On the LAKE

This Juneteenth weekend we stayed with friends right on the Pine Mountain Lake at Groveland near Yosemite National Park, and was so fun and relaxing to say the least. The place was called the Huckleberry Hideaway and there were mentions of lake and huckleberry everywhere –

“If you are Lucky enough to be at the LAKE, you are lucky enough”

“Life is better at the LAKE”

“LAKE HOUSE”

“I am your huckleberry”

And my curiosity especially began after reading the Moon River that’s hung in the restroom (interesting right!).

Moon river by Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini, goes as:

“Moon river, wider than a mile
I'm crossing you in style some day
Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way

Two drifters, off to see the world
There's such a lot of world to see
We're after the same rainbow's end
Waitin' 'round the bend
My huckleberry friend
Moon river and me”

Only after I started researching on the meaning, I got to know this is a very popular song by Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961). I felt a strong connection to these words and the beautiful lines are interpreted differently by many. To me, the river is the journey of love/life/time and it all makes sense with that one Huckleberry friend in life. Just like Huckleberry Finn to Tom Sawyer, always game for anything, especially adventure up and down the Mississippi, hence the river analogy.

Thanks to our good friends Grindalls for showing us this place in February, it was quiet then as the Marina beach was closed for construction but we enjoyed the snowboarding at Yosemite. This time it was a relaxing day on the beach by Pine Mountain Lake Lodge, close by the house and accessible by kayak. The lake itself, kayaking, swimming for DH, playing with sand for kids, Family sunset boat ride, birds and deer watching in the backyard, beautiful big pines gleaming gold at sunset resembling fall colors, company of our dear friends, celebrating Fathers’ Day together were are all memorable. We made new memories revisiting San Jose Family camp Yosemite this time with both daughters, walking on the Tuolumne River.

 So glad to be able to make this trip even after many setbacks, we always receive far more than we seek in Nature. Now can’t wait to try out the Huckleberry, a popular fruit in Montana in our upcoming RV trip to Glacier National Park and to Canada, stay tuned! :)

RV Camping at Zion National Park

This is the sixth and last part of our first RV trip to Utah Mighty five National parks loop. Here is the link to the previous post(Bryce Canyon National Park)

April 8, 2022:

We entered the park at the East Entrance and paid a $15 fee for the Zion-Mt. Carmel Tunnel escort ahead. Since our RV was an oversized vehicle, the oncoming traffic had to be stopped by the rangers so we may drive down the center of the road in the tunnel (check tunnel hours). As we drove through the tunnel, we enjoyed the glimpses of the spectacular Zion canyon through the windows and soon we were at the last campground of our trip- Watchman. Its next to the Zion Canyon visitor center, ¼ mile away from the (Pedestrian/bike only) South entrance in Springdale, UT.  It was so beautiful right by the north fork of the Virgin River with covered sandy beach and a trail along and just a footbridge away from Springdale town with shopping area and restaurants on the other side.

This place definitely has vibes never seen before, felt like we saved the best for the last. We went to bed early excited for the much-awaited Angels landing hike next day, as the permit we applied for yesterday got approved this morning.

April 9, 2022:

We took the first bus into the canyon from the Zion Canyon visitor center to Stop# 6: The Grotto for the Angels Landing via West Rim Trail. Zion Canyon Scenic drive is open ONLY to these articulated/tandem shuttle buses Spring through Fall and these are very effective in controlling the traffic. We crossed the Virgin River on a bridge and the elevation gained quickly on the West Rim trail to “Refrigerator Canyon”. 

After walking through the flat, cool inner recesses of the cleft, it was a strenuous ascent on 21 switchbacks to a sandy pad called “Scout Lookout”. We had rangers checking the permit here again to take on the last part of 500-vertical-foot push to the top of Angels Landing. As I pulled myself using heavy chains attached to rocks serving as the handrails and reached the first knob, the sight of the angels landing ahead got me scared and I decided to stay back. It didn’t feel like a long wait sitting at the edge watching the climbing duo (and the many brave souls, some very young kids) as they vanished onto the hill as ants and joined me back in 2 hours. It was very hot on our way back and felt relieved to be done early and proud of my hiking pals.

Meanwhile, the kids had a relaxing day at the covered beach by the campsite. 

Evening, we ran errands using the Springdale shuttle and enjoyed yet another dessert by my niece without which our dinners were never complete.

April 10, 2022:

We took the shuttle bus back into the canyon, this time to its final stop #9: Temple of Sinawava. We did the 2.2-mile Riverside walk along Virgin River to the Narrows but it was closed. 

While the rest took the shuttle to Zion lodge for Emerald pools hike, I returned to Watchman with my DD2. 

Later, we spent time at the Visitor center and walked to a Thai restaurant for the last night’s dinner celebration of our successful trip.

April 11, 2022:

We exited the park from South entrance and skipped Kolob Canyons in order to reach home early. Thankfully we checked the weather the night before and started driving back early to SLC to avoid high winds starting afternoon. We were able to return RV ontime and kids experienced their first snow storm that night.

April 12, 2022:

It was a beautiful morning in SLC as the snow cleared up and we took the flight home. On the trip, days rolled by so fast with no signal mostly and the occasional WhatsApp messages would be gentle reminders of time and the parallel life. It was like a peaceful retreat into the nature, came back so reset that life still felt like a holiday. Those soaring Arches, vast Canyonlands, acres of Capital Reef orchards, tall hoodoos of Bryce and the oasis of Zion would replay for several days afterwards. My 2-year-old thoroughly enjoyed our RV trip as she nicknamed it “the beautiful bus” and I really hope these impressions remain with her and may continue to inspire the generations to come. 

RV Camping at Bryce Canyon National Park

This is the fifth part of our first RV trip to Utah Mighty five National parks loop. Here are the links to the previous post(Capitol Reef National Park) and the next post(Zion National park) 

April 7, 2022:

On our way to Bryce Canyon City, we saw small towns and homesteaders living off of ranches. Just outskirts of the National Park are the Ruby’s Inn RV Park and Campground and a huge store where we parked, had lunch and took shuttle to the park. Shuttle system is free, runs April-Oct and can be tracked at brycecanyonshuttle.com.  We got down at the Bryce Point which offers spectacular view of hoodoos, then reboarded to visit Inspiration point. The upper and lower inspiration points the most iconic and popular views of the scenic Bryce Amphitheater. 

Hoodoos don’t grow like trees but are eroded out of the sandstone cliffs where narrow walls called fins form in step 1. Frost-wedging enlarges cracks in the fins, creating holes or windows in step 2. As windows grow, their tops eventually collapse leaving a column and rain further dissolves and sculpts these limestone pillars into bulbous spires called hoodoos in final step. The delicate climatic balance between snow and rain ensures that the new hoodoos will emerge while others become reduced to lumps of clay. We stayed the night at Ruby’s campground and enjoyed the showers.

April 8, 2022:

We drove the RV inside the park, parked at the Visitor center and took the shuttle to explore the park. As I strolled along the easiest and the paved portion of the Rim Trail from Sunset to Sunrise points with my DD2, the others explored the most popular Queen’s Garden/Navajo Combination Loop, a 2.9-mile hike below the rim in between hoodoos from Sunset to Sunrise points (Clockwise direction recommended). 

As we waited for them to return, I explored the many elaborate exhibits in the Visitor center about prairie dog colonies, Hoodoos around the world (one we visited was Cappadocia Chimneys in Turkey), Space and Stars. We also did shop for memorabilia and started driving to Zion National Park.

RV Camping at Capitol Reef National Park

This is the fourth part of our first RV trip to Utah Mighty five National parks loop. Here are the links to the previous post(Canyonlands National Park) and the next post(Bryce Canyon National park)

April 6, 2022:

After days of driving around in the dry sandstone landscape, sight of Fremont River along hwy 24 was very welcoming. Indeed, water not just adds beauty to the landscape, but the also reason for the early settlers and hence these beautiful historic orchards here today. It was a love at first sight as we drove through our campground and soon became my most favorite camping spots so far. 

We hiked the Hickman Bridge Trail, which is a 2.2-mile round trip walk to the natural bridge, which felt like another arch. We enjoyed our packed sandwiches at the bridge and walked back. Capitol Dome can be seen looking east from the trailhead, named for its resemblance to the U.S Capitol. This dome, along with the nearly 100-mile Waterpocket Fold (a barrier of rock that obstructed early travelers like a barrier “reef”), inspired the park’s name. 

We drove back to the visitor center, got some maps, drove the 4.5-mile scenic drive and to the Panorama point for scenic vistas. The Fruita orchards were one of the largest historic orchards maintained by NPS with over 2,000 trees including apple, pear, peach, apricot, cherry and plum. Now bare, flowering typically occurs March into May, and harvest generally occurs June through October. Fruit is free to sample while in orchards; a small fee is charged for fruit taken out of the orchards.

 Interestingly, there were lots of dogs in the campsites but the people were very friendly and even helped us with stabilizing the RV lending their bricks. The rows of trees, the horses on the ranch, the cowboys next door from whom we borrowed the firewood for the night and the starry sky transported me into a different world and made the camping extra special that night.

 April 7, 2022:

We spent the morning strolling around in the Fruita Historic District beginning with the historic Gifford house museum and store (open 9:00 AM-4:30 PM). Be sure to go early to grab their cinnamon rolls, we went around 10am and they were all gone, and we had to work with their personal fruit pies (made from local cherry, apple and peach). It was interesting to see the Mormon pioneers lived off this isolated land with such ingenuity and hard work, completely self-reliant. We strolled around the picnic area and the orchards, before driving to Bryce Canyon National Park.

RV Camping at Canyonlands National Park

This is the third part of our first RV trip to Utah Mighty five National parks loop. Here are the links to the previous post(Arches National Park) and the next post(Capitol Reef National Park)

April 5, 2022:

We started driving South from Moab to Canyonlands National Park and possibly because of timed entry at Arches, there was a lot of traffic before the entrance to the park. Cattle crossing and the landscape kept us occupied, but it was very very windy. 

We entered the park from the north, stopped at “Island in the sky Visitor Center” and took the maps. Green river and the Colorado river divide the plateau into 3 regions in Y shape: Island in the sky on the north, The Maze on the west and The Needles on the east. We drove to Grand View Point Overlook and did a one-mile hike along the rim of the Canyon, offering spectacular views of the canyon. 

We went to Green River Overlook, but it was very hazy and we saw a newly wedded couple photoshoot. 

We couldn’t stop at Mesa Arch or see the other two regions and started driving back North onto Capitol Reef National Park. But it was just too windy to drive that evening, so we pulled into Shady Acres RV Park at Green River, UT for the night. This is the first time we learnt that windy conditions needed to be considered for RV driving. Although we missed a night at Fruita Campground at Capitol Reef, It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. That night my DD1 fell off the top bunk bed and her nose bled, and the very early morning, we had her checked at Green River Medical center. It felt relieved to get the assurance that she didn’t break any bones and we could continue on the trip.

RV Camping at Arches National Park

This is the second part of our first RV trip to Utah Mighty five National parks loop. Here are the links to the previous post(planning first RV trip) and the next post (Canyonlands National Park )

April 2, 2022:

After an early fresh bagel breakfast, my DH set out to pick up the RV. It was completely worth to start early by 8am instead of the usual 6pm, so we have time to load and reach Arches National Park. We loaded the RV with the all the essentials, clothing, and stocked up the fridge and pantry, did lunch and started driving to our first destination – Devils Garden Campground, the northern most point in the Arches National Park. The campsite was wide open with the distant snow caps and I still needed time to get used to the orange hues instead of all green. We had our first campfire under the stars, thanks to the kind ranger for lending the fire-starting liquid and maps. The propane hookup from the RV to the grill was very convenient for meats.

April 3, 2022:

Morning was very chilly, so RV was very comfortable for the LO. A quick morning stroll took us to the Skyline arch which was clearly seen from the restrooms. We moved to our next campsite early in the morning and this location is tucked in unlike the last one. We hiked on the Sand Dune and Broken Arch trail within the campground to see the two arches and in the afternoon walked to the popular Devils Garden Trail to explore more arches: Pine Tree Arch, Tunnel Arch, Landscape arch, Navajo arch and Partition arch. It was a long day and the kids did amazingly well.

April 4, 2022:

This morning we started with hike to Delicate arch. Although it was a full parking, we had no issues as there was a dedicated parking lot just for RV/Trailer on the other side of the trailhead. We saw Ute petroglyphs and Wolfe ranch cabin (built 1888 and abandoned in 1910) by the Salt Wash early in the trail.  The trail was stroller accessible for some distance until the base of a steep sandstone hill.  It’s a popular trail with cairns (stacks of rocks) to guide and a ledge in the last took us to the delicate arch.

 After lunch, we went to the view points and started driving south in the park and stopped at Double Arch, North and south windows. We saw more landmarks on the way from the La Sal Mountains Viewpoint- Three gossips, Sheep rock etc and drove to Moab. This night, we parked at the Spanish Trail RV Park, so we can have full hook ups, showers and laundry.

Memorial weekend escape to The Lost Coast

This weekend was all about escape from the sad news of Uvalde shooting and finding inner peace at the serene Shelter Cove, Central landscape of the famous California’s Lost Coast (extending from Punta Gorda on the north and Bear Harbor on the south). California’s Lost Coast is part of and gateway to the California’s coastal National Monument, a string of more than 20000 rocks and small islands off the state’s 1,100-mile-long coastline. Hw1 was originally to traverse the entire coastline, but the rugged landscape forced its development inside. Today there are no major roads or highways through this region and its remoteness has earned it the apt title of “the lost Coast”.

It was about 5-hour drive north from home so we started early Friday. We couldn’t stop at my favorite “City of Ten Thousand Buddhas” at Ukiah as it was closed for COVID. Instead, we did lunch picnic at Pomo Day use area on Lake Mendocino very close by which also has a nice play area for the kids. We really drove slow on the road after exiting the 101 towards Shelter Cove as it was very windy and drive felt a bit of a stretch for the girls. It was early evening by the time we reached our Airbnb home and waited for our dear friends to join us. The place was beautiful with deer right in the open backyard.

Saturday is all rain but we still braved the rain to go to the major attraction- the historic Cape Mendocino Lighthouse, located in Mal Coombs Park, famous for its history and the tidepools. This was originally located on the bluffs of Cape Mendocino and was moved to Shelter Cove, restored and open to public for Memorial Day 2001. Apparently, the rocks, reefs and the tidepools below the park provide magnificent opportunities to see seals, sea lions, an occasional river otter and during migration seasons, to catch the glimpse of whales. Unfortunately, the light house was only open 11am-3pm and the tidepools trail is closed as well so we returned home and had a long lunch BBQ. As it cleared up in the evening, we went to the Black Sands Beach at the north end of the community, also the trailhead for the northern section of the Lost coast trail. We strolled along the coarse black sand and stones, saw lot of Mussels on the rocks and played with the waves in the caves they made. The weather was perfect for our kites and enjoyed sunset with the dramatic ridges and peaks of the King Range (NCA) in the background.

On Sunday, we drove to the Avenue of the giants and did a hike at Gov. William D Stephens loop trail of 0.7 miles and then drove to the visitor center for lunch picnic.  We (some of us, but my dear friend recorded them here) were lucky to catch the 2pm guided walk at 0.5-mile Gould Nature Loop from the visitor center with the very passionate interpreter Griff, a must do one. Very interactive and knowledgeable, that the clover cover is actually Redwood Sorrel leaves and tasty to eat, how the trees support each other with roots intertwined and Photosynthesis to be the new god. 

We had an early BBQ dinner and watched basketball before catching another beautiful sunset at the Lighthouse and chatted long into the night before wrapping up for the long drive back home the next day.