Sequoia National Park

On Saturday, Bob and I drove into Sequoia National Park. The day was pleasant with blue skies. We tend to avoid free National Park days because of the crowds, but Sequoia is not the most popular park in the system, so we didn't feel too crowded. 

On the road into the park we passed a lovely river.

The park sign is just inside the entrance, and features a native American carved into the sign.

The parking for Tunnel Rock was over crowded, so we kept on going, not bothering to stop.

The road kept climbing, over 7000 feet above sea level, and the views were magnificent.

We wanted to see General Sherman, considered the largest tree in the world. Our National Park system assumes that if you are not officially "handicapped" you are able to manage a challenging hike, and only cars with the handicapped placard were allowed to park near the tree. I was a bit concerned about the ability of my knees to handle a steep path, but really wanted to see this tree. So we parked at the non-handicapped parking area 1/2 mile above the tree and hiked down to it.  The path was paved but quite steep in areas, with 94 steps to get down in total. I was glad I had my walking stick with me to help a little! Going down the path was harder on my knees than going back up, and I was a bit wobbly at the end. It was worth it, though--the tree was magnificent! You can just see a person standing to the left of the tree, to get an idea of the scale of this monster.

Walking back up the trail was difficult because of the altitude.  At 7000 feet you are going to feel the thin air, and we were glad to have benches to rest along the way. At one bench, a 20-ish Israeli man offered his seat to me , saying, "It's good to help the elderly." I chuckled--are we elderly? I guess we must be but except for my knees, I don't feel old.

My knees ached the rest of the day but feel better today. Bob's hip was hurting him, too. This sight-seeing thing is tough on, shall we say, our mature bodies! 

Weaving update: My scarf is almost finished and I hope to have a photo to show you all in the next day or two. I've been weaving every evening while I listen to podcasts on my iPod. We get almost no TV stations here, not that I really miss TV.

It's Sunday as I write this and we are having a quiet day at home. Bob went out and bought a new propane grill since the one we got from LL Bean about three years ago has had a mishap and is kaput. We met a couple camped in the site next to us and the woman is a weaver, so we exchanged info. It's fun to meet weavers on the road--there aren't a lot of us out there!