Yosemite National Park ~ Day 4, Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias

 

Our time in Yosemite was coming to a close.  We checked out of the Yosemite View Lodge on Wednesday morning but had one more adventure planned.  The Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias is the largest sequoia grove in Yosemite and is home to over 500 mature giant sequoias.  

 

In our many trips to Yosemite through the years this is one place we had never visited.  It is located just inside the park entrance from highway 41.  Getting there from the Yosemite View Lodge took about an hour on winding roads.  I was thankful I had taken my Dramamine!  

Our legs were fully recovered from Sunday's hike, so we decided we needed one more hike before heading out.  The Grizzly Giant Loop is approximately two miles and rated moderate.  The one additional consideration we had to make was the fact that shuttle buses are not running.  This added an additional two miles each way, but we thought it was just the right amount.

It is almost impossible to capture just how large these trees are.  These are the same picture, the second one I cropped so you can see just how small I am in the first one!

The hike was never strenuous and the skies were clear blue.  Just another beautiful day in the park!

 

This is a tunnel tree carved in 1895. At one time cars could drive through it.  It has slowly been healing and the bark is growing inward!

 

 

The Grizzly Giant stands over 200 feet tall.  It is the oldest and second largest tree in the grove.

The Bachelor and Three Graces.  This is a group of four giant sequoias, three of them growing very close together, with a fourth a little more distant. Their roots are so intertwined that if one of them were to fall, it would likely bring the others along with it.

Our total hike was about 6.5 miles.  We then made our way to Fresno.  Having spent four days adventuring and burning calories you'd think we were ready to sleep in on Thanksgiving.  Not us!  We were up and out the door at 7:00 a.m.  We rode the Auberry Loop, a 33 mile bike ride we did on Thanksgiving morning in 2016.  It took us 2:48:52 in 2016 and 2:30:44 this year!  That's what losing over 30 pounds will do.  We didn't take a single picture, but we did earn our pie!

Yosemite National Park ~ Day 3, Cycling in the Park

 

We tried something new on this trip to Yosemite - we took our bikes and rode in the park.  Since our hotel was so close to the park entrance, Les decided to ride in, while I drove to the visitor center.  While driving there, I was observing cars and traffic in general.  People seemed to be driving courteously, even in areas where road construction was happening.

We met up near the visitor center and got my bike set up.  It was too chilly to stand around, so we hopped on our bikes and off we went.  We first tried following the bike/pedestrian path, but it was pretty crowded.  We got out on the road and were able to enjoy about 15 miles.  We got stopped by construction and had an area that was one lane for a bit, which made me little nervous.  When we got going again the car that was behind us stayed there until the road opened back up instead of trying to squeeze around us.  I really appreciated that!

We got back to the car and my total distance was 15.6.  Les then rode back to our hotel and he ended up with 42.5 miles for the day.  It was the perfect distance for each of us!  While I was driving out of the park, I saw something run across the road in front of me.  I thought it was an animal of some kind and just a couple minutes later I saw that it was a bear!

Not sure why he wasn't in hibernation, but I hope he continues to be safe!  As for we two humans, we thoroughly enjoyed the day.

Yosemite National Park ~ Day 2, Recovering and Wandering

 

After our strenuous hike on Sunday we woke up pretty sore on Monday.  We took our time with breakfast and spent some time just stretching our aching, aging bodies.  We headed back into the park with the plan to just explore the valley by foot.

 

 

Driving in to Yosemite is always an awe-inspiring experience to me.  It is almost 750,000 acres, nearly the size of Rhode Island!

Can you find Les in this picture?

We wandered through the Ahwanee Hotel for a little bit.

I thought this tree was quite unusual...

 

Until I realized it was actually two trees!

More beauty...

So happy to see the waterfalls flowing.

My guy!

It was a fun day with absolutely no agenda!  We were in full on vacation mode and several times said, "What day is it?"  It was only Monday!

Yosemite National Park ~ Day 1, The Four Mile Trail

 

There are many posts on this blog about Yosemite.  Les and I went there together for the first time in October 1989, just a couple of months after we started dating. It is where Les proposed on November 3, 1990.  Since that time we have been back many times - usually on Black Friday after spending Thanksgiving with my family.  We've never actually stayed in the area, it's always been up and back on the same day... until this year.

When we realized the wedding of Israel and Deborah was the Friday before Thanksgiving, in San Jose, we started looking at options for the days between the wedding and Thanksgiving.  We decided on Yosemite and it was a great decision!  (BTW, I'll have a wedding post in a few days.)

Taken from the balcony of our room

I started looking for a hotel that was close to the park.  The most well known ones such as the Ahwanee and Wawona were more pricey than we wanted.  I stumbled upon the Yosemite View Lodge in El Portal.  It is located on highway 140 and just two miles from the park entrance.  I took a chance and booked a room and we were so pleased!  Highway 41, the road to Yosemite from Fresno, is extremely windy and not one I enjoy at all.  Highway 140 was much better!  Our room was much larger than I expected with a king size bed, fireplace, mini kitchen with microwave, small refrigerator, and a two burn stove top.  We had a balcony that overlooked the Merced River which was flowing beautifully.

  

We took our time getting up on Sunday, but we were still in the park and ready to hike by 10:30.  We chose the Four Mile Trail.  I have no idea why it is called "Four Mile" because the sign at the trailhead says 4.6 miles and the website says 4.7 miles.  We were prepared for a long day with backpacks, water and snacks, and I had my hiking poles.  It was cool at the start but we knew we would warm up as we worked our way up the trail.

 

It took us a little over two and half hours to get from Yosemite Valley to Glacier Point.  We had just over 3,200 feet of elevation gain.  Fueled by Cliff Bars!

 

We took dozens of pictures.  It seemed the view got better with each curve we rounded.  

 

 

 

This is a really cool picture that Les took.  You can see Half Dome in the distance, but you can also see it on my phone.  He's so creative!

We spent about 40 minutes at Glacier Point before heading back down.  Total trip on the "Four" Mile Trail was about 10.5 miles!  It was a great beginning to our vacation.  I have so many pictures and we had so many adventures they just won't all fit in one post.  More to come.

The Ear, The Thumb and The Big Toe

This is a post I've been wanting to write for a month!  On our last trip to Hawaii we were able to attend two Tuesday night Bible studies at First Church.  Pastor McGriffin did a two part series called, "The Ear, the Thumb, and the Big Toe."  The key verses were Exodus 29:19-20, "And thou shalt take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the ram. Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about." I had never heard a lesson or message on these verses, so I was curious to see where he would take us. 

Throughout the Bible, being covered by blood is essential.  When Adam and Eve first sinned, God slew an animal to make coats for them.  Repeatedly we see the blood being used as a covering, until the ultimate blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ.  Our lives need to be covered by His blood and these three areas are key:

The Ear

Hebrews 2:1 says, "Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip."  Our hearing needs a blood covering.  There are many voices in the world that can lead us astray.  What we hear affects our actions.  Hearing God's Word will bring our thinking back in line.

The Thumb

Psalm 18:34 says, "He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms."  Most animals were not created with opposable thumbs. Mankind and the great apes are rare in this ability.  The thumb allows our hands to do three things: grasp, push, and pull.  When our thumb is covered by the Blood, we have a better grasp on the issues of life, we can push away those things that are harmful to us, and we can pull towards us the things that are beneficial.  2 Corinthians 10:4 says, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;"

The Big Toe

Proverbs 2:20 says, "That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous." When someone loses their big toe they have a difficult time walking.  Our big toe helps us balance and walk in the right path.  When our balance is off, we stumble and veer from the path of righteousness.

I thought this was such a thought provoking lesson!  Leviticus 17:11 says, "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."  The things God put into place in the Bible were never "just because."  He always had a reason for what He did.