Yosemite - Nature's Sanctury

Living in the San Francisco bay area for the past 3 years, we have visited Yosemite National Park 4 times ( 2 times with our son - when he was 2-1/2 months and 1 year old) till now, in all seasons except fall. First time it was just me and my husband. We spent a night in the park and did some serious hiking. All other times it was just day trips with friends / folks visiting from back home. I enjoyed every single time and the place never felt the same! This post is to an attempt to consolidate all the 4 trips.

Yosemite National park is located in the high sierras about 4 1/2 hours drive from bay area. The drive by itself is very scenic and beautiful. There are beautiful falls, high dark granite mountains, lots of water, seasonal though, tall green trees and interesting native-Indian legends. The best season to visit is spring when the water flow is maximum and the days are sunny, cool and crisp. Summers are good too, but can get really hot some days (It was 107F on the mid June day we went the 3rd time). In fall, days are pretty warm and the water flow goes down and in winter most falls are dry.

There are 5 main water falls apart from many smaller ones. The Bridal veil falls and Lower Yosemite falls are accessible by a short walk from the parking lot (strollers can be pushed most of the way). The Vernal, Nevada falls and Upper Yosemite falls are hidden away by beautiful but moderate to strenuous hikes.

Our first visit was in early spring. My husband and I stayed in a pre-made canvas tent at the curry village. Being a bear country, we had to store food and all kinds of toiletries in bear lockers. We did hear bears in the night. We also heard a ranger scaring a bear away. In the morning, we saw bear paw print on one of the cars in the parking lot.

After breakfast in the near-by cafe, we took the first shuttle to Happy Isles where the trail to Vernal and Nevada falls start. We took the mist trail which is steep but very beautiful up and came down via John Muir trail which is more gentle, but does not have great views. The whole trek took about 6 hours round trip. The mist trail runs along the Merced river and is pretty easy until it reaches the base of Vernal falls. There is a bridge to cross the river from which the falls can be viewed. From here the trail becomes a little steep and turns into steps just beside the falls. The shower from the falls makes the steps pretty slippery and can soak you wet. We saw many rainbows all the way up and it was beautiful. Very soon, we reached the top of Vernal falls and sat down and relaxed a bit.

We then hiked up further to the top of Nevada falls crossing the "Emerald pool" and "Silver Apron". Part of this hike is pretty strenuous. For quite some time there was no sign of water and then we got a great sneak peak of Nevada falls. The sight from the top of Nevada falls was awesome. We could see the whole Yosemite valley below us. I had packed lemon rice and chips for lunch. We sat beside the fall and ate it. It was one of the most beautiful lunches I have ever had and can never forget it.

Nevada falls is almost half way to the legendary "Half Dome", which is still on my list of "must do" hikes. It is one of the most difficult hikes in US and the last 100 feet needs to be climbed with help of chains. You need quite a bit of upper body strength to pull yourself up, which I completely lack. My husband and I started training for it (after this trip) and then came to know I was pregnant and dropped the plan. Hope I will be able to do it some day!! Time to turn back, On the way back down John Muir trail, we got some beautiful views of Nevada falls and then, it was all trees and rocks. Our knees started hurting half way down and were really thankful when we reached back down.

The bridal veil falls (reduces down to a trickle in winter) and lower Yosemite falls (no water in winter) are not missed by any one. The are easy to get to, even while pushing a stroller. The upper Yosemite fall is another 6-8 hour hike which we have not done yet. Apart from these, there is a short, easy, beautiful hike called the "Mirror Lake". You can see the Half Dome towering just behind the lake.

The free half an hour movie about Yosemite, shown in the theater near visitor center is great too. The best point to take a picture of the Half Dome is the Sentinel Bridge. Out of all the picnic areas, I love those in Sentinel beach because of the shallow waters and sandy beaches where the kids can play.

Photo legend:
1. Yosemite valley with Upper and Lower Yosemite falls
2. Vernal Falls from Mist Trail
3. Nevada Falls from John Muir Trail
4. Half Dome from Sentinel Bridge

Surprise, Surprise!!! Fort Bragg California

Fort Bragg California - A slow and sleepy, but beautiful town in the coast of northern California (Mendocino county). This is one trip that I will never forget because I managed to get my husband truly surprised for the first time!!

It was our first anniversary and we had not planned anything much for it yet. Thanks to my friend Smita for suggesting this place. I looked up online and found it interesting and decided to surprise my husband.

Our anniversary was on a Friday and I thought it would be nice to spend the weekend at Fort Bragg. I read a forum on www.tripadvisor.com which lead me to this beautiful single room cottage surrounded by 60 acres of tall trees and beside the ocean cliff. I quickly called them and booked it for our anniversary weekend.

On Friday, I asked my husband to come home early from work around 2.00 PM so that we can have a small celebration. I had taken the day off. When my husband left to work, I did the packing and loaded the car. When he came home, we had lunch and asked him to take me on a drive. He started driving and then I told him that we will be driving for the next 4 hours and I'll navigate. We drove north on US 101 and got delayed a lot in traffic. The 4 hour drive ended up being around 6 hours and we finally reached Fort Bragg!!!

By this time my husband had (of course) figured that I had planned a trip for the weekend, but thought we would be staying in a hotel / motel. Until then, we had never stayed in a vacation home or private cottage. We drove past all the motels and I asked him to turn into a small alley. He was a little skeptical and thought I was asking him to take a wrong road. He asked me "Are you sure?" and I confidently said "Yes I am". Then I asked him to turn into another small road. He said "This road says private property!!!". I said "Don't worry. Go on". Then we saw a huge closed gate. He said "There is a gate and it is closed". I said "Don't worry I have the code". We punched in the code and drove past the gate.

We drove a little more and the road took a sharp bend. At the bend, we saw the ocean - sparkling in the setting sun. The glimpse was totally breathtaking. We drove a little bit further and saw the small, beautiful wooden cottage that we were going to stay in. We were totally thrilled and I could see the surprise in my hubby's eyes... for the first time!!!

This property was just beside the ocean cliff. It was beautifully furnished and we loved it. There was a fire ring just beside the cliff and the view from there was awesome. We unloaded the car and settled in. When the sun started setting slowly bringing out the beautiful colors of dusk, we sat around a small fire in the ring drinking the beauty of the setting sun.

The next morning was crisp and air was a little chill. After breakfast, we walked around the property and then took a small trail to the ocean. The whole scenery was wonderful. Then we went "Glass beach". This place used to be a dump station for glass appliances many years ago. Then the area was closed for clean up. Over the next several decades the pounding waves cleansed the beach, wearing down the discarded glass into the small, smooth, colored trinkets that cover the beach today. It was pretty nice to see how nature can reclaim itself - but it does take a long time. I did collect a few glass pieces as souvenir. Then we roamed around in the small dainty downtown for a while, ate in one of the restaurants and called in for the day.

Next morning, it was slightly drizzling. I woke up, but my husband was fast asleep. I walked out into the patio. The fog had not lifted completely yet and it looked so calm and beautiful. I walked out with my camera to capture the beauty of all that I saw for eternity. I took a walk around the property taking pictures of everything I saw, the ocean, leaves, flowers and even the spider web with small droplets of water.

And then, it was time to vacate the property. After brunch, we visited the botanical garden. Being a lover of flowers and plants, I enjoyed a lot! In the vegetable garden, I tasted "Chocolate Mint", a variety of mint plant and loved it. It had the fresh mint flavor and a wonderful chocolate aroma. I have never ever tasted or smelt a leaf as great as that... We also hiked a small trail along the ocean cliff and enjoyed the breathtaking views. Then we drove back home happy and contended. A lazy romantic weekend beatifully spent :)