We are officially eastbound!  We are only a few days from home and i’m finding my photos outdoing my writing! I could bore you with the funny details of our trip.. like locking the keys inside of the jeep and calling a locksmith… which also landed us at a super awesome Mexican restaurant while we waited.. then getting stuck in traffic for 3 hrs due to hwy maintenance and driving some hard mountain miles in the dark along with all of the semi trucks, which also landed us in the quaint little town of Williams off Route 66 where we found a little piece of time still stuck in the 50’s and 60’s!

Our last day in Yosemite we visited the Mariposa Grove, home of many giant and very old Sequoia trees. We hiked 5 miles in and out of the trails leading us around these majesties. It’s amazing how much you learn attending Ranger seminars, reading the plaques and taking it all in.  The Sequoias are fascinating not just in their sheer size, but also how they grow, reproduce, and survive so many hostile conditions. They are fire resistant, yet fires help the seeds to germinate.  The seeds are minuscule in size compared to what they turn into… it is said that a seed is to a mature tree, as that tree is to the Earth sizewise!  Years ago, the early settlers tried to protect the trees from fire, which scientists later figured out was actually slowing down the reproduction.  They now have controlled burning, or actual forest fires that keep the Sequoias healthy and reproducing naturally.  The heat literally germinates the seeds.. just fascinating. I’ll enclose some information in the photo section of a few more Sequoia facts of the plaques in and around the forest.

The drive through the Sierras Nevada mountain range was spectacular!  Since we had an exceptional Sequoia experience in Yosemite and time is not on our side for getting home, we decided to bypass Sequoia National Park which would have made an additional 3 days tacked on to our trip,due to required online classes and school, then hiking time… so we pushed East to the Grand Canyon!

There are no words or photos that can do this geological wonder proper justice.  All i can say is WOW! We avoided the tourist rim trail and visitors center on this portion due to the “touron” factor.  We’ve visited MANY parks on this trip, and i’m pretty sure i can’t take anymore tourists! haha (even though i am one… lol) We decided on a half day hike that took us down the South Kaibab trail to Skeleton Point.  A strenuous 2700′ descent, 6 mile hike into the canyon with breath taking, unobstructed views. That is one way to get away from the average tourist! The red sand was fascinating and seemed to cling to my camera and every part of everything! We are literally a 2 day drive from our home to the Canyon and will plan a more serious overnight (or week long) back packing/rafting trip for 2015.  Who’s in?

Arriving to camp after dark, we decided not to build a fire and sit out under the stars, but rather hit the small town a few miles away off of Route 66 and become official “tourons” ourselves! 😉 Great food, and window shopping and a lot of nostalgic 50’s and 60’s memorabilia. At an elevation of 6000′ and late Oct, the air was clear and brisk.  Felt like a winter stroll in the desert!

FYI.. the push home is to make the Performance Music team’s first meeting.  Savannah made the team and the school has been beyond accommodating.

Also… Savannah made HIGH Honors for lessons 1-20 and 20-40 (there is both “high honors” and “honors” recognition).  “Road Schooling” has been challenging at times and we’re very proud of Savannah’s hard work. Congrats young lady, we are SO PROUD of you.

Sorry the photos loaded all out of order!