Hillbillies in the Mountains

 

 

Let me first start off by stating that this blog entry is written entirely by Jacky D in response to everyone assuming that Megan was the only one writing the first few entries.  Okay, now back to business.  We arrived at Sequoia National Park on Friday and  continued to have perfect weather.  This park immediately jumped to our new favorite as the campground was great and the views amazing.  We took the Generals Highway (windiest road ever) to a grove of Sequoia trees that the infamous "General Sherman" lives in.  General Sherman is the largest tree in mass in the world and after 2100 years he is still going strong.  

 

 

 

This might be a good time to mention....we are no longer in the desert!  When we started climbing in elevation the snow started to appear.  At first we were excited to see some left-over snow in the ditch, but soon found 8 feet of snow in many places and traffic signs completely buried.  The temperatures were not bad at all and I don't think we ever felt cold.  We got to see some mule deer, but the search for a bear continues. 

 

                               Overlooking King's Canyon

 

 

For a hike on Saturday we took an 8 mile climb that gained about 2000 feet of elevation and ended at a waterfall.  The hike was amazing and views were around every turn. 

 

 

 

Living in a travel trailer in the woods requires some creative laundry as can be seen in the pictures below.  With biodegradable soap and a bucket we were able to hand wash some clothes and hang them up on a clothesline.  Charging iPhones also requires some creative thinking and although a 4000 watt gasoline generator sounds like overkill, it makes perfect sense to me.  We looked like total white trash....but it was great.  After the hike and laundry we were exhausted and like every night ended up falling asleep around nine.....after some grilled cajun chicken on the campfire.  

 

 

                   Washing Jack's underwear by hand...you can tell Megan is not too thrilled

              Our ghetto-rigged clothesline off the bear box

 

 

Sunday morning we packed up and left early for Yosemite National Park- about a 2-3 hour drive.  We stopped on the way and bought some more groceries and camping supplies since we will be in Yosemite for five nights.  I'm going to break for a minute and mention that on this entire trip we have not spent a penny on anything but groceries and gasoline.....this simple life feels so good.  In our campsite in Yosemite we are about twenty yards from a roaring river and at an elevation of 4000 feet so there isn't really any snow.  Today we walked through another grove of giant sequoia trees and the snow was packed up about 3-4 feet along the trail.  With the sunny skies and mild temperatures you can be walking next to all this snow and wear a t-shirt and feel fine.  We were able to find a little neighborhood inside the park where employees live and found a unlocked internet connection so we were able to get a few emails out and soon this blog!  One year ago today, Megan and I went on our first date, so spending our 1 year anniversary in Yosemite seems to fit us perfectly.  I would never have guessed there was someone out there I could have so much fun with living in a camper....so in conclusion....Life is good!