We are heading home with a couple of stops first. Cokie and I had never seen Mono Lake so Kae encouraged us to shoot west to that area and if the weather permitted we could also spend some time in Yosemite. Mono Lake is truly weird to a dog’s nose. Nothing smells alive, it just smells white. Though I did catch a whiff of something fishy which Kae says must be the specially adapted shrimp that live only in this salty lake as there are no fish here. Those salt formations called tuffas are especially strange. I even understand that this super salty lake is really still dying. Even though the agreement with LA has slowed the withdrawal of water, it hasn’t helped with the decrease in rainfall and inflow, therefore, the lake has not reached a salinity balance yet and is still essentially dying.
We spent the night in a nice campground at June Lake and headed up Tioga Pass into Yosemite the next morning.
We are so blessed to have such great weather for this time of year. Cokie and Kae have both been here before but they say you can never tire of this beauty. I can see and smell why. This is wow country for sure! One of the best things for me was the little hike up to Bridal Veil Falls. Although the falls weren’t at their peak flowing over the cliff they were still one of the prettiest sites around. There were also a group of people who appreciated a well mannered, friendly, smiling cinnamon lab – that would be me, of course!
I loved meeting two, good smelling nice kids and a sweet lady who was ready to take me home. She thanked Cokie for spending the past 7 plus years raising me up to be such a fine dog, but I declined to go; I know when I have a good thing going!
Yosemite Falls were just a trickle but still awesome, plus the fact that there were so few people and that the fall colors were so impressive, made this trip a lovely day.
We traveled straight up Hwy. 49 to home and Nevada City and enjoyed seeing so many of you and getting caught up with your lives. I got plenty of rest and doggie cookies and even got to go for some walks out on Cooper Road with my old buddies Goldie and Endo. We also got all of the repairs finished on me and Kae and the Pod before we headed due west for the coast. The area around Lake Mendocino is nice but I really love a good beach and was happiest when we got to Hwy One.
We ambled and poked around there until nightfall when we camped in the Navarro Redwoods State Park. That was beautiful. We did several stops, including Pt. Arena Lighthouse, but it was storming so we hunkered down in the Lake Sonoma Regional Park for the night.
Ever onward the next day which got us to the Pt. Reyes Lighthouse State Park. The gals got a workout there because it was 300 steps down to the old lighthouse itself. They learned all about the Frenchman, Frenscel, who developed the prism lenses in 1840 for lighthouses the whole world over. The brass work of cogs and wheels was jewel like and had a beauty of precision all their own. The Ranger was informative and cooperative and allowed the gals to photograph to their hearts’ content. The storm sculpted cypress trees and the fascinating rock formations made the hike well worth while. How I wished I could have gone with them.
We spent the night camping on top of Mt. Tamalpias and then drove over to enjoy the Muir Woods the next day. What a great little treasure this park is, what nice trails they have and what fun photos.
Back over to the coast and Hwy.1 down to Half Moon Bay. I loved this campground and the beach was heaven! The ladies went off to visit with Cokie’s cousin Jeannie and her husband Barry in their beautiful home in La Granada overlooking the ocean. I couldn’t go because they have a dog that is extremely territorial and I didn’t want to intimidate him, you know. We were coasting again the next day on our way to Big Sur when we saw this cool maze made out of straw bales at this fun little pumpkin farm next to the highway, so of course we stopped.
Then off to Monterey and a fabulous day for the gals at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. They spent hours watching the otters and jellyfish. There was also a special display of Chihuly glass sculptures that made them pause to appreciate his ability to mimic nature. Really I don’t mind when I stay in the Pod during these excursions because I always get yummy treats from their dinners, like great clam chowder soaked bread! Anyway I know my Ladies had a great time with their photography again, as you can see.
We stopped next day at Big Sur and played at Jade Beach. Cool surfers and jade hunters. ‘Very California!’
See you at Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Parks next.
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