Good-bye Yosemite!!

It turned out the be a spectacular week for Yosemite. Too cold for bugs, spring flowers were blooming, and the running water got stronger each day. Our last hike, through the lower Yosemite valley, was all Soren could take! The last picture is of us a bit in front of our lodge. This was definitely a "do again" trip.

Big Hike!

In addition to the morning hikes, I wanted something a bit more challenging. So, one afternoon I decided to take a quick stroll up to the top of the Upper Yosemite Falls. Par usual, I should have done a bit more research. It is the tallest waterfall in North America - 5th in the world (I think the elevation is about 2400 ft - don't hold me to this, though). The total hike was a bit over 5 hours - which was making pretty good time if I don't say so myself. It was exhausting and really, really thrilling. The totally cool thing was that I had cell phone coverage the entire way up! Here is a picture of the falls from about 1/2 way up the hike (it shows the upper falls only, not the lower), the towering granite walls you hikes beside, the view of the valley where we were staying and then me at the top of the falls. Not sure if I'd do it again, but it was something I'll always remember. And thank goodness Soren wasn't in the back pack!

Yosemite!!

We went on a vacation to Yosemite during the last week of April - and had a blast. It was a about a 5 hour drive to get there. Soren was great the entire drive. We stayed at the Yosemite lodge and took the park's shuttle to a different hiking destination each morning. Here are photos from the 'Happy Isle at Vernon Falls' hike. The last pictures is taken along the Merced River near the lodge. Soren slept very little each day and was constantly engaged with the park - the biggies were seeing mule deer, rivers, birds, playing with his new teddy named 'Yosemite' and waving (new skill!) at everyone at the lodge.