?!

The river near our cabin was very cold.

Grant attempted to start a fire by rubbing two sticks together, but it didn't really work. Once I pulled out the matches and firewood, Kevin and Grant did a much better job of getting the fire going.

We roasted hot dogs and made smores while the kids told jokes.

Olmsted point was much less crowded than Yosemite Valley. We were able to spend some time scrambling over the rocks and enjoying the view.

A Yellow-Bellied Marmot! Our only wildlife sighting other than squirrels and birds.

Tenaya Lake

Chinatown

The quest for food was more important to some than smiling for the camera. Once we found a place to eat, everyone's mood improved vastly. The food was incredible, not surprisingly some of the best Chinese food we've ever had.

Grant on the trek up the hill.

The view from the top.

Notice the sign in the background... it's his name in Chinese.

Going up hill was tough, but going down was a killer!

Cable car ride

It's been too long since I've posted, but we've either been without internet or just too tired to think. Hopefully, I'll be able to catch you up on all of the things we've done in the last couple of days.

Way back, a million years ago, 0r was it just a couple of days ago? we were in San Francisco. The girls and I decided to take the cable car to Chinatown. Dan and the boys didn't want to
wait on line, so they hiked it up the hill. I'm glad we waited, because not only did we not have to hike up those hills, but we had fun on the ride.

Julia sat with me, but Quincy got to hang on to the side of the car. Very cool.

Alcatraz Island

Alcatraz Island was such a blast! I'm really glad we took the time to go see this before we left the west coast.

I kept threatening the kids that I would leave them at Alcatraz if they didn't behave, but I don't think they believed me.




The audio tour was incredible. The whole Alcatraz experience wouldn't have been the same without it.

Here are some of the VERY dangerous criminals that once lived in Alcatraz.

"Shotgun" Julia Sander
Grant "Hat Rack" Sander








The escape hatch.





Here they are... the escaped criminals!