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S a l l y & C h r i s 2 0 1 3 S u m m e r T r i p

Day 49: Wednesday, May 22We had a very full day today: joining Bob &Lynne for some quick shopping at SamsClub (store), then lunch with Jimmy &Leslie, neighbors & good friends of Bob &Lynne, a very cool couple we had met fouryears ago. Lunch was a small Chinese

restaurant, Mr. Chop-Chop, next to SamsClub. Good food! We had such a good timelaughing I thought theyd ask us to either

leave or puton a show.

After lunch wetoured the LasVegas MobMuseum, asuperiormuseum withinteractiveexhibitscovering threefloors.

(above) Bob in the electric chair.

At 5pm we took a break to enjoy a new,live Vegas show at The Plaza, The PhatPack, as guests of Bob & Lynne. Thesethree tenors have some of the finest voicesin professional music. Each singer has anextraordinary history in musical theatre one as the lead in Vegas Phantom of theOpera, the next as the lead in Les

Miserables, the third as a lead in Forever

Plaid, all of them spectacular. Their voicesare SUPERB !

After the Phat Pack we went back to theMob Museum to finish viewing exhibits wemissed on the first floor. We finished ourday enjoying the light show in the lobby of

Sams TownCasinofollowed byan ice creamtreat. Thiswas a dayfilledwithaction.Whew, werewe tiredwhen we gotback to ourcamper.

Day 50: Thursday, May 23As we drifted off to sleep last nightsbreezes became very gusty winds frommidnight through 3AM. The traileroccasionally shook but our wind kits heldsecure. I could do without that excitement.

Bob & Lynne picked us up to go to a BibleStudy at their church, CommunityLutheran. The study was very interestingand we met many very nice people whogave us a warm welcome. Following theclass we drove to Terrible's Casino for a

Terrible Buffet with some of Terrible'sfamous food items. It seems a shame to beso good and yet be known as Terrible's.

After lunch we toured a gambling supplystore to see all the items they sell includinga limited assortment of magic tricks.

Time knocked and reminded us we neededto head back to Sams Town Casino(where were camped) to go to a free 2PMstage show held each Thursday. Weveattended these before and theyre great

entertainers from across Las Vegasperform on stage and then get to promotethe show/casino where theyre working.The show had several singers, acontortionist, Argentinian dancers, andmuch more. And the price was right!

Back at Bob & Lynnes home Chris helpedBob plan out the installation of reflectiveheat barrier foil. Tomorrow well make anaccess door into the attic for installationand well order the material for Bob toinstall later.

Following our planning session we weretreated to a club supper at the communitycenter. The food was great but theconversation from the residents was evenbetter. Lots of laughs, fun & new friends.

Arriving back at our trailer we found our

cars remote door key was inoperative must be a dead battery. This is a majorproblem because a part in our manual lockin the door broke the day before we lefthome. We must find a fix to bypass thecars engine immobilizer or well be stuck inLas Vegas until we can get parts to repairit. Unkhhh! (it may be time for a new car!)

Day 51: Friday, May 24We both prayed about our cars recovery.Chris decided to buy a new button batteryat Walmart for the VWs remote. He was

confident about installing the battery ashed done it a few times already, but wouldhe need to get out his VW laptop toreprogram the remote? The Lord blessedus the battery went in and the remotework the first push! Woohah!

Today was our last day in Las Vegas. Webegan the day doing construction work atBob & Lynnes home. Bob had wanted toreduce the heat in their uninsulatedgarage, and when Chris began talkingabout reflective barriers he was all ears. In

Tsg , g . O gs YOU s& s .

A Travel Newsletter Issue #4: May 22- June 10, 2013

Lake Mead in Nevada near the Hoover Dam

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the end we decided to cut a hole in theirgarage ceiling and build a closure in orderto gain access to the attic area. This tookseveral hours. Chris then laid out the

procedure for installing reflective film onthe backside of the roof. Bob will order thematerial shortly and elicit the help of hisson-in-law to assist with the installation.

About halfway into the job we broke forlunch and the Kuzminskis treated us tolunch at Terribles. The only thing betterthan the meal was the conversation. Weget a bit loud with our laughter andalways enjoy Bob & Lynnescompanionship. They took us touringthrough the Venetian Casino, looking at

the gondoliers rowing down thewaterways. I think we could spend months

just walking through these fascinatinglocations.

Sadly, we must bring our Las Vegasportion of our summer trip to an end. Butthe greatest sadness will be missing suchgood friends in the persons of Bob &Lynne Kuzminski; these folks are nothingshort of fantastic! Love ya you two!

Day 52: Saturday, May 25With a full day of driving we were on theroad heading northwest through Las

Vegas to US95, the road to Reno, CarsonCIty, and Virginia City. (Wonder if well seethe Cartwrights from the Ponderosa in VirginiaCity?)

To say this is a lonely and somewhatexhausting road is a bit of anunderstatement. Lonely in that if you wantto see expanses of desert this path will fillyour cup to overflowing. There are onlytiny towns along the route though one ortwo have a McDonalds and most haveplaces for fuel, but its essential that youleave Vegas (or Reno if driving southeast)

with a full tank.

This is nota bad road. To the contrary, itsvery well paved. But its exhausting in that

its a full days drive from the civilization ofVegas to another larger city like Reno. Wewere on the road 11 hours* before wereached our campsite in Virginia City.(*Sally reminded me that we ate lunch anda supper treat so subtract no more than 2hours.)

The sights are beautiful and though its alldesert except for Walker Lake, a militarylake used for Naval underwater training(?), the desert scenery changes often andthe sights are enchanting. Its just a longdrive for one day, and theres not a wideselection of places to stay along US95.We also suggest filling your tank when itgets to 1/3-1/2 empty. Fuel prices were

actually lower than expected, a nicesurprise.

The hills in Virginia City are smallmountains rising at a 15 grade. (A grade of8 is considered high, so 11 is quite steep.)The VW got us up but I was worried thetransmission was slipping. And the windsin the campground were f-a-s-t. We setup during a 1-minute lull and our wind kits

(High and A-Wall Pole) proved their worthyet again. The dog next door yipped inworry of the wind, and someones RV wasthumping when a high blast blew by, butthe winds stopped by midnight. (Thank youLord!) Our campsite backs up to aprecipice. If we slid anywhere itd be downthe mountain into the Virginia Citycemetery. A comforting thought as we fellinto slumber, but we actually slept likelogs.

Day 53: Sunday, May 26We decided at the last minute to attendSunday worship in Reno. As we went tobed last night the wind shaking our trailer

had wearied us and the thought of drivingthrough unfamiliar mountains down steepunfamiliar roads was not too enthusing.Our GPS said we might just arrive on timeas we headed out of Virginia City anddown the mountains to Reno. The roadhas magnificent views but Sally isnt a fanof switchback roads and their twistingturns, so I had to drive slower thandesired. We made mental notes to takephotos on our return trip.

We arrived 3 minutes late. Holy Cross

Lutheran Church is a small congregationin central Reno. Their pastor was on acamping vacation over Memorial Day solay persons ran the service. They did agreat job and Chris was especiallyimpressed by the praise band all wereover 65 years of age, maybe even over70. Each must have been in a rock n rollband in their youth.

Lunch was at a casino, Baldinis, whichwas recommended by Tom at Holy Cross.We understand why locals eat at casinos

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good food at low prices. I ate thebreakfast special: 2 eggs, 2 bacon orsausage & unlimited pancakes = $2.99.Sally had spare ribs, fourhuge ribs, plussome sides for $5.99, and she said theywere the bestribs she evereaten, maybeeven better than Sonnys! (Such astatement from anyone else would have hadSally mumble, Sacrilege!)

We toured the National Auto Museum inReno. They have a docent-led walkingtour each day at 1:30 thats veryinteresting but we chose to leave partwayand go on our own when we realizedwed run out of time to see the carsbefore closing. Needless to say, this is

another must-see museum, especiallyfor auto enthusiasts. Harrahs National

Auto Museum is in the top 6 automuseums in the USA and top 14 in theworld!

We made several other utility stopsbefore heading backup the mountains toVirginia City. Layovers along the mountainroad allowed us to stop and take photos

but the sun was in our lenses so well takephotos again some morning when wehead down to Reno again.

Upon entering our trailer we received anunexpected and undesired surprise ourelectric heater wasnt working. This is ourback-up heater, and our first heater died aweek or so ago. With temps in the 40s at

night we were concerned. I got out mycan of trusty electrical tuner cleaner-lubricant and sprayed inside cracks thatled to various switches. It workedimmediately when plugged in. Thank you,Lord!

Day 54: Monday, May 27 Memorial DayWe thought we might see Ben, Adam,

Hoss or Little Joe Cartwright aroundVirginia City but I guess theyve allpassed on. (Though I could have sworn I sawHop Sing working in a Chinese restaurant!)

When we first drove into Virginia City atnight two days ago it was very blustery,dark, mountainous and appeared to besmall and disheveled. What we foundtoday in the sunlight was a long, oldwestern town with a long, main street andplenty of old stores that were cheery andinviting. Its interesting how a location canchange when you get to know it just like

people.

Virginia City can be a challenge for RVs ifyou take the wrong, steep, twisty road to

get here (we missed a well-marked sign)but otherwise its a greatplace to visit for afew days. This tourist area, off the beatentrack, does a good job of welcomingvisitors and giving them their moniesworth. Venues are reasonably priced andold-world, so dont expect Disney-flashy.Several attractions seem to be closed

Fridays, so check before making your tripfor a specific, concrete day.

(above) The famous 100-mile view is behindSally. You can actually see mountain tops 100miles away on a clear day. What a view!

We spent the day touring Virginia City,Nevada: riding a train between old miningsettlements, learning about the miningcommunities, took a tour of an old

abandoned gold & silver mine (the ChollarMine), toured the citys history museumand then the old city cemetery. (Could it behaunted?!)

All of this was really cool! And surprisinglyinexpensive as tourist places usually run.Some interesting facts: some mine shaftsare 2,600 feet deep with over 700 mils oftunnels below Virginia City. It takes about

T h e R o a d t o I n c l i n a t i o n : (music tune)

C a r r y Me Up to old Vir g in ie (C i ty )Both Carson City & Reno lie in valleys.Virginia City is in the mountains. Threeroads lead up to Virginia City, each withtheir own + and es. If youre driving anRV or pulling a trailer your only route isfrom Hwy 50 to VC using the truckroute NV341; use this both in & out of

VC as the other roads are not suited to RVtravel. NV341 has twists & turns withsteep drop-offs but is safe when taken inmoderation. The other 2 routes, GeigerGrade and the non-truck (NV342), are finefor touring in your pull-vehicle but should

definitely be avoided with an RV.Without adequate fore-knowledge we

took the NV342 route up, a very steepgrade that brought concerns for ourtransmission. Its steep but OK for justvehicles. The Geiger Grade to Reno isthe most scenic; a must-see venue. Takeit and use all the pull-outs to take tonsof photos. Leaving VC we took thenon-truck NV342 down from VC toCarson City as it was the shortest andwe lugged along in low gear withfrequent use of the brakes. Just dont letyour brakes overheat. An alternate is tocamp below in Carson City or Reno anddrive up to VC for a really fun day.

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10-15 tons of low grade ore to acquire1 ounce of pure silver. Tunnels in thisarea were about 140F undergrounddue to the geothermal properties of thisregion. Miners earned $4 per day whenmost people earned 75 in other jobs.Many miners died early from mineralbuild-up in their lungs. So much for thegood ol days.

The blustery winds returned tonight aswe climbed into our beds but finallysubsided a few hours later. It seems toshake Snoopy the most as he sits atopour roof. I think hell sleep insidetomorrow night.

Day 55: Tuesday, May 28With two days left in the area we wereinitially unsure of which direction wouldprove the best choice Reno orCarson City so we just drove downthe steep and twisty Geiger Grade toReno. Enroute we chose to take themountain road from Reno to InclinedVillage, a resort town on the Nevadaside of Lake Tahoe. Sally, a victim ofcar sickness, wisely determined thatlunch should be in order before hittingthe mountain byway toward LakeTahoe. A simple brunch buffet atTerribles Rail City Casino did the trickand we headed westward onadventure.

Hwy 431 to Inclined Village is thehighest mountain pass road open allyear round and hit heights of over8600 feet in elevation. We made manystops during the day to take photos I

with my super-zoom Lumix, Sally withher iPhone. (She loves taking photos now,especially when she can share them ASAPvia a text message.)

Finding a boardwalk through a meadowwe took an hour-long hike amidstgrassland, a babbling mountain brook,and had some playtime making asnow-angel, snowman, and throwing afew snowballs. Being so high up in

altitude, the suns spring rays have yetto melt all the mountain snow.

A leisurely drive through InclinedVillage, a stop at a thrift store, some icecream & a milk shake, return to Renoand a stop at Walmart rounded out ourday. Casual and fun we both agreedtoday was another wonderful day to betogether.

Day 56: Wednesday, May 29The Virginia City wind started around2AM and blew until about 5. It seemed

a bit stronger than usual but we laterdecided that it was probably a bitweaker than our imaginations. We gotinto deeper slumber around 5:30AMand thought dreamland had arrived onour itinerary. No such luck, the windreturned about an hour later. Weawoke around 7AM and decided to getup and start our day only coffee. Anearly lunch was the plan.

With three routes to Carson City wechose the short-cut on the truck route

DrivingMountain RoadsInevitably I have found that trailering will eventually leadme to mountains and driving conditions that can pose ahazard if Im not aware as to how to best keep my rig onthe road. Avoiding mountain driving conditions may be awise choice for those less skilled or those not wanting totest their skills, but you may also be avoiding somefabulous tourist opportunities. Rather than camp downbelow and drive to your mountain venue, lets look atsafe mountain-driving techniques.

First some technical stuff Safe mountain drivingrequires you to: 1) not exceed a safe speed downhill,and 2) remain on the road and not experience hang-gliding with your pull-vehicle and trailer. Driving slowlyboth up & down a mountain is essential to remaining onthe road, but going upward may require more enginepower to get up the grade. Selecting a lower gear and,thereby, running your engine faster but moving at aslower speed will give you better control. Watch yourengine temp gauge to avoid overheating. Pull over &cool down if necessary.

Going safely downhill is even more important in myopinion; a runaway rig is dangerous to you, yourpassengers and others in your path. Brakes fail for two

reasons: 1) the brake pads or shoes lose their frictionaleffectiveness when overheated, and 2) hot brake parts(e.g. shoes or pads) transfer heat to brake lines causingbrake fluid to go from a liquid to a gaseous state. Yourbrake system cant push brake vapors, it can only pushbrake fluid!

Tip for going down hills:

Take your time. If cars back up behind you dont worry,its yoursafety at stake. If pull-offs appear, and are safeto enter, (big enough & wide enough) pull over andallow traffic to pass. Just be aware youve got to getback on the road quickly, especially if there are curves inthe road where the view of traffic is limited.

Select a lower gear and drive slower. Use your cars

engine to augment your vehicles brakes. But dont letyour rig push your engine and cause it to over-rev.Frequently check your cars tachometer & dont let theengine over-rev. Tachometers measure how fast theengine is turning, and usually have a red area toindicate when the engine is turning at higher-than-desired revolutions. Keep your engine revs well belowthe red area. (Over-revving an engine can blow a headgasket a costly mistake.)

Applying brakes repeatedly rather than constantlyriding the brakes will help in two ways: 1) itll keep thebrakes from overheating and 2) itll help keep yourengine revolutions down so you dont over-rev yourengine. By applying brakes and watching your enginespeed you can make mountain/hill descent a safe

experience for you, your crew and your car.*Dont forget that youre not the only driver on thismountain road. It may not be you who drifts but anotherdriver who impacts you thatll cause an accident. Beever aware of the road, other vehicles and watch theroad, not the scenery. Use pull-outs to see the view andnot fly over it.

I hope I havent scared you too much. Mountain drivingwill take you to some of the best locations you couldever experience. By driving carefully youll be able toenjoy their views for many years to come. Weve beendriving mountains for years & will continue to do so. Useof careful driving techniques will ensure your safety andenjoyment. Give it a try and become a veteran traveler.

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hat the trucks & RVs take up themountain to Virginia City, which is not theoute we drove into town. (More on thatater.) The truck route is winding like theGeiger Grade to Reno but less scenic andess steep. The wind kept up most of theay but seemed lighter in the valleys. Ahrift store distracted us for about a half-our but our finds were only two more

aperbacks in the Anna Pigeon mysteryeries. (Chris is determined to read thentire series.) Lunch was a large pizzarom Little Caesars for $4.99 plus garlicauce and a diet Pepsi to split. It made useel like we were dating again. (Cheap!)

Arriving at our goal, the Nevada StateMuseum, we found another top-notchenue. The displays had an interestingrray of exhibits that kept us busy from ait after noon until closing time at 4:30.

Exhibits included: Native Americanultures, two old motorcycles, mining in

Nevada(see photo above), nuclear testing,ambling and slot machine, art, firearms,

he minting of coins (the museum is in theld Caron City Mint), a unique quilt

photo specifically for the quilt-women at St.

Matthews) plus several very interesting

videos. Our favorite spot is the simulatedsilver-gold mine tour through thebasement. You actually feel you arewalking through an old mine! If you comefor a visit, enter via the second floorstairway; we took the elevator to thebasement unaware of the stairs; stairsmake it a bit more fun. Nevada is gettingready for its 150th anniversary and the

museum is changing many of the exhibitsto be better for that 2-year celebration.Thatll be a good time to visit.

We drove to the Visitor Information Centerand picked up a walking tour map of oldhomes in the heritage district of CarsonCity. Prior to our walk we stopped atMcDonalds for an evening snack and soChris could get free wifi to check email.The walking tour was interesting thoughwe only took in about a dozen city blocks.We were feeling our lack of sleep. We tooka different route up the mountain toVirginia City to help determine our choiceof roads to use in descending themountains with our trailer tomorrowmorning.

Day 57: Thursday, May 30We slept with no windlast night a goodsolid night of sleep! Leaving Virginia City,NV we drove down NV342 (the non-truckroute) from one end to the other(OK,NV342 is only a few miles!) and wediscovered that the non-truck route outof

VC to Carson City is fine for Aliners orsimilar lighter trailersIF theyre equippedwith brakes! Without brakes I think yourpull-vehicles brakes would overheat andyoud be in danger. The 342 route is the:shortestof the three to/from VC to theoutside world, the straightestroute, andhas less precipices at the sides of theroad. (See the sidebar on the previous

page for suggestions on mountain drivingsafety techniques.) NV342 will reenter NV341 and go onto Carson City.

Our GPS took us on what we felt was a

roundabout route to I-80 as we headed tonortheastern California for our nephewswedding. Chris became a bit disturbedthat the GPS had us wasting time drivingthrough scenic mountains rather thanriding the interstate in a quicker, faster,straighter route. Rechecking the route wefound that it was a bit more up & down butno longer, and it was a lot more scenicdriving through the villages surroundingportions of Lake Tahoe. The vistas as wecrossed the Sierra-Nevada mountains

were stunning, but the continual warningof winter driving and restriction requiringtire snow chains told you that winterdriving must be for those so skilled.

We arrived in Auburn, our weddinglocation, and found the Auburn Golden RVPark to be very nice with pool, hot tub,neat sites, and a very cordial camp host.

Day 58: Friday, May 31Our first full day in Auburn, California, wehad breakfast as a family group at thehotel where most folks were staying

(above) Eric1, Emmy1, Lynn, Ellie1, Margo2

(below) Sally, brother Dave2, Darlene3, Rich3

(The numbers indicate the family unit relationships)

today was the rehearsal day forBrittany & Jims wedding (Jim is Sallysbrother, Daves, son). The breakfastclub included Dave & Margo, Margosbrother Rich & his wife Darlene, andMargo & Richs sister Lynn. Emily, Dave

& Margos daughter was there withhusband Eric and their cuddly daughter,Ellie. This was a grand time to updateeveryone on events of the past year.

After our two-hour breakfast and chatsession Sally & I chose to explore somearea thrift stores for a few hours, then wereturned to the hotel and the family groupwent out together for lunch minus Emmy,Eric & Ellie (nap time). Jon (Dave &Margos other son) & wife Kim (who gotmarried last summer in Wisconsin)

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arrived from the airport and joined us forlunch. Again, this meal was also arousing time for family to renewacquaintances. Between lunch and therehearsal, Dave, Margo, Sally and I droveto a noted bridge in Auburn that gaps amassive chasm. The bridge rises over730 feet above the river below as thehighest bridge in California and thirdhighest in the USA.

At the rehearsal site, the RogersMansion, we toured the honeymoon suite

with Jim, tomorrows groom. Therehearsal went off smoothly and we metmany new family at the rehearsal dinnerat Old Town Pizza, which served great

food, only to be surpassed by the neatfolks we met on Brittanys side of the

family. Sally & I spent time in the hot tubback at our campground then drifted offto sleep after an exhausting day.

Day 59: Saturday, June 1Breakfast at the family hotel kicked offour special day, this day being the mainincentive to our trip out west again TheWedding. Prior to arriving at theceremonys location we had time toattend a flea market and several yard

sales, then a quick jaunt back to Dave &Margos hotel room to change intoclothes suitable for the wedding.

Though it was hot outside (almost 90)the ceremony was beautiful. The locationwas a large, rolling garden area with bigtrees, rock gardens, patios, and astunning gazebo. Special gardenarrangements had been made specificallyfor the wedding such as rocks and plantsshaped into hearts. Brittany and nephewJim took their vows in a happy, relaxedand casual ceremony amidst a collectionof friends, colleagues and family.

Following the ceremony the festivitiescontinued inside the banquet hall whereboth the food and fellowship were superband the wedding couple were soattractive. Its great to see two people so

much in love,and so manyloved ones &friends

supporting thebeginning oftheir speciallife together.

Day 60: Sunday, June 2A special United Kingdom-style breakfastwas held for special family & friends in

the pub adjacent to the wedding gazeboand reception hall. The talk, obviously,was about how beautiful the wedding wasand happy wishes and plans for Brittany& Jim, the wedding couple.

After saying our goodbyes to Brittanysparents, relatives and friends, theHoffman attendees drove to the Auburngorge to hike and view Codfish Falls. Thegorge is the deepest in all of California,though not necessarily at the fallslocation. We rode in 3 cars with ouriPhone GPS setting the route and what

a route it was!As the road gotnarrower itturned fromasphalt to

crushed rockalong withfrequentsoftball-sizedrocks that hadrolled down theadjacent

mountainside. Rain-ruts were frequentand we had concerns that we were on awrong path until we met the CaliforniaState Park rangers who confirmed ourlocation and took $10 per car. Going

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View of Sierra Nevada mountain range from I-80 in the area of Donner Pass, CA. Note interstate highway on right.

further down we were astounded at thedistance we still had to drive. Chrisnavigated the ruts well as we were in ourown car; Dave & Rich were handlingrentals. The road narrowed to became abit wider than single-lane.

Arriving at the trailhead we wereastonished to find about 20 or more carsparked on one edge of the road and

70-100 folks splashing in the river, someeven jumping from an old bridge (not thewisest thing to do!). We all hiked the ridgetrail toward the falls but our varying levelof skill and aged muscles found useventually in two groups. The first groupwent as far as the falls though theydescribed it as mediocre in height andwater volume. The slower group made itabout 2/3 of the way. To their credit most

of this group had legitimate prior injuries.We took the suggested return car routeup the opposite side of the gorge. Thistrek was marginally better on the autos.

While our other relatives went out fordinner we chose to hit our campgrounds

pool and hot tub before spending the restof the evening reading and having ourevening devotional. We hit the sack verytired from our hiking adventure.

Day 61: Monday, June 3Today was a driving day, which saw ustravel from the wedding city (Auburn, CA)to Mariposa, CA about an hours drive

from Yosemite National Park in easternCalifornia. The drive was uneventful,mostly interstate-expressway highway,then a more rural paved road. Excitementawaited us when we arrived at the site ofthe rental cabin about 5 miles fromMariposa. The side road was gravel &rather steep going down, not posing aproblem until we leave Thursday pullingthe trailer. But the steep gravel drivewaywas a greater challenge. Our first attemptup the grade found the drive wheelsslipping and digging into the gravel-sand

roadway. After riding up in Daves rentalcar, then walking back, Chris determinedhe needed to try running the road again.

Alternating between gunning it andbacking off on the accelerator he wasable to finally get up the hill though hesent a bunch of gravel flying behind him.We dont look forward to the drive-out onThursday.

The remainder of the day was spent atpoolside at the rental home, the patio, theman cave garage, and just talking withfamily and enjoying a great spaghettisupper.

Day 62: Tuesday, June 4After a hearty breakfast prepared byDarlene, the rest of our daylight wasspent traveling to, within, and back fromYosemite National Park in easternCalifornia. We had visited Yosemite about7-8 years ago and vaguely rememberedcertain viewpoints but enjoyed visitingnew locations along with renewing

memories of previously toured spots.Highlights included Bridal Veil Falls andYosemite Falls with hikes to each plusriding the free Yosemite shuttle busaround some areas. Chris took severalphotos of the Ahwahnee Hotel inYosemite, which was the site ofHighCountry, a murder mystery in the AnnaPigeon series by authoress Nevada Barr.

The ride to and from Yosemite NP wasabout an hour long from the rental housealong a twisty, winding two-lane road. Anavalanche required the addition of twobridges over the river. We arrived back atthe rental just as supper was beingserved. What a great day at one of Godsmost gorgeous sights!

Happy Camping, yalland were NOT there yet ! ! !

(far L) Chrisgets drink fromLowerYosemite Falls(left) Chrisclimbsmountainwithout ropes(right) Sallyshows size ofhearth inLodge (far R)Upper & Lower

Yosemite Falls