Our youngest, Jesse, got out of the Navy in June. His dream job has always been to live and work in Yosemite. It's taken this long, but they have offered him a job and he starts on Monday!! Yay!! We'll miss him, but this is so great! We love going to Yosemite so much. It's about 3 hours from here. I'm hoping he forgets something important so we have to drive over there right away!
These photos are not my photos. My husband is a true artist at photography. I had to share a few of my favorites and all of the photos in this blog entry are his.
Yosemite is a National Park in central California. It's a truly magical place. I love it so much that I think it's "MY" Yosemite!!
My parents took our family for vacation to Yosemite when I was a little girl (in the 1960's). It was quite a different place back then, and I am grateful for the memories. We had never been camping before. The first time we went, my Dad rented an RV. The next time we roughed it with a Tent Trailer. Then down to a tent and finally sleeping under the stars.
In the 60's, the bears were a part of the experience. They came out at dusk and wandered around. People were not afraid of them really. Just excited and taking photos like crazy. I remember my folks arguing one time about the foot locker that our food was in. My mom wanted my dad to buy a lock. My dad said that bears were dumb and couldn't open a foot locker. Daddy put a stick through the lock, informing us girls that bears don't have thumbs and fingers, and could not open the locker.
Later that night, a bear came to our camp and we shivered with fear in our tent as the bear rummaged through all of our stuff. People walked by in their jammies, toothbrushes in hand...."Ooooh, look at the bear"! Then the bear picked up the footlocker, shook it and set it down. He calmly pulled out the stick, opened the chest and feasted away. Mother gave Daddy "that look". My sister and I were both mostly concerned with our precious breakfast cereal. She liked Captain Crunch and I had Lucky Charms. We were "willing" the bear to eat each others cereal!! He munched on both, and he rejected BOTH! Luckily, our parents decided to buy more food at the Yosemite store and we were able to finish our vacation. Now-a-days, the park enforces a strict policy of putting all food in steel "bear boxes". If you don't, you will get a ticket!
Yosemite is huge. You can hike for days. And, there are many soaring mountains and cliffs, so it is a popular place for rock climbing. Our favorite thing, well MY favorite thing for sure, is rafting. You can only do it in late spring, and it is so wonderful. It's a peaceful slow trip down the river and the views are the best!
This picture is from a raft:
This is how I "roll", down the river. Hubby is great at paddling, and I am great at relaxing!!
My husband went to Yosemite as a kid in the 1960's also. We have that in common. Who knows, we may have even been there at the same time!
I had a strong memory of an event that was so stunning, I wondered if I imagined it. But, it was real! It was called the "Firefall". Yosemite is famous for the waterfalls, and years ago, they had an event, nightly, call the Firefall. They would build a gigantic fire at Inspiration Point and then they would push the glowing embers off the side of the steep (straight down!) mountain. From the Valley floor, it was a unbelievable sight. I can't even describe the excitement and anticipation to you. And, it was always a complete delight.
When our kids were little, we went to Yosemite many times. We camped in a campground outside of the park. We really roughed it, and we were proud of our toughness! Sometimes when we were in the valley, sightseeing, we would to to "Housekeeping Camp" and pay 25cents for a shower. There were tent cabins and "real" bathrooms. We would snicker and say to each other "that's not camping!".
We have been having a family trip to Yosemite for the past 7 years as our children are all grown now, it's more like a family reunion. We all look forward to it all year! And, now, when we go to Yosemite, we stay at Housekeeping Camp, with tent cabins, electricity, bathrooms and showers! And, we LOVE IT!
Our oldest son worked at Yosemite 10 years ago. He even met his lovely wife there. They have many fond memories of Yosemite. In fact, they even named their daughters in honor of their time there. Aurora, the oldest, because "Aurora" means "dawn" and that is when they first met. Tenaya, the youngest, is for Lake Tenaya of Yosemite. Isn't that sweet! They have grown up going to the park at least once a year.
One of my favorite photos of Half Dome in the mist!
Here is my photographer hubby! This is the view from Inspiration Point. It's like standing on the top of the world!
Where are my keys? I need to get in the car and drive over there right now!
These photos are not my photos. My husband is a true artist at photography. I had to share a few of my favorites and all of the photos in this blog entry are his.
Yosemite is a National Park in central California. It's a truly magical place. I love it so much that I think it's "MY" Yosemite!!
My parents took our family for vacation to Yosemite when I was a little girl (in the 1960's). It was quite a different place back then, and I am grateful for the memories. We had never been camping before. The first time we went, my Dad rented an RV. The next time we roughed it with a Tent Trailer. Then down to a tent and finally sleeping under the stars.
In the 60's, the bears were a part of the experience. They came out at dusk and wandered around. People were not afraid of them really. Just excited and taking photos like crazy. I remember my folks arguing one time about the foot locker that our food was in. My mom wanted my dad to buy a lock. My dad said that bears were dumb and couldn't open a foot locker. Daddy put a stick through the lock, informing us girls that bears don't have thumbs and fingers, and could not open the locker.
Later that night, a bear came to our camp and we shivered with fear in our tent as the bear rummaged through all of our stuff. People walked by in their jammies, toothbrushes in hand...."Ooooh, look at the bear"! Then the bear picked up the footlocker, shook it and set it down. He calmly pulled out the stick, opened the chest and feasted away. Mother gave Daddy "that look". My sister and I were both mostly concerned with our precious breakfast cereal. She liked Captain Crunch and I had Lucky Charms. We were "willing" the bear to eat each others cereal!! He munched on both, and he rejected BOTH! Luckily, our parents decided to buy more food at the Yosemite store and we were able to finish our vacation. Now-a-days, the park enforces a strict policy of putting all food in steel "bear boxes". If you don't, you will get a ticket!
Yosemite is huge. You can hike for days. And, there are many soaring mountains and cliffs, so it is a popular place for rock climbing. Our favorite thing, well MY favorite thing for sure, is rafting. You can only do it in late spring, and it is so wonderful. It's a peaceful slow trip down the river and the views are the best!
This picture is from a raft:
This is how I "roll", down the river. Hubby is great at paddling, and I am great at relaxing!!
My husband went to Yosemite as a kid in the 1960's also. We have that in common. Who knows, we may have even been there at the same time!
I had a strong memory of an event that was so stunning, I wondered if I imagined it. But, it was real! It was called the "Firefall". Yosemite is famous for the waterfalls, and years ago, they had an event, nightly, call the Firefall. They would build a gigantic fire at Inspiration Point and then they would push the glowing embers off the side of the steep (straight down!) mountain. From the Valley floor, it was a unbelievable sight. I can't even describe the excitement and anticipation to you. And, it was always a complete delight.
When our kids were little, we went to Yosemite many times. We camped in a campground outside of the park. We really roughed it, and we were proud of our toughness! Sometimes when we were in the valley, sightseeing, we would to to "Housekeeping Camp" and pay 25cents for a shower. There were tent cabins and "real" bathrooms. We would snicker and say to each other "that's not camping!".We have been having a family trip to Yosemite for the past 7 years as our children are all grown now, it's more like a family reunion. We all look forward to it all year! And, now, when we go to Yosemite, we stay at Housekeeping Camp, with tent cabins, electricity, bathrooms and showers! And, we LOVE IT!
Our oldest son worked at Yosemite 10 years ago. He even met his lovely wife there. They have many fond memories of Yosemite. In fact, they even named their daughters in honor of their time there. Aurora, the oldest, because "Aurora" means "dawn" and that is when they first met. Tenaya, the youngest, is for Lake Tenaya of Yosemite. Isn't that sweet! They have grown up going to the park at least once a year.
One of my favorite photos of Half Dome in the mist!
Here is my photographer hubby! This is the view from Inspiration Point. It's like standing on the top of the world!
Where are my keys? I need to get in the car and drive over there right now!
Congratulations to your son! Yosemite is one of my favorite places to visit too! Your husband's photos are breath taking!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog. Hope you're having a great weekend.
ReplyDeleteI love the pics of Yosemite. I've never been there, it looks like a beautiful place. That's wonderful news about your son...hats off to him!
Debi