Day 9 - Yosemite and the many falls

The day we had been waiting for had arrived and we could not have asked for better temperatures. Early spring is a big time for the park, as the snow melt brings the waterfalls to life. Anna and I woke up at 6am and she cooked a wonderful breakfast of eggs, bacon and biscuits to get us off to the right start. Before the biscuits finished baking around 7am, I woke the kids. We all eat quickly and gathered our things to head down to the park.

Exploration started at Yosemite Falls, a majestic place in the park with fabulous views. From the valley floor, the walk to Yosemite Falls vista was short. It was one of those places that once visited, you know the grandeur and wonder of the place was created by something far bigger than you.

The goal for day was to hike the Mist Trail to Vernal Falls. It was a taxing hike but well worth the walk. The hike was pretty much straight up for two miles. The last half mile was a staircase rock climb beside the falls. Rocks were slippery, but luckily we had walking poles.

After the falls we headed over to the Village Store and grab a bit of lunch. I then took the family over to a stop near the river and let LT fish for a while. We needed to get gas for the car and I did not want us stuck in the middle of Yosemite without gas, so I attempted to drive back to the gas station we went to the day prior. Their generator had been out for days and was acting temperamental. Luckily it was working when I got there. Car filled and back to troops I went.

The girls had walked to the base El Capitan, the famous mountain climbing rock, while I went for gas. Part of the rock was closed to climbers due to nesting birds and loose rocks. The bottom section was open to climbers, but this was apparently not the season for them to climb.

With all of us spent and having an amazing day, we drove back to the house and called it a day.

Day 8 - Heading into the Valley

Although there was still so much to do in San Francisco, we were all very excited to get to Yosemite, so we left the bay at around 9:30am. Surprisingly with all the congestion in the downtown area, I believed it would have taken us at least 30 minutes to get out of San Fran – we managed it in about 15 minutes. The route took us from San Fran to Sacramento and then via CA120 right into the heart of Yosemite.

After an hour on the road and somewhat outside of the bay area, we chose a dining place called the Black Bear Diner. Like a Perkins – only better! The portions were crazy and food was delicious!!

It was a beautiful drive once we got off the interstate onto CA120. The ride took us through a lot of almond groves and farming country. We stopped at one of the groves, so Moma could get out and see what an almond looked like within its shell. Halfway through the ride we hit a little farmer's market where we loaded up on all kinds of dried fruit and jerky snacks.

The place we rented was through VRBO and the owners (Holly & Jeff) of the house (Royal Retreat), gave us a lot of good prep information. Being that Yosemite is a national park – a BIG national park, there really isn’t any good grocery stores or gas stations anywhere close once you get inside. We stopped at Raleys, a California grocery chain, in Oakdale, about 2 hours out from the house. The last gas stop was 45 minutes out, however when we arrived the power was out and therefore – No gas!

Never have I been on a 5 hour drive and been through five different landscapes/micro-climates. Absolutely mind boggling!!! Every single one was just as wonderful as the next – however the last one we encountered has to be the one with the most beautiful mountain vista I have ever seen. It was hard not to stop at every turn as we approached Yosemite. Every stop had a better view and each became more amazing. Finally we stop at Tunnel View – WOW! It was the vista in which you could see all the mountain features like El Capitan, Half Dome and Bridal Falls.

Everybody was ready to get to the place and finally get out of the car for good. We unpacked and relaxed the rest of the evening.

Ready to hit Yosemite Yalley in the morning!

Day 7 - Haight & Ashbury

The troops did not hear revelry this morning. We sounded the trumpet over and over and finally the troop arose at 10am. Today we ended up heading to Haight-Ashbury, an eclectic section in the bay area. It is a district of shops and eccentric little restaurants and bars. We took the metro bus which took around 30 minutes to get there.

Ready for some grub we ate at a place called the Pork Shop. It was an awesome brunch - just look at the pic.

Sad to say but we only rolled around for a little longer until we ran across Cha Cha Cha. This was a restaurant recommendation from our guy from Strawberry who said this place was amazing. You know I had to try it. Plus on arrival, it happened that one of LT's buddies back from Charlotte was eating there at the same time. Alex is a buddy of his who goes to Myers Park. Small world!

We continued to kick it in the area until around 3:30pm and then LT & Dad headed back to the hotel. Moma and Olivia decided to stay for a bit and continue shopping.

Day 6 - Powering it up Powell Street to Chinatown

To make sure we hit all the checkboxes, we needed a way to get around San Francisco. What better way than by Trolley? As soon as we got up, we went down to the Market Street connector in the Financial District to purchase four one day passes. The neat thing was you could ride on any trolley, cable car, bus or subway.

With tickets in hand, we jumped on the trolley and headed to Chinatown. Although it was a little after 9am when arrived, most of the shops and eateries we still closed. I didn’t figure Easter Monday was the cause, but  things don’t start moving around here until 10am. We continued to bum around for a while and then decided to head down to the water and come back after Chinatown woke up.

Pier 39 is the famous pier where all the sea lions hang out. It is also the Gatlinburg of piers – shops galore and restaurants by the handful. The sea lions are definitely the main attraction here and all of us watched, photographed and videoed them for some time.

The idea initially in the morning was to get to Chinatown and grab something to eat. Since nothing was really open, that never happened. Everyone was hungry and since some of the restaurants on the pier still hadn’t opened for lunch, we determined Swiss Zone would be our best bet. It was a seafood restaurant known for its Dungeness Crabs. Stomachs had been growling for some time, so we were all ready to order. The kids got some salads, which had an amazing dressing. Olivia also got a tomato soup – not sure if it was good since she wouldn’t share. I think it may have been good though, as there was none left. Anna of course got the Dungeness Crabs and I got the steams mussels.

Recharged, the kids and I hit the Aquarium. It was a smaller aquarium, but the exhibits were awesome. On entry, it threw you into a jellyfish exhibit which had species none of us had ever seen. It also featured a little tiny fish called a Lumpsucker. It was so cute you wanted to pet the dang thing.

The next two sections were tunnel sections which allowed  you to walk under the water and view all the different bay area fishes, rays and sharks. Leopard sharks, Striped bass, Sturgeon, Halibut, Rockfish and King Salmon are the primary species in and the surrounding bay area. It is not very often you get an up close and personal of a Sturgeon, so when you do it is special.

We synced back up with Mom after the aquarium and took a cable car back to Chinatown. The cable car dropped us off a couple of blocks away from our destination, so we trekked the remaining blocks. Plenty of stores and gift shops with all kinds of Asian inspired stuff. However, sfter you have been in one, you’ve pretty much been in all. The girls had a blast and checked out various unique stores and it wasn’t too much longer and we all decided we could eat again. Yummy – lunch - #2!! We chose a clean looking place in which we hoping to see plenty of locals eating at. 

LT did notice their aquarium sitting outside was nasty and clogged with algae.  His thought was if the aquarium looks like that, what do you think the kitchen looks like? Good point! Unfortunately the boys were overruled. Fortunately, lunch ended up to be pretty good.

Around 3pm we headed back to the hotel to rest, change shoes and freshen up a bit. Everyone took a break and lolly-gagged for about an hour. Batteries rejuvenated, the kids headed out to do a little shopping. Olivia saw some stuff the day prior at Urban Outfitters and was hoping to get it before she left. Anna and I went out strolling about 15 minutes later and walk around our area a bit before meeting back up with the kids and helping them acquire their finds.

Back on the trolley and to a place we ran across earlier in the day – The Stinking Rose. Yup, you guessed it – another restaurant! Not but three hours later and we were eating again! The restaurant is a garlic inspired place where everything on the menu has garlic in it, on it, around it or with it. The meal was incredible. Thomas had Garlic Noodles, Olivia had a POG (Potato Onion Garlic) Soup, Moma had Black squid inked Linguined clams, and I had a super delicious prime rib.

A little more walking around to let the food digest and we grabbed the trolley to call it a night. We got back to the hotel a little before 10pm.

Day 5 - Rolling into San Fran

We made it out Lake Tahoe by 9:30am this morning and headed to San Fran. There was no rush and the intent was to stop at a couple of places along the way. I can’t tell you how many viewing areas we passed. Each as beautiful as the next. Luckily dad didn’t make us stop at all of them. We did make a few stops, but were getting excited about ‘Cisco, so we kept the stops to a minimum.

Our favorite stop was made in a little town called Strawberry – population 50. We pulled into the General Store, which was anything but general. It had all the good snack foods, high end drinks, fresh pastries and nice nicknacks. The owner gave us some great advice for driving into San Fran and a list of his favorite eats in downtown. The campgrounds and area in Strawberry are definitely a place we would could back to.

Once we left Strawberry, we only stopped one more time as we descended the Sierra’s. Thomas wanted to wet his line, so we found a river on the way down to let him fish for several minutes. While LT was fishing, Olivia was stacking some river rocks (a carin) to leave her mark. Near one of the trees, there was a funny looking rock with a zebra and heart sticker with the word “Yum”. As I inspected the rock it was put there intentionally. On the back it instructed you to take a picture, post it and put it somewhere else. What better new place to put it then somewhere in San Francisco.

We came to San Francisco via 50W, 80W, 37W and then came down into the city over the Golden Gate Bridge via 101S. Before crossing the bridge we went up to the Golden Gate overlook. This place was packed and parking was very limited. We went straight to the top and ventured all around. Wow!! Hung around for about 1.5 hours.

Rolled into the downtown Westin around 3pm and quickly unloaded. Olivia and I went and grabbed a bite to eat at Chabaa Thai right around the corner, while mom and Thomas stayed in the room. After we got back the kids took off to go explore and check out downtown, while Anna went down to do some Zen in the park across the street. 

Even though I had already eaten dinner, Anna and I strolled around and found Koe Khani, a Thai Michelin rated restaurant. Time for the 2^nd meal. We had caramelized pork bellies, green curry rabbit and hot wings. Dinner was amazing!!! Once completed, we also stopped at Bellini’s for a little bit of desert. Anna got some cookies and I got a couple of slices of cheesecake for the kids.