San Fransisco

Sadly, the Yosemite trip had to end. After getting up before the sun to secure John and Kevin camping spots at the first-come first-served Yosemite campground, we were off to San Fransisco. I had to have the whirlwind tour.

1) We ate at a sketchy place in Chinatown for $4 and were too scared to ask for more so we found another place which was supposedly Chinese but had Japanese game shows on the TV. I swear a guy won by eating some kind of sketchy sushi.

2) Went to Coit Tower and had a nice foggy view of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge. Really, if John hadn't known the layout of the city I wouldn't have been able to tell what anything was. It was soo foggy. And windy. Crazy hill walking is made even crazier when the wind is pushing you back down!

3)Saw the famous sea lions at Pier 39, as the sun was setting. I think I could have stayed and watch them for a lot longer if it hadn't gotten dark so quickly.

4) Ate a chocolate pecan concoction from a ghirardelli shop.

5) Smelled awesome sourdough bread at some famous bakery but did not get any because it was crazy crowded. (I bought some at the airport though!)

6) Rode the street car back to our hostel.

7) Ended up in the ghetto the next day while trying to find REI. One would think it would be in the shopping district where the North Face is, but no. It's in the ghetto. We turned around before finding it, but it's there somewhere. Every homeless person in San Fransisco is mentally unstable. In Baltimore thugs will shoot you for crack, but in SF they'll stab you because they think you're Elvis.

So, I covered the basic SF stuff. I wish I had more time, but it was cool. Except the ghetto part.

Leaving John at the airport was crazy sad. I think he even teared up for a split second. My flight home sucked as I got stuck in Denver due to a thunderstorm and didn't get home until like 4am.

Yosemite Part 10 - Glacier Point and Sentinel Dome

Friday was my last official day in Yosemite. Though we would spend some time there Saturday there wasn't much time for fun before John and I were going to head down to San Fransisco. So, Friday I was ready for a ton of fun. But we could only cram in so much.

We drove up to Glacier Point because it's known for it's amazing views. And there were a few short trails that we could take from there. Of course my leg was bothering me so we only hiked to Sentinel Dome. Then the boys took another short hike while I waited in the car. Stabbing pain in your thigh is bad. I was really angry at my leg for whimping out on my last day to hike. But the views we had on what little trail I could manage was really nothing to complain about.

Glacier Point:

Nevada Falls from Glacier Point. We were at the top of the falls the day before. Seems so far away.

The snowy mountains that made it impossible to get to the hot springs I so wanted to visit.

Half Dome from the base of Sentinel Dome.

Yosemite Falls from the base of Sentinel Dome

And finally, El Capitan from the base of Sentinel Dome

The boys climbed up to the top of the dome...my stupid leg was wobbly so I didn't trust myself on the snow.

It was really windy at the top of Sentinel Dome. We're seriously about to be blown away.

Going with the flow

Some recent events made John and I realize that we needed to sit and really talk about some things. I needed some reassurance that we were on the same page, or at least could compromise about certain things. The resulting conversation was amazing. It wasn't hard or awkward like it might have been a year ago. No you don't get details. There's still a lot to figure out but this was a good first step. Yay!

Of course, since Sunday I've been completely overwhelmed. The conversation made me think way too much about life. I've been trying not to over-think things so much. I need to let go and just let life happen. I need to trust that things will fall into place. After all, it's worked out pretty well so far.

I feel like I'm trying too hard to plan my life and I don't know why. What happened to the freedom of just going with the flow and letting life happen? When did I change? There has to be a balance between planning and letting fate take control. It's great to have goals for your life, but you can't schedule them in. ("in 5 years we'll a kid and another 3 years later"...doesn't always work that way!) Of course you have to plan sometimes. You need to save money for a long vacation and reserve a place to stay. But other things need to just fall into place. I'm doing better with this today but for some reason it's been a struggle lately.

Still Not Engaged, Right?

Grandma: This is your grandma being very very nosy in asking if there are any plans (wedding) in the future.

2 hours later...

J: So...I'm your spouse, right?

M: Uhh...sure? I mean...what?

J: I need your USAA mortgage rates. So I'm going to need to be your spouse.

M: Worst! Proposal! Ever!

Coworker: Proposal?!

To clarify, no, I'm not engaged.

Yosemite Part 9 - The Mist Trail (Nevada Falls)

This continues our journey on the mist trail. When I last left you, I was on top of Vernal Falls. It had been a cold, wet journey but I was now warm and had a full belly. Hike on soldier!

The trail from Vernal Falls to Nevada Falls is hard. There were many spots where you have to hike rock stairs and the constant stair stepping is rough on my legs. You would think that after hiking a lot my muscles would get more used to stairs, but they never do. I need stair training! And on this trail there's so much that's out in the hot sun. The heat just pounds down on the open rock surface. It's only 1.3 miles (or somewhere around there) but it felt longer. Of course I do love pushing myself like this.

Only this time I had to try not to feel weak. John never makes me feel bad for not being as strong or fast as him. I hike at my own pace because, while I enjoy the workout, I do want to enjoy my hiking. John tends to appreciate going at my pace so he can actually enjoy it too. He's said he may rush through certain parts if it weren't for me, and miss out. Well John's friend Kevin was with us and this guy has his own agenda. He was far ahead of us many times. And I felt like crap for not being able to keep up. Which is completely stupid. I'm not in terrible shape. I'm just not him. Not everyone has the same pace. But it's just one of those things. Hiking with someone who doesn't know you or doesn't really care is so much different.

Anyway...there's not much else to say about the hike to Nevada Falls. There's a spot on the way where you can see the falls and we got a little misted. But nothing near the power of Vernal Falls. From there, hot rock steps. And then...awesomeness!

Hiking the AT

John decided that he was going to hike the Appalachian Trail from the starting point in Georgia all the way through GA, NC, and VA. In two weeks.

Then I gave him numbers and we realized that his plan involved more than 600 miles.

He's not going to manage 40+ miles a day...

Now I'm trying to help him plan a reasonable trip whilst not deflating his man-ego by sayings things like "no way can you make it to XX in XX days".

It's hard.

And I don't get to go so it's kind of depressing.

And we both should really be spending more time thinking out our future as we have some decisions to make.

But this is more fun.

Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks

Enjoy.

Yosemite Part 8 - The Mist Trail (Vernal Falls)

The Mist Trail was the most difficult/longest trail I did out in Yosemite. It's 7 miles round trip, but we added 2 miles because of the walk to/from the car. 9 miles is not outside of my range and certainly not the crazy 16+ miles the boys did once I left. Still, it had its challenges. All worth it of course!

The trail starts at Happy Isles and at the beginning is paved. This means there are a ton of people. That's one thing about Yosemite. You can't NOT check out certain things because they are that amazing. But everyone else in the world has the same idea. The positive thing about this is that I've now seen the Valley and done some of the popular trails so next time I go out there I can stick to some of the more remote areas - which still have great sites, but less people.

Anyway, going up the paved trail is a good way to start and really weeds out people. It's steep but people still push through with strollers and canes and whatever else you can think of. But by the time they get to the first overlook (At the bottom of Vernal Falls. Where there are toilets!) many turn around and head back. Although I was not a huge fan of the steep inclines at first they're totally worth it to see the ridiculous amount of water that we did. Also, I would soon learn that steep inclines are easier than stairs (and by learn I mean remember because I have this thought on every hike that involves stairs).

And then comes the climb to Vernal Falls. They don't call this the Mist Trail for nothing. I imagine at normal times you might only get misted. And it's cool and pleasant on a nice summer's day. Normal times were not had. Again, I mention the insane amount of snow Yosemite had this year. 10 times the normal amount? Something like that. So the falls? All amazing beyond words. Before I say what I have to say about this so-called "mist" I want to be clear that I am so, so glad I experienced the Yosemite that I did. The falls this year have been called "once in a lifetime" and other such cliche phrases. And seeing pictures of the area from years past, I know it's true. There was a never ending supply of water and thus beautiful sites. My camera is happy. But...

Vernal Falls is evil!

Beautiful. But evil. (And yes, worth every minute of pain.)

The trail runs right along the flow of the falls and, once you get to the top, right next to the falls. This allows fantastic views. Though due to the "mist" you don't always want to break out the camera for fear of ruining it. It also means a lot of semi-frightening moments hugging rocks so that no one falls off the trail and to their death.

Seriously, I consider myself fairly well-educated and safe. I cannot say the same for some of the people hiking at the same time I was. Sorry to say, if you hug the rocks on the way up, you have to take the outside on the way down. No matter how scared you are of falling. If you're that scared don't hike this trail! Also, you can only hold on to one kid at a time so if you have 5, you better just pray that they don't fall in.

Anyway...

You basically have to climb op stairs that are carved into the mountain's natural rocks (mostly) all the way up to the top of Vernal Falls. And did I mention the "mist" aka torrential downpour of waterfall? Yes. So the rocks are wet. And in some places there are puddles. The water is ICE cold. I swear, at one point I was actually being pelted with icicles. Real, frozen, icicles. Water cannot be that cold or hard without it being frozen.

And yet, it was just the waterfall, pouring down off the side of the mountain like waterfalls tend to do, drenching (and POUNDING) me with it's icyness.

Lesson learned: waterfalls HURT.

I stopped in a little cave (a moment's reprieve from the icicle arrows the enemy had rained down on me) to put on my rain jacket. By the time I reached the top I was shivering and not a thing on my was dry.

And as soon as I took a minute to breath in sunshine I realized the view and the adrenaline rush made it all worthwhile.

We stopped for a picnic then. And laid out our clothes (and ourselves) to dry/warm up in the sun. Ya can't beat a picnic with these views. Or a picnic where you get to watch little lizards humping rocks.

Yosemite Part 7 - More Climbing

Day Whatever. Wednesday? I wanted to let the boys climb for 2 hours, hike, and grill some awesome steaks. Things did not work out as planned. But I now have an amazing ass shot under my pillow.

Ok, keeping it under my pillow is creepy. I don't actually do that. But that's what the fingers typed. And sometimes they win.