A LAND OF GIANTS…SEQUOIA NATIONAL PARK

Tuesday, May 8 – What a wonderful and unbelievable place – Sequoia National Park. How do you describe or explain the beauty? It's one of those places you just have to see to believe!

We got an early start for the 45 minute drive to Sequoia NP arriving at the gate about 9 a.m. Our first stop was the visitors center where the Ranger gave us a quick route for today's visit. Quick because due to road closures, we had to get to the construction zone by 10 o'clock for the escorted passage. If we're late, we wait till noon! They are re-building most of the high, winding, mountain road leading to the main section of the park.

This is what was in front of us with twice as many behind us waiting to get through construction site.

First, a few notes about the Sequoia Trees. The oldest Giant Sequoia Trees are estimated to be about 4000 years old. The belong to the cypress family. You will notice fire damage around their base. This does not do them harm. It is actually necessary.

The seeds in the pine cones will not open until heated. They then must fall onto bare soil (the grasses will have been burned off by the forest fire) to germinate. The fires also burn away competing vegetation so the tree can get a good start. Finally, the bark on the tree is so thick that most fires do not harm the tree.

The park is making an effort to save the Sequoia forest by removing buildings, keeping people on trails and not let them wonder near the trees compressing the soil, reducing parking lots, and other forest saving techniques. It's amazing to see before and after pictures of the forest after these steps have been taken.

This pictures shows where a cabin used to be.

The now new look.

There is a great video presentation in the Visitor's Center showing the park over-crowed with cabins, cars, people, and other tourist supporting businesses and how the beauty has been restored today. Be aware.....that means NO GAS is sold in the Park. Fill-up BEFORE visiting.

The best way to explain the beauty of Sequoia NP is trough our pictures. Marsha took over 150 pictures in the park. I wish you could enjoy them all, but here are many for your enjoyment.

The granddaddy of them all. Some trees grow taller, and some are bigger around, but no tree has greater mass than the General Sherman tree. It is the LARGEST tree on Earth.

Height: 275 ft.; Weight: 1,385 tons; Age: 2,200 years; Circumference 103 ft.; Volume: 52,500 cu. ft..

These trees are so big you just can't wrap your arms around them. This was a little one.

Just trying to take it all in.

From this little pine cone comes this magnificent tree.

How did the tree grow round this boulder?

Snow still remains on Alta Peak…11,204'

We love this Park. Even though we were there, looking right at these monsters, we couldn't believe our eyes. If you are any where near this area, DO NOT MISS IT!

There is so much more beauty in this park. If you would like to see more photos of our visit, please click here.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

CAL-I-FORN-IA HERE WE COME!

Sunday, May 6 – We pulled-out bright and early this morning, skirting Death Valley on the South side. It was a nice ride through some beautiful country. All the grades were long but gradual.

Our navigator for the trip.

What most of the drive looked like.

We pulled into Arabian RV Oasis in early afternoon. This is a nice stopover park with a small-town atmosphere. Most of the campers are long term workers or locals. Everyone was friendly!

We had a picnic table, patio and a nice shade tree. They have several security cameras around the campground, and a guy drove his golf cart around several times. We felt very secure. When we left, we just drove right out onto the very quiet street.

Site 31

Right of us.

Left of us.

We walked over to the local museum. It is a very nice museum with tons of information on the town's past. 

Across the street from the Museum

The small town of Boron has an interesting history. The Borax plant is located here with a huge open pit mine. This was the destination for the 20-Mule Team wagons coming out of Death Valley. There are wonderful and informative displays in the museum, even a video on the 20-Mule Team and how difficult it is to drive this team of mules.

I remember my mom giving a gal a perm using something very similar to the one in the photo.

Know what this is? Yes, it is an iron, but what kind?

Do you know what those two long handle things are?

This was a really neat model of the mule team.

Of course, the mandatory railroad runs through town with its own history and the always present horns to blow. Thankfully, the RV Park is several blocks away, so the horns are a pleasant background sound.

Edwards Air Force Base is just off to the West. This is a huge installation with one of the longest landing strips in the nation. It was the primary landing field for the Space Shuttle for many years. All the locals have stories about shuttle flyovers and landings. The Shuttle protective tiles even have Borax in their make-up.

And there is always room for Hollywood and the movies. The movie Erin Brockovich, starring Julia Roberts, was filmed here. The gentleman in the museum admitted that Julia Roberts did not spend her nights here but most of the workers and cast stayed in RV's during the filming.

Monday, May 7 – After one night in Boron, CA, we moved a couple hundred miles north to the Visalia Elks Lodge in Visalia, CA. We are here to visit Sequoia NP and Kings Canyon NP. We are only about 30 minutes from these parks. Pretty good location.

Site 4

To our right.

To our left.

Not sure if it's because we are in California, but Elks Lodges seem to be getting expensive. We're paying $20/night in the campground here with no discount for weekly or monthly stays. We paid $12 per night in Houston or $300/month. Our stay at the Escapee Pair-of-Dice Campground in Pharump (near Death Valley) was $15/night. What have you readers paid recently?

Our drive here was through some fabulous country.

This was a staple for much of the drive.

We haven't seen GREEN for quiet a while.

Are those REAL trees not just pine trees. Amazing.

We had a very long climb from Boran, CA, on SR-58 through Tehachapi Pass at over 4000 feet and then a 14 mile decent to Bakersfield, CA, at just about sea level. Our Tiffin Phaeton performed admirably. It was especially nice to have the exhaust brake on that decent down the mountain. I like the 55 mph speed limit California has for trucks and towing vehicles. Makes for a nice ride not having trucks fly by and blow your doors off! Police must enforce it too, because the truckers have slowed down. We usually cruise at 62 or 63 mph in the motor home. I'll be interested to see if the 55 mph causes an increase in our miles-per-gallon.

We must be in California. Every other mile looks like this.

Grapevines!

Did you think we would forget to tell you what those pictures represented. Well here you go.
The first one is a GAS heated iron. That was a gas tank on the side of the iron. The person just turned on the gas, took a match and lite the fire.
The second picture of those long-handled MANUAL clothes agitator. Oh goodness, so glad for electric washing machines.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day.

DEATH VALLEY RANCH AKA SCOTTY'S CASTLE

Friday, May 4 – Our last stop in Death Valley was Scotty's Castle.

The castle takes its name from Walter Scott, better known as “Death Valley Scotty,” an ex-cowboy, prospector and performer in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. A very good Hustler Extraordinaire, to say the least.

Look at the setting. WOW!

Clock tower

Chicago millionaire, Albert Johnson, who had been urged by his doctors to sped time in a warm, dry climate, was convinced by Mrs. Johnson to build a mansion. At the time, Scotty told visitors he financed the building himself with booty from a secret gold mine in Death Valley.

One of the tiled patio areas.

Two walkways from the main house to the bedroom suites.

The 1920s-era building is decorated with Spanish and Italian antiques, leather furniture, had-carved redwood beams, and iron chandeliers.

Main room.

Small music room.

Sitting outside main bedroom.

Bessie loved her kitchen.

Dining room.

Custom crafted tile floors are covered with handmade Spanish Majorcan rugs. All furnishings are original and visitors are asked not to touch anything but the railing on the stairways.

The floors are beautiful.

The lighting was something to see.

They had indoor water fountains in several of the rooms.

Very unusual vase.

Unique

The Welte-Mignon theater pipe organ features 1121 pipes, a grand piano, glockenspiel, xylophone, chimes, orchestra bells, sleigh bells, bird calls and a drum and cymbal assortment, and cost more than $50,000 to purchase, deliver and install in 1928. Pipe organs like the Welte-Mignon Pipe Organ in Scotty's Castle were used to accompany silent films.

Here is the funny part…neither Albert nor Bessie could play a note. Not one note did they ever play. They brought guests in to play the instruments and had some them converted to player pianos. Our guide told so many stories like this. It was so delightful to hear these stories.

Small music room

Big music room. We were treated to a tune from the organ.

Look at this decorative ceiling in the big music room.

Scotty's Castle is a great place to learn more about the strange and colorful history of Death Valley and its only mansion. Tours ($11 for adults with half-off for those with the Senior Pass) run throughout the day. We were warned, that lines can get very long for the tours. We arrived a few minutes after 1 p.m. and quickly joined a tour getting started without any wait!

There is so much more to this castle that it would take tons of photos to show it all. Our advice…don't miss it.

Be sure to fill the gas tank BEFORE heading to Death Valley. There is only one filling-station inside the park and gas prices are “deadly.” Regular unleaded was selling for $5.96 per gallon. We filled our Honda CRV before leaving Pahrump and had about 30 miles in reserve by the time we returned and filled up in Pahrump for $3.58 per gallon.

A very long day.....about 10-hours by the time we returned home. Tiring, but glad we say we saw what was on our list! Tomorrow, we'll relax!

Thanks to everyone who let us know that the clicking on the photos for enlargement is working great. So…click away.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all come back real soon. Have a great day.