Closing thoughts on Summer 2009

Well, after 39 days, 11 states, 4 National Parks, and several other wilderness areas we're back home. So many new things and places on this trip... There are many places I already know I'd like to go back to in the future. That's the way it always goes - sometimes places you really want to go, once you see them you only want to go back!

I learned quit a bit about John Muir in Yosemite. Here's a quote that sums it all up:

"Keep close to Nature's heart... and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean."

Yosemite

Another place that has been on my list for a long time. Unfortunately, late August is not the best time to visit Yosemite. It was really hot (~100) and some waterfalls were barely a trickle. But, I'm glad we went and was very impressed - definitely will go back again!

Sequoia National Park

I've always wanted to see Sequoias - and I was not disappointed. Such amazing massive trees. Look closely at the pictures for points of reference (people, cars). We saw two bears, each with two cubs, in different areas of the park.

Big Sir

The beach at Pfeiffer Big Sir was beautiful, but really windy. Our campground was in the woods across the street, so much more comfortable there...

Monterey

The drive around Monterey was beautiful. The picture of Jason is during the day at the wharf- there was alot of smoke from the fire (actually worse than Santa Cruz). Once we got a little south of the city it cleared up quite a bit (my picture).

Sailing for Jason's Birthday

For Jason's birthday we went sailing...it was fantastic! I was pretty scared at first (really big swells), but the sailing was a couple hours, so I got more comfortable - they also provided wine which probably helped calm me as well :)

Santa Cruz

We spent two days in Santa Cruz. I loved the seals! There was an amazing view of the smoke from the nearby fire.

San Jose

Ok, not an exciting picture, but what inspired this trip was a Search Engine Strategies conference in San Jose that Jason attended. We spent three days here. Jason went to his conference and I wandered around the city on my own.

Point Montara

We're staying at a hostel right on the coast - Point Montara, just 25 miles south of San Francisco. We rode our bikes down to Half Moon Bay. Really a beautiful, relaxing day with amazing views.

Mt Hood

We camped a few nights near Mt Hood in Oregon. We had a great, relaxing time. The campground was really nice and right on this lake. It was even warm enough for us to go swimming. We weren't very active here, lots of reading and relaxing in the sun - a beautiful place to do it!

A night in a firetower

We spent the night in a firetower in northern Idaho. It was a neat experience, but as you can tell it was very hazy - so not much of a view. Also, when we arrived about 4 pm the room was like an oven - it never really did cool off, but a neat experience nonetheless. The glass feet on the chair are for lightening storms. You're suppose to sit on the chair without anything touching the ground...luckily we didn't have to test this safety measure!

Avalanche Lake

Over on the west side of Glacier we hiked to Avalanche Lake. A bit overcast, but good hiking weather.