Well, folks, I've been stricken with Mono and have to lay around for a few days until my fever dies down and my tonsils return to their original size, so what better time to catch up on my posts, right? Silver linings...I'm all about silver linings. So, here goes:
On Day 3, I awoke groggy and stiff, the uncomfortable combination of sleeping with a lump from the back seat firmly in my tailbone and freezing all night thanks to the cheap fleece throws that I'd purchased beforehand. I managed to find an adorable little coffee shop just down the road where I ordered a waffle and espresso, and set up my laptop for a couple of hours until it reached above freezing. Then I ventured out for a hike to Cascade Falls.
On Day 3, I awoke groggy and stiff, the uncomfortable combination of sleeping with a lump from the back seat firmly in my tailbone and freezing all night thanks to the cheap fleece throws that I'd purchased beforehand. I managed to find an adorable little coffee shop just down the road where I ordered a waffle and espresso, and set up my laptop for a couple of hours until it reached above freezing. Then I ventured out for a hike to Cascade Falls.
After hiking around for a while, I drove up Emerald Bay Drive to Tahoe City, stopping all along the way to take pictures and soak in the scenery. I found a place with sleeping bags and picked one up and then I rented a kayak and paddled around the bay for a couple of hours and found the most amazing little burger joint made up of a tiny log cabin in the trees and along a creek.
I sat up to the bar outside and people-watched and then headed back to my little campsite in the woods where I slept like a baby in my cozy warm sleeping bag.
The next day, I woke up and ate breakfast on the beach, where I left my favorite denim jacket that I've had for probably 13 years :(. Then I started toward Yosemite by way of one of the most incredible winding roads I've ever seen...certainly not what I would expect to find in California. IT was freezing and snowy and windy, but so so beautiful and still early, so there wasn't anybody else around.
A few hours later, I made it to the entrance of Yosemite, where I waited at the Ranger Station for 2 hours just to get inside the park. Traffic was a total nightmare and I didn't even get to any good hikes. I ended up with anxiety and the sensation that I can only describe as claustrophobia being packed in by millions of people.
After several hours just driving a small loop through the park, I high-tailed it out of there as quickly as I could and made my way back to the coast, stopping in Hollister for the night.
Day 5, I woke up and drove to the coast, ending up in Monterey where I grabbed breakfast and sat on a nearby beach for a couple of hours.
I continued south, to Point Lobos...one of my favorite spots along the coast. A couple of years ago, Sam and I celebrated our wedding anniversary there and it was misty and damp and kind of eerie in the coolest way possible. I was pretty excited to see it on a clear day for a different vibe. Needless to say, it's still one of my favorite places ever.
