Stop #19: Watsonville KOA- Santa Cruz, CA

On Tuesday night, we pulled into the KOA late. On Wednesday morning, the boys jumped up and went to play all day. They went to the playground, jumped on the inflatable bounce area, met some new kids next to us, rode scooters, swam at the pool, rode the choo choo and shot cap guns. Later that night, we had a fire and relaxed outside. The temperature was perfect. We didn’t have to run the A/C at all. 

Thursday, we had another full day of fun planned.

In the morning, we drove into Santa Cruz for surfing school. It was a 2 hour session for Jason Jr. and Nathan.

They had to learn all the basics of paddling out, balance, position and getting up on the long board. Just putting on the wetsuits seemed to be quite a chore. The weather was perfect and there were many other surfers in the waves. The beach in Santa Cruz was mostly rocks so we climbed carefully to a spot where we could see the boys in action.

Jason was the first one to get a wave and ride it in. As with most sports, it seemed to come so naturally to him. Nathan wasn’t far behind him on another wave. A little while later, Nathan got too close to the shore and the waves kept him from getting back out with the others. He was tossed around a bit and hit some rocks so he decided to take a rest on shore for a bit. One of the instructors came and retrieved him and he finished the lesson like a champ. We were so proud that he didn’t give up!  We realized that the tide was coming in and our beach area was shrinking so we gathered our belongings and moved around the corner to higher ground. After washing all the sand off of everyone and watching Sam Bob throw a major fit because he was cold, we hopped in the RV and went to the boardwalk amusement park that was over 100 years old.

We ate seafood at the pier then let the kids get on some rides. The one thing that I thought was really special was the indoor merry go round which was on the National Historic Register. The horses were beautifully decorated and had real hair for the tails. There was a lot of shiny brass on the ride and the music was coming from the Wurlitzer pianos playing nearby. This was definitely a cool place to go visit!

Friday morning, we had to pack up and head back East but not before doing laundry, a little maintenance in the cargo trailer and getting an oil change on the RV for the first time. Yes, we had already put over 4000 miles on it since purchasing it in Colorado a month ago.

Stop #18: Pleasanton Fairgrounds RV- San Francisco, CA

             Jason was too tired to drive anymore and it was very late when we pulled in to the fairground entrance. Luckily there was a late check-in board and a spot for us to stay. The next day we decided to go into San Francisco by way of BART which is the mass transit rail system in the bay area.

 



sea lions at Pier 39


 It took us about 45 minutes to reach Embarcadero station where we got off to walk along the piers. We got to see the sea lions at pier 39 and eat at Bubba Gumps which was excellent.  Jason had the jambalaya which I highly recommend. 

 

The next day was a day for office work and laundry but we also took a trip to the mall and bought new shoes for Jason Jr. and Wesley. Tuesday we left Pleasanton and parked at a BART station in the city that could accommodate our RV and cargo trailer for the day. In San Francisco, we took advantage of the MUNI buses and trolley car to see the sights.

The Golden Gate Bridge was our first stop and it was enormous. I wish we could have seen it at night all lit up with the city in the background but our timing was not good for this trip. Then we rode to Ghirardelli Square for lunch. The first restaurant we went in was too busy to attend to us but then again maybe they were avoiding our table because the little guys were acting awful. We left after about 15 minutes without even ordering drinks. Not too far away was the Cannery where Del Monte was located. We ate at a local Mexican restaurant which was excellent. The food was very fresh and actually looked pretty on the plate.

 

We walked down the famous Lombard Street that zig-zags in downtown San Francisco. The landscaping was beautiful in front of these row houses which I am sure were valued at millions of dollars. The cars were lined up to drive down the street and take pictures.



China Town gate




Lombard Street


We also took a ride over to China Town which was a lot of shopping. I could have looked all day but Jason was quite over the stores and our kids of course wanted something everywhere we stopped. Before heading back to the BART station, we got some Ben and Jerry’s ice cream in the basement of Macy’s department store and visited the Ferrari store at Union Square. This was the end of our San Fran visit.

Stop #17: Yosemite National Park

deer in parking lot at curry Village

We got to Oakhurst late on Tuesday July 17th. This was the closest town outside the South entrance to the park. Having not made lodging reservations for Yosemite, we were in a bit of a bind.
The private RV parks were all full and so were the Yosemite campgrounds inside the park. The only place left to stay was the Elk lodge which was basically a parking lot with water and electric. We ended up there only as a last resort after driving around for 3 hours trying to get in elsewhere.


half dome on right



On Wednesday morning, we drove to the park through winding mountainous roads. Wesley couldn't take the ups and downs and threw up on the 1 1/2 hour, 26 mile  trip.  Once there, we drove through a tunnel and then saw how spectacular the park actually was. From the valley, you could see El Capitan, Yosemite Falls, half dome, the Merced river and Glacier Point. This sealed the deal- we were definitely staying here! Jason proceeded to get on a waiting list for camping cancellations. The process was to sign-in at a ranger hut in the Curry parking lot at 8 am and wait until 3pm for them to anounce the names of those lucky people who were going to get a spot. We were #16 on the list. While we waited for 3 pm to roll around, Jason did laundry at housekeeping camp and I worked on business stuff at the free wifi area. Finally it was time. We were like kids at Christmas! An anouncement was made that only 12 spots were available. Uh Oh! All those hoping to get a spot waited anxiously and names were called one by one. If the person wasn't there then they crossed them off and moved on to the next. For some reason, there were a lot of "no shows" so we actually got a spot, #7 out of 12. Then you stood in a line with your number and paid for your site. It was only for one night.




bear box for storing food and supplies



In camp, the boys met lots of other kids and created a game at night with glowsticks. We had to make several trips to the Curry Village store to buy more.

We also walked to the Merced River and braved the cold water. I think it was in the 50's. Jason  and Jason Jr. were the only ones who actually went under. Of course, I had to walk around and collect some new rocks for my collection.





El Capitan



We purchased two more nights of camping from a guy in our loop that "reserved too many". By the way, this is a very common practice to buy from others at camp instead of through the National Park service since they are always sold out. It is frowned upon but seems to be the best way to get in.

Now we could plan for a hike to Glacier Point. We purchased one way bus tickets to the top and then hiked down 4.5 miles. The elevation change was 3214 feet and yes, we made it all the way down as a family! When we reached the valley floor, everyone was exhausted and pretty dusty.



looking down from glacier point



jason after the hike from glacier point



I know that you rarely see me in a picture but I promise that I was actually there too!

We also completed the junior ranger books with Jason Jr and Wesley and got a cool badge from Yosemite N.P.



Wesley getting sworn in as a junior ranger

 Our last day there, Jason Jr. attended climbing school. He got the "hang" of it pretty quick and was "hooked"(a little climbing humor).



can you see Jason Jr. at the top?



When we arrived back at Curry Village parking to hook up our cargo trailer, we discovered that it was blocked in by other cars. we waited for several hours for it to clear out but were still stuck. Finally, after some brains and braun, we rolled it back into the aisle and were able to hook up. (Thanks Doug for the tongue wheel). Our last mission before leaving the park was to get our nation Park Passport stamp but the visitor center was already closed. As we were passing the exit, Jason asked the ranger if he happened to have a stamp in the booth and he did, yeah! What a fun time at Yosemite we had.

Sunset at Yosemite

Stop #16: Sequoia National Park

More twisting and mountainous roads finally led us to Sequoia National Park in California. Entering the park, we saw enormous trees all around but couldn't distinguish between them.

After going to the museum, we learned that the Giant Sequoias have a reddish bark and are thousands of years old. They have endured fires, disease and many other natural disasters because of their thick bark and special chemicals protecting the tree. 

We were told to be very careful not to leave any food outside our RV unless it was locked in the "bear box" provided at our site. We were a little afraid to let the boys play outside unattended with those kinds of warnings.

Our RV barely fit on the camp site and it was funny to see how unlevel we were.

The jacks lifted the tires completely off the ground in the front.

We visited General Sherman, the famous giant Sequoia tree and also hiked 4 miles to Muir Grove.

It was very cool and shady along the way which I was thankful for. The forest was filled with many beautiful flowers but we didnt see any bears or mountain lions.

The boys had a great time collecting sticks and playing swords, etc. along the way. It was an amazing hike and I was glad to get some fresh air and exercise.

Photos cannot do justice for the magnificent trees. They are unique to this area of the country and are amazing to view, touch, crawl through and climb on. This was a very fun day for the family!