Cruising into California

Tues. September 10: After saying goodbye to my host and new friend, Marci, I finished packing my bags, loaded up the car, and headed south on my way to California. I stopped on the way to get snacks at a convenience store in Gilchrist, Oregon, the last lumber company town in Oregon. I browsed stands of local hats, racks of handmade earrings, and paperback books. I avoided purchasing any of them, but did get a warm, sausage-stuffed waffle for brunch. Yum!

About two hours into the drive, I made another stop at Crater Lake, where I admired the gorgeous view. The shimmering cobalt water contrasted against the lighter blue of the sky. Oh my! I wanted to sit and gaze for hours, but I continued on.

After several more hours of driving along scenic, mostly curvy mountainous roads, and crossing the Rogue River, criss-crossed with water skiers, I entered northern California and eventually my next stop at Stout Grove, a beautiful redwood grove not far from the coast. I hiked among the redwoods, in awe of their beauty, for an hour before I continued on to my Airbnb at Crescent City, California. These were the first redwood trees I had ever seen, and I did not want to leave the woods.

In another 30 minutes I was at my place for the night. I used my door code to enter the little Airbnb apartment in Crescent City, carried my bags in, and researched where to get dinner. One of my host’s recommendations was at SeaQuake Brewing Company, on the other end of town. In five minutes, I was pulling into the busy parking lot. It was around 6 p.m., and many people were waiting for tables. I hesitantly approached the hostess stand and said I needed a table for one — she had just told the party before me that there were no tables. I noted one empty seat at the bar immediately to my left. When I mentioned that to the young hostess, she said, “It’s yours!” I ordered a chocolate stout (both a drink and a dessert!) and a red snapper special with cherry tomatoes, balsamic drizzle, and jasmine rice. I devoured my delicious meal while chatting with my seatmates about our travel adventures.

I stopped for a picture of the nearby lighthouse at sunset on the way back to my rooms. After my busy day, I called it an early night.

Wed. September 11: The next morning, I intended to get an early start to head to Grove of the Titans, a large redwood grove in Jedediah Smith State Park, but rain was pouring down. I waited until the rain lightened later in the morning, and set out in light drizzle. Soon after driving through the streets of town, I turned onto Howland Hill Road, a narrow, winding scenic road leading to the grove. The road, itself, was an experience not to miss. As I got closer to the grove, redwoods began appearing along both sides of the road. At many points, I and others had to pull to the side to let each other pass, since the road was only wide enough there for one car.

Eventually, I reached the grove and hiked among the wet ferns and massive trees. The trail was well marked and in good shape, ranging from packed forest matter, to heavy plastic grating and wooden steps. I enjoyed communing with the redwoods for a couple hours.

I eventually left the majestic grove and stopped at the Sea Front Baking Company to get a banh mi sandwich for lunch. Yum!

I took an afternoon walk from my place over to the beach, about a 15-minute walk. I climbed down a set of stairs and peeked in tidepools, wading in the waves. When dinner time approached, I made my way back to Sea Quake Brewing Company for pizza, this time. After dinner, I walked down the pier at the city park and watched the sun set over the lighthouse once again before calling it a night.

Thurs. September 12: I got an early start at 8 a.m. and began the drive to Mount Shasta, CA. The best way to drive between Crescent City, CA and Mt. Shasta, CA, according to Google Maps, was to drive back up to Oregon and curve around, heading back down toward Mt. Shasta in California. I followed Google Maps, and within several hours I was in Mt. Shasta. I stopped at the Headwaters to get fresh water out of the ground (as instructed by my friend, Pam, who has a home there) and then headed over to the Mount Shasta Pickleball Courts and played several games with the friendly local players. I was still too early to check into my Airbnb, so I strolled through the streets of town, stopping at a neat art store to pick up a few supplies and chatted with the owner, Iris, who also knew Sharon, one of the pickleball players I had just played with! After some shopping, I stopped at a restaurant in town and got a juicy burger for dinner before heading to my Airbnb cottage to relax for the rest of the evening.

Fri. September 13: I played pickleball once again at the local courts, enjoying great games with the players. After the games, I drove up Mount Shasta and hiked the Panther Meadows hiking trail. It was a lovely, scenic hike along a mountain stream, with wildflowers blooming and distant mountain views. On the way home from my hike, I stopped at Berryvale, the local grocery store, and found hummus, cheddar cheese, pasta salad, and butternut squash soup to enjoy back at my place for dinner. I enjoyed a relaxing evening, eating at “home” and reading my book before calling it a night.

Sat. September 14: I packed up and loaded my car again, and before heading south to Yosemite National Park, I fit in several more games of pickleball at the Mount Shasta Courts. The drive began with scenic, mountainous terrain. At one point, I crossed the Sacramento River, where I saw boats pulling water skiiers. I stopped at a roadside rest stop and bought a large cup of fresh fruit that the man cut in front of me from his umbrella stand. As I munched on my fruit, I crossed through Sacramento and headed east toward Yosemite. The terrain became increasingly mountainous, and soon I was twisting on switchbacks as I neared Yosemite. I arrived after seven hours of driving, and soon was in a line to check into my unheated canvas tent cabin at Curry Village. After checking in and receiving detailed instructions, including the location of my “cabin,” location to and code for the restroom, and the key to the padlock for my cabin, I went back to my car and circled the Curry Village parking lot several times until a parking spot appeared. I made many trips to my cabin, because I not only had to carry the belongings I would need for the next several nights, but I also had to go through my car to make sure that any food items or scented products were removed and carried to my cabin, where I had to secure them in the metal bear-proof box located in front of the cabin. Since the cabin was a quarter mile from my car, that kept me busy until dusk. I ate some leftover pasta salad, headed down to the bathhouse for a shower, and snuggled into my cabin for the night.

Sun. September 15: I stopped at the cafeteria-style restaurant for coffee and breakfast and then filled the day with hiking around Yosemite Valley. The views of the amazing mountains and cliffs surrounding the lovely meadows and the Merced River were amazing. I hiked the Cook’s Meadow Trail and the trail to the lower Yosemite Fall (which I found was not falling, haha, as when the snowpack up the mountain has all melted, the Yosemite Falls dry up). I checked out the shops and displays around Yosemite Village before walking back to my cabin. I had shuttled there earlier, but realized it wasn’t worth the long wait for the shuttle. After dinner, which was a turkey sandwich from the convenience/souvenir shop at Curry Village, I stopped at my car to grab my sleeping bag. The temperature was to go down into the upper 40s that night, and I had been a bit chilly the night before. This time, I had a sleeping bag, blanket, and long johns to keep me warm.

Mon. September 16: I got early coffee at the coffee shop and prepared for a day of driving to other Yosemite sites. My first stop was Bridal Veil Falls. They were pretty and narrow, but still flowing/falling! Next, I stopped for pictures at the Tunnel View pull-off. The view was awesome! I headed from there to the Mariposa Redwood Grove Parking area, about a one-hour drive on scenic, twisting roads. I took a short shuttle ride from there to the Mariposa Redwood Grove, where I enjoyed hiking and looking at the massive trees while snapping numerous pictures. After taking the shuttle back to my car and driving back north, I made my way to Glacier Point (the road to Glacier Point was a 17-mile winding road), where I hiked to the point and had more photo opportunities. I was glad to have my winter coat in the car, because the temperature was much colder up high on the mountain, and the sun was lower and wind was picking up.

I returned from my day of exploring the greater Yosemite area by late afternoon. I stopped over at the bar near the Yosemite restaurant and got a burger and a beer to enjoy while typing on my computer. After a bit, a woman asked if she could sit at the other seat, and I said, “Of course.” She told me her name was Natasha, and she asked me for help connecting to Wi-Fi. After I helped her, we got to chatting and hit it off. We both invited each other to visit us in our respective homes in Florida and California, some day. I hope we do!

After dinner, I made my way back to Camp Curry and prepared to settle in for the night. (When you are staying in a cabin with no heat or electricity, only a light bulb for a bit of light, you tend to snuggle in your sleeping bag early! Plus, the temperature overnight was to get down to the 40s.)

Tues. September 17: This was my last full day in Yosemite! I had signed up for a group hike to Vernal and Nevada Falls. The hike was about 8 miles total. Our fearless leader, Jocelyn, led us along the mountain trails, slowing at times for the slower among us to catch up. We kept up a brisk pace, often going up and down steps or slopes. We navigated broken pavement, rocks with sand on them, and larger stones that we walked over or around. The original hike called for us to hike the Mist Trail to the falls, but since the Mist Trail was closed for repairs, we bypassed it and did the John Muir Trail. We were still able to see the first fall, the Vernal Fall, we just didn’t walk in front of it. We then made our way to the upper fall, the Nevada Fall, where we admired the view, took pictures, and ate lunch before heading back down the mountain.

The day was certainly full and wonderful, and I even got 33,000 steps for my day! I had enjoyed chatting with Rebecca, another hiker, and we joined each other for a delicious dinner of pizza from the Curry Village Pizza Shop. I was happy to head to bed shortly after dinner. The next day, I would pack up once again, load up my car, and head north to Lake Tahoe first, and then on to Nevada and Utah.