Sequoia and Kings Canyon

What a pleasure to take our RV into a national park. Our campsite was surrounded by towering trees and the scent of pine. With no electricity or water, we just had to do a little rationing, well worth the small inconvenience for the pleasure of being in such a lovely forest.

Sequoia National Park provided the trees Dave sought. We paid proper respect to General Sherman, the largest tree by volume, height and girth, in the world. Sequoia trees are not just big, they are also beautiful with their foliage swaying way above our heads.

In travel, we all discover that cherry on top of the sundae, the extra treat beyond the main dish. For us it was the Discovery Tour of Crystal Cave. Our guide first told us of the Monachee who made their home in the area. Then, giving us each a flashlight, he led us through the spider web gate on a tour of the caves. While providing some history and geological background, he let us find the marvels of the deep on our own. With just our flashlights and flash cameras we felt a hint of the wonder that early explorers experienced.



As another “treat” in the park, we came as close as we dared to a black bear. We followed her on the road, from the safety of our car, as she went to join her two cubs up feasting in a shrub.

Adjacent to Sequoia is Kings Canyon National Park. We drove to the end of the trail, the last stop before having to foot it over the Sierras. The V-shaped canyon was filled with smoke which, ironically, added to the beauty of the area.

General Grant stands in the midst of a large grove of sequoias, some named for various states. The walk through the grove is quiet, lovely, and intimidating, those trees are really big.

We took short paths to two waterfalls, still beautiful because of the late winter in the Sierras.


While Jerry, Anna Lee, and Cheryl opted to enjoy the view from comfortable chairs in the campsite, Dave went off and found himself another bear and a deer. Between the four of us, we took over a thousand pictures in four days and found what we wanted and more.

Family Time

Our daughter and son-in-law came to tour a bit of California with us. Since Cheryl was raised here, we let Dave choose the sights. He said, “trees” which we understood as sequoias. They also wanted to go to Monterey, so we loaded up the RV and headed to the Bay Area to pick them up.


We met at Edie (Cheryl’s matron-of-honor) and Matt’s where we got to see their three charming daughters. We enjoyed catching up on their lives over a delicious dinner at China Villa in Dublin.











The next morning we set out for Monterey. The weather was sunny and the sky was clear as we strolled through Point Lobos searching for seals and otters and beautiful vistas. Cheryl spotted the distant spout of a whale.



With our appetite stirred by the walk, we dined at Crown and Anchor, a British style alehouse. The chef took advantage of the great seafood swimming nearby creating a wonderful sole stuffed with shrimp and crab. His non-fish preparations were not as good.







The next day, waking up surrounded by coastal fog, we headed indoors to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Photos are better than words to describe this outstanding facility.







Resting our weary feet from all the walking in the aquarium, we took a rocky trolley ride that went repeatedly past some of the historic buildings of this 240-year-old town.

We then enjoyed an early anniversary dinner (seven years for the couple) at Montrio. From appetizers through dessert, every dish was outstanding.