Leaving for California tomorrow. Aside from the nuisance of flying and airport security, I'm excited about the trip. Santa Barbara on Thursday, Monterrey on Friday, Yosemite this weekend, and then flying out of San Francisco Monday.
Went to Cali a couple years ago (on the kid's dime) and had a real nice time. My only request was to go to the Ocean, since I'd never been. Very similar to Lake Michigan at the time, except of course, the salt water. Played in the waves like I was 10 again....had a blast, but man was I tired that night and the next day. Have a safe and fun trip, and you know the saying about pics.......
In Fresno at a hotel with Wi-Fi tonight. Will see the park tomorrow. Went to the ocean today. It is very similar to Lake Michigan. Smells a bit different and the coast has less dunes but a lot more rocky hills in the background. Saw Santa Barbara and LA the previous two days. LA doesn't interest me much, but Santa Barbara was pretty.
Brother & wife were there yesterday.Left here on Sunday,were in San Clemente for a few days,my nephew & his wife live not far away.Were staying at the Narrow Gauge Inn for a couple days.All the pics he sent were amazing.
Not sure where all those places are but I have always wanted to visit N. California so I am totally enjoying your journey.
I have some good pics of the trees in Yosemite. Large Sequoias...not as big as Sequoia Nat'l Park trees, but still enormous. Enough cord wood in one tree to heat a person for a lifetime. Saw a guy proudly carrying out a pine comb as big as a 2 liter bottle. Idiot...leave the place as it was. Next year, I want to head up to Oregon and visit the Nat'l Parks there maybe. It's a dream to see more of the parks in the northwest / north central part of the country. Pics to follow tomorrow.
Santa Barbara is on the coast just a little ways north and west of L.A. Yosemite is due east of San Francisco a little more than halfway up the state. In the valley of the Sierra Nevada range. If you like to drive windy roads up and down mountains...makes for a great view and a great drive the whole way. Not sure what all the trees were but many of them are as big as the largest Eastern White Pines...guessing about 4-5 feet in diameter at the base and towering over 100 feet. Didn't see any hardwoods that I recognize but did see pickup trucks with rounds in the back where locals were getting ready to split.
Thanks for the follow up. Everyone I have known offline that has gone to the San Fran region raves about it. I've never heard a bad thing. I guess I have this image of N.California being very similar to the Flagstaff area. I can't wait to see the pictures of the forests.
