sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you. 
Story Aunt Gus & Little Bear's Great Adventure Book 1 (Complete)
- Thread starter Kathy in FL
- Start date
September 5th
Glad I didn’t unpack too much last night as this morning we moved campgrounds. We were able to get on the road early after a breakfast of a big bowl of grits with bacon bits and some cheese sprinkled in. It was good, stick-to-our-ribs food that set us up for our day of hiking.
I started today’s survival skill first thing. I had Benny go over the hikers he was using today, and we also practiced limbering up. Maybe not your typical survival skill, but given how I’ve been feeling, I want to emphasize injury prevention on different levels, not just trail safety.
First hike of the day was a short one; Zumwalt Meadow. The 0.8-mile trail passed high granite walls, green meadows, and the Kings River. Once a loop trail, a sign-thingie explained that natural flooding in 2019 washed away sections of the trail that passed through the meadow and paralleling the river. These days the trail crosses the Kings River via an expansion bridge, then offers views of the meadow from a trail passing through a wooded area and a talus slope. Beyond the meadow trail, the trail merged with the Kanawyer Loop trail, continuing another towards spots called Road's End and Muir Rock.
Roaring River Falls was our next hike. It was a very short, shady walk to a powerful waterfall rushing through a granite chute. Little Bear and I love us some waterfalls, especially the ones out here in the West as they are so different from what we grew up with in Florida.
A slightly longer trail led us to Knapp's Cabin and a sign-thingie that I included as a history lesson. During the Roaring 1920s, a Santa Barbara businessman arranged for lavish fishing vacays here with his men friends. Their gear was stored in the small cabin we hiked to. The cabin has long out-lived the man it was named for.
Our next stop was for Benny; we stopped at the the Cedar Grove visitor center. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this little cabin in the woods with a lone picnic table near the front door. This visitor center is next to the South Fork of the Kings River. It is a “serene” location, or would have been if a van load of high school or college kids (could tell what they were to be honest) hadn’t set up for a picnic and making a bunch of unnecessary racket of the music kind.
Fine, just call me Grandmother Barry’s doppleganger and get it out of your system. But seriously? If you are there for nature, there’s no need for a bunch of bam, bam, thud, thud, punctuated by bump and grind and misplaced hoots and shrieks of laughter. And the scraggly beards and caterpillar mustaches weren’t exactly as cool as the guys in the group thought either. Their posing for my effort was wasted energy on their part. If I ever do go for the fast and loose kind of attraction they were offering, it sure wouldn’t be with someone dressed in baggy tanks and shorts, covered in bug bites, and looking like a close relative of Shaggy from that old cartoon Scooby-Doo. I had more muscle mass than those toothpicks had. And they could have used a shower, or at least their pits rinsed, because I didn’t have to get close to smell ‘em. Sorry, I likes me some hygiene. They made me itch – literally – to go Chief Barrymore on them. Gawd they smelled. How they could stand each other I don’t know unless their smellers had gone catatonic from abuse.
Odiferous collegiates aside, the visitor center was interesting despite its size. It was located in mixed conifer forest at an elevation of 4,600 feet and had displays and exhibits on the natural and cultural history of the Cedar Grove area. There was even a bookstore that offered books (naturally), maps, and educational items. They had their old-style digital flash-drives on clearance and I picked up several since my computer is still old enough that it can accept the practically antique USB 3.2’s and the USB-C and USB-4. I had to get a converter for the newest Memory Dots and trust me when I say not only was the converter expensive, I had to run crying for help to some of my old friends to get the software installed and working properly.
“Get rid of the dinosaur Gus. You’ve had that thing since Freshman year,” a few of them goaded me by saying. Luckily I didn’t have to answer because once again Pei rode to the rescue and told them, “Help or shut up and get off the conference call. The machine is vintage and deserves to live out its natural life. Gawd, we helped her build it and put in all those expansion slots and everything else for this very reason.” It was her way of reminding people that my finances didn’t exactly match theirs without having to embarrass me by actually saying I couldn’t afford a new computer. They got it and nothing else but help was given.
I’m not embarrassed about things and I’m no longer “traditionally poor.” However, there is no one else to plan my future for me and I have to plan Benny’s. I could have purchased a new computer at the time but it would have meant that much less cash to deal with the present expenses I was dealing with back then, including all of the new-to-us food and ingredients that Benny needed.
Although it seems that I am not the only one with “vintage” equipment still in use. There was a real, live, bonified pay phone outside the visitor center. And it worked. In that area there isn’t the greatest cell signal so landlines were a necessity. And since that visitor center wasn’t always manned and open the phone got a regular work out for emergency road side assistance issues.
I was originally going to leave the van parked at Cedar Grove, despite my discomfort with the Stink Brigade, to hike the nearby Don Cecil Trail. Then I found out from the Ranger-on-duty that there was an easier access directly from Sentinel Campground which was our stop for the night. That fit with our plans better and wasn’t far down the road. We drove, checked in, got a double look at the van and then us – I was waiting for the question but it never came, and then parked. Finally it was time to get going after I grabbed my bigger day hike pack.
The Don Cecil Trail at 10.6 miles was by far one of our longest trails both for this park and in general and we were lucky it was still barely mid-morning. We had quite a trek ahead of us. The trail climbed the cooler north-facing slope of the canyon and was the major access route to Cedar Grove prior to the completion of Highway 180 in 1939.
The trailhead is at a crosswalk next to a dirt pullout. The trail immediately begins a climb through pine woods interspersed with some broadleaf trees. After crossing a road, the trail briefly levels out and reaches a bridge over a small cascade.
After this point, the woods take on more of a high-elevation appearance; the broadleaf trees disappear, and the woods become more open. Most of that area has been burned over a couple of times and there dead trees all over with new growth that is decades old. You can still tell however, just like in Yellowstone, that the area has been devastated on several occasions. Once the burned area ends, the woods are pretty monotonous for the remainder of the climb.
After an easy climb through open forest of pine and incense cedar, the trail winds up a hill with good views of what the topo map called Monarch Divide. The view doesn't last long, as the path descends into taller trees growing around Sheep Creek ravine, and crosses the stream on a footbridge. The creek cascades down the hillside over a couple of pools and waterfalls. The ranger at the visitor center told us that the flow of water is impressive in spring and early summer but that right now the flow shrinks to a trickle. He wasn’t wrong. I was a little disappointed but that’s just the way things are in real life. The falls is where most hikers stop but we were continuing on.
Beyond the falls, the lesser-used trail zig-zags up the east-facing slopes beneath Lookout Peak. After winding through another shady ravine, the trail finally climbs up to the base of Lookout Peak where another steeper trail takes hikers to reportedly unforgettable views of the canyon floor nearly a mile below.
The trail was initially clear and easy, but near the top it became very steep and sandy. The trail ends just short of the summit overlook and looked to have some challenging and hazardous rock scrambling to reach the top. The summit is capped with two microwave antennas. I didn’t take us to the top of the summit so the trail was about a mile shorter – closer to nine than ten – than it could have been, but I just didn’t think Benny needed that kind of challenge.
Once back at the trailhead, it was a there and back trail so nothing new except for a few hikers that asked what it was like further along, it was only a short walk to our camp. Benny and I were starving despite snacking all during the hike, so I threw together a quick meal of opened face sandwiches of gluten-free canned beef in gravy, mashed potatoes, and some gluten free bread slices. For dessert I made fruit cocktail smoothies which is basically just canned fruit cocktail with ice thrown in and then blenderizing the mess to make it slushie. Not haute cuisine but pretty doggone good.
While we ate, I looked around at our camp. Sentinel Campground is located next to Cedar Grove Visitor Center, and only a quarter mile from Cedar Grove Village in the north end of King’s Canyon. There were open stands of evergreen trees and after dinner we decided to stroll over and check out what was at the Village.
The big attraction was the Lodge. Meh. It wasn’t bad but it kinda reminded me of summer camp. Then there was the snack bar and market. Both were closing by the time we got there but from what I did see the prices froze my scroogey wallet. The showers were open but were backed up so we just used the head in the van. All in all we didn’t really miss anything by not arriving earlier and based on the number of people milling about and Benny’s reaction to them, I’m just as happy that we were out on the trail most of the day.
No hook ups tonight so we filled all of our water containers and it was at that point that Benny finally wound down from the sugar in the smoothie and was ready to crash for the night. No major clean up which was good. I’m going to enjoy a little more quiet then I am off to sleep as well. Food and snacks are prepped for tomorrow and it looks like I’m going to need to hit a grocery pretty soon just to replenish our fresh items.
Glad I didn’t unpack too much last night as this morning we moved campgrounds. We were able to get on the road early after a breakfast of a big bowl of grits with bacon bits and some cheese sprinkled in. It was good, stick-to-our-ribs food that set us up for our day of hiking.
I started today’s survival skill first thing. I had Benny go over the hikers he was using today, and we also practiced limbering up. Maybe not your typical survival skill, but given how I’ve been feeling, I want to emphasize injury prevention on different levels, not just trail safety.
First hike of the day was a short one; Zumwalt Meadow. The 0.8-mile trail passed high granite walls, green meadows, and the Kings River. Once a loop trail, a sign-thingie explained that natural flooding in 2019 washed away sections of the trail that passed through the meadow and paralleling the river. These days the trail crosses the Kings River via an expansion bridge, then offers views of the meadow from a trail passing through a wooded area and a talus slope. Beyond the meadow trail, the trail merged with the Kanawyer Loop trail, continuing another towards spots called Road's End and Muir Rock.
Roaring River Falls was our next hike. It was a very short, shady walk to a powerful waterfall rushing through a granite chute. Little Bear and I love us some waterfalls, especially the ones out here in the West as they are so different from what we grew up with in Florida.
A slightly longer trail led us to Knapp's Cabin and a sign-thingie that I included as a history lesson. During the Roaring 1920s, a Santa Barbara businessman arranged for lavish fishing vacays here with his men friends. Their gear was stored in the small cabin we hiked to. The cabin has long out-lived the man it was named for.
Our next stop was for Benny; we stopped at the the Cedar Grove visitor center. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this little cabin in the woods with a lone picnic table near the front door. This visitor center is next to the South Fork of the Kings River. It is a “serene” location, or would have been if a van load of high school or college kids (could tell what they were to be honest) hadn’t set up for a picnic and making a bunch of unnecessary racket of the music kind.
Fine, just call me Grandmother Barry’s doppleganger and get it out of your system. But seriously? If you are there for nature, there’s no need for a bunch of bam, bam, thud, thud, punctuated by bump and grind and misplaced hoots and shrieks of laughter. And the scraggly beards and caterpillar mustaches weren’t exactly as cool as the guys in the group thought either. Their posing for my effort was wasted energy on their part. If I ever do go for the fast and loose kind of attraction they were offering, it sure wouldn’t be with someone dressed in baggy tanks and shorts, covered in bug bites, and looking like a close relative of Shaggy from that old cartoon Scooby-Doo. I had more muscle mass than those toothpicks had. And they could have used a shower, or at least their pits rinsed, because I didn’t have to get close to smell ‘em. Sorry, I likes me some hygiene. They made me itch – literally – to go Chief Barrymore on them. Gawd they smelled. How they could stand each other I don’t know unless their smellers had gone catatonic from abuse.
Odiferous collegiates aside, the visitor center was interesting despite its size. It was located in mixed conifer forest at an elevation of 4,600 feet and had displays and exhibits on the natural and cultural history of the Cedar Grove area. There was even a bookstore that offered books (naturally), maps, and educational items. They had their old-style digital flash-drives on clearance and I picked up several since my computer is still old enough that it can accept the practically antique USB 3.2’s and the USB-C and USB-4. I had to get a converter for the newest Memory Dots and trust me when I say not only was the converter expensive, I had to run crying for help to some of my old friends to get the software installed and working properly.
“Get rid of the dinosaur Gus. You’ve had that thing since Freshman year,” a few of them goaded me by saying. Luckily I didn’t have to answer because once again Pei rode to the rescue and told them, “Help or shut up and get off the conference call. The machine is vintage and deserves to live out its natural life. Gawd, we helped her build it and put in all those expansion slots and everything else for this very reason.” It was her way of reminding people that my finances didn’t exactly match theirs without having to embarrass me by actually saying I couldn’t afford a new computer. They got it and nothing else but help was given.
I’m not embarrassed about things and I’m no longer “traditionally poor.” However, there is no one else to plan my future for me and I have to plan Benny’s. I could have purchased a new computer at the time but it would have meant that much less cash to deal with the present expenses I was dealing with back then, including all of the new-to-us food and ingredients that Benny needed.
Although it seems that I am not the only one with “vintage” equipment still in use. There was a real, live, bonified pay phone outside the visitor center. And it worked. In that area there isn’t the greatest cell signal so landlines were a necessity. And since that visitor center wasn’t always manned and open the phone got a regular work out for emergency road side assistance issues.
I was originally going to leave the van parked at Cedar Grove, despite my discomfort with the Stink Brigade, to hike the nearby Don Cecil Trail. Then I found out from the Ranger-on-duty that there was an easier access directly from Sentinel Campground which was our stop for the night. That fit with our plans better and wasn’t far down the road. We drove, checked in, got a double look at the van and then us – I was waiting for the question but it never came, and then parked. Finally it was time to get going after I grabbed my bigger day hike pack.
The Don Cecil Trail at 10.6 miles was by far one of our longest trails both for this park and in general and we were lucky it was still barely mid-morning. We had quite a trek ahead of us. The trail climbed the cooler north-facing slope of the canyon and was the major access route to Cedar Grove prior to the completion of Highway 180 in 1939.
The trailhead is at a crosswalk next to a dirt pullout. The trail immediately begins a climb through pine woods interspersed with some broadleaf trees. After crossing a road, the trail briefly levels out and reaches a bridge over a small cascade.
After this point, the woods take on more of a high-elevation appearance; the broadleaf trees disappear, and the woods become more open. Most of that area has been burned over a couple of times and there dead trees all over with new growth that is decades old. You can still tell however, just like in Yellowstone, that the area has been devastated on several occasions. Once the burned area ends, the woods are pretty monotonous for the remainder of the climb.
After an easy climb through open forest of pine and incense cedar, the trail winds up a hill with good views of what the topo map called Monarch Divide. The view doesn't last long, as the path descends into taller trees growing around Sheep Creek ravine, and crosses the stream on a footbridge. The creek cascades down the hillside over a couple of pools and waterfalls. The ranger at the visitor center told us that the flow of water is impressive in spring and early summer but that right now the flow shrinks to a trickle. He wasn’t wrong. I was a little disappointed but that’s just the way things are in real life. The falls is where most hikers stop but we were continuing on.
Beyond the falls, the lesser-used trail zig-zags up the east-facing slopes beneath Lookout Peak. After winding through another shady ravine, the trail finally climbs up to the base of Lookout Peak where another steeper trail takes hikers to reportedly unforgettable views of the canyon floor nearly a mile below.
The trail was initially clear and easy, but near the top it became very steep and sandy. The trail ends just short of the summit overlook and looked to have some challenging and hazardous rock scrambling to reach the top. The summit is capped with two microwave antennas. I didn’t take us to the top of the summit so the trail was about a mile shorter – closer to nine than ten – than it could have been, but I just didn’t think Benny needed that kind of challenge.
Once back at the trailhead, it was a there and back trail so nothing new except for a few hikers that asked what it was like further along, it was only a short walk to our camp. Benny and I were starving despite snacking all during the hike, so I threw together a quick meal of opened face sandwiches of gluten-free canned beef in gravy, mashed potatoes, and some gluten free bread slices. For dessert I made fruit cocktail smoothies which is basically just canned fruit cocktail with ice thrown in and then blenderizing the mess to make it slushie. Not haute cuisine but pretty doggone good.
While we ate, I looked around at our camp. Sentinel Campground is located next to Cedar Grove Visitor Center, and only a quarter mile from Cedar Grove Village in the north end of King’s Canyon. There were open stands of evergreen trees and after dinner we decided to stroll over and check out what was at the Village.
The big attraction was the Lodge. Meh. It wasn’t bad but it kinda reminded me of summer camp. Then there was the snack bar and market. Both were closing by the time we got there but from what I did see the prices froze my scroogey wallet. The showers were open but were backed up so we just used the head in the van. All in all we didn’t really miss anything by not arriving earlier and based on the number of people milling about and Benny’s reaction to them, I’m just as happy that we were out on the trail most of the day.
No hook ups tonight so we filled all of our water containers and it was at that point that Benny finally wound down from the sugar in the smoothie and was ready to crash for the night. No major clean up which was good. I’m going to enjoy a little more quiet then I am off to sleep as well. Food and snacks are prepped for tomorrow and it looks like I’m going to need to hit a grocery pretty soon just to replenish our fresh items.
beaglemama
Contributing Member
Thank you, Kathy!
Missing a story line on this travelog, especially as the end of travel time is coming up soon. Where are they going and why? Taking the summer to see all these interestng places has been fine, but hasn't set up relationships or situtions to move to, and i worry about them dealing with the high inflation in gas and food prices.
Books 1A, 1B, and 2 of the saga is pretty much written. I have edit and fill out each entry as I go.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you Kathy. It was nice to put my hurting feet up and read another one of t=your chapters.
September 6th – Labor Day
We changed campgrounds again. If we had to pack and unpack a tent to do this, it wouldn’t be worth the time but since we are just moving the van to a new parking spot it helps to cut down on the driving I have to do during the day. And despite how early we pulled out there were people waiting in line for just-in-case. I forgot it was a holiday … Labor Day to be exact.
How something or other as Meemo would say when she wasn’t quite sure how to quantify something. Labor Day is celebrated here in the US to honor or whatever you want to call it the labor movement in this country. Grandfather Barry used to call it a bunch of “communist claptrap” and then he would get wound up and Dad and Grandma Barry had to get him calmed down again. Uncle Daniel on the other hand seemed to enjoy winding him up and then trying to poke holes in his sails which only made him angrier. I know Uncle Daniel and Grandfather loved each other but they had a strange relationship … or maybe that should be strained relationship. Unlike Dad, Uncle Daniel never quite got over his mother leaving and for a long time he resented Grandfather getting over it and moving on. Whatever. I’m not going down another rabbit trail on memory lane, I feel squirrely enough as it is.
Labor Day led me to thinking about getting a job which led me to thinking about which kind of job which led me to thinking about where to get this hypothetical job which led me to surreptitiously getting the big bottle of antacids out of the first aid supplies and downing it pronto before my stomach blew with volcanic projectile vomit.
I tried to put my thinking on hold for the day for Benny’s sake but promised myself that I’d do something constructive about it tonight.
“Aunt Gus? Does your stomach hurt?”
Gah! I just couldn’t lie to my Little Bear. “Got a lot of adult type thinking to do tonight. Not really looking forward to it.”
“Um, you wanna take a day off? We’ve already seen big trees and the Crew and I promise to be quiet.”
“Nah. Hiking and nature will help me keep on the straight and narrow and I’ll do the adulting stuff after you hit the hay.”
He held my hand off and on today. It is his empathetic way of trying to make me feel better, more secure I guess, but the truth is I can’t risk treating my nephew like my personal woobie. Sometimes you just have to adult, and you have to do it on your own. So just like I told him, I was going to use nature and hiking to help myself deal with my personal worries.
We did General Grant on the 4th and today we did the General Sherman tree. LOL. The Main Parking and trailhead were just off Wolverton Road, which led the Generals Highway just north of the Sherman Tree area. From this parking area, the 1/2-mile trail descended via some stairs. There were benches along the trail for those that needed a break. There were multiple signs warning people not to overexert themselves at that elevation which was roughly 7000-feet, especially if they weren’t accustomed to it. I’ll admit I was mildly altitude sick for a bit but kept drinking water and got over it on the way out to the tree, and felt nothing at all coming back. There was a free shuttle, but the lines were long and crowded since it was a holiday, the last one before most public schools start back up. And that compounded the thoughts I was going to have to think because Benny was supposed to start first grade. Ugh.
Not far from the General Sherman parking lot was the Big Tree Trail. Another short one at only 0.75-mile that ran through Round Meadow. There were high-interest sign-thingies all along the trail that described sequoia ecology. At the end of the trail we visited Giant Forest Museum to complete a few more activities for Benny’s Junior Ranger badge.
Benny had asked to bring Little Bear and Gus the Pelican so we could take some pictures of them. The two stuffies frequently appear in the blog in place of pictures of Benny and I but I hadn’t realized they were that much of a focal point for some people.
“Mom! Mom! Mom!”
“Michelle, please don’t pull my arm off. And lower your voice a few decibels. Dad is trying to record a background.”
“But Mom!”
“Michelle …”
“Mom, it is Little Bear and Gus the Pelican!”
“Michelle. I told … you … Oh. Curt?” She tugged on her husband’s arm about like her daughter had been tugging on hers.
Busted. I looked at Benny and he shrugged. “She must really like the Crew.” He turned around and waved at the little girl who squealed.
“It is them! Look Mom!!”
She picked up her daughter and with an apologetic look, and a hand over the little girl’s mouth, walked over towards us.
“Pardon us but …?”
“Yeah,” I said with a smile. The kid was obviously something though I never did find out what her diagnosis was, but I wasn’t going to shoot her down just for being her own version of different.
The woman said, “I apologize for the noise. Michelle just really gets a kick out of the way you post the animals.”
I heard Benny explaining to Michelle, “I call them the Crew, like they’re my team and stuff. But Little Bear and Gus the Pelican are Crew Leaders so they get to do more advanced stuff and they are old enough to get their pictures taken.”
I don’t know what the little girl replied but she was obviously eating it up.
I told the Mom, “Hi. I’m Gus.”
“I’m Charis. Nice to meet you. Michelle is our youngest and her brother Ebon found your blog last month and …” She shrugged a little embarrassed. “She’s been absolutely convinced she was going to see Little Bear and Gus the Pelican. I just … can’t believe … I mean …”
“Not a prob. Um … looks like your husband is trying to get your attention.”
“Oh. Um …”
“Tell you what, I’ll have Little Bear wave hello to Michelle in his thought bubble. Would that be okay?”
“Oh Lord, she’d love it. Thank you so much.”
It started to sprinkle and then come down a little harder so as the family left, Benny and I took refuge under the overhang of the museum.
“Thank you.”
I turned to see a ranger. “For?”
“Not turning into a celebrity vlog star.” The look on my face must have been something because he laughed. “We get vloggers through the park on a regular basis but not many of them focus on special needs kids.”
I shrugged. “Not really into labels to be honest.”
“That’s actually what I mean I suppose. You make the parks and some of the more challenging activities more accessible just by doing them despite a label rather than because you are trying to prove something.”
The rain let up and the ranger was called away and I skedaddled as quickly as possible. I wondered if our next hike was going to be out, but it looked like the rain never made it to Moro Rock. Good thing because the stairs aren’t a place to be if they are wet.
To reach the top of this granite dome, you follow a stairway that climbs 300 feet to the summit. The stairs required my full attention – at least what wasn’t being used for Benny – so I didn’t have any brain space to spend on being bothered by anything. At the top was a spectacular view of the Great Western Divide and the western half of the park. Going up was easier than coming down. There were a few impatient hikers that wanted to “skip the line” and with the crowd that didn’t create the safest going.
What was worse was two teenagers in particular got into a tussle in the parking lot as they’d been in some kind of race to get down and “get the front seat.” We’ll their pushing a shoving match went to the next level and one of the cretins tried to sucker punch the other. But this wasn’t the other kid’s first rodeo and he was able to move out of the way. But his moving meant he was about to punch the van’s side window. And at the very least he was either going to damage the window or damage his hand.
I stepped into his punch to save both and his fist landed on my bicep. It wasn’t fun but the guy wasn’t as strong as many that I’d taken on. What he did do was hack me off and I got in his face and gave the rather infamous Barrymore Growl; it was a cross between a bear and a gator and more people had sense not to push their luck further. Not Junior Turd Brain. Geez I wanted to deck him right there and nearly did except for my own commonsense and the fact that he was a minor.
He was yodeling something and I simple talked over him and asked, “This idiot belong to anyone around here?”
His pride was wounded but I told him, “Stop sounding like a scalded cat. And back the frick out of my space boy child or I’m calling a ranger to mediate and I’m sure there are people that will willingly explain your behavior on the stairs and the spectacle you and the other air head were making here in the parking lot.”
“You can’t talk to me like that!”
“News flash, just did.”
A girl about my age ran up and pushed both boys back. “Geez. Sorry. He’s my brother.”
“You have my sympathies. When the testosterone dies back to a manageable level, explain to them just how much trouble they could have gotten in.”
He tried to start back up and I just looked at him with dead eyes until he quickly wound down, finally figuring out he wasn’t pushing around your average female. Turning back to his sister I said, “He could have either damaged his hand or damaged my window, neither one being a fun event for either of us. They also endangered my nephew with their stupidity on the trail. Pushing and shoving is not brilliant and they were lucky they didn’t go over the side or send someone else that direction.”
The kid snarled, “Dike.”
I looked at him and then did a fast jump in his direction. He hadn’t been expecting it and tripped over his own feet, yelped, and then fell, scooting backwards on his butt.
“Listen Boy-Child, check your ego, especially when you don’t know who you are messing with or how far they will go to defend themselves or those under their care. You don’t know me. The only thing you might know about me is that I’m more inclined to save your butt than kick it around this parking lot since I’m not calling the cops at being physically assaulted.”
The sister yelped and turned on the kid. “You hit her? Are you brain damaged?! That’s it, you are going back to mom and dad. I’m done.”
“Wait! You can’t do that! I didn’t do anything wrong!”
She rolled her eyes angrily and told both boys, “Get in the car. The back seat. I don’t need you two causing me to get pulled over and getting a ticket because you can’t find a brain cell. Darren and I thought it might be fun to have you guys along and all that but screw it. Your lack of maturity is so not worth it.”
No apology from anyone was forthcoming but I hadn’t been looking for one. I lifted a subdued Benny into the van and that more than all the rest hacked me off.
“Hey Buddy. Sorry for the tropical storm on the day.”
“Nah,” he said weakly. “Those guys were jerks. But … they hit you.”
“I’m fine. And I’m not saying that hitting is okay. It just happened and … like you said, those guys were being jerks and while they didn’t hurt me, they nearly hurt other people.”
“They’re stuuupid.”
“Yep. You know what we can do?”
“What?” he asked softly.
“We can learn from their mistakes. We can follow the rules. Use our manners. And try not and pollute the air with ignorance.”
“You really aren’t hurt?”
Uh oh. “Nope. Wouldn’t lie to you. It’s against our rules. Not to mention …” I looked around carefully and then climbed in and pulled the door shut. “I don’t want it to sound like I’m bragging but Junior Dodo Bird wasn’t exactly all that and then some like he thought he was. No insult meant to real Dodo Birds.”
He snickered and said, “Dodo birds are extinct Aunt Gus.”
“Oh, now you tell me. Let’s vacate this place and find our next bit of fun. Want a Benny Blue drink?”
Thankfully Benny was willing to get over the incident and move forward. Part of me regretted my actions, but a bigger part didn’t. Sometimes you just can’t have any back up and that kid really annoyed me for multiple reasons, most of them pertaining to the fact that someone could have gotten hurt all for the lack of some commonsense.
Our last hike of the day was another short one to Tokopah Falls but first we checked into the Lodgepole Campground, where we were staying the night. It is a large, popular campground in an area known as the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River. There was also a lodge and village within easy walking distance. After getting our spot we started the hike which started just beyond the Marble Fork Bridge inside the campground itself.
It was a 3.4-mile there and back trail along the river to see some impressive granite cliffs and a cascading waterfall that is 1,200 feet high. The falls are more impressive in early summer, but they weren’t bad today.
After getting back in camp I asked Benny if he wanted a hot shower as much as I did. No doubt he is my nephew by his enthusiasm for the idea. They also had laundry facilities that we availed ourselves of. I mean when your laundry is close to walking around on its own you know it is time to do more than just rinse out the stink.
Sometimes you just need to relax in camp and that’s what Benny and I did for the remainder of the evening. Dinner was Salmon Caprese Salad and for dessert, since there was a little extra time, I made Grilled Strawberry Sandwiches. In addition to the sliced strawberries and mini marshmallows I added some gluten free Nutella. Rich and gooey and just the thing to give Benny a carb crash so he’d go to sleep early and give me some energy to do the thinking I needed to do.
There were a lot of seasonal type stuff but since I am not a ski instructor, a trained tutor, anything else along the lines of having certificates and diplomas, none of it looked too promising; especially with all of the qualifications and experience even the low-paying jobs are asking for.
But at least it is a start and more than I was doing. Less that two months to go. It makes me puke, but I suppose I could ask Uncle Daniel … nope. Forget it. There has got to be another way.
We changed campgrounds again. If we had to pack and unpack a tent to do this, it wouldn’t be worth the time but since we are just moving the van to a new parking spot it helps to cut down on the driving I have to do during the day. And despite how early we pulled out there were people waiting in line for just-in-case. I forgot it was a holiday … Labor Day to be exact.
How something or other as Meemo would say when she wasn’t quite sure how to quantify something. Labor Day is celebrated here in the US to honor or whatever you want to call it the labor movement in this country. Grandfather Barry used to call it a bunch of “communist claptrap” and then he would get wound up and Dad and Grandma Barry had to get him calmed down again. Uncle Daniel on the other hand seemed to enjoy winding him up and then trying to poke holes in his sails which only made him angrier. I know Uncle Daniel and Grandfather loved each other but they had a strange relationship … or maybe that should be strained relationship. Unlike Dad, Uncle Daniel never quite got over his mother leaving and for a long time he resented Grandfather getting over it and moving on. Whatever. I’m not going down another rabbit trail on memory lane, I feel squirrely enough as it is.
Labor Day led me to thinking about getting a job which led me to thinking about which kind of job which led me to thinking about where to get this hypothetical job which led me to surreptitiously getting the big bottle of antacids out of the first aid supplies and downing it pronto before my stomach blew with volcanic projectile vomit.
I tried to put my thinking on hold for the day for Benny’s sake but promised myself that I’d do something constructive about it tonight.
“Aunt Gus? Does your stomach hurt?”
Gah! I just couldn’t lie to my Little Bear. “Got a lot of adult type thinking to do tonight. Not really looking forward to it.”
“Um, you wanna take a day off? We’ve already seen big trees and the Crew and I promise to be quiet.”
“Nah. Hiking and nature will help me keep on the straight and narrow and I’ll do the adulting stuff after you hit the hay.”
He held my hand off and on today. It is his empathetic way of trying to make me feel better, more secure I guess, but the truth is I can’t risk treating my nephew like my personal woobie. Sometimes you just have to adult, and you have to do it on your own. So just like I told him, I was going to use nature and hiking to help myself deal with my personal worries.
We did General Grant on the 4th and today we did the General Sherman tree. LOL. The Main Parking and trailhead were just off Wolverton Road, which led the Generals Highway just north of the Sherman Tree area. From this parking area, the 1/2-mile trail descended via some stairs. There were benches along the trail for those that needed a break. There were multiple signs warning people not to overexert themselves at that elevation which was roughly 7000-feet, especially if they weren’t accustomed to it. I’ll admit I was mildly altitude sick for a bit but kept drinking water and got over it on the way out to the tree, and felt nothing at all coming back. There was a free shuttle, but the lines were long and crowded since it was a holiday, the last one before most public schools start back up. And that compounded the thoughts I was going to have to think because Benny was supposed to start first grade. Ugh.
Not far from the General Sherman parking lot was the Big Tree Trail. Another short one at only 0.75-mile that ran through Round Meadow. There were high-interest sign-thingies all along the trail that described sequoia ecology. At the end of the trail we visited Giant Forest Museum to complete a few more activities for Benny’s Junior Ranger badge.
Benny had asked to bring Little Bear and Gus the Pelican so we could take some pictures of them. The two stuffies frequently appear in the blog in place of pictures of Benny and I but I hadn’t realized they were that much of a focal point for some people.
“Mom! Mom! Mom!”
“Michelle, please don’t pull my arm off. And lower your voice a few decibels. Dad is trying to record a background.”
“But Mom!”
“Michelle …”
“Mom, it is Little Bear and Gus the Pelican!”
“Michelle. I told … you … Oh. Curt?” She tugged on her husband’s arm about like her daughter had been tugging on hers.
Busted. I looked at Benny and he shrugged. “She must really like the Crew.” He turned around and waved at the little girl who squealed.
“It is them! Look Mom!!”
She picked up her daughter and with an apologetic look, and a hand over the little girl’s mouth, walked over towards us.
“Pardon us but …?”
“Yeah,” I said with a smile. The kid was obviously something though I never did find out what her diagnosis was, but I wasn’t going to shoot her down just for being her own version of different.
The woman said, “I apologize for the noise. Michelle just really gets a kick out of the way you post the animals.”
I heard Benny explaining to Michelle, “I call them the Crew, like they’re my team and stuff. But Little Bear and Gus the Pelican are Crew Leaders so they get to do more advanced stuff and they are old enough to get their pictures taken.”
I don’t know what the little girl replied but she was obviously eating it up.
I told the Mom, “Hi. I’m Gus.”
“I’m Charis. Nice to meet you. Michelle is our youngest and her brother Ebon found your blog last month and …” She shrugged a little embarrassed. “She’s been absolutely convinced she was going to see Little Bear and Gus the Pelican. I just … can’t believe … I mean …”
“Not a prob. Um … looks like your husband is trying to get your attention.”
“Oh. Um …”
“Tell you what, I’ll have Little Bear wave hello to Michelle in his thought bubble. Would that be okay?”
“Oh Lord, she’d love it. Thank you so much.”
It started to sprinkle and then come down a little harder so as the family left, Benny and I took refuge under the overhang of the museum.
“Thank you.”
I turned to see a ranger. “For?”
“Not turning into a celebrity vlog star.” The look on my face must have been something because he laughed. “We get vloggers through the park on a regular basis but not many of them focus on special needs kids.”
I shrugged. “Not really into labels to be honest.”
“That’s actually what I mean I suppose. You make the parks and some of the more challenging activities more accessible just by doing them despite a label rather than because you are trying to prove something.”
The rain let up and the ranger was called away and I skedaddled as quickly as possible. I wondered if our next hike was going to be out, but it looked like the rain never made it to Moro Rock. Good thing because the stairs aren’t a place to be if they are wet.
To reach the top of this granite dome, you follow a stairway that climbs 300 feet to the summit. The stairs required my full attention – at least what wasn’t being used for Benny – so I didn’t have any brain space to spend on being bothered by anything. At the top was a spectacular view of the Great Western Divide and the western half of the park. Going up was easier than coming down. There were a few impatient hikers that wanted to “skip the line” and with the crowd that didn’t create the safest going.
What was worse was two teenagers in particular got into a tussle in the parking lot as they’d been in some kind of race to get down and “get the front seat.” We’ll their pushing a shoving match went to the next level and one of the cretins tried to sucker punch the other. But this wasn’t the other kid’s first rodeo and he was able to move out of the way. But his moving meant he was about to punch the van’s side window. And at the very least he was either going to damage the window or damage his hand.
I stepped into his punch to save both and his fist landed on my bicep. It wasn’t fun but the guy wasn’t as strong as many that I’d taken on. What he did do was hack me off and I got in his face and gave the rather infamous Barrymore Growl; it was a cross between a bear and a gator and more people had sense not to push their luck further. Not Junior Turd Brain. Geez I wanted to deck him right there and nearly did except for my own commonsense and the fact that he was a minor.
He was yodeling something and I simple talked over him and asked, “This idiot belong to anyone around here?”
His pride was wounded but I told him, “Stop sounding like a scalded cat. And back the frick out of my space boy child or I’m calling a ranger to mediate and I’m sure there are people that will willingly explain your behavior on the stairs and the spectacle you and the other air head were making here in the parking lot.”
“You can’t talk to me like that!”
“News flash, just did.”
A girl about my age ran up and pushed both boys back. “Geez. Sorry. He’s my brother.”
“You have my sympathies. When the testosterone dies back to a manageable level, explain to them just how much trouble they could have gotten in.”
He tried to start back up and I just looked at him with dead eyes until he quickly wound down, finally figuring out he wasn’t pushing around your average female. Turning back to his sister I said, “He could have either damaged his hand or damaged my window, neither one being a fun event for either of us. They also endangered my nephew with their stupidity on the trail. Pushing and shoving is not brilliant and they were lucky they didn’t go over the side or send someone else that direction.”
The kid snarled, “Dike.”
I looked at him and then did a fast jump in his direction. He hadn’t been expecting it and tripped over his own feet, yelped, and then fell, scooting backwards on his butt.
“Listen Boy-Child, check your ego, especially when you don’t know who you are messing with or how far they will go to defend themselves or those under their care. You don’t know me. The only thing you might know about me is that I’m more inclined to save your butt than kick it around this parking lot since I’m not calling the cops at being physically assaulted.”
The sister yelped and turned on the kid. “You hit her? Are you brain damaged?! That’s it, you are going back to mom and dad. I’m done.”
“Wait! You can’t do that! I didn’t do anything wrong!”
She rolled her eyes angrily and told both boys, “Get in the car. The back seat. I don’t need you two causing me to get pulled over and getting a ticket because you can’t find a brain cell. Darren and I thought it might be fun to have you guys along and all that but screw it. Your lack of maturity is so not worth it.”
No apology from anyone was forthcoming but I hadn’t been looking for one. I lifted a subdued Benny into the van and that more than all the rest hacked me off.
“Hey Buddy. Sorry for the tropical storm on the day.”
“Nah,” he said weakly. “Those guys were jerks. But … they hit you.”
“I’m fine. And I’m not saying that hitting is okay. It just happened and … like you said, those guys were being jerks and while they didn’t hurt me, they nearly hurt other people.”
“They’re stuuupid.”
“Yep. You know what we can do?”
“What?” he asked softly.
“We can learn from their mistakes. We can follow the rules. Use our manners. And try not and pollute the air with ignorance.”
“You really aren’t hurt?”
Uh oh. “Nope. Wouldn’t lie to you. It’s against our rules. Not to mention …” I looked around carefully and then climbed in and pulled the door shut. “I don’t want it to sound like I’m bragging but Junior Dodo Bird wasn’t exactly all that and then some like he thought he was. No insult meant to real Dodo Birds.”
He snickered and said, “Dodo birds are extinct Aunt Gus.”
“Oh, now you tell me. Let’s vacate this place and find our next bit of fun. Want a Benny Blue drink?”
Thankfully Benny was willing to get over the incident and move forward. Part of me regretted my actions, but a bigger part didn’t. Sometimes you just can’t have any back up and that kid really annoyed me for multiple reasons, most of them pertaining to the fact that someone could have gotten hurt all for the lack of some commonsense.
Our last hike of the day was another short one to Tokopah Falls but first we checked into the Lodgepole Campground, where we were staying the night. It is a large, popular campground in an area known as the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River. There was also a lodge and village within easy walking distance. After getting our spot we started the hike which started just beyond the Marble Fork Bridge inside the campground itself.
It was a 3.4-mile there and back trail along the river to see some impressive granite cliffs and a cascading waterfall that is 1,200 feet high. The falls are more impressive in early summer, but they weren’t bad today.
After getting back in camp I asked Benny if he wanted a hot shower as much as I did. No doubt he is my nephew by his enthusiasm for the idea. They also had laundry facilities that we availed ourselves of. I mean when your laundry is close to walking around on its own you know it is time to do more than just rinse out the stink.
Sometimes you just need to relax in camp and that’s what Benny and I did for the remainder of the evening. Dinner was Salmon Caprese Salad and for dessert, since there was a little extra time, I made Grilled Strawberry Sandwiches. In addition to the sliced strawberries and mini marshmallows I added some gluten free Nutella. Rich and gooey and just the thing to give Benny a carb crash so he’d go to sleep early and give me some energy to do the thinking I needed to do.
There were a lot of seasonal type stuff but since I am not a ski instructor, a trained tutor, anything else along the lines of having certificates and diplomas, none of it looked too promising; especially with all of the qualifications and experience even the low-paying jobs are asking for.
But at least it is a start and more than I was doing. Less that two months to go. It makes me puke, but I suppose I could ask Uncle Daniel … nope. Forget it. There has got to be another way.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Nice, and again another thank you.
September 7th
What. A. Day. Nearly six hours of crawling around underground. We had fun but I was ready to vacate the place by the end of the tour. I’m an open water kinda person. Good thing I didn’t have claustrophobia because that tour would have triggered a major melt down.
I had gotten tickets for the Crystal Cave Tour early on and I’m glad we stayed on schedule so I didn’t have to cancel. It was challenging but made some great adventure memories for both Benny and I. The cave is located at the end of a winding 7-mile road off the Generals Highway near Giant Forest. No tickets, don’t bother even trying. You are required to have the tickets a minimum of 48 hours in advance. I had the tickets, but the drive wasn’t fun. It took nearly an hour just to drive the road. One, there was someone that would only go about 10 to 15 miles an hour staying strictly to the speed limit on the two-way goat track, and two, the van was almost too long to safely make the turns. Good thing I’ve learn to make the ark think it is a ballerina on occasion. The cave is where one of those free shuttles would have come in handy and I would have happily waited in line regardless of the crowds.
We were going to be underground for quite some time but also in confined spaces. I opted out of my normal pack and filled all my pockets with our gear. I also put some things in Benny’s zip pockets including a couple of granola bars even though we’d been warned no food in the cave. Er, let’s use some commonsense please. It was pre-packaged and sealed but no way was I risking getting stuck down there without some just-in-case.
And as warm as it was outside the cave, it was a cool 50 degrees F underground, so we needed jackets. I almost brought Benny’s bike helmet for him to wear but the ranger said we’d get spelunking helmets as part of our particular tour. We’d also get kneed pads, elbow pads, headlamps and were warned we would be coming out extremely dirty. Benny was grinning so big and brightly by that point that I wouldn’t have needed a flashlight, but I still brought our own mini mag lights and fully charged headlamps for just in case. Ours I knew for a fact were waterproof and could take a lot of abuse as they were the ones I brought when we would occasionally go overnight kayaking. Yes I know, Little Bear wasn’t much more than a baby when I started this but Lawrence had made a point of telling me he didn’t want Benny raised to be “fragile” and I’ve honored his wishes as much as I can.
First thing we had to do was climb the steep half-mile trail to the cave entrance to get our assigned gear. I couldn’t believe I was already hearing a few people complain. Why buy the ticket if you were going to whine about stuff. I was just hoping none of them were on our tour. For once I was correct. Most of them were on the 50-minute family tour. There were a couple of other tours that lasted one and a half hours, and one that lasted three hours but I went for the big burrito and had us tickets for the Wild Cave Tour. There’s supposed to be an age limit of 10 years, but they didn’t check by asking for proof. Benny is tall for his age, and different in how he carries himself, and I guess they just assumed. I wasn’t interested in getting anyone in trouble, so I kept my mouth shut. He was my responsibility after all, and he has more adventure to him than your average kid of any age, most adults as well. He’s no slouch either and knows not to bring attention to certain aspects that might keep him from a particular activity.
When you are like Benny and I you just learn to not let people put limitations on you. The flip side of that coin is that you have to think of other people and not put them in danger by your own choices for yourself. I’ve pushed the envelope a few times with Benny, but I also know when to stop and turn around, or not start at all. Turned out he had an easier time on the tour than I did. I’m embarrassed to say I need to watch out for the bubble butt that I’m developing, a problem I’ve never had before. Looking at the family photo album I know my mother an hour-glass figure kinda woman with the hour-glass kinda wide on the bottom. Grandfather Barry once described her as a “big hipped and big hearted girl” and while I’m built too much like a Barrymore to ever completely fall to her genetics, let’s just say I’m flatter on top than I am on the bottom. I’m going to be adding a few more Pilates and planks to my daily work out that’s for sure. When I have to buy the inevitable new clothes, I don’t want it to have to be because I “outgrew” them.
Per usual, after getting geared up we got an overview of the history and geography of the cave. The ranger cleared his throat and orated, “Crystal Cave was discovered April 28, 1918, by C. M. Webster and A. L. Medley, National Park Service employees, while on a fishing trip along Cascade Creek a short distance above its junction with Cave Creek. It is situated in a vertical bed of marble 200 feet thick, which extends through the ridge between these two creeks. It was named by the then Superintendent, Walter Fry, who took immediate steps to protect it, by having a log barricade built across the entrance, until funds became available for development. The cave was opened to visitors over two decades later on May 29, 1940. The cave is open only during the summer months, and only by ranger-led tours. In addition to protecting the cave against vandalism, the Rangers explain its many features and suggest how it may have originated. There are many unsolved problems connected with the origin of the cave, and some of the questions that arise may never be answered correctly.”
Trust me when I say Benny was eating this stuff up, and as only one of three kids on the tour, he garnered his share of attention. The other two kids were a brother/sister set of pre-teen twins who were well-behaved and just as nerdy as Benny when it came to all the stuff on the tour. They knew Benny was younger, but I don’t think anyone suspected just how young since he more than kept up in all areas since no reading was required.
According to the ranger, “Most parts of Crystal Cave that are accessible, as well as several other caves in the park ranging in altitude from 2,000 feet to 6,300 feet, have been explored. Some of the caves have their entrances near the level of surface streams in the bottoms of deep canyons, as at Crystal Cave, while others are situated near the tops of mountain ridges high above the level of present-day streams. At least four of the lower caves have active streams in them, and some now dry contain deposits of gravel which indicate the once had streams in them.”
The cave we explored today is one of more than 200 marble caverns found within Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks. The parks contain half of California’s caves that are more than 1 mile long, as well as the state’s longest cave. Most of the caves have limited access for research purposes-only or require professional experience certifications, expensive equipment, and difficult to obtain permits. Crystal Cave in the exception.
Thousands of people explore the cave every year, and the underground route used by the standard 50-minute and 90-minute tours have paved paths and solar-powered electric lights. We were going into parts of the cave that proved that the saying, “Can’t see my hand in front of my face” can be true. What a belly-crawling trek though we started where all the other tours start. The half-mile round trip to all the most popular features is all that most people see.
The entrance to the cave is a natural arch roughly ten-feet high and thirty-feet wide. The entrance leads directly into a large room some twenty feet wide and one hundred sixty feet long, with an average height of about nine feet. No head banging here. A flat ledge about four feet high projects from the east wall almost ten feet into the room, and beneath it there is a shelf two feet high. The cave floor beneath this shelf is visible through small, natural windows dissolved in the marble, and is seen to slope down toward the east wall where the cave stream is concealed in a deep marble trench. The ceiling is irregular in pattern with grotesque solution remnants of marble and massive deposits of dripstone pointing downward. There also are several small, vertical shafts in the ceiling, commonly used as nesting sites by canyon wrens.
In addition to the normal cave features like stalactites and stalagmites, there are many slopes in the cave with glittering deposits of crystals that looked like hoar frost. Most of these features were pointed out by our guide in the first room.
Ninety feet from the entrance is a side chamber that branches off to the west. This passage is about three feet wide and filled with water from deep within the cave system. It once came to within three feet of the ceiling but the last couple of decades has seen a large fluctuation in depths. It is blocked from the main entrance room by a mound of clay covered with flowstone. The passage wasn’t explored until after 1947 and is still not accessible to visitors. However, if you stick a flashlight back in there you can see a maze of weird marble features both above and below water, and some beautiful stalactites directly above the water.
The trail from the entrance room follows beside the Stream through a high, narrow passageway. The passage narrows to a small opening about three feet wide and ten feet high near the Junction Room. There is usually a breeze through this opening which moves outward in summer and inward during the winter, depending upon differences in pressure between the cave atmosphere and the outside. It is kinda like the cave breaths by inhaling during the winter and exhaling during the warmer months.
The Junction Room, named because it is the junction of three trails, is about thirty feet wide, seventy-five feet long, and twelve feet high above the stream. This is where we separated from the rest of the tours by exploring one of the winding passages incised through the marble. I am not a natural spelunker and it was not long after this that I lost my bearings and had to completely rely on our guide for what was left, right, up, and down. Ugh. Benny was not quite as disoriented but since he is still young enough that he is used to someone else always leading the way it didn’t bother him.
There was the Curtain Room, the Organ Room, the Dome Room, Marble Hall, and passages called things like Fat Man’s Misery. There were places we could stand up and squeeze through and other places we had to get on our bellies and slither across. We saw sightless fish weird insects like the extremely rare cave crickets with their three-inch antennae. There’s a spider that only lives in the cave and that spins its web near the underground lights to catch bugs that fly in on the wind. Bug, spiders, crickets, and such I had no problem with though they grossed a few people out. What nearly gak’d me out was when I found out we were crawling through things like wood rat and squirrel droppings. I’d rather slide through gator crap than rat poop. Yuck. At least there was no bat guano.
There aren’t a lot of bats in Crystal Cave. They aren’t sure why except maybe due to humans being in there so much. There is one called the lump-nosed bat that shows up occasionally but not often. And they have to clear out the occasionally bear when they reopen the caves in May, but again it isn’t an every year sort of event. What does seem to use the cave pretty often during the winter are deer. Bones of deer have been found deep in the cave system and some are so old they’ve had flow stone partially covering them. The caves have not ever been inhabited by humans as a living space either.
I live caves but I was ready to leave by the time the tour was over. Benny was as well. We’d both run through our water and were thirsty, needed the bathroom, and just needed some sunlight. Unfortunately he had clouded up by the time we returned to the surface.
“Tell you what, let’s go get a hot shower, maybe pick something up from the snack bar at the lodge, and just hang out in camp for the rest of the night. Sound like a plan?”
“Yes! And can we turn in my Junior Ranger stuff? I’ll finish it before the shower. Promise.”
“Climb into your seat and I’ll scootch the table over so you can write and draw as I drive. Just don’t blame me if we hit any bumps. But how about sliding out of the muddy clothes first so I don’t have to clean grit and mud out of the van.”
He snickered and agreed. And that’s what we did. I’m glad he reminded me about the Junior Ranger stuff as I’d forgotten and I want to head out early in the morning for Pinnacles. As it is I don’t know if there is going to be time to stop for groceries or not.
Only problem of the day, real problem any way, is someone tried to claim jump our campsite. Got it taken care of when I showed the Camp Host that they overwrote the site slip that we were given and attached the clip at the site. There was no vehicle there, only a small amount of gear which the Camp Host collected. After running the name through their system the people had a backcountry pass for two nights so I doubt I will have to deal with anyone in the morning but I’ll be on the look out. People are so stupid.
No responses to my resume yet. Probably too soon but it is tingling my worry bone. Maybe it is my availability not being until the beginning of November. Maybe my qualifications. Maybe the lack of a permanent address. I don’t know. I’ll give it a couple of weeks and then re-think my strategy. Someone I met tonight also suggested I get on a list of available camp hosts. There aren’t a lot available during the months I am initially looking for but there are some. I’d be required to work 10 to 20 hours per week, plus be available nearly 24/7 to campers for questions, etc. In exchange I’d get our site for free and get paid for the number of hours I worked doing things like cleaning the bathrooms and picking up trash. I could handle a job like that, and I could keep Benny with me like I do now.
The news is making noise that there is going to be another jump in fuel costs in the Autumn which isn’t that far off. I don’t know what the reasons are this time except maybe it is all the coal mines they’ve closed and the nuclear power plants that are going offline because they aren’t being funded for updating. Dad and Grandfather had a lot to say about all of that when I was growing up. Most people drive an EV these days, if they drive. It isn’t like it used to be where when you were 16 you got your driver’s license and became king of the road. Nope. Most states you can’t get a license until you are 18 because of licensing laws and that is only a learner’s permit until you are 21.
It used to be turning 16 was a big thing. Then 18. Now 21. Some states are talking about jacking up the age of legal adulthood to 25. Yeezus, that would exceedingly complicate my life. As it is you have to be 21 to drink, legally use a gun, and drive without another driver in the car with you. The tools that will not be mentioned in the floor of the van give me the heebies if I think about them too much. They are mine but they are unregistered. I could get in heep big trouble if I am ever caught with them.
When Lawrence didn’t come home, the military and the cops came and took possession of his weapons that were still at home. The military took the ones they’d issued to him as part of his uniform and the cops took the rest. Or at least they took the registered ones they knew about. [wink, wink, nudge, nudge]. You can’t even buy guns these days if you are younger than 25 and it practically takes an Act of Congress and the Rockefeller’s savings account to make it happen. You can inherit certain types of guns under limited circumstances, such as museum or show pieces that may not work, but more of that goes on under the radar than anyone knows about. Where the guns themselves aren’t regulated, getting ammo is a big deal. Sometimes I wish I knew what happened to Grandfather Barry’s room full of stuff went. It was all in a hidden and secured space out in his “man cave” but maybe they were confiscated like the little antique pistol Grandma Barry used to carry around. Moot point I guess; I’ll likely never know.
They’ve talked off and on about raising the voting and draft age to 21 but that has always met hard resistance. They nearly raised enlistment age to 21 concurrently with the gun laws but that didn’t happen because, as Grandfather Barry was want to say, it would have lowered their pool of cannon fodder too much. As it is you can’t be a cop or any other kind of law enforcement or security until you are 21 and have a college degree – even to be a mall cop – because of the gun issues.
Maybe that’s it. Maybe it is my age that is the problem with my resume. Well that sucks if it is because I’m still about seven months off from being able to fix that particular problem. Geez, what am I going to do?
Resources:
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
https://www.nps.gov/seki/learn/kidsyouth/upload/Junior-ranger-book_web-version-508.pdf
SEKImap1 (nps.gov)
What. A. Day. Nearly six hours of crawling around underground. We had fun but I was ready to vacate the place by the end of the tour. I’m an open water kinda person. Good thing I didn’t have claustrophobia because that tour would have triggered a major melt down.
I had gotten tickets for the Crystal Cave Tour early on and I’m glad we stayed on schedule so I didn’t have to cancel. It was challenging but made some great adventure memories for both Benny and I. The cave is located at the end of a winding 7-mile road off the Generals Highway near Giant Forest. No tickets, don’t bother even trying. You are required to have the tickets a minimum of 48 hours in advance. I had the tickets, but the drive wasn’t fun. It took nearly an hour just to drive the road. One, there was someone that would only go about 10 to 15 miles an hour staying strictly to the speed limit on the two-way goat track, and two, the van was almost too long to safely make the turns. Good thing I’ve learn to make the ark think it is a ballerina on occasion. The cave is where one of those free shuttles would have come in handy and I would have happily waited in line regardless of the crowds.
We were going to be underground for quite some time but also in confined spaces. I opted out of my normal pack and filled all my pockets with our gear. I also put some things in Benny’s zip pockets including a couple of granola bars even though we’d been warned no food in the cave. Er, let’s use some commonsense please. It was pre-packaged and sealed but no way was I risking getting stuck down there without some just-in-case.
And as warm as it was outside the cave, it was a cool 50 degrees F underground, so we needed jackets. I almost brought Benny’s bike helmet for him to wear but the ranger said we’d get spelunking helmets as part of our particular tour. We’d also get kneed pads, elbow pads, headlamps and were warned we would be coming out extremely dirty. Benny was grinning so big and brightly by that point that I wouldn’t have needed a flashlight, but I still brought our own mini mag lights and fully charged headlamps for just in case. Ours I knew for a fact were waterproof and could take a lot of abuse as they were the ones I brought when we would occasionally go overnight kayaking. Yes I know, Little Bear wasn’t much more than a baby when I started this but Lawrence had made a point of telling me he didn’t want Benny raised to be “fragile” and I’ve honored his wishes as much as I can.
First thing we had to do was climb the steep half-mile trail to the cave entrance to get our assigned gear. I couldn’t believe I was already hearing a few people complain. Why buy the ticket if you were going to whine about stuff. I was just hoping none of them were on our tour. For once I was correct. Most of them were on the 50-minute family tour. There were a couple of other tours that lasted one and a half hours, and one that lasted three hours but I went for the big burrito and had us tickets for the Wild Cave Tour. There’s supposed to be an age limit of 10 years, but they didn’t check by asking for proof. Benny is tall for his age, and different in how he carries himself, and I guess they just assumed. I wasn’t interested in getting anyone in trouble, so I kept my mouth shut. He was my responsibility after all, and he has more adventure to him than your average kid of any age, most adults as well. He’s no slouch either and knows not to bring attention to certain aspects that might keep him from a particular activity.
When you are like Benny and I you just learn to not let people put limitations on you. The flip side of that coin is that you have to think of other people and not put them in danger by your own choices for yourself. I’ve pushed the envelope a few times with Benny, but I also know when to stop and turn around, or not start at all. Turned out he had an easier time on the tour than I did. I’m embarrassed to say I need to watch out for the bubble butt that I’m developing, a problem I’ve never had before. Looking at the family photo album I know my mother an hour-glass figure kinda woman with the hour-glass kinda wide on the bottom. Grandfather Barry once described her as a “big hipped and big hearted girl” and while I’m built too much like a Barrymore to ever completely fall to her genetics, let’s just say I’m flatter on top than I am on the bottom. I’m going to be adding a few more Pilates and planks to my daily work out that’s for sure. When I have to buy the inevitable new clothes, I don’t want it to have to be because I “outgrew” them.
Per usual, after getting geared up we got an overview of the history and geography of the cave. The ranger cleared his throat and orated, “Crystal Cave was discovered April 28, 1918, by C. M. Webster and A. L. Medley, National Park Service employees, while on a fishing trip along Cascade Creek a short distance above its junction with Cave Creek. It is situated in a vertical bed of marble 200 feet thick, which extends through the ridge between these two creeks. It was named by the then Superintendent, Walter Fry, who took immediate steps to protect it, by having a log barricade built across the entrance, until funds became available for development. The cave was opened to visitors over two decades later on May 29, 1940. The cave is open only during the summer months, and only by ranger-led tours. In addition to protecting the cave against vandalism, the Rangers explain its many features and suggest how it may have originated. There are many unsolved problems connected with the origin of the cave, and some of the questions that arise may never be answered correctly.”
Trust me when I say Benny was eating this stuff up, and as only one of three kids on the tour, he garnered his share of attention. The other two kids were a brother/sister set of pre-teen twins who were well-behaved and just as nerdy as Benny when it came to all the stuff on the tour. They knew Benny was younger, but I don’t think anyone suspected just how young since he more than kept up in all areas since no reading was required.
According to the ranger, “Most parts of Crystal Cave that are accessible, as well as several other caves in the park ranging in altitude from 2,000 feet to 6,300 feet, have been explored. Some of the caves have their entrances near the level of surface streams in the bottoms of deep canyons, as at Crystal Cave, while others are situated near the tops of mountain ridges high above the level of present-day streams. At least four of the lower caves have active streams in them, and some now dry contain deposits of gravel which indicate the once had streams in them.”
The cave we explored today is one of more than 200 marble caverns found within Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks. The parks contain half of California’s caves that are more than 1 mile long, as well as the state’s longest cave. Most of the caves have limited access for research purposes-only or require professional experience certifications, expensive equipment, and difficult to obtain permits. Crystal Cave in the exception.
Thousands of people explore the cave every year, and the underground route used by the standard 50-minute and 90-minute tours have paved paths and solar-powered electric lights. We were going into parts of the cave that proved that the saying, “Can’t see my hand in front of my face” can be true. What a belly-crawling trek though we started where all the other tours start. The half-mile round trip to all the most popular features is all that most people see.
The entrance to the cave is a natural arch roughly ten-feet high and thirty-feet wide. The entrance leads directly into a large room some twenty feet wide and one hundred sixty feet long, with an average height of about nine feet. No head banging here. A flat ledge about four feet high projects from the east wall almost ten feet into the room, and beneath it there is a shelf two feet high. The cave floor beneath this shelf is visible through small, natural windows dissolved in the marble, and is seen to slope down toward the east wall where the cave stream is concealed in a deep marble trench. The ceiling is irregular in pattern with grotesque solution remnants of marble and massive deposits of dripstone pointing downward. There also are several small, vertical shafts in the ceiling, commonly used as nesting sites by canyon wrens.
In addition to the normal cave features like stalactites and stalagmites, there are many slopes in the cave with glittering deposits of crystals that looked like hoar frost. Most of these features were pointed out by our guide in the first room.
Ninety feet from the entrance is a side chamber that branches off to the west. This passage is about three feet wide and filled with water from deep within the cave system. It once came to within three feet of the ceiling but the last couple of decades has seen a large fluctuation in depths. It is blocked from the main entrance room by a mound of clay covered with flowstone. The passage wasn’t explored until after 1947 and is still not accessible to visitors. However, if you stick a flashlight back in there you can see a maze of weird marble features both above and below water, and some beautiful stalactites directly above the water.
The trail from the entrance room follows beside the Stream through a high, narrow passageway. The passage narrows to a small opening about three feet wide and ten feet high near the Junction Room. There is usually a breeze through this opening which moves outward in summer and inward during the winter, depending upon differences in pressure between the cave atmosphere and the outside. It is kinda like the cave breaths by inhaling during the winter and exhaling during the warmer months.
The Junction Room, named because it is the junction of three trails, is about thirty feet wide, seventy-five feet long, and twelve feet high above the stream. This is where we separated from the rest of the tours by exploring one of the winding passages incised through the marble. I am not a natural spelunker and it was not long after this that I lost my bearings and had to completely rely on our guide for what was left, right, up, and down. Ugh. Benny was not quite as disoriented but since he is still young enough that he is used to someone else always leading the way it didn’t bother him.
There was the Curtain Room, the Organ Room, the Dome Room, Marble Hall, and passages called things like Fat Man’s Misery. There were places we could stand up and squeeze through and other places we had to get on our bellies and slither across. We saw sightless fish weird insects like the extremely rare cave crickets with their three-inch antennae. There’s a spider that only lives in the cave and that spins its web near the underground lights to catch bugs that fly in on the wind. Bug, spiders, crickets, and such I had no problem with though they grossed a few people out. What nearly gak’d me out was when I found out we were crawling through things like wood rat and squirrel droppings. I’d rather slide through gator crap than rat poop. Yuck. At least there was no bat guano.
There aren’t a lot of bats in Crystal Cave. They aren’t sure why except maybe due to humans being in there so much. There is one called the lump-nosed bat that shows up occasionally but not often. And they have to clear out the occasionally bear when they reopen the caves in May, but again it isn’t an every year sort of event. What does seem to use the cave pretty often during the winter are deer. Bones of deer have been found deep in the cave system and some are so old they’ve had flow stone partially covering them. The caves have not ever been inhabited by humans as a living space either.
I live caves but I was ready to leave by the time the tour was over. Benny was as well. We’d both run through our water and were thirsty, needed the bathroom, and just needed some sunlight. Unfortunately he had clouded up by the time we returned to the surface.
“Tell you what, let’s go get a hot shower, maybe pick something up from the snack bar at the lodge, and just hang out in camp for the rest of the night. Sound like a plan?”
“Yes! And can we turn in my Junior Ranger stuff? I’ll finish it before the shower. Promise.”
“Climb into your seat and I’ll scootch the table over so you can write and draw as I drive. Just don’t blame me if we hit any bumps. But how about sliding out of the muddy clothes first so I don’t have to clean grit and mud out of the van.”
He snickered and agreed. And that’s what we did. I’m glad he reminded me about the Junior Ranger stuff as I’d forgotten and I want to head out early in the morning for Pinnacles. As it is I don’t know if there is going to be time to stop for groceries or not.
Only problem of the day, real problem any way, is someone tried to claim jump our campsite. Got it taken care of when I showed the Camp Host that they overwrote the site slip that we were given and attached the clip at the site. There was no vehicle there, only a small amount of gear which the Camp Host collected. After running the name through their system the people had a backcountry pass for two nights so I doubt I will have to deal with anyone in the morning but I’ll be on the look out. People are so stupid.
No responses to my resume yet. Probably too soon but it is tingling my worry bone. Maybe it is my availability not being until the beginning of November. Maybe my qualifications. Maybe the lack of a permanent address. I don’t know. I’ll give it a couple of weeks and then re-think my strategy. Someone I met tonight also suggested I get on a list of available camp hosts. There aren’t a lot available during the months I am initially looking for but there are some. I’d be required to work 10 to 20 hours per week, plus be available nearly 24/7 to campers for questions, etc. In exchange I’d get our site for free and get paid for the number of hours I worked doing things like cleaning the bathrooms and picking up trash. I could handle a job like that, and I could keep Benny with me like I do now.
The news is making noise that there is going to be another jump in fuel costs in the Autumn which isn’t that far off. I don’t know what the reasons are this time except maybe it is all the coal mines they’ve closed and the nuclear power plants that are going offline because they aren’t being funded for updating. Dad and Grandfather had a lot to say about all of that when I was growing up. Most people drive an EV these days, if they drive. It isn’t like it used to be where when you were 16 you got your driver’s license and became king of the road. Nope. Most states you can’t get a license until you are 18 because of licensing laws and that is only a learner’s permit until you are 21.
It used to be turning 16 was a big thing. Then 18. Now 21. Some states are talking about jacking up the age of legal adulthood to 25. Yeezus, that would exceedingly complicate my life. As it is you have to be 21 to drink, legally use a gun, and drive without another driver in the car with you. The tools that will not be mentioned in the floor of the van give me the heebies if I think about them too much. They are mine but they are unregistered. I could get in heep big trouble if I am ever caught with them.
When Lawrence didn’t come home, the military and the cops came and took possession of his weapons that were still at home. The military took the ones they’d issued to him as part of his uniform and the cops took the rest. Or at least they took the registered ones they knew about. [wink, wink, nudge, nudge]. You can’t even buy guns these days if you are younger than 25 and it practically takes an Act of Congress and the Rockefeller’s savings account to make it happen. You can inherit certain types of guns under limited circumstances, such as museum or show pieces that may not work, but more of that goes on under the radar than anyone knows about. Where the guns themselves aren’t regulated, getting ammo is a big deal. Sometimes I wish I knew what happened to Grandfather Barry’s room full of stuff went. It was all in a hidden and secured space out in his “man cave” but maybe they were confiscated like the little antique pistol Grandma Barry used to carry around. Moot point I guess; I’ll likely never know.
They’ve talked off and on about raising the voting and draft age to 21 but that has always met hard resistance. They nearly raised enlistment age to 21 concurrently with the gun laws but that didn’t happen because, as Grandfather Barry was want to say, it would have lowered their pool of cannon fodder too much. As it is you can’t be a cop or any other kind of law enforcement or security until you are 21 and have a college degree – even to be a mall cop – because of the gun issues.
Maybe that’s it. Maybe it is my age that is the problem with my resume. Well that sucks if it is because I’m still about seven months off from being able to fix that particular problem. Geez, what am I going to do?
Resources:
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
https://www.nps.gov/seki/learn/kidsyouth/upload/Junior-ranger-book_web-version-508.pdf
SEKImap1 (nps.gov)
Sep 8 – 11: Pinnacles National Park, California
Driving Route:
September 8th
Headed west again. Slow start to the day but not because I wanted to. I was up and ready to pull out at 5:30 am when the camp host told me that the people that had tried to take our campsite came in before first light and pitched a fit when they were stopped at the gate. It wasn’t pretty and if I was checking out early all the better but not to stop at the lodge unless I absolutely had to. Hmmm. Part of me was tempted to just because I was in the mood to throw some Barrymore around but I controlled the impulse for Benny’s sake.
As for our route outta there, I might have been able to arrange a better one in the initial planning stages instead of zigging and zagging back and forth, but such is life. I refuse to sweat it. And I could have gone back through Fresno but didn’t because people we met at the ranger program last night said there was a big, multicar pile up just east of town and it damaged the road and would likely be a problem for at least a week. Traffic issues we didn’t need so I took the southern route and got to Pinnacles National Park in four hours of driving instead of who knows how long.
I did take a short break from the road in this place called Coalinga and the State Food Supermarket to restock our fresh meat and veggies and to pick up a couple of hygiene items which are necessary for the female condition. It took me longer to put the supplies away than it did to go into the store and then get out of the check out line. I also smelled my way over to a way legit food truck serving Mexican food. Yum. It didn’t hurt that I could speak the language and was polite to Senor Papi, the older gentleman manning the grill. He laughed when I was obviously happy to see he used Maseca to make his tamales with.
I made their day with a large order. I bought a dozen fresh tamales and I’ve frozen the ones we didn’t already eat today. I got containers of chicken and steak fajitas but explained they could hold the tortillas as my nephew was wheat sensitive and I could make my own.
The guy on the register said, “We have gluten-free tortillas and chips if you’re interested. They cost a little more but …” He shrugged like it was not big deal then laughed when he saw Benny do his weird Snoopy Dance of Happiness.
Got a container of both black beans and pinto beans and then some cilantro-lime rice. I ordered some seasoned ground beef on the side and a pint of pico de gallo. An order of beef flautas on the gluten-free tortillas had my stomach rumbling big time. Fresh quacamole and mango salsa nearly did me in. Then Papi said Abuela had made some fresh peach salsa just that morning and I added it to the total as well. As another side I added Mexican Street Corn. The cheese enchiladas and several bottles of different Agua Frescas maxed out the cash I had on me as I had limited myself to what I took into the grocery. I was juggling everything when Papi came over to the counter and handed Benny a small container.
“¿El niño habla Español?”
Benny answered him politely. “Sí, Señor.”
“Muy bien. Limpias tu plato y es posible que tengas un poco de flan cuando tu tía te lo diga.” [Very good. You clean your plate and you may have some flan when your aunt tells you.]
Benny looked at me from beneath his lashes. I smiled and nodded then turned to the old man and said, “Gracias, Señor.” Benny looked him bashfully but managed to repeat, “Si. Gracias, Señor.”
That was a good thing that made up for the mess that could have been back at the camp. We walked back to the van, Benny helping with some of the bags and carrying his flan carefully. It took us a few minutes to load everything but we were soon out of the parking lot and watching the line to the food truck get three times as long as it had been when I first ordered.
We made it to the park just in time for the earliest check in to the campsite and for a picnic lunch. While we ate and as we put away our leftovers I told Benny, “We’re going to change things up a bit. Instead of starting with a day of short hikes, I thought we’d start with a big hike instead. It means we can leave the van here and start hiking right away. That work for you?”
“Sure Aunt Gus! The flan has me real bouncy!”
“I can tell,” I told him with a laugh. “It’s going to take the rest of our day. You sure you are up for this?”
“May I bring Little Bear and Gus the Pelican?”
He loved The Crew, all of them, but those two stuffies were still his go to “friends.”
“Rules and Regs still apply. You’re in charge of them. Agreed?”
“Yes, Aunt Gus,” he answered, amendable as always. Lord only knows what will happen if either or both of them ever get lost. I don’t even want to think about it.
I made sure that I had plenty of water, my day pack, a flashlight, and two bottles of the agua frescas (basically a natural fruit water that is all natural and refreshing that is frequently drank in place of sodas south of the border and in places with a high Hispanic population). Our hike was from the Pinnacles Visitor Center to Balconies Cave. It was a little more than nine miles but it had very little elevation change.
As we hiked I explained to Little Bear that Balconies Caves are interconnected talus caves, which were formed when giant volcanic boulders (some weighting thousands of tons) tumbled into the faults & fractured gorge below long ago during earthquakes and landslides. These giant rocks piled up, creating unique cave-like ceilings. There is no evidence of Native American habitation in these caves, despite local Native Americans (Mutsun and Chalone) living in the surrounding areas. There are legends of these caves being used as hideouts and for holding hidden treasure in the 1800s, though they are mostly written off as tall tales.
Pinnacles was established as a National Monument in 1908, and early settlers and park workers used ropes and ladders to explore the cave system. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps built trails through the caves, along with surrounding stairways and bridges. And finally in 2013, Pinnacles became California’s ninth National Park.
“Wow Aunt Gus, how do you know all that?”
I snorted, “My brain is full of trivia, most of it useless. I’m just not always able to get my brain to spit it out when I want it to.” Then I chuckled. “Besides, last night after you went to sleep I read over the notes I’d made on this park. Hopefully you can learn something else while we are here. I’ll try to stop tomorrow and get your Junior Ranger booklet. Just don’t forget to take notes so you’ll be able to fill out your pages.”
He patted the pocket of the vest that Pei had purchased for him and I knew there was a little notebook and pencil stub in there, about like there being the same thing in the pocket of the capris I was wearing. Benny had his unique style of hieroglyphics in it and mine looked like LSD-laced shorthand but hey, whatever works.
The trail started at the Old Pinnacles Trail and followed it for about 0.7 miles. As it follows the West Fork of the Chalone Creek, the trail is sandy and shaded thanks to the water that feeds the trees. When the North Wilderness Trail broke off to the left, it followed the creek for the next four miles. The trail crossed the creek numerous times via rock hops – not horrible but I held Benny’s hand just in case – as it wound north and west. Downed trees were a common site and I learned on one of the sign-thingies that this area as the trail was not maintained by the park service. The trail was so narrow in many sections that we brushed up against shrubs growing next to the trail. Had I known this, I would have worn full pants instead of just capris. Thankfully Benny was wearing pants instead of shorts.
In the areas where the trail dropped into the old creek bed, cairns marked the way where the trail becomes difficult to follow. In areas of shade, there were small wildflowers growing all along the trail. They wouldn’t have survived in the full sun which was getting fierce and meant frequent stops for water. Cones from the evergreen trees in the area lined the trail as well. Volcanic rocks began to appear at around 4.5 miles.
“Aunt Gus?”
“Hmm?”
“Are there still for-real volcanoes? I know the Helens Volcano blowed up but are there still some that haven’t?”
“Yep. They even have a national park dedicated to them in Hawaii.”
“Are we going to see that park?” he asked hopefully.
“Maybe. One of these days. It is way far away in the Pacific Ocean and the van couldn’t come with us.”
“Oh. That’s not good. Where would we live?”
“Uh, don’t know. Until we get that figured out we could have that place be one of our future adventures.”
“Yeah! We can have lots of adventures forever. Just us. Oh … and The Crew.”
“Definitely. We’d have to bring the Crew.”
“Yeah. For sure.” I thought he was done until he said, “Maybe we can put the van on a boat and take it to ‘Cific like that.”
“Hmmm. Maybe. Lots of possibilities.”
“Yeah. Maybe we should just enjoy this adventure before we figure out the next one.”
“Now that sounds like an idea I can get behind. Shows you are using your noodle.” I spotted something and said, “Shhhh. Look.” I pointed and then slowly pulled out my phone so I could take a picture.
Florida is full of different lizards so they don’t bother me even if they do look like mini-dinosaurs. When I was a kid I used to catch them and hang them from my ears like earrings freaking Meemo out a few times. What a memory. I was always said when the lizards figured out all they had to do was let go and they’d fall off. The one I’d spotted was called a Western Fence Lizard and we heard them scurrying all along the trail.
The last creek crossing in this section of the trail was at around mile 4.6 and signaled the trail's departure from the creek bed. The trail began to climb up the ravine for about one mile. Late-season wildflowers lined the trail.
At roughly 5.5 miles, the trail exited the trees and turned left to climb to the highest point on the trail. There were great views of the surrounding hillsides and the High Peaks. The trees changed to shrubs as the trail moved away from the creek and ravine where water is more plentiful. We took another break, this time to apply some sunscreen.
From that point the trail began to descend to the Chaparral picnic area. The high peaks are in full view throughout that portion of the trail, so there were plenty of photo opportunities. Some areas of descent are steeper than others, but it still made easy traveling, especially with our walking sticks to give us added balance. Between mile 6.5-7, the trail became sandier making footing a little trickier. A few times I grabbed for Benny’s hand when I heard him start to slide. We slowed down for safety’s sake even if the decline made it feel like we should have been moving faster. There were also more people on the trail from the picnic area. After the picnic area things quieted back down again, at least until we intersected with the main Balconies Cave Trail.
The Balconies Cave Trail was a stark contrast to the narrow, unmaintained, exposed trail that we had been following. The trail is wide, well maintained, and a majority of the creek crossings are done via bridges. A wide variety of people were using the trail: day users, cave explorers, birders, and climbers as well as some thru-hikers. It is relatively flat and well shaded by the trees that grow along the creek and the tower rocks overhead. At 8.3 miles, the Balconies Cliffs Trail broke off to the left. If you were going to the cave, you stayed straight.
When we reached the Balconies Cave, I made sure to have my flashlight ready. Some people there that thought they were going to explore the cave turned back. I figured out why when I realized you needed to be plenty limber to pull it off. We packed up our poles as they would have just been a hassle otherwise. A sign-thingie told us the path through the cave can be slippery and may require crawling as you descend through the cave.
In all honesty, after Crystal Cave and all the crawling we did there, Balconies Cave was no big deal. I’m not saying that it wasn’t neat, it just wasn’t the crazy mess some people made it out to be. You descend and walk through from one side to the other, more like a tunnel than a cave. When you emerge from the cave, all you have to do is follow the creek (the trail isn't well marked here) down to where the trail picked up again and continue to follow the creek.
In a little more detail what you do is after entering the gate (if hiking this loop counterclockwise like we did), the first cave you reach will consist of narrow walkways, tight crevices and giant boulders. We had to really duck and crawl under some of the formations. This cave never gets completely dark, but I did wish for our headlamps a couple of times so I could have had another hand free to help Benny. We scrambled up a rough rock staircase, and here there were some people that turned around as well. The next cave system was more physically demanding and a completely dark cave. People that were afraid of the dark or that were claustrophobic had no business attempting it.
As we descended into that cave, we dropped about 15 feet through a narrow gateway of rocks into complete darkness, and then it opened back up. This is where you absolutely had to have a strong light source. Most of us did, those that didn’t followed us through. Benny had his heels stepped on twice until I pulled him in front of me. I can’t believe a grown man wouldn’t even apologize for being a clumsy ape and stepping on a kid … twice. A guy his size had no business attempting the cave anyway. Geez.
As we made our way through this cave, small white arrows helped guide us along. Another reason for a good flashlight. The ground was sandy, rocky & very uneven and without the light we absolutely would not have been able to see our own hand in front of our faces for a significant distance.
Pinnacles National Park is home to two major cave systems; Balconies on the west side and Bear Gulch on the east side. Both of these cave systems are home to multiple bat species. Remembering that fact I slowly looked up and managed to see several pairs of eyes looking back. Well guano. No wondering there were multiple signs reminding everyone to remain quiet inside the caves and avoid yelling/screaming. I mean, no kidding right? Bats were resting in the dark crevices and wouldn’t have appreciated the noise.
Only a few more feet took us out through the other gate, where Benny and I took a picture to prove we were there. I gave him the option of going back through – the cave is two-way traffic making things even more confusing for some – and he was all for it. I whispered to him I was going to try and take a few pictures in the dark cave and just to stand still and hold on while I did; that we would look at them on the other side.
I love my phone. I love the camera on my phone at least as much. It is why I have never bothered pulling out Lawrences old camera despite bringing it along for just in case. When we got through to the original entrance we stepped off the trail for another short break and then I showed Benny what I had been able to get for him.
From that point all we did was turn around and go back the way we came, both of us thorough satisfied with the day’s adventure. But there were still good things to come. Things were cooling off from the mid-day high and those that had been smart to hide from the heat were coming back out. Western Fence Lizards and bats weren’t the only animals we saw. There were deer, turkeys, turkey vultures, praise hawks, and what I think were condors though they were flying so high it was hard to tell.
We stopped for a break at the picnic area and that’s when I pulled out the agua frescas and a couple of tamales as a surprise. Yum, yum. I wasn’t sure if there were any big predators in the park so we finished quickly, stored our trash properly, and made our way back to camp without any more stops.
The Pinnacles can get very warm, especially later in the day. Once back in camp I had Benny wash up and cool down a bit while I refilled our water bottles. The campsite we have has 30 amp hook up but we will need to refill our water from the local potable water spigot. Once Benny was no longer red in the face I had him walk with me with one of our water jugs. The water spigot was a lot closer than the map made it seem so after that first trip, I had Benny climb up in the van, I locked the doors, and just walked back and forth until all of our fresh water containers were re-filled since it was only two sites down and the van was always in sight.
When I was finished with that we headed to the night’s ranger presentation. It had cooled off enough that Benny was nodding off towards the end. When we got back to the vanI set up the fan and in no time Benny was starting to nod off once again. I had him climb into night clothes and that woke him up enough that I decided to let him watch a documentary on his tablet. In thirty minutes he was nodding off for the final time and I let him fall asleep then put the electronics away after bookmarking where he left off.
Tomorrow we are doing the Bear Gulch Area. It is the only place to pick up a Junior Ranger booklet and I can’t forget about it. I’d rather have Benny falling asleep of that kind of thing that some digital something or other even if it is an educational something or other. Our brains are hardwired in such a way that electronics can sometimes over stimulate us and cause problems with our wake/sleep pattern. Unfortunately for me I need to do some adulting, including looking over some job boards and also looking into being a camp host. I’ve got a bottle of caffeine water on ice just in case.
Driving Route:
September 8th
Headed west again. Slow start to the day but not because I wanted to. I was up and ready to pull out at 5:30 am when the camp host told me that the people that had tried to take our campsite came in before first light and pitched a fit when they were stopped at the gate. It wasn’t pretty and if I was checking out early all the better but not to stop at the lodge unless I absolutely had to. Hmmm. Part of me was tempted to just because I was in the mood to throw some Barrymore around but I controlled the impulse for Benny’s sake.
As for our route outta there, I might have been able to arrange a better one in the initial planning stages instead of zigging and zagging back and forth, but such is life. I refuse to sweat it. And I could have gone back through Fresno but didn’t because people we met at the ranger program last night said there was a big, multicar pile up just east of town and it damaged the road and would likely be a problem for at least a week. Traffic issues we didn’t need so I took the southern route and got to Pinnacles National Park in four hours of driving instead of who knows how long.
I did take a short break from the road in this place called Coalinga and the State Food Supermarket to restock our fresh meat and veggies and to pick up a couple of hygiene items which are necessary for the female condition. It took me longer to put the supplies away than it did to go into the store and then get out of the check out line. I also smelled my way over to a way legit food truck serving Mexican food. Yum. It didn’t hurt that I could speak the language and was polite to Senor Papi, the older gentleman manning the grill. He laughed when I was obviously happy to see he used Maseca to make his tamales with.
I made their day with a large order. I bought a dozen fresh tamales and I’ve frozen the ones we didn’t already eat today. I got containers of chicken and steak fajitas but explained they could hold the tortillas as my nephew was wheat sensitive and I could make my own.
The guy on the register said, “We have gluten-free tortillas and chips if you’re interested. They cost a little more but …” He shrugged like it was not big deal then laughed when he saw Benny do his weird Snoopy Dance of Happiness.
Got a container of both black beans and pinto beans and then some cilantro-lime rice. I ordered some seasoned ground beef on the side and a pint of pico de gallo. An order of beef flautas on the gluten-free tortillas had my stomach rumbling big time. Fresh quacamole and mango salsa nearly did me in. Then Papi said Abuela had made some fresh peach salsa just that morning and I added it to the total as well. As another side I added Mexican Street Corn. The cheese enchiladas and several bottles of different Agua Frescas maxed out the cash I had on me as I had limited myself to what I took into the grocery. I was juggling everything when Papi came over to the counter and handed Benny a small container.
“¿El niño habla Español?”
Benny answered him politely. “Sí, Señor.”
“Muy bien. Limpias tu plato y es posible que tengas un poco de flan cuando tu tía te lo diga.” [Very good. You clean your plate and you may have some flan when your aunt tells you.]
Benny looked at me from beneath his lashes. I smiled and nodded then turned to the old man and said, “Gracias, Señor.” Benny looked him bashfully but managed to repeat, “Si. Gracias, Señor.”
That was a good thing that made up for the mess that could have been back at the camp. We walked back to the van, Benny helping with some of the bags and carrying his flan carefully. It took us a few minutes to load everything but we were soon out of the parking lot and watching the line to the food truck get three times as long as it had been when I first ordered.
We made it to the park just in time for the earliest check in to the campsite and for a picnic lunch. While we ate and as we put away our leftovers I told Benny, “We’re going to change things up a bit. Instead of starting with a day of short hikes, I thought we’d start with a big hike instead. It means we can leave the van here and start hiking right away. That work for you?”
“Sure Aunt Gus! The flan has me real bouncy!”
“I can tell,” I told him with a laugh. “It’s going to take the rest of our day. You sure you are up for this?”
“May I bring Little Bear and Gus the Pelican?”
He loved The Crew, all of them, but those two stuffies were still his go to “friends.”
“Rules and Regs still apply. You’re in charge of them. Agreed?”
“Yes, Aunt Gus,” he answered, amendable as always. Lord only knows what will happen if either or both of them ever get lost. I don’t even want to think about it.
I made sure that I had plenty of water, my day pack, a flashlight, and two bottles of the agua frescas (basically a natural fruit water that is all natural and refreshing that is frequently drank in place of sodas south of the border and in places with a high Hispanic population). Our hike was from the Pinnacles Visitor Center to Balconies Cave. It was a little more than nine miles but it had very little elevation change.
As we hiked I explained to Little Bear that Balconies Caves are interconnected talus caves, which were formed when giant volcanic boulders (some weighting thousands of tons) tumbled into the faults & fractured gorge below long ago during earthquakes and landslides. These giant rocks piled up, creating unique cave-like ceilings. There is no evidence of Native American habitation in these caves, despite local Native Americans (Mutsun and Chalone) living in the surrounding areas. There are legends of these caves being used as hideouts and for holding hidden treasure in the 1800s, though they are mostly written off as tall tales.
Pinnacles was established as a National Monument in 1908, and early settlers and park workers used ropes and ladders to explore the cave system. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps built trails through the caves, along with surrounding stairways and bridges. And finally in 2013, Pinnacles became California’s ninth National Park.
“Wow Aunt Gus, how do you know all that?”
I snorted, “My brain is full of trivia, most of it useless. I’m just not always able to get my brain to spit it out when I want it to.” Then I chuckled. “Besides, last night after you went to sleep I read over the notes I’d made on this park. Hopefully you can learn something else while we are here. I’ll try to stop tomorrow and get your Junior Ranger booklet. Just don’t forget to take notes so you’ll be able to fill out your pages.”
He patted the pocket of the vest that Pei had purchased for him and I knew there was a little notebook and pencil stub in there, about like there being the same thing in the pocket of the capris I was wearing. Benny had his unique style of hieroglyphics in it and mine looked like LSD-laced shorthand but hey, whatever works.
The trail started at the Old Pinnacles Trail and followed it for about 0.7 miles. As it follows the West Fork of the Chalone Creek, the trail is sandy and shaded thanks to the water that feeds the trees. When the North Wilderness Trail broke off to the left, it followed the creek for the next four miles. The trail crossed the creek numerous times via rock hops – not horrible but I held Benny’s hand just in case – as it wound north and west. Downed trees were a common site and I learned on one of the sign-thingies that this area as the trail was not maintained by the park service. The trail was so narrow in many sections that we brushed up against shrubs growing next to the trail. Had I known this, I would have worn full pants instead of just capris. Thankfully Benny was wearing pants instead of shorts.
In the areas where the trail dropped into the old creek bed, cairns marked the way where the trail becomes difficult to follow. In areas of shade, there were small wildflowers growing all along the trail. They wouldn’t have survived in the full sun which was getting fierce and meant frequent stops for water. Cones from the evergreen trees in the area lined the trail as well. Volcanic rocks began to appear at around 4.5 miles.
“Aunt Gus?”
“Hmm?”
“Are there still for-real volcanoes? I know the Helens Volcano blowed up but are there still some that haven’t?”
“Yep. They even have a national park dedicated to them in Hawaii.”
“Are we going to see that park?” he asked hopefully.
“Maybe. One of these days. It is way far away in the Pacific Ocean and the van couldn’t come with us.”
“Oh. That’s not good. Where would we live?”
“Uh, don’t know. Until we get that figured out we could have that place be one of our future adventures.”
“Yeah! We can have lots of adventures forever. Just us. Oh … and The Crew.”
“Definitely. We’d have to bring the Crew.”
“Yeah. For sure.” I thought he was done until he said, “Maybe we can put the van on a boat and take it to ‘Cific like that.”
“Hmmm. Maybe. Lots of possibilities.”
“Yeah. Maybe we should just enjoy this adventure before we figure out the next one.”
“Now that sounds like an idea I can get behind. Shows you are using your noodle.” I spotted something and said, “Shhhh. Look.” I pointed and then slowly pulled out my phone so I could take a picture.
Florida is full of different lizards so they don’t bother me even if they do look like mini-dinosaurs. When I was a kid I used to catch them and hang them from my ears like earrings freaking Meemo out a few times. What a memory. I was always said when the lizards figured out all they had to do was let go and they’d fall off. The one I’d spotted was called a Western Fence Lizard and we heard them scurrying all along the trail.
The last creek crossing in this section of the trail was at around mile 4.6 and signaled the trail's departure from the creek bed. The trail began to climb up the ravine for about one mile. Late-season wildflowers lined the trail.
At roughly 5.5 miles, the trail exited the trees and turned left to climb to the highest point on the trail. There were great views of the surrounding hillsides and the High Peaks. The trees changed to shrubs as the trail moved away from the creek and ravine where water is more plentiful. We took another break, this time to apply some sunscreen.
From that point the trail began to descend to the Chaparral picnic area. The high peaks are in full view throughout that portion of the trail, so there were plenty of photo opportunities. Some areas of descent are steeper than others, but it still made easy traveling, especially with our walking sticks to give us added balance. Between mile 6.5-7, the trail became sandier making footing a little trickier. A few times I grabbed for Benny’s hand when I heard him start to slide. We slowed down for safety’s sake even if the decline made it feel like we should have been moving faster. There were also more people on the trail from the picnic area. After the picnic area things quieted back down again, at least until we intersected with the main Balconies Cave Trail.
The Balconies Cave Trail was a stark contrast to the narrow, unmaintained, exposed trail that we had been following. The trail is wide, well maintained, and a majority of the creek crossings are done via bridges. A wide variety of people were using the trail: day users, cave explorers, birders, and climbers as well as some thru-hikers. It is relatively flat and well shaded by the trees that grow along the creek and the tower rocks overhead. At 8.3 miles, the Balconies Cliffs Trail broke off to the left. If you were going to the cave, you stayed straight.
When we reached the Balconies Cave, I made sure to have my flashlight ready. Some people there that thought they were going to explore the cave turned back. I figured out why when I realized you needed to be plenty limber to pull it off. We packed up our poles as they would have just been a hassle otherwise. A sign-thingie told us the path through the cave can be slippery and may require crawling as you descend through the cave.
In all honesty, after Crystal Cave and all the crawling we did there, Balconies Cave was no big deal. I’m not saying that it wasn’t neat, it just wasn’t the crazy mess some people made it out to be. You descend and walk through from one side to the other, more like a tunnel than a cave. When you emerge from the cave, all you have to do is follow the creek (the trail isn't well marked here) down to where the trail picked up again and continue to follow the creek.
In a little more detail what you do is after entering the gate (if hiking this loop counterclockwise like we did), the first cave you reach will consist of narrow walkways, tight crevices and giant boulders. We had to really duck and crawl under some of the formations. This cave never gets completely dark, but I did wish for our headlamps a couple of times so I could have had another hand free to help Benny. We scrambled up a rough rock staircase, and here there were some people that turned around as well. The next cave system was more physically demanding and a completely dark cave. People that were afraid of the dark or that were claustrophobic had no business attempting it.
As we descended into that cave, we dropped about 15 feet through a narrow gateway of rocks into complete darkness, and then it opened back up. This is where you absolutely had to have a strong light source. Most of us did, those that didn’t followed us through. Benny had his heels stepped on twice until I pulled him in front of me. I can’t believe a grown man wouldn’t even apologize for being a clumsy ape and stepping on a kid … twice. A guy his size had no business attempting the cave anyway. Geez.
As we made our way through this cave, small white arrows helped guide us along. Another reason for a good flashlight. The ground was sandy, rocky & very uneven and without the light we absolutely would not have been able to see our own hand in front of our faces for a significant distance.
Pinnacles National Park is home to two major cave systems; Balconies on the west side and Bear Gulch on the east side. Both of these cave systems are home to multiple bat species. Remembering that fact I slowly looked up and managed to see several pairs of eyes looking back. Well guano. No wondering there were multiple signs reminding everyone to remain quiet inside the caves and avoid yelling/screaming. I mean, no kidding right? Bats were resting in the dark crevices and wouldn’t have appreciated the noise.
Only a few more feet took us out through the other gate, where Benny and I took a picture to prove we were there. I gave him the option of going back through – the cave is two-way traffic making things even more confusing for some – and he was all for it. I whispered to him I was going to try and take a few pictures in the dark cave and just to stand still and hold on while I did; that we would look at them on the other side.
I love my phone. I love the camera on my phone at least as much. It is why I have never bothered pulling out Lawrences old camera despite bringing it along for just in case. When we got through to the original entrance we stepped off the trail for another short break and then I showed Benny what I had been able to get for him.
From that point all we did was turn around and go back the way we came, both of us thorough satisfied with the day’s adventure. But there were still good things to come. Things were cooling off from the mid-day high and those that had been smart to hide from the heat were coming back out. Western Fence Lizards and bats weren’t the only animals we saw. There were deer, turkeys, turkey vultures, praise hawks, and what I think were condors though they were flying so high it was hard to tell.
We stopped for a break at the picnic area and that’s when I pulled out the agua frescas and a couple of tamales as a surprise. Yum, yum. I wasn’t sure if there were any big predators in the park so we finished quickly, stored our trash properly, and made our way back to camp without any more stops.
The Pinnacles can get very warm, especially later in the day. Once back in camp I had Benny wash up and cool down a bit while I refilled our water bottles. The campsite we have has 30 amp hook up but we will need to refill our water from the local potable water spigot. Once Benny was no longer red in the face I had him walk with me with one of our water jugs. The water spigot was a lot closer than the map made it seem so after that first trip, I had Benny climb up in the van, I locked the doors, and just walked back and forth until all of our fresh water containers were re-filled since it was only two sites down and the van was always in sight.
When I was finished with that we headed to the night’s ranger presentation. It had cooled off enough that Benny was nodding off towards the end. When we got back to the vanI set up the fan and in no time Benny was starting to nod off once again. I had him climb into night clothes and that woke him up enough that I decided to let him watch a documentary on his tablet. In thirty minutes he was nodding off for the final time and I let him fall asleep then put the electronics away after bookmarking where he left off.
Tomorrow we are doing the Bear Gulch Area. It is the only place to pick up a Junior Ranger booklet and I can’t forget about it. I’d rather have Benny falling asleep of that kind of thing that some digital something or other even if it is an educational something or other. Our brains are hardwired in such a way that electronics can sometimes over stimulate us and cause problems with our wake/sleep pattern. Unfortunately for me I need to do some adulting, including looking over some job boards and also looking into being a camp host. I’ve got a bottle of caffeine water on ice just in case.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you, mower is fixed and 18 inch tall lawn mowed.
September 9th
Forgot to mention something strange that we saw on the trail yesterday. They were filament wire nets in some of the trees along the unmaintained part of the trail. I’ve seen similar things in, usually they wind up just being fishing line stuck in some branches. I cut the ones out of the trees and then after worrying I’d messed up some type of research set up, mentioned it to a ranger at the cave area. He was pretty busy at the time and looked like he didn’t know what I was talking about. I shrugged it off until this morning and I’ll explain why.
Did the Bear Gulch area today. This was the only place for Benny to pick up his Junior Ranger booklet, so I wasn’t going to put it off. He had the one that I had downloaded but it was a year out of date, and he wanted to make sure that the activities still counted. He asks for so little and the junior ranger programs are so important to him. Accommodating him on this is the least I can do for pulling him pillar to post until I can figure out how to take care of us. They did have a new one and the ranger was happy to get him a copy. He was also very impressed at how many other Junior Ranger badges and patches Benny had earned.
While we were getting the Junior Ranger stuff I saw the ranger that I had told yesterday about the two filament wire nets we had cut out of the trees. He saw us and came over with one of the head naturalists and asked me to explain again exactly the area we’d found the two nets in. There were no studies currently being conducted so I wasn’t in trouble for cutting them loose.
“To me they looked like out of place fishing line and I just automatically cut them out before thinking.”
“Are those the only two you saw?”
“Yes.” I told them where I had also seen sign that people were hiking off trail and said if I had to guess it was three of them and I could probably describe them as I’d seen a group as we were hiking out carrying what I thought were thin map cases.
“The trail wasn’t crowded at all so the guys stood out. And not just because they were the only other ones on the trail with us. They had weird floppy hats on and eyeblack under their eyes. Just looked strange but…” I shrugged. “I’ve seen stranger.”
Then Benny pulled on my hand like he does when he’s nervous and I looked down and saw him tilting his head strangely. Ah. I squeezed his hand and then smiled and moved a bit and said quietly through my teeth, “And don’t look now but one of those guys is over by the condor display. Scruffy goatee. Looks like he has eye-black voids in his face tan.”
The ranger said, “Give me you camp number and if we have anything else to ask, I’ll catch up with you there. Are you going to be in the park another day?”
“Through the 11th.”
He nodded and I got Benny and I gone. I was beginning to suspect what was going on and I did not want to get in the middle of anything as people like that are unpredictable.
Our first organized hike of the day was Moses Spring to Rim Trail Loop. It was a 2.2-mile round trip that took Benny and I about an hour to finish. The loop was a good choice for rock formations, talus caves, and the reservoir. It helped Benny to check off several things in his booklet, including Bear Gulch Cave. I had a flashlight with me so we could explore a bit.
The Bear Gulch Cave provides a home to a colony of Townsend's big-eared bats as they rest there in winter and raise their young in the late spring and summer. The colony of bats in the Bear Gulch Cave is the largest maternity colony between San Francisco and Mexico. The lower half of the Bear Gulch Cave is usually open from mid-July through mid-May each year, depending on the presence of the colony of bats. The entire cave is closed from mid-May to mid-July while the bats are raising their young. Geez it stunk and I didn’t take us in far, not that you could go much further than we did because they had a barricade there to keep humans from going too far into the cave.
Next up was Condor Gulch Trail. Not quite as long at 1.7 miles one way but the elevation change of 1,100 feet was the kicker. They called it moderate to the overlook and strenuous beyond that point but I think it was an understatement due to the heat. Must admit that the trail did offer some spectacular views of the High Peaks, whether you hike just a few minutes or the entire trail. The overlook was only one mile up the trail and that’s where most people turned around.
We went back to the campground at that point and after parking and eating lunch, we hiked on the South Wilderness Trail the remainder of the afternoon. It was flat and the only strenuous part was the heat of the day. Mostly we just took pictures and gave Benny some time to work on Junior Ranger activities, one of which was bird watching as we hiked through the valley of oaks.
The day was going fine and dandy. We finished the hike, came back to camp for our dinner, went to the ranger presentation, came back to the van, and I washed and put Benny to bed for the night. I was about to sit down and work on the blog and take care of some other adulting tasks. Now here is is what I get for sticking my nose in …
I realized I’d forgotten to take the trash to the dumpster. It was just past dark, so I told Benny what I was doing and locked him in. The dumpsters were within site of the van, and I thought nothing of it beyond not wanting to have to deal with animal damage because I was too lazy to finish my own housekeeping.
I had just put the trash in the can when someone tried to slam it on my hand.
“Dude!”
“Ooops, maybe little girls like you should be more careful.”
First off … “little girl?” I’m no giant but I am above average height with obvious muscles. Without the fluffy shirt front I used to get mistaken for male on occasion so being called “little” immediately jacked my radar into the “on” position. I looked at the guy and realized I recognized him right away. Then some idiot with booze breath from hell tries to grab me from behind. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I reach back and grab the guy’s gonads and squeeze. And as a side note, I never need any help opening a jar. He turned loose, I didn’t. In fact my follow through was to ram the back of the guy’s head into the metal bear can. It sounded like that old show Meemo watched called The New Gong Show where people that couldn’t make it on the other talent shows went to give it a try.
Gong-show-guy was down and not getting up. Prince Charming 1 was just standing there with his mouth open. I was too hacked off to behave as I ought. A round house punch to the side of his head dropped him as hard as his friend.
I upended both guys headfirst in the bear proof dumpster and shut the lid. They weren’t getting out from the inside. I turned and there was a girl, a woman, and a ranger coming my way out of the dark. The training I took said if you gotta create a story keep it as close to the truth as you can, to make it credible. There were no overhead lights so at least they hadn’t clearly seen the action I’d taken. I walked towards them and gave them an incredulous look and said to the ranger, “Two drunks just dared each other to climb in the dumpster.”
“Excuse me?”
“I’m serious. Two drunks just dared each other to climb in the dumpster,” I finally chuckled liked I’d seen everything now.
Like he wasn’t for sure he’d heard what I said the ranger asked, “Two men are in the dumpster? Now?”
“Hey, you’re not going to catch me determining what gender they are, but they looked like guys. Although one of them had some pink or red in a scraggly goatee thing on their face.”
The teenage girl says, “It’s red and that’s gotta be the jerk that tried to intimidate me last night when I told them they weren’t supposed to have a generator going after 10 pm.”
I left rather than “get involved” any more than I had. I also had stayed out of the light the entire time. I guess we’ll see what comes of it tomorrow.
Forgot to mention something strange that we saw on the trail yesterday. They were filament wire nets in some of the trees along the unmaintained part of the trail. I’ve seen similar things in, usually they wind up just being fishing line stuck in some branches. I cut the ones out of the trees and then after worrying I’d messed up some type of research set up, mentioned it to a ranger at the cave area. He was pretty busy at the time and looked like he didn’t know what I was talking about. I shrugged it off until this morning and I’ll explain why.
Did the Bear Gulch area today. This was the only place for Benny to pick up his Junior Ranger booklet, so I wasn’t going to put it off. He had the one that I had downloaded but it was a year out of date, and he wanted to make sure that the activities still counted. He asks for so little and the junior ranger programs are so important to him. Accommodating him on this is the least I can do for pulling him pillar to post until I can figure out how to take care of us. They did have a new one and the ranger was happy to get him a copy. He was also very impressed at how many other Junior Ranger badges and patches Benny had earned.
While we were getting the Junior Ranger stuff I saw the ranger that I had told yesterday about the two filament wire nets we had cut out of the trees. He saw us and came over with one of the head naturalists and asked me to explain again exactly the area we’d found the two nets in. There were no studies currently being conducted so I wasn’t in trouble for cutting them loose.
“To me they looked like out of place fishing line and I just automatically cut them out before thinking.”
“Are those the only two you saw?”
“Yes.” I told them where I had also seen sign that people were hiking off trail and said if I had to guess it was three of them and I could probably describe them as I’d seen a group as we were hiking out carrying what I thought were thin map cases.
“The trail wasn’t crowded at all so the guys stood out. And not just because they were the only other ones on the trail with us. They had weird floppy hats on and eyeblack under their eyes. Just looked strange but…” I shrugged. “I’ve seen stranger.”
Then Benny pulled on my hand like he does when he’s nervous and I looked down and saw him tilting his head strangely. Ah. I squeezed his hand and then smiled and moved a bit and said quietly through my teeth, “And don’t look now but one of those guys is over by the condor display. Scruffy goatee. Looks like he has eye-black voids in his face tan.”
The ranger said, “Give me you camp number and if we have anything else to ask, I’ll catch up with you there. Are you going to be in the park another day?”
“Through the 11th.”
He nodded and I got Benny and I gone. I was beginning to suspect what was going on and I did not want to get in the middle of anything as people like that are unpredictable.
Our first organized hike of the day was Moses Spring to Rim Trail Loop. It was a 2.2-mile round trip that took Benny and I about an hour to finish. The loop was a good choice for rock formations, talus caves, and the reservoir. It helped Benny to check off several things in his booklet, including Bear Gulch Cave. I had a flashlight with me so we could explore a bit.
The Bear Gulch Cave provides a home to a colony of Townsend's big-eared bats as they rest there in winter and raise their young in the late spring and summer. The colony of bats in the Bear Gulch Cave is the largest maternity colony between San Francisco and Mexico. The lower half of the Bear Gulch Cave is usually open from mid-July through mid-May each year, depending on the presence of the colony of bats. The entire cave is closed from mid-May to mid-July while the bats are raising their young. Geez it stunk and I didn’t take us in far, not that you could go much further than we did because they had a barricade there to keep humans from going too far into the cave.
Next up was Condor Gulch Trail. Not quite as long at 1.7 miles one way but the elevation change of 1,100 feet was the kicker. They called it moderate to the overlook and strenuous beyond that point but I think it was an understatement due to the heat. Must admit that the trail did offer some spectacular views of the High Peaks, whether you hike just a few minutes or the entire trail. The overlook was only one mile up the trail and that’s where most people turned around.
We went back to the campground at that point and after parking and eating lunch, we hiked on the South Wilderness Trail the remainder of the afternoon. It was flat and the only strenuous part was the heat of the day. Mostly we just took pictures and gave Benny some time to work on Junior Ranger activities, one of which was bird watching as we hiked through the valley of oaks.
The day was going fine and dandy. We finished the hike, came back to camp for our dinner, went to the ranger presentation, came back to the van, and I washed and put Benny to bed for the night. I was about to sit down and work on the blog and take care of some other adulting tasks. Now here is is what I get for sticking my nose in …
I realized I’d forgotten to take the trash to the dumpster. It was just past dark, so I told Benny what I was doing and locked him in. The dumpsters were within site of the van, and I thought nothing of it beyond not wanting to have to deal with animal damage because I was too lazy to finish my own housekeeping.
I had just put the trash in the can when someone tried to slam it on my hand.
“Dude!”
“Ooops, maybe little girls like you should be more careful.”
First off … “little girl?” I’m no giant but I am above average height with obvious muscles. Without the fluffy shirt front I used to get mistaken for male on occasion so being called “little” immediately jacked my radar into the “on” position. I looked at the guy and realized I recognized him right away. Then some idiot with booze breath from hell tries to grab me from behind. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I reach back and grab the guy’s gonads and squeeze. And as a side note, I never need any help opening a jar. He turned loose, I didn’t. In fact my follow through was to ram the back of the guy’s head into the metal bear can. It sounded like that old show Meemo watched called The New Gong Show where people that couldn’t make it on the other talent shows went to give it a try.
Gong-show-guy was down and not getting up. Prince Charming 1 was just standing there with his mouth open. I was too hacked off to behave as I ought. A round house punch to the side of his head dropped him as hard as his friend.
I upended both guys headfirst in the bear proof dumpster and shut the lid. They weren’t getting out from the inside. I turned and there was a girl, a woman, and a ranger coming my way out of the dark. The training I took said if you gotta create a story keep it as close to the truth as you can, to make it credible. There were no overhead lights so at least they hadn’t clearly seen the action I’d taken. I walked towards them and gave them an incredulous look and said to the ranger, “Two drunks just dared each other to climb in the dumpster.”
“Excuse me?”
“I’m serious. Two drunks just dared each other to climb in the dumpster,” I finally chuckled liked I’d seen everything now.
Like he wasn’t for sure he’d heard what I said the ranger asked, “Two men are in the dumpster? Now?”
“Hey, you’re not going to catch me determining what gender they are, but they looked like guys. Although one of them had some pink or red in a scraggly goatee thing on their face.”
The teenage girl says, “It’s red and that’s gotta be the jerk that tried to intimidate me last night when I told them they weren’t supposed to have a generator going after 10 pm.”
I left rather than “get involved” any more than I had. I also had stayed out of the light the entire time. I guess we’ll see what comes of it tomorrow.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
A girls gotta do, what a girls gotta do. Thank you.
September 10th
Not a blessed thing. As in not a blessed thing came of my run-in last night. LOL. I shouldn’t laugh. I really shouldn’t. It’s serious business. But from what I understand of camp gossip Hewey, Dewey, and Louie were all arrested last night for poaching, smuggling, having Schedule II narcotics with intent to sell, and transporting marijuana across state line without a license and/or tax stamp. That last is probably the most serious as I know for a fact if they catch you doing that in Florida you could be looking at a mandatory 5-year sentence without chance of parole on your first offense, and most other states are even tougher. Tax man wants his money y’all.
Basically, it looks like I don’t have to worry about that because they have bigger issues than getting dumped on their can, and then in a can, by a female. I didn’t have a lot of time to worry about it since it was no longer my problem. We were off on another long hike, the Chalone Peak Trail. Nine miles roundtrip (there and back) and an elevation change of 2,040 feet. Our goal was the highest point in the park. The only drawback of the trail, if you want to call it that, is that we had to re-hike the Bear Gulch Cave trail. Didn’t really cost us anything and we got to see the area again. No loss for us.
The starting point wasn’t far from camp either, just a little over three-mile drive to the Bear Gulch day use area to get a parking space. We started by climbing the Moses Spring Trail. Like I said, a duplicate of yesterday but still nice. You start out in a shady oak woodlot kind of area then enter a narrow gorge. We stayed to the left at the first trail junction, then followed the path through a short, man-made tunnel. From there you stay to the left fork again, turning onto the Bear Gulch Cave Trail.
From here it is a short walk to the entrance of Lower Bear Gulch Cave, about 0.4 miles from the trailhead. I still had my mini-mag flashlight in my pack but tonight it is on the charger as it was getting dim right as we started to exit the cave. Dumb Gus, real dumb. Always carry a backup when you might need a light. Thankfully we had Benny’s but that’s not the point. I should have had a backup in my own pack.
Lower Bear Gulch Cave was just as dark as before with the added characteristic of being spooky since there were a lot fewer people on the trail today for whatever reason. The vaulted ceilings formed by massive chockstones were a little extra echo-y.
After crossing the Bear Creek drainage (no water in it), the trail climbed a long, winding staircase to bypass a series of dryfalls … they rarely have water flowing through them. After about a tenth of a mile, the footpath led through a narrow cut and reemerged into the sunlight above the cave. At some point overnight they had closed the upper cave area so I’m glad we were able to do that yesterday. After seeing lots of rangers on the trail and in the bush near the trail I suspect they closed it to investigate the area for animal traps, which is what those guys were doing. They were collecting animals illegally to sell to collectors and researchers on the black market. Yeah, it’s a thing; and big money if you listen to certain people talk.
At the top of the cave, we turned left yet again, staying on the Bear Gulch Cave Trail. From there the path ascended a scrubby hillside, then followed the boulder-choked canyon to a second, shorter cave at 6/10 mile. The chockstones in this passage, wedged between the canyon walls, were enormous and nearly touched the floor, requiring even Benny to duck his head as we passed.
Emerging out of the cave, we climbed a narrow staircase to reach the Bear Gulch Reservoir, a man-made lake. It is a popular lunch spot and turn-around point for a lot of hikers. We took a short break but lunch was a ways off.
Another left at the reservoir brought us to the start of the Chalone Peak Trail. The trail starts out hugging the lake’s eastern shoreline and passed a spur to “The Sisters” climbing area. Around three-quarters of a mile from the trailhead, the trail cut left and left the reservoir behind, and began the steap climb through a side canyon in an area known as the Little Pinnacles.
The climb wasn’t particularly steep but it did gain 200 feet in elevation before cresting a ridgeline at 1.25 miles. At that plateau we could see down Frog Canyon to the east with Mount Defiance (2,657’) just beyond. From that point on we saw more rangers than we did fellow hikers. You could tell they were sweeping the area. If I hadn’t known about the poaching, I would have suspected they were looking for a lost child.
Beyond the ridgeline, the Chalone Peak Trail started climbing again, hugging the western slopes of Frog Canyon. Benny got a lot of giggles out of that name. I make better than pretty good frog sounds so instead of the name I would say *frog sound* Canyon. I even got a startled glance from a ranger.
“Sorry,” I chuckled.
“Uh uh, you’re fine. But give a fella some warning. I was beginning to wonder if there was a new species out here,” he said, being a good sport about it and giving Benny a real fit of the giggles.
After a set of switchbacks, we started to notice this tree/bush called a manzanita, that had lime green leaves and deep red bark. Then, after the next ridgeline at about the two-mile mark, we got our first views of Chalone Peak in the distance. The flora in that area was nothing bushes and stubby grasses.
From the saddle at the top of Frog Canyon, the trail continued right this time, and here is where the long and arduous climb up the northern rib of the Chalone Peak really started. The north-facing hillside offered tremendous views of the Pinnacles region, including Bear Gulch and the High Peaks. At 2.5 miles, a rock outcrop provided perhaps the best viewpoint of the entire hike.
A little over three miles into the hike, the trail reached a cattle fence, with a wooden stile providing we had to cross. If a ranger hadn’t spotted me looking at the trail map and then nodded that it was okay to continue I might just have turned around. The trail needs one of those sign-thingies to let you know you aren’t trespassing and are on the correct path.
We followed the fence on the left (there are a lot of “lefts” on this trail) as the trail continues to climb. At 3.2 miles, the Chalone Peak Trail merges with a wide gravel road. This time a trail sign did tell us which way to go … and yes, it was left, along a broad track that heads towards the peak to the south. It also told us we had gained more than 1,500 feet in elevation. Yeah buddy, and my shins were telling me so.
I took a break to make sure that Benny was drinking enough. If we move out West he needs a wider brimmed hat. I also put some zinc on our noses. We are from sunny Florida but the higher elevations we were hiking in gave a different intensity to our exposure. I’m darker than I normally get and Benny’s nose, cheeks, and ears are redder than normal. I’m also running through lip balm faster than normal.
After a brief descent to a high saddle, the climb picked back up again, following the west-facing flank of North Chalone Peak. This was the steepest part of the hike and mostly in full sun. At 3.7 miles, we passed through a metal gate and then under a string of power lines that felt way out of place.
Finally, at 3.8 miles, the path rounded a left-hand bend, and the abandoned tower atop Chalone Peak appeared ahead. We continued on until we reached the summit.
The tower is closed to visitors, but the panoramic views were incredible. To the north, is the Pinnacles region, with the Gabilan Range continuing beyond. The southward view is dominated by South Chalone Peak, a summit accessible via a 1.6-mile one-way spur trail. I thought about doing it but since the views weren’t any better decided against it. To the west, you can see across Salinas Valley to Soledad and the Santa Lucia Range, with the Pacific Ocean on the other side of that but invisible to us. To put it mildly, North Chalone Peak, the third-highest mountain in the Gabilan Range, is one of the best viewpoints in the region.
The only drawback of the views was knowing we had a 4-mile hike back the way we came to return to the van. That was made up for the memories we had made and that the downhill slope was considerably more pleasant than the earlier climb.
They had both the Lower and Upper Bear Gulch Caves closed and we had to circumnavigate them on a different trail but we decided it was no big deal because we were caved-out for the time being. The rangers were still all over the trail and I confirmed they were still looking for other traps and stuff. They had found several all over the area.
Back at the van we said to heck with it and traded our snack-style lunch for the remainder of the Mexican food leftovers. Yummmmm. We could have done another short hike or too but we decided just to head back to camp and veg out for a while. We were half way there when I saw a family broke down on the side of he park road. I mean what the heck? No one was stopping, so I did. Seems like there are a lot of self-involved people in this world.
“Need a hand?” I asked the dad part of the family equation. He had a cast on his wrist so I tried to make it a little bit of a joke so as not to hurt is pride.
I didn’t need to bother. In relief he said, “You wouldn’t happen to have some water to spare would you.”
It looked like their car was overheating but upon closer inspection it turned out it wasn’t. One of their posts on their EV battery had corroded and they were trying to clean it with water causing some steam from the heat of the adjacent car parts. I keep a bottle of coke in my tools just for that particular problem and soon had them up and running again.
I was walking back to the van when this woolybooger of a road runner made a dash from one side of the road to the other … and ran right between my legs … making me dance.
“Oy! Girls don’t put up with that stuff these days. You wanna dance, you ask politely!”
Benny was laughing which started the kids from the other car laughing. I mean they all thought I was crazy but oh well. When Benny saw it was time to leave, he waived and then said, “Bye! Gotta go!” At least he is sorta kinda socializing better than when we started our Adventure. That’s something I can hang onto. Right?
At tonight’s ranger program we learned that Pinnacles is another release area for the California Conder, just like outside Glen Canyon. The ranger told us they can glide from Pinnacles National Park all the way to the Big Sur coast in about an hour. That is one heck of a flight plan.
Benny played himself out after drawing an amazing likeness of the road runner to stick in his portfolio. Little Bear has talent. He is running low on a few of his colored pencils and crayons so I need to remember to pick up some new ones.
I need to upload a new entry on the blog and then hit the hay myself. I hope I can sleep. I was listening to the news and they were all about tomorrow being Patriot Day. Ever since I can remember the crazies always come out on P-Day. I hope nothing bad happens this year.
Not a blessed thing. As in not a blessed thing came of my run-in last night. LOL. I shouldn’t laugh. I really shouldn’t. It’s serious business. But from what I understand of camp gossip Hewey, Dewey, and Louie were all arrested last night for poaching, smuggling, having Schedule II narcotics with intent to sell, and transporting marijuana across state line without a license and/or tax stamp. That last is probably the most serious as I know for a fact if they catch you doing that in Florida you could be looking at a mandatory 5-year sentence without chance of parole on your first offense, and most other states are even tougher. Tax man wants his money y’all.
Basically, it looks like I don’t have to worry about that because they have bigger issues than getting dumped on their can, and then in a can, by a female. I didn’t have a lot of time to worry about it since it was no longer my problem. We were off on another long hike, the Chalone Peak Trail. Nine miles roundtrip (there and back) and an elevation change of 2,040 feet. Our goal was the highest point in the park. The only drawback of the trail, if you want to call it that, is that we had to re-hike the Bear Gulch Cave trail. Didn’t really cost us anything and we got to see the area again. No loss for us.
The starting point wasn’t far from camp either, just a little over three-mile drive to the Bear Gulch day use area to get a parking space. We started by climbing the Moses Spring Trail. Like I said, a duplicate of yesterday but still nice. You start out in a shady oak woodlot kind of area then enter a narrow gorge. We stayed to the left at the first trail junction, then followed the path through a short, man-made tunnel. From there you stay to the left fork again, turning onto the Bear Gulch Cave Trail.
From here it is a short walk to the entrance of Lower Bear Gulch Cave, about 0.4 miles from the trailhead. I still had my mini-mag flashlight in my pack but tonight it is on the charger as it was getting dim right as we started to exit the cave. Dumb Gus, real dumb. Always carry a backup when you might need a light. Thankfully we had Benny’s but that’s not the point. I should have had a backup in my own pack.
Lower Bear Gulch Cave was just as dark as before with the added characteristic of being spooky since there were a lot fewer people on the trail today for whatever reason. The vaulted ceilings formed by massive chockstones were a little extra echo-y.
After crossing the Bear Creek drainage (no water in it), the trail climbed a long, winding staircase to bypass a series of dryfalls … they rarely have water flowing through them. After about a tenth of a mile, the footpath led through a narrow cut and reemerged into the sunlight above the cave. At some point overnight they had closed the upper cave area so I’m glad we were able to do that yesterday. After seeing lots of rangers on the trail and in the bush near the trail I suspect they closed it to investigate the area for animal traps, which is what those guys were doing. They were collecting animals illegally to sell to collectors and researchers on the black market. Yeah, it’s a thing; and big money if you listen to certain people talk.
At the top of the cave, we turned left yet again, staying on the Bear Gulch Cave Trail. From there the path ascended a scrubby hillside, then followed the boulder-choked canyon to a second, shorter cave at 6/10 mile. The chockstones in this passage, wedged between the canyon walls, were enormous and nearly touched the floor, requiring even Benny to duck his head as we passed.
Emerging out of the cave, we climbed a narrow staircase to reach the Bear Gulch Reservoir, a man-made lake. It is a popular lunch spot and turn-around point for a lot of hikers. We took a short break but lunch was a ways off.
Another left at the reservoir brought us to the start of the Chalone Peak Trail. The trail starts out hugging the lake’s eastern shoreline and passed a spur to “The Sisters” climbing area. Around three-quarters of a mile from the trailhead, the trail cut left and left the reservoir behind, and began the steap climb through a side canyon in an area known as the Little Pinnacles.
The climb wasn’t particularly steep but it did gain 200 feet in elevation before cresting a ridgeline at 1.25 miles. At that plateau we could see down Frog Canyon to the east with Mount Defiance (2,657’) just beyond. From that point on we saw more rangers than we did fellow hikers. You could tell they were sweeping the area. If I hadn’t known about the poaching, I would have suspected they were looking for a lost child.
Beyond the ridgeline, the Chalone Peak Trail started climbing again, hugging the western slopes of Frog Canyon. Benny got a lot of giggles out of that name. I make better than pretty good frog sounds so instead of the name I would say *frog sound* Canyon. I even got a startled glance from a ranger.
“Sorry,” I chuckled.
“Uh uh, you’re fine. But give a fella some warning. I was beginning to wonder if there was a new species out here,” he said, being a good sport about it and giving Benny a real fit of the giggles.
After a set of switchbacks, we started to notice this tree/bush called a manzanita, that had lime green leaves and deep red bark. Then, after the next ridgeline at about the two-mile mark, we got our first views of Chalone Peak in the distance. The flora in that area was nothing bushes and stubby grasses.
From the saddle at the top of Frog Canyon, the trail continued right this time, and here is where the long and arduous climb up the northern rib of the Chalone Peak really started. The north-facing hillside offered tremendous views of the Pinnacles region, including Bear Gulch and the High Peaks. At 2.5 miles, a rock outcrop provided perhaps the best viewpoint of the entire hike.
A little over three miles into the hike, the trail reached a cattle fence, with a wooden stile providing we had to cross. If a ranger hadn’t spotted me looking at the trail map and then nodded that it was okay to continue I might just have turned around. The trail needs one of those sign-thingies to let you know you aren’t trespassing and are on the correct path.
We followed the fence on the left (there are a lot of “lefts” on this trail) as the trail continues to climb. At 3.2 miles, the Chalone Peak Trail merges with a wide gravel road. This time a trail sign did tell us which way to go … and yes, it was left, along a broad track that heads towards the peak to the south. It also told us we had gained more than 1,500 feet in elevation. Yeah buddy, and my shins were telling me so.
I took a break to make sure that Benny was drinking enough. If we move out West he needs a wider brimmed hat. I also put some zinc on our noses. We are from sunny Florida but the higher elevations we were hiking in gave a different intensity to our exposure. I’m darker than I normally get and Benny’s nose, cheeks, and ears are redder than normal. I’m also running through lip balm faster than normal.
After a brief descent to a high saddle, the climb picked back up again, following the west-facing flank of North Chalone Peak. This was the steepest part of the hike and mostly in full sun. At 3.7 miles, we passed through a metal gate and then under a string of power lines that felt way out of place.
Finally, at 3.8 miles, the path rounded a left-hand bend, and the abandoned tower atop Chalone Peak appeared ahead. We continued on until we reached the summit.
The tower is closed to visitors, but the panoramic views were incredible. To the north, is the Pinnacles region, with the Gabilan Range continuing beyond. The southward view is dominated by South Chalone Peak, a summit accessible via a 1.6-mile one-way spur trail. I thought about doing it but since the views weren’t any better decided against it. To the west, you can see across Salinas Valley to Soledad and the Santa Lucia Range, with the Pacific Ocean on the other side of that but invisible to us. To put it mildly, North Chalone Peak, the third-highest mountain in the Gabilan Range, is one of the best viewpoints in the region.
The only drawback of the views was knowing we had a 4-mile hike back the way we came to return to the van. That was made up for the memories we had made and that the downhill slope was considerably more pleasant than the earlier climb.
They had both the Lower and Upper Bear Gulch Caves closed and we had to circumnavigate them on a different trail but we decided it was no big deal because we were caved-out for the time being. The rangers were still all over the trail and I confirmed they were still looking for other traps and stuff. They had found several all over the area.
Back at the van we said to heck with it and traded our snack-style lunch for the remainder of the Mexican food leftovers. Yummmmm. We could have done another short hike or too but we decided just to head back to camp and veg out for a while. We were half way there when I saw a family broke down on the side of he park road. I mean what the heck? No one was stopping, so I did. Seems like there are a lot of self-involved people in this world.
“Need a hand?” I asked the dad part of the family equation. He had a cast on his wrist so I tried to make it a little bit of a joke so as not to hurt is pride.
I didn’t need to bother. In relief he said, “You wouldn’t happen to have some water to spare would you.”
It looked like their car was overheating but upon closer inspection it turned out it wasn’t. One of their posts on their EV battery had corroded and they were trying to clean it with water causing some steam from the heat of the adjacent car parts. I keep a bottle of coke in my tools just for that particular problem and soon had them up and running again.
I was walking back to the van when this woolybooger of a road runner made a dash from one side of the road to the other … and ran right between my legs … making me dance.
“Oy! Girls don’t put up with that stuff these days. You wanna dance, you ask politely!”
Benny was laughing which started the kids from the other car laughing. I mean they all thought I was crazy but oh well. When Benny saw it was time to leave, he waived and then said, “Bye! Gotta go!” At least he is sorta kinda socializing better than when we started our Adventure. That’s something I can hang onto. Right?
At tonight’s ranger program we learned that Pinnacles is another release area for the California Conder, just like outside Glen Canyon. The ranger told us they can glide from Pinnacles National Park all the way to the Big Sur coast in about an hour. That is one heck of a flight plan.
Benny played himself out after drawing an amazing likeness of the road runner to stick in his portfolio. Little Bear has talent. He is running low on a few of his colored pencils and crayons so I need to remember to pick up some new ones.
I need to upload a new entry on the blog and then hit the hay myself. I hope I can sleep. I was listening to the news and they were all about tomorrow being Patriot Day. Ever since I can remember the crazies always come out on P-Day. I hope nothing bad happens this year.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Another one, great, thank you.
September 11th – Patriot Day
Patriot Day. When Dad and Lawrence were still alive, we would make a big deal of it; fireworks, BBQ, church service and parade, the whole nine yards. Grandfather Barry did too but on his own terms. He was a boy but remembered watching the planes fly into the buildings on 9/11. He said it took decades for the truth to come out but even that “truth” was suspect on many different levels. And despite their careers, both he and Lawrence always said that we lost a lot of our personal freedoms on that day; it wasn’t just the 3,000 people that died, so did a way of life and a certain national innocence.
Here we are a couple of generations gone by and people still use it as an excuse, a date, to pull all sorts of crap and today was no exception. There’s been talk for the last few years of adding Patriot Day as one of the federal bank holidays. They got rid of the old Columbus Day, nearly renamed MLK Jr Day to Minority Remembrance Day, tried to get rid of Veterans Day, and none of that caused the mess that Patriot Day celebrations do. There are some serious screwballs that have taken exception to it and this time they staged an “intervention into US insanity” and only proved they were the insane ones. They tried to replay the first attack on the original World Trade Building as it happened way back in 1993. Only the idiots miscalculated, and the “bomb” went off well ahead of schedule. Most people hadn’t even finished their first cup of coffee-sub at home when a big shockwave went off in downtown Manhattan killing a lot of protestors that were already in the area. It was one of the new-fangled “sound bombs” that terrorists have developed and it shattered windows and cracked building facades for blocks. Those that weren’t killed by the concussive shockwave died or were severely injured by falling debris. Geez Louise.
The country is in lockdown even though they’ve already caught the criminals who did it. I guess being that stupid, their friends gave them up like martyrs, so they’d have their fifteen minutes of fame. Or maybe they were just supremely hacked off at them because their failure killed so many protestors. No clue. All I do know is they are going to be a while scraping people off the sidewalks and streets … and walls and light posts and stairs and etc etc etc. The sound bombs might not generate their own fragments, but they are strong enough to turn a human insides to jelly.
It also caused a hiccup in our plans though we’ve been told because of the swift action and intervention of the blah, blah, blah all federal properties will reopen tomorrow barring any further actions by terrorists, foreign or domestic. Lovely.
What have I done today? Spent the day trying to keep Benny from becoming a victim of all the jackholes that are freaking out.
I woke up to the sound of squealing tires and a crash right outside my window. I cannot express how much that did not please me. It woke Benny up as well and he was disoriented and scared. Heck it woke the entire campground and left many of them in the same state as Benny.
“Stay here,” I told him as I grabbed the big flashlight and headed out to make sure the van wasn’t a victim of whatever was going on. Luckily for the two drivers that hadn’t been using good driving skills, they missed the Ark by about six inches. A couple in the little EV roller skate-sized car had tangled with an old-style fifth-wheel set up and came out the losers. The tinfoil car body was literally cracked open like a nut and had spilled them out with injuries to match. I ran back to the van, grabbed my med bag, and was staunching the flow of the red stuff before rangers could even get to the scene.
Everyone was acting freaking nuts and the infection was spreading. “What the heck is wrong with everyone. Is it the zombiepocalypse?” I muttered as a ranger helped me to immobilize a woman’s ankle that might or might not have been crushed.
The ranger muttered the then-known details, filling me in.
I grumped, “Other freaking side of the country. Three thousand frelling miles away. Coulda hit my van and hurt my nephew. Everyone needs to calm the frick down or take their meds.”
I got a look but that was the only response. Fine. Whatever. My Barrymore attitude was showing and it still isn’t too far from the surface.
I kept an eye on Benny and said he could look out the window as long as he promised not to freak out or gak if he saw any blood. “You won’t leave?” he asked.
“I won’t get out of sight of the van but someone needs to help herd the cats or the rangers are going to lose their hair,” I told him trying to use humor to keep us both from becoming aggitated.
“And you are trained,” he said with confidence.
“Right-O my Little Bear. Why don’t you and the Crew have a pow wow or something. I won’t go far.”
“Can I have a ‘nola bar.”
“No crumbs in your bedding. ‘K?”
It took a while and some muscle to clear a path around the accident. Me and another guy finally said screw it and we body slammed the EV-skate using a crowbar and jack, got it unstuck from the fifth-wheel, and just shoved it back into their camp site a few spots down from the van’s. Daaang. We were nearly run down by people that had been lined up to take their turn at getting out after they got a few braincells sparking and stopped trying to cross through other campsites after a few more fender benders occurred and a few idiots got hung up on fire rings. There was even one truck that got stuck between two trees when a sideview mirror wound up wedged in a V between branches and nearly ripped off.
At full light there were enough park personnel that I could go back to the van and put my own ears onto the news though after checking on Benny, I went back to help clear another mash up at the drinking water station that caused the plumbing to turn into Old Faithful’s baby cousin. People were acting like it was the next world war and armeggaedon rolled into one. Rampant speculation of where the terrorists were going to hit next … were going to, not might … kept playing out even once verified statements were issued that the culprits were in custody, and it was a one-off event. Oh no, gotta make like a chicken with the head cut off.
I decided I was done being a Good Samaritan after I got cussed out for like the eighth or ninth time. I gave them the Italian salute, then headed back to the van for the duration. Once inside I have the dubious fun of explaining to Benny what was going on and that I was there and we were not going to panic and make a mess like everyone else seemed to be doing.
No leaving camp because those that left were not going to be readmitted. All the trails and buildings closed. Yada yada yada. Did manage to fix it so that Benny got his Junior Ranger badge when I found one that had been left behind that I palmed up so he didn’t notice.
After he saw me talking to a Ranger who was checking on everyone and telling them the plumbing would be fixed in another hour or so, I came in and made like I was feeling important.
“Guess what I get to do?” I asked him.
“What? Fix another car?”
I almost laughed and lost my act. “Nope. I have been officially deputized so that I can swear you in for the Pinnacles National Park Junior Ranger Award.”
“Really?!” he asked excitedly. He’d already figured out that with the rangers busy elsewhere he wasn’t going to get sworn in my them.
“Well, I have the badge. See?! You just need to get me your booklet so I can sign off on it and then make sure you say the promise right.”
I played it up, acting like I was trying to live up to the responsibility that had been entrusted to me and geez, the things you do for a kid you love.
The day has been a long one and I am ready for it to be over with. Sun is already down on the East Coast and everything is quiet with an official “or else” stamped on it. I’ve got everything buttoned up and ready to get out of here in the morning. Here’s hoping nothing else goes wrong.
*Later*
Wifi and cell phone service is back up and running. Checked to make sure that no one was trying to reach us and sure enough got one humdinger of a message. Man, when it rains it pours in this life and this time literally. Stella’s intuition saved them. The hurricane that was in the Atlantic and expected to skirt the east coast had a complete change of direction due to the Gulf Stream going schizoid. It pushed a weather system down which forced the tropical storm down. It made a direct hit on Key West and even though it was only a Cat 2 at the time, it did a lot of damage because of the amount of water it was pushing ahead of it. It also trashed several expanses of the bridges so getting to people is by boat-only at this point. The storm is for the moment in sit and spin in the warm Gulf waters and is strengthening. It is possible that it is going to be another Cat 5. Where it goes from there isn’t for sure because the spaghetti forecasts are all messed up. It could head back towards Florida and cross the state, could slam into the panhandle, or depending how long the Gulf Stream stays to the South the storm could cross the entire Gulf and hit Texas or even Mexico. I’ll try and get more info tomorrow, if possible.
Resources:
Junior Ranger booklet: JuniorRangerBook2020.pdf (nps.gov)
Park Map: 2019-map-update-DRAFT-CROPPED.pdf (nps.gov)
Park Map 2: 2019-map-update-DRAFT.pdf (nps.gov)
Patriot Day. When Dad and Lawrence were still alive, we would make a big deal of it; fireworks, BBQ, church service and parade, the whole nine yards. Grandfather Barry did too but on his own terms. He was a boy but remembered watching the planes fly into the buildings on 9/11. He said it took decades for the truth to come out but even that “truth” was suspect on many different levels. And despite their careers, both he and Lawrence always said that we lost a lot of our personal freedoms on that day; it wasn’t just the 3,000 people that died, so did a way of life and a certain national innocence.
Here we are a couple of generations gone by and people still use it as an excuse, a date, to pull all sorts of crap and today was no exception. There’s been talk for the last few years of adding Patriot Day as one of the federal bank holidays. They got rid of the old Columbus Day, nearly renamed MLK Jr Day to Minority Remembrance Day, tried to get rid of Veterans Day, and none of that caused the mess that Patriot Day celebrations do. There are some serious screwballs that have taken exception to it and this time they staged an “intervention into US insanity” and only proved they were the insane ones. They tried to replay the first attack on the original World Trade Building as it happened way back in 1993. Only the idiots miscalculated, and the “bomb” went off well ahead of schedule. Most people hadn’t even finished their first cup of coffee-sub at home when a big shockwave went off in downtown Manhattan killing a lot of protestors that were already in the area. It was one of the new-fangled “sound bombs” that terrorists have developed and it shattered windows and cracked building facades for blocks. Those that weren’t killed by the concussive shockwave died or were severely injured by falling debris. Geez Louise.
The country is in lockdown even though they’ve already caught the criminals who did it. I guess being that stupid, their friends gave them up like martyrs, so they’d have their fifteen minutes of fame. Or maybe they were just supremely hacked off at them because their failure killed so many protestors. No clue. All I do know is they are going to be a while scraping people off the sidewalks and streets … and walls and light posts and stairs and etc etc etc. The sound bombs might not generate their own fragments, but they are strong enough to turn a human insides to jelly.
It also caused a hiccup in our plans though we’ve been told because of the swift action and intervention of the blah, blah, blah all federal properties will reopen tomorrow barring any further actions by terrorists, foreign or domestic. Lovely.
What have I done today? Spent the day trying to keep Benny from becoming a victim of all the jackholes that are freaking out.
I woke up to the sound of squealing tires and a crash right outside my window. I cannot express how much that did not please me. It woke Benny up as well and he was disoriented and scared. Heck it woke the entire campground and left many of them in the same state as Benny.
“Stay here,” I told him as I grabbed the big flashlight and headed out to make sure the van wasn’t a victim of whatever was going on. Luckily for the two drivers that hadn’t been using good driving skills, they missed the Ark by about six inches. A couple in the little EV roller skate-sized car had tangled with an old-style fifth-wheel set up and came out the losers. The tinfoil car body was literally cracked open like a nut and had spilled them out with injuries to match. I ran back to the van, grabbed my med bag, and was staunching the flow of the red stuff before rangers could even get to the scene.
Everyone was acting freaking nuts and the infection was spreading. “What the heck is wrong with everyone. Is it the zombiepocalypse?” I muttered as a ranger helped me to immobilize a woman’s ankle that might or might not have been crushed.
The ranger muttered the then-known details, filling me in.
I grumped, “Other freaking side of the country. Three thousand frelling miles away. Coulda hit my van and hurt my nephew. Everyone needs to calm the frick down or take their meds.”
I got a look but that was the only response. Fine. Whatever. My Barrymore attitude was showing and it still isn’t too far from the surface.
I kept an eye on Benny and said he could look out the window as long as he promised not to freak out or gak if he saw any blood. “You won’t leave?” he asked.
“I won’t get out of sight of the van but someone needs to help herd the cats or the rangers are going to lose their hair,” I told him trying to use humor to keep us both from becoming aggitated.
“And you are trained,” he said with confidence.
“Right-O my Little Bear. Why don’t you and the Crew have a pow wow or something. I won’t go far.”
“Can I have a ‘nola bar.”
“No crumbs in your bedding. ‘K?”
It took a while and some muscle to clear a path around the accident. Me and another guy finally said screw it and we body slammed the EV-skate using a crowbar and jack, got it unstuck from the fifth-wheel, and just shoved it back into their camp site a few spots down from the van’s. Daaang. We were nearly run down by people that had been lined up to take their turn at getting out after they got a few braincells sparking and stopped trying to cross through other campsites after a few more fender benders occurred and a few idiots got hung up on fire rings. There was even one truck that got stuck between two trees when a sideview mirror wound up wedged in a V between branches and nearly ripped off.
At full light there were enough park personnel that I could go back to the van and put my own ears onto the news though after checking on Benny, I went back to help clear another mash up at the drinking water station that caused the plumbing to turn into Old Faithful’s baby cousin. People were acting like it was the next world war and armeggaedon rolled into one. Rampant speculation of where the terrorists were going to hit next … were going to, not might … kept playing out even once verified statements were issued that the culprits were in custody, and it was a one-off event. Oh no, gotta make like a chicken with the head cut off.
I decided I was done being a Good Samaritan after I got cussed out for like the eighth or ninth time. I gave them the Italian salute, then headed back to the van for the duration. Once inside I have the dubious fun of explaining to Benny what was going on and that I was there and we were not going to panic and make a mess like everyone else seemed to be doing.
No leaving camp because those that left were not going to be readmitted. All the trails and buildings closed. Yada yada yada. Did manage to fix it so that Benny got his Junior Ranger badge when I found one that had been left behind that I palmed up so he didn’t notice.
After he saw me talking to a Ranger who was checking on everyone and telling them the plumbing would be fixed in another hour or so, I came in and made like I was feeling important.
“Guess what I get to do?” I asked him.
“What? Fix another car?”
I almost laughed and lost my act. “Nope. I have been officially deputized so that I can swear you in for the Pinnacles National Park Junior Ranger Award.”
“Really?!” he asked excitedly. He’d already figured out that with the rangers busy elsewhere he wasn’t going to get sworn in my them.
“Well, I have the badge. See?! You just need to get me your booklet so I can sign off on it and then make sure you say the promise right.”
I played it up, acting like I was trying to live up to the responsibility that had been entrusted to me and geez, the things you do for a kid you love.
The day has been a long one and I am ready for it to be over with. Sun is already down on the East Coast and everything is quiet with an official “or else” stamped on it. I’ve got everything buttoned up and ready to get out of here in the morning. Here’s hoping nothing else goes wrong.
*Later*
Wifi and cell phone service is back up and running. Checked to make sure that no one was trying to reach us and sure enough got one humdinger of a message. Man, when it rains it pours in this life and this time literally. Stella’s intuition saved them. The hurricane that was in the Atlantic and expected to skirt the east coast had a complete change of direction due to the Gulf Stream going schizoid. It pushed a weather system down which forced the tropical storm down. It made a direct hit on Key West and even though it was only a Cat 2 at the time, it did a lot of damage because of the amount of water it was pushing ahead of it. It also trashed several expanses of the bridges so getting to people is by boat-only at this point. The storm is for the moment in sit and spin in the warm Gulf waters and is strengthening. It is possible that it is going to be another Cat 5. Where it goes from there isn’t for sure because the spaghetti forecasts are all messed up. It could head back towards Florida and cross the state, could slam into the panhandle, or depending how long the Gulf Stream stays to the South the storm could cross the entire Gulf and hit Texas or even Mexico. I’ll try and get more info tomorrow, if possible.
Resources:
Junior Ranger booklet: JuniorRangerBook2020.pdf (nps.gov)
Park Map: 2019-map-update-DRAFT-CROPPED.pdf (nps.gov)
Park Map 2: 2019-map-update-DRAFT.pdf (nps.gov)
Sep 12 – 13: Channel Islands National Park, California
Weather: Really, really screwed up.
Driving Route:
September 12th
This has been one of those days where if it could go wrong it has. That is not even counting in the twilight zone yesterday was. If I was a swearing person, and I am occasionally, I would say that someone shut the media companies up because it is like NYC never happened. Now the news is nothing but the hurricane damage in Key West. I guess I am just going to let it go as well as there is quite literally zero coverage that adds anything new to what I know. As for the Murphy’s Law case this day has been …
First off, this is really the worst weather that we’ve had since leaving Florida. Despite the hurricane brewing in the Gulf, Florida is having better weather than where we are at. They closed Hwy 101 at Pismo Beach so I had a fun time re-routing around to get to Channel Islands national park.
When we arrived, it was to find out that the ferry had been cancelled due to weather. That means that our camping spot was cancelled. So, locating someplace to stay for the night became a priority, especially as the weather was supposed to worsen. We were about the only people in the visitor center and the rangers let Benny have the run of the place as he worked on his Junior Ranger booklets. He was happy, despite the weather and change in plans. I was something but it sure wasn’t happy.
Embassy Suites? $800+/night for a single so that was a big nope, but people were apparently paying it since there were only two rooms left. In fact, assuming I could even find a room everything was a minimum of $500/night even for trashy little motels that looked more like former homeless shelters. Yikes. I almost had a spot at McGrath State Park but then they said they were closing due to flooding. Evergreen RV Park was age restricted (retirement community) and looked like an expensive parking lot from the pictures. I sought other options. Heavy on the sarcasm.
No wallydocking in Cali, big ticket if you get caught. Even if they don’t ask you to leave it isn’t recommended due to safety and security issues, especially in and near the larger cities. Checked all the KOAs between here and our next stop – and there were nine – and they were already booked solid. Checked the boondocking forums and found one possible – behind a bowling alley near a casino. Yeah. I could hear Groucho all the way from Florida. I even looked on Harvest Hosts, but all their options were south of LA and booked solid. So the Bowling Alley/Casino it was.
I let Benny play at the visitor center until he was finished with all his Junior Ranger activities. They let him earn the one for the Channel Islands even though he wasn’t going to get to go because he watched all the videos and did the activities anyway. I made sure that we got our Park Passports stamped as well. I don’t mention that often but I’m OCD about it. One for Benny, one for me. It is like this logbook, it is my memory of this time in our lives.
The rain never really let up but between torrential downpours I got us in the van and oriented to drive through LA which suuuuucked Bigfoot’s left hairy buttock. San Bernardino wasn’t much better. And I gotta add that Palm Springs is expensive, and the people are a shade of crazy I’ve rarely seen. But I finally managed to find a wallyworld to do some grocery shopping at and a gas station that was open and didn’t have a line wrapped around the building. And yeah, I know the danger of pumping gas when it is lightning, but I took the chance and also topped off the extra cans of fuel I had in the back. Geez what a gouge in the wallet that was. Fuel in Cali is almost twice what it is everywhere else. I’ve heard lots of excuses for it … taxes to pay for the state’s free crap they hand out, schools, homelessness, support for the environmental laws, etc etc etc. I don’t know what the reason is, but it sure makes me hope the contagion doesn’t spread. I repeat, geez.
I was pumping gas when the guy in a camper truck on the other side of the pump said, “Good idea.” He told his wife to check what they had in their extra gas cans. Then a couple more people did it. As we were pulling out not only was the line now three times as long, but an attendant had started taping up signs saying, “No gas cans. Vehicle refueling only.” The EV stations were even worse since a lot of houses had already lost electricity. Don’t know if we got lucky or not but I was glad to have it either way. I added to my daily to do list to start keeping the gas cans and water containers full and not letting any of them go below half if at all possible.
I pulled into the casino/bowling alley parking lot that was only a few miles down the road, and it was wall-to-wall semis and huge RVs. Drove all the way in the back and managed to find a space to wedge us into right as the sky opened back up and the wind and rain became worse than ever. The weather is predicted to be the same for tomorrow. Decided that Groucho was just going to have to growl so I played ET and phoned home to check on him and Stella. He surprised me.
“Better to be in a parking lot than out on the road Gus. Just watch your sixes and keep the doors locked. Stay outta the casino unless they got a buffet. And give the crazies time to clear out before you hit the road again.”
“Probably going to be stuck here tomorrow as well. I’ve already got groceries and extra water.”
“Disengage the slider and engage the extra locks on the doors and windows but …”
“… have a way out just in case.” I said finishing what I knew needed to be said.
“You got it.”
“How is everything going there?”
I could nearly hear his shrug before he handed the phone off to Stella to take care of a new customer. “Everything ok?” I asked.
“Kirkland is getting squirrely about his mother. Can’t blame the kid but we tried to get her to come up here on ‘vacation’ so she could see that he is turning out okay and even talking about community college. She wouldn’t even speak to him. She’s still being a bitch about the whole thing only now she has added bitching about none of us being back there to help with the hurricane mess.”
“Uh … sorry to hear that. I mean, I really kinda don’t know what to say and what is my business but … sorry to hear it.”
“It’s okay Hun. Nice to have at least a few people that don’t think it is any of their business. Howard, Kirkland’s grandfather, called yesterday and the man makes more sense than his daughter does, but just barely. Seems there is some empty-nest stuff going on in the background because Kirkland’s sister wants to leave home too. The girl is only sixteen and it’s a mess and Kirkland is catching it because his mom is having an emotional blow out. She’ll come around if she doesn’t make the wall too high. Know what I mean?”
“Sorta.”
She laughed and then I could hear her moving to another room. “Look, got a favor and you can say no.”
“Er …”
“Have I ever told you my oldest works out in Vegas?”
“Raine? I thought you said she …”
“Not … Raine. Garrett.”
“Garrett. Er …”
“I had Garrett when I was still in high school. His dad and I were never married.”
“Stella …”
“I know. TMI or whatever you kids call it now days. Look, I’ve got a really big favor to ask. And you can say no but … I really hope you don’t. I had Garrett until my first husband died. I’m not making excuses but … I was just young, pregnant with Raine, and was a mess for a while and everyone agreed that it would be best that Garrett go live with his father until I could get things figured out. And then I made a damn fool of myself with Chuck and then he died, and I jumped into a relationship with George and that was a friggin’ nightmare that ended in the only divorce I’ve had. I’m popping a kid out for each man I marry, but it didn’t look like a stable life from the outside even though I was doing pretty good financially by then and working for Groucho and … well doing better than okay. But by then … Garrett’s dad had built a life for them and started another family and … I just couldn’t take him away from that, especially not after Garrett’s stepmom got sick and they didn’t think she was going to make it.”
“Stella …”
“I know Gus, just let me finish. When Garrett turned eighteen, he had a big blow up with Darren, his father. To this day I don’t know what it was over but I suspect someone finally told him that the reason I got pregnant was because his dad’s buddy dropped a tab in my drink at the school dance and I wasn’t exactly as sober as he thought I was.” She chuckled but it wasn’t a good sound. “I lived up to a reputation I didn’t deserve back then, following in my mother’s and sister’s footsteps whether I meant to or not. Problem is I wasn’t smart enough not to pretend and didn’t have the kind of friends I should have had. Anyway, Garrett comes down to Key West and surprises the hell out of me. I … I didn’t know what to think. I remember me at that age, and I didn’t want him doing anything he would regret. I called Darren and said I’d do what I could, but I wasn’t going to kick him out if he just needed a place to cool off and figure things out. For whatever reason Darren’s wife always resented me. I never set it up to be like that but … you know?”
I made a noncommittal sound.
“So he’s around almost a year and then her cancer comes back.”
“The stepmom.”
“Yeah. If I’m honest, she’s been the mom for most of his life. I’ll admit I was and am jealous, but I don’t want to crap my kid’s life up and leave him scarred. So, I told him he needed to go back and finish making peace. Just in case. He left … but never came back. She’s never stopped needing him … she makes sure she needs him if I’m reading it right, and always makes him feel guilty for talking to me at all. Raine talks to him more than I do. The guy has walls like you would NOT believe but he does keep in touch with his siblings … all of them. He’s grown into a good man even if I didn’t have anything to do with it and I give credit to Carol for that. I just wish she’d given me some credit along the way too. I’ll admit there were mistakes on my part. I was too hands-off while Carol was going through the second round of cancer. Then when it was Darren that died, I got mad I suppose that he stayed to take care of Carol when she had other kids, some older than Garrett, that could have done that. I was mad at Garrett’s grandparents because they’ve never done anything but treat me like the worst kind of white trash. But I couldn’t tell Garrett why I was angry because I always promised that I would never talk bad about any of my kids’ and step kids’ other parents or family.”
“I know. It’s the biggest thing that you and Groucho have in common.”
I heard her sniff back some emotion and then she said, “Garrett called yesterday. He said he was checking on me. That Raine wouldn’t play go between anymore, that he’d have to find out directly.”
“And?”
“He was surprised that Groucho and I had made it official, tied the knot, and moved north. Then I think he kinda … maybe he just needed for someone to listen. His marriage fell apart earlier this year … she went looking for love when he couldn’t seem to make the time for her she thought she deserved because he was always with Carol’s family and kids helping to take care of their messes instead of … lots of stuff. He’s hurting. And I haven’t been there for him very much in this life but … look, when you drive through Vegas, will you just stop in and check on him? Please?”
My discomfort from the over-sharing turned to shock. “Oh Stella … that’s …”
“A lot to ask. I know Gus, I really do know. Just … please.”
“Does Groucho know?” I asked not wanting to get in the middle of anything.
“He’s the one that said to ask but not to get bent out of shape if you say no. So, I’m asking.”
“Geez Stella.” Then I remembered all that she and Groucho had done for me since Lawrence died. “Look all I can say is I’ll try. The guy might want nothing to do with me or the situation or whatever.”
“Just try. Leave a message if he isn’t in. That’s all I’m asking. He’ll either believe it is because I care … or not. Either way I need to try and … and this is the only way I know how.”
That’s been a lot to think about but, I’m not getting involved. Not really. I’m just going to make a pit stop and if it doesn’t work? Then fine, I’ll still have tried. I owe Stella that much.
I spent the rest of the afternoon trying not to use the battery or generator any more than necessary. Mostly I was putting away and organizing groceries and going over the rest of September’s itinerary. I worked on my notes in the front seat to save on lights because if it is going to be cloudy tomorrow I needed to conserve energy.
Benny and I had an early dinner of deli food – pulled pork, mashed potatoes, and broccoli (Benny calls them trees) – and not long afterwards I looked back to find he’d pulled out his bed to make a play area, but he’d fallen asleep. We were both in sock feet and shorts and tee’s so I left him to get some extra rest and I kept toodling along until it was too dark for me to really accomplish anything. I put the screen in the windshield, double checked all the locks, drank a can of caffeine water, and now I’m going to get some extra sleep as well. Sleeping in the city is a lot more nerve-racking that sleeping in the middle of bear or mountain lion country.
Weather: Really, really screwed up.
Driving Route:
September 12th
This has been one of those days where if it could go wrong it has. That is not even counting in the twilight zone yesterday was. If I was a swearing person, and I am occasionally, I would say that someone shut the media companies up because it is like NYC never happened. Now the news is nothing but the hurricane damage in Key West. I guess I am just going to let it go as well as there is quite literally zero coverage that adds anything new to what I know. As for the Murphy’s Law case this day has been …
First off, this is really the worst weather that we’ve had since leaving Florida. Despite the hurricane brewing in the Gulf, Florida is having better weather than where we are at. They closed Hwy 101 at Pismo Beach so I had a fun time re-routing around to get to Channel Islands national park.
When we arrived, it was to find out that the ferry had been cancelled due to weather. That means that our camping spot was cancelled. So, locating someplace to stay for the night became a priority, especially as the weather was supposed to worsen. We were about the only people in the visitor center and the rangers let Benny have the run of the place as he worked on his Junior Ranger booklets. He was happy, despite the weather and change in plans. I was something but it sure wasn’t happy.
Embassy Suites? $800+/night for a single so that was a big nope, but people were apparently paying it since there were only two rooms left. In fact, assuming I could even find a room everything was a minimum of $500/night even for trashy little motels that looked more like former homeless shelters. Yikes. I almost had a spot at McGrath State Park but then they said they were closing due to flooding. Evergreen RV Park was age restricted (retirement community) and looked like an expensive parking lot from the pictures. I sought other options. Heavy on the sarcasm.
No wallydocking in Cali, big ticket if you get caught. Even if they don’t ask you to leave it isn’t recommended due to safety and security issues, especially in and near the larger cities. Checked all the KOAs between here and our next stop – and there were nine – and they were already booked solid. Checked the boondocking forums and found one possible – behind a bowling alley near a casino. Yeah. I could hear Groucho all the way from Florida. I even looked on Harvest Hosts, but all their options were south of LA and booked solid. So the Bowling Alley/Casino it was.
I let Benny play at the visitor center until he was finished with all his Junior Ranger activities. They let him earn the one for the Channel Islands even though he wasn’t going to get to go because he watched all the videos and did the activities anyway. I made sure that we got our Park Passports stamped as well. I don’t mention that often but I’m OCD about it. One for Benny, one for me. It is like this logbook, it is my memory of this time in our lives.
The rain never really let up but between torrential downpours I got us in the van and oriented to drive through LA which suuuuucked Bigfoot’s left hairy buttock. San Bernardino wasn’t much better. And I gotta add that Palm Springs is expensive, and the people are a shade of crazy I’ve rarely seen. But I finally managed to find a wallyworld to do some grocery shopping at and a gas station that was open and didn’t have a line wrapped around the building. And yeah, I know the danger of pumping gas when it is lightning, but I took the chance and also topped off the extra cans of fuel I had in the back. Geez what a gouge in the wallet that was. Fuel in Cali is almost twice what it is everywhere else. I’ve heard lots of excuses for it … taxes to pay for the state’s free crap they hand out, schools, homelessness, support for the environmental laws, etc etc etc. I don’t know what the reason is, but it sure makes me hope the contagion doesn’t spread. I repeat, geez.
I was pumping gas when the guy in a camper truck on the other side of the pump said, “Good idea.” He told his wife to check what they had in their extra gas cans. Then a couple more people did it. As we were pulling out not only was the line now three times as long, but an attendant had started taping up signs saying, “No gas cans. Vehicle refueling only.” The EV stations were even worse since a lot of houses had already lost electricity. Don’t know if we got lucky or not but I was glad to have it either way. I added to my daily to do list to start keeping the gas cans and water containers full and not letting any of them go below half if at all possible.
I pulled into the casino/bowling alley parking lot that was only a few miles down the road, and it was wall-to-wall semis and huge RVs. Drove all the way in the back and managed to find a space to wedge us into right as the sky opened back up and the wind and rain became worse than ever. The weather is predicted to be the same for tomorrow. Decided that Groucho was just going to have to growl so I played ET and phoned home to check on him and Stella. He surprised me.
“Better to be in a parking lot than out on the road Gus. Just watch your sixes and keep the doors locked. Stay outta the casino unless they got a buffet. And give the crazies time to clear out before you hit the road again.”
“Probably going to be stuck here tomorrow as well. I’ve already got groceries and extra water.”
“Disengage the slider and engage the extra locks on the doors and windows but …”
“… have a way out just in case.” I said finishing what I knew needed to be said.
“You got it.”
“How is everything going there?”
I could nearly hear his shrug before he handed the phone off to Stella to take care of a new customer. “Everything ok?” I asked.
“Kirkland is getting squirrely about his mother. Can’t blame the kid but we tried to get her to come up here on ‘vacation’ so she could see that he is turning out okay and even talking about community college. She wouldn’t even speak to him. She’s still being a bitch about the whole thing only now she has added bitching about none of us being back there to help with the hurricane mess.”
“Uh … sorry to hear that. I mean, I really kinda don’t know what to say and what is my business but … sorry to hear it.”
“It’s okay Hun. Nice to have at least a few people that don’t think it is any of their business. Howard, Kirkland’s grandfather, called yesterday and the man makes more sense than his daughter does, but just barely. Seems there is some empty-nest stuff going on in the background because Kirkland’s sister wants to leave home too. The girl is only sixteen and it’s a mess and Kirkland is catching it because his mom is having an emotional blow out. She’ll come around if she doesn’t make the wall too high. Know what I mean?”
“Sorta.”
She laughed and then I could hear her moving to another room. “Look, got a favor and you can say no.”
“Er …”
“Have I ever told you my oldest works out in Vegas?”
“Raine? I thought you said she …”
“Not … Raine. Garrett.”
“Garrett. Er …”
“I had Garrett when I was still in high school. His dad and I were never married.”
“Stella …”
“I know. TMI or whatever you kids call it now days. Look, I’ve got a really big favor to ask. And you can say no but … I really hope you don’t. I had Garrett until my first husband died. I’m not making excuses but … I was just young, pregnant with Raine, and was a mess for a while and everyone agreed that it would be best that Garrett go live with his father until I could get things figured out. And then I made a damn fool of myself with Chuck and then he died, and I jumped into a relationship with George and that was a friggin’ nightmare that ended in the only divorce I’ve had. I’m popping a kid out for each man I marry, but it didn’t look like a stable life from the outside even though I was doing pretty good financially by then and working for Groucho and … well doing better than okay. But by then … Garrett’s dad had built a life for them and started another family and … I just couldn’t take him away from that, especially not after Garrett’s stepmom got sick and they didn’t think she was going to make it.”
“Stella …”
“I know Gus, just let me finish. When Garrett turned eighteen, he had a big blow up with Darren, his father. To this day I don’t know what it was over but I suspect someone finally told him that the reason I got pregnant was because his dad’s buddy dropped a tab in my drink at the school dance and I wasn’t exactly as sober as he thought I was.” She chuckled but it wasn’t a good sound. “I lived up to a reputation I didn’t deserve back then, following in my mother’s and sister’s footsteps whether I meant to or not. Problem is I wasn’t smart enough not to pretend and didn’t have the kind of friends I should have had. Anyway, Garrett comes down to Key West and surprises the hell out of me. I … I didn’t know what to think. I remember me at that age, and I didn’t want him doing anything he would regret. I called Darren and said I’d do what I could, but I wasn’t going to kick him out if he just needed a place to cool off and figure things out. For whatever reason Darren’s wife always resented me. I never set it up to be like that but … you know?”
I made a noncommittal sound.
“So he’s around almost a year and then her cancer comes back.”
“The stepmom.”
“Yeah. If I’m honest, she’s been the mom for most of his life. I’ll admit I was and am jealous, but I don’t want to crap my kid’s life up and leave him scarred. So, I told him he needed to go back and finish making peace. Just in case. He left … but never came back. She’s never stopped needing him … she makes sure she needs him if I’m reading it right, and always makes him feel guilty for talking to me at all. Raine talks to him more than I do. The guy has walls like you would NOT believe but he does keep in touch with his siblings … all of them. He’s grown into a good man even if I didn’t have anything to do with it and I give credit to Carol for that. I just wish she’d given me some credit along the way too. I’ll admit there were mistakes on my part. I was too hands-off while Carol was going through the second round of cancer. Then when it was Darren that died, I got mad I suppose that he stayed to take care of Carol when she had other kids, some older than Garrett, that could have done that. I was mad at Garrett’s grandparents because they’ve never done anything but treat me like the worst kind of white trash. But I couldn’t tell Garrett why I was angry because I always promised that I would never talk bad about any of my kids’ and step kids’ other parents or family.”
“I know. It’s the biggest thing that you and Groucho have in common.”
I heard her sniff back some emotion and then she said, “Garrett called yesterday. He said he was checking on me. That Raine wouldn’t play go between anymore, that he’d have to find out directly.”
“And?”
“He was surprised that Groucho and I had made it official, tied the knot, and moved north. Then I think he kinda … maybe he just needed for someone to listen. His marriage fell apart earlier this year … she went looking for love when he couldn’t seem to make the time for her she thought she deserved because he was always with Carol’s family and kids helping to take care of their messes instead of … lots of stuff. He’s hurting. And I haven’t been there for him very much in this life but … look, when you drive through Vegas, will you just stop in and check on him? Please?”
My discomfort from the over-sharing turned to shock. “Oh Stella … that’s …”
“A lot to ask. I know Gus, I really do know. Just … please.”
“Does Groucho know?” I asked not wanting to get in the middle of anything.
“He’s the one that said to ask but not to get bent out of shape if you say no. So, I’m asking.”
“Geez Stella.” Then I remembered all that she and Groucho had done for me since Lawrence died. “Look all I can say is I’ll try. The guy might want nothing to do with me or the situation or whatever.”
“Just try. Leave a message if he isn’t in. That’s all I’m asking. He’ll either believe it is because I care … or not. Either way I need to try and … and this is the only way I know how.”
That’s been a lot to think about but, I’m not getting involved. Not really. I’m just going to make a pit stop and if it doesn’t work? Then fine, I’ll still have tried. I owe Stella that much.
I spent the rest of the afternoon trying not to use the battery or generator any more than necessary. Mostly I was putting away and organizing groceries and going over the rest of September’s itinerary. I worked on my notes in the front seat to save on lights because if it is going to be cloudy tomorrow I needed to conserve energy.
Benny and I had an early dinner of deli food – pulled pork, mashed potatoes, and broccoli (Benny calls them trees) – and not long afterwards I looked back to find he’d pulled out his bed to make a play area, but he’d fallen asleep. We were both in sock feet and shorts and tee’s so I left him to get some extra rest and I kept toodling along until it was too dark for me to really accomplish anything. I put the screen in the windshield, double checked all the locks, drank a can of caffeine water, and now I’m going to get some extra sleep as well. Sleeping in the city is a lot more nerve-racking that sleeping in the middle of bear or mountain lion country.
September 13th
“You’re where?!” When I explained to Raine she said, “Bless your heart. And let me guess. Mom asked you to check on Garrett.”
“Yeah. That’s why I’m calling. I don’t want to mess things up. I said I would stop by, but the guy has a right to some privacy.”
“Actually, checking on Garrett isn’t a bad idea. You mind if I get him on a three-way call?”
“Uh … sure?”
She laughed and then about a minute later I heard crying in the background and a girl says, “Hang on. Rudy is having a moment.”
“O … kay,” I said.
Raine said, “Charlie? I want you to meet Gus. Gus … Charlie.”
“Hello.”
There was a pause. “Wait, Gus is a girl? Gus isn’t a girl’s name.”
I chuckled, “Says the girl that is called Charlie.”
“That’s different. Charlie is short for Charlene.”
“And Gus is short for August.”
“Oh.”
“If this is a bad time …”
“There isn’t anything but bad times.” Nearly blowing my eardrum she yelled, “Garrett!! Come do the phone thing. I’ll take Darren downstairs to Grandmother. That’ll shut him up!”
I hear a tired man’s voice go, “Charlie …”
“Whatever. You know I’m right.”
After a few minutes, and the howling boy’s volume going down as he is “taken to Grandmother,” the tired man says, “Hello? Raine?”
“Geez Garrett. What the heck is going on?”
“Raine. Please. Rudy is just …”
“In need of a different way of being handled.”
I broke in before the conversation got too private. “Hey. Garrett? My name is Gus Barrymore. I know this is awkward and a bunch of other descriptives, but Stella and Groucho have been there for me the last couple of years, and I owe them, and Stella is wigging because she can’t figure out how to be there for you and … whether you get it or not, I’m just her way of reaching out to touch you. So, if it is too much, feel free to say so and I’ll vacate the airwaves.”
There was silence then, “Mom really asked you to check on me? Couldn’t she have called?”
“No, you don’t understand. I’m going to be in your area on the 19th. But I didn’t want to just drop in so I called Raine and she called you and somehow we wound up in this weird conference call that I’m trying to give you an out for.”
“Look, I just got off work so I’m not … are you saying you are in the area?”
“Will be in the area … on the 19th. I can’t like stay and pray over you or whatever your imagination is guessing at but I guess Stella just wants someone to lay real eyes on you so she can make sure you still have all your fingers and toes, and your head isn’t about to fall off and roll away.”
I could hear Raine laughing in the background. “Garrett, what Gus means …”
“I understand what she means,” the man said, and I was surprised he sounded like he was smiling. To me he asked, “How do you know Mom?”
“My sister-in-law was Groucho’s baby stepsister. Just have Raine explain it. If I do it, it’s going to sound like a sob story and we are definitely not that.”
“We?”
“My nephew. We’re taking a gap year and traveling the national park system.”
“You don’t sound very old.”
“I’m not,” I admitted. “But that’s not pertinent. I’m just asking if I can stop someplace in Vegas to see you and so I can tell Stella that you are still amongst the land of the living despite life having kicked you in the guts.”
“She had no business …”
“Relax. She didn’t spill all the beans and I don’t need the details to empathize. I’ve had some crappy life events myself and so has my nephew. Stella did her best to help me ride the most recent ones out. I owe her. That’s all this needs to be. I’m going to give you a phone number. You can text me if you agree or not and like I said that’s all this needs to be.”
I was polite when I signed off, but I did tell Raine she had my permission to tell her brother my story but not to turn it into a soap opera.
A couple of hours later I get a text to please call a number that had a Vegas area code.
“Hello?”
“Miss Barrymore?”
Recognizing the guy’s voice I said, “It’s easier just to call me Gus.”
“All right … Gus. I’m … I’m not sure what to make of this but if it will make Mom feel better, I can meet you some place when you get to town. I’m off work that day so just call me when you pull in. But, I’m going to have my son with me so it is going to have to be quick.”
“Cool. I’m going to have my nephew and can’t … er …”
He chuckled. “I get ya.”
“Yeah. And look. I’m not here to get in your business. I’m just … whatever the heck Stella wants you to understand. Mostly I think she’s just trying to do the Mom thing but isn’t sure how to do it for you because of … circumstances.”
“Hmph.”
“Look. If you’re interested. She knows she didn’t do it all right. I think her motivations were pure but in hindsight she knows she could have maybe … said more, stuck her nose in more, but didn’t know how to do that while keeping other promises she made.”
“Like to her husbands and their kids.”
“No, that’s not what I mean. I don’t know how well you and Stella know each other. I don’t know if you really know Groucho although I guess you’ve met him. Just they have a really hard and fast rule that they don’t bad mouth or criticize or interfere with their kids’ other parent, even if that’s a stepparent and even if that means that it screws up what they should be talking about. It’s one of the things they have always had in common and what started their weird friendship. And since I don’t know all the details and Stella wouldn’t share that kind of stuff anyway, all I can say is that … she wishes she’d had more time with you but accepts that some of that is her own fault.”
After a weighted pause he said, “You got a few minutes to talk when you get in town? I got a couple of questions.”
“I’ll … try. But I … might consider some of it none of my business and just have to tell you that.”
“Fair enough.”
“I’ll call when I’m approaching.”
“On the 19th then.”
“On the 19th.”
The rain has Benny and I both going nuts, cooped up in the van, but it didn’t let up until well after it was a good idea to try and find the next place down the road. Not to mention I had stuff on my mind, most of it wondering where my own life is going when my wandering days start coming to an end. Still no response on my resume. I guess I need to edit it somehow but I’m not sure how that’s going to make it any better. Gah!
Resources:
Channel Island NPS map: CHISmap1.jpg (1534×1784) (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger booklet: jr-ranger-program-vistor-center-2014-web.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger booklet 2: jr-ranger-program-island-2014-web.pdf (nps.gov)
Underwater Explorer: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/underwater/upload/EnglishUnderwaterExplorer2017.pdf
Junior Paleontologist: Junior_Paleontologist_Reprint_2015_Spreads_Smaller.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Wilderness Explorer: Wilderness Explorer: Junior Ranger Activities and Adventures for Ages 8 and up (umt.edu)
Junior Ranger Night Explorer: Junior Ranger Night Explorer (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Cave Scientiest: Junior-Cave-Scientist-Booklet-07-15-2016.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Let’s Go Fishing: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/fishing/upload/Let-s-Go-Fishing-Accessible-6-24-2019.pdf
Junior Ranger Historic Preservation: NHPAJrRangerBook.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Sound Explorer: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/sound/upload/Junior-Sound-Ranger_09232019_678-429_FINAL.pdf
“You’re where?!” When I explained to Raine she said, “Bless your heart. And let me guess. Mom asked you to check on Garrett.”
“Yeah. That’s why I’m calling. I don’t want to mess things up. I said I would stop by, but the guy has a right to some privacy.”
“Actually, checking on Garrett isn’t a bad idea. You mind if I get him on a three-way call?”
“Uh … sure?”
She laughed and then about a minute later I heard crying in the background and a girl says, “Hang on. Rudy is having a moment.”
“O … kay,” I said.
Raine said, “Charlie? I want you to meet Gus. Gus … Charlie.”
“Hello.”
There was a pause. “Wait, Gus is a girl? Gus isn’t a girl’s name.”
I chuckled, “Says the girl that is called Charlie.”
“That’s different. Charlie is short for Charlene.”
“And Gus is short for August.”
“Oh.”
“If this is a bad time …”
“There isn’t anything but bad times.” Nearly blowing my eardrum she yelled, “Garrett!! Come do the phone thing. I’ll take Darren downstairs to Grandmother. That’ll shut him up!”
I hear a tired man’s voice go, “Charlie …”
“Whatever. You know I’m right.”
After a few minutes, and the howling boy’s volume going down as he is “taken to Grandmother,” the tired man says, “Hello? Raine?”
“Geez Garrett. What the heck is going on?”
“Raine. Please. Rudy is just …”
“In need of a different way of being handled.”
I broke in before the conversation got too private. “Hey. Garrett? My name is Gus Barrymore. I know this is awkward and a bunch of other descriptives, but Stella and Groucho have been there for me the last couple of years, and I owe them, and Stella is wigging because she can’t figure out how to be there for you and … whether you get it or not, I’m just her way of reaching out to touch you. So, if it is too much, feel free to say so and I’ll vacate the airwaves.”
There was silence then, “Mom really asked you to check on me? Couldn’t she have called?”
“No, you don’t understand. I’m going to be in your area on the 19th. But I didn’t want to just drop in so I called Raine and she called you and somehow we wound up in this weird conference call that I’m trying to give you an out for.”
“Look, I just got off work so I’m not … are you saying you are in the area?”
“Will be in the area … on the 19th. I can’t like stay and pray over you or whatever your imagination is guessing at but I guess Stella just wants someone to lay real eyes on you so she can make sure you still have all your fingers and toes, and your head isn’t about to fall off and roll away.”
I could hear Raine laughing in the background. “Garrett, what Gus means …”
“I understand what she means,” the man said, and I was surprised he sounded like he was smiling. To me he asked, “How do you know Mom?”
“My sister-in-law was Groucho’s baby stepsister. Just have Raine explain it. If I do it, it’s going to sound like a sob story and we are definitely not that.”
“We?”
“My nephew. We’re taking a gap year and traveling the national park system.”
“You don’t sound very old.”
“I’m not,” I admitted. “But that’s not pertinent. I’m just asking if I can stop someplace in Vegas to see you and so I can tell Stella that you are still amongst the land of the living despite life having kicked you in the guts.”
“She had no business …”
“Relax. She didn’t spill all the beans and I don’t need the details to empathize. I’ve had some crappy life events myself and so has my nephew. Stella did her best to help me ride the most recent ones out. I owe her. That’s all this needs to be. I’m going to give you a phone number. You can text me if you agree or not and like I said that’s all this needs to be.”
I was polite when I signed off, but I did tell Raine she had my permission to tell her brother my story but not to turn it into a soap opera.
A couple of hours later I get a text to please call a number that had a Vegas area code.
“Hello?”
“Miss Barrymore?”
Recognizing the guy’s voice I said, “It’s easier just to call me Gus.”
“All right … Gus. I’m … I’m not sure what to make of this but if it will make Mom feel better, I can meet you some place when you get to town. I’m off work that day so just call me when you pull in. But, I’m going to have my son with me so it is going to have to be quick.”
“Cool. I’m going to have my nephew and can’t … er …”
He chuckled. “I get ya.”
“Yeah. And look. I’m not here to get in your business. I’m just … whatever the heck Stella wants you to understand. Mostly I think she’s just trying to do the Mom thing but isn’t sure how to do it for you because of … circumstances.”
“Hmph.”
“Look. If you’re interested. She knows she didn’t do it all right. I think her motivations were pure but in hindsight she knows she could have maybe … said more, stuck her nose in more, but didn’t know how to do that while keeping other promises she made.”
“Like to her husbands and their kids.”
“No, that’s not what I mean. I don’t know how well you and Stella know each other. I don’t know if you really know Groucho although I guess you’ve met him. Just they have a really hard and fast rule that they don’t bad mouth or criticize or interfere with their kids’ other parent, even if that’s a stepparent and even if that means that it screws up what they should be talking about. It’s one of the things they have always had in common and what started their weird friendship. And since I don’t know all the details and Stella wouldn’t share that kind of stuff anyway, all I can say is that … she wishes she’d had more time with you but accepts that some of that is her own fault.”
After a weighted pause he said, “You got a few minutes to talk when you get in town? I got a couple of questions.”
“I’ll … try. But I … might consider some of it none of my business and just have to tell you that.”
“Fair enough.”
“I’ll call when I’m approaching.”
“On the 19th then.”
“On the 19th.”
The rain has Benny and I both going nuts, cooped up in the van, but it didn’t let up until well after it was a good idea to try and find the next place down the road. Not to mention I had stuff on my mind, most of it wondering where my own life is going when my wandering days start coming to an end. Still no response on my resume. I guess I need to edit it somehow but I’m not sure how that’s going to make it any better. Gah!
Resources:
Channel Island NPS map: CHISmap1.jpg (1534×1784) (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger booklet: jr-ranger-program-vistor-center-2014-web.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger booklet 2: jr-ranger-program-island-2014-web.pdf (nps.gov)
Underwater Explorer: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/underwater/upload/EnglishUnderwaterExplorer2017.pdf
Junior Paleontologist: Junior_Paleontologist_Reprint_2015_Spreads_Smaller.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Wilderness Explorer: Wilderness Explorer: Junior Ranger Activities and Adventures for Ages 8 and up (umt.edu)
Junior Ranger Night Explorer: Junior Ranger Night Explorer (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Cave Scientiest: Junior-Cave-Scientist-Booklet-07-15-2016.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Let’s Go Fishing: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/fishing/upload/Let-s-Go-Fishing-Accessible-6-24-2019.pdf
Junior Ranger Historic Preservation: NHPAJrRangerBook.pdf (nps.gov)
Junior Ranger Sound Explorer: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/sound/upload/Junior-Sound-Ranger_09232019_678-429_FINAL.pdf
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Very nice reads this morning, thank you.
Sep 14 – 17: Joshua Tree National Park, California
Weather: No more rain. Finally.
Driving Route:
Wifi/Cell Signal: WiFi is provided by Joshua Tree National Park Association at Oasis Visitor Center, in Twentynine Palms, and Joshua Tree Visitor Center, in Joshua Tree. There is no cellular access throughout the majority of the park. Visitors cannot rely on their cell phones and smart devices in the park, and should plan accordingly. Even our cell booster struggled in areas.
September 14th
No rain. Booya! But it was not fun trying to get out of the parking lot. I had not realized how many RVs and semis had tried to wiggle their way in and I was all the way in the back, with some in the outbound lanes stuck because they ran out of fuel. A lot of panhandling from people looking for fuel, or money to get fuel … or so they claimed. I wasn’t biting and avoided making eye contact. They could hit up the Road Rangers and cops that were starting to pull on-scene. I finally had to utilize the 4x4 aspects of the van and go around the parking lot … and all the vehicles in it … by cutting across a couple of concrete barriers that a vehicle closer to the ground would def have gotten stuck on.
“The van is going to need a bath,” Benny said laughing at the muddy splashing we were doing in the puddles.
“We need a bath. We stink more than the van does … and for a fact, the inside ain’t exactly fresh as daisies.”
Benny laughed some more, a happy boy because I nuked him some of his “special pancakes” and put a little more syrup on them than I usually allow him. Ah, the simple things in life. And yes, that made me feel older than I really am, but I had an “extra syrup” morning too.
It was spooky to see that the nearest two gas stations were limiting the amount of fuel you could buy and that three others were out of fuel completely, or said they were. Reminded me of The Keys too much before or after a storm which made me wonder about the hurricane. Not a thing I could do about it and worrying at it wouldn’t help. Either way I was glad to see that the next mpm-EV fuel station down the road wasn’t rationing and I topped off the tank and the one can I had gotten into just to be on the safe side.
It was only 45 minutes to the park entrance we were using that night. It was nice not to have to drive very far. I checked in with the rangers, but I couldn’t get the site yet because they needed to get everyone out first. They did get my name and marked me “arrived” since they’d had some cancellations and those would go first come first serve. There weren’t any hook ups or showers at the campsite but there was potable water and that was my biggest concern. Driving and solar would re-charge the batteries and I could cook on the butane stove for meals. Or use the solar if there was enough sun.
We also picked up Benny’s Junior Ranger booklet though he had done a lot of “virtual ranger” activities for the park on our long drives the preceding weeks.
We had a lot of time this day and accomplished a lot. Benny and I were both really ready to get the wiggles out. The first four hikes were your typical quickie loop trails:
I’ve been keeping up with the news and it appears all but the craziest of the protest groups have crawled back under their rocks leaving their lawyers and spokes people to deny responsibility for what happened in NYC. I’ll continue to keep an ear to the ground and sent a smoke signal out to one of my buddies from high school and Scouts that had started his own tech equipment business that had started to lean heavily in the area of security. I got an encrypted and coded message in our old gang-speak no one ever did break, giving me a secure phone line I could call if I needed but as far as he'd heard no more major actions were expected. He’d put me down on his list of “to be informed” people if he heard anything, assuming there was anything to hear before a party got started.
Better and more than I probably deserved since I’d lost touch with so many of my old friends when my life exceeded the speed limit I had been learning to drive on. Townzen and I have more in common than we don’t, and he probably could have used an ear for when people were trying to limit his future. Hindsight is 20/20 and sometimes so are good manners. If nothing else there are a few others – like Pei and Charles – that I owe better than what I’d been giving.
Refueled and topped off, we grabbed our packs and plenty of hydrating liquid, and walked to the trailhead by way of the Black Rock Nature and Visitor Center. A ranger had told us it was worth a visit before starting the hike and provided natural exhibits as well as maps and park information such as trail conditions.
We chose to hike the West Side Loop in a clockwise direction, so after entering the trail to the west of the visitor center, we took a right at the first junction and headed west. The trail headed gradually uphill in its first mile, gaining about 200 feet of elevation as it passed through a really neat forest of Joshua trees. Benny asked me to take pictures of several of them in particular and between dinner and the ranger program he got a couple of sketches done that are framing quality in my opinion. Benny’s handwriting, even his printing, is largely illegible but he can draw like a real artist. I’m the opposite. My printing is type face perfect but beyond that my script looks like a chicken on drugs scratched it out and my drawing? The only way for me to draw a straight line is with a compass and ruler and someone else holding the pencil. We both have the same issues … ADHD, OCD, yada yada yada … but while I’m mechanical Benny is artistic. Some people might call that different sides of the same coin. I’m not really sure that is true, but I’m determined to see he reaches his full potential.
At about 0.7 miles, the path intersected with the High Point Nature Loop Trail but we stayed on the on the West Side Loop. After about a mile, the trail crested a ridge and revealed a mountain range in the distance that had previously been hidden from sight. From that point, the trail headed downhill for about half a mile until it reached an intersection with some trails that led out of the park’s northern boundary. The trail flattened out a bit as it headed south, but not for long.
Around 2.4 miles, the West Side Loop Trail climbed steeply up the side of the ridge. The relatively short climb rewarded us with even better views of the mountain range to the west as it followed the ridge. At about 2.5 miles, we began to descend, first continuing southeast and then bending north, heading back toward the campground through the largest grove of Joshua trees on the hike. We got some more pictures. Since no one else was around we played at trying to bend into some of the same shapes as the trees. A couple of those times it took all of my flexibility and wound up looking like some bizarre yoga pose. Benny got a huge kick out of it and so did a covey of Gambel Quail that stood for a moment trying to figure out just what I was.
At about 3.2 miles from the start, we took a short spur that led to a view point with vistas of the high desert to the north and Warren Point to the south. After reaching its highest point of 4550 feet, the trail spent the next mile or so climbing up and down some ridges as it headed east. Eventually, the path looped northeast and descended gradually as it returned us to the trailhead.
We could have hiked more but I don’t want to turn it into a tiresome job where we absolutely must cover so many miles and so many trails every day. Camp sounded good and that’s where we headed, me to cook and Benny to draw and spend some quality time with The Crew. I nearly skipped the ranger program until we heard it was on star gazing and the night was expected to be exceptionally clear after the rain had washed a lot of the pollution out of the sky.
It was neat but we didn’t stay long afterwards, and Benny is now asleep and I spent some more time job-hunting. Yep, it’s my age. Being under twenty-one plus no college degree or training certificate makes it hard for an employer to carry insurance on me and for the jobs I am at least semi-qualified for that is a federal requirement. I don’t know what I am going to do.
I was upset enough that I called Pei even though it was later than good manners dictated. After stopping me from climbing the trees she suggested something that I might want to think about doing is going back to school. I said, “With what? My looks?”
“Don’t be so thick,” she smarted off right back. “See about getting a loan. Even a small one would be better than serving fries and shakes. You might even qualify for a grant from one of those Gold Star Family foundations.”
“I don’t know Pei. I’ve always tried to save those perks for Benny and for people that really need them. I mean yeah, we use park passes and stuff like that but again, it’s for Benny.”
“We really need to break you of that martyr complex. Geez, you weren’t like this in Jacksonville.”
“Excuse me?!”
“Seriously Gus, if you look at it, this IS for Benny. With a scholarship, grant, or loan you won’t have to put Benny in childcare or a classroom setting that …” I heard her sigh over the phone signal. “Please don’t take this the wrong way but both you and Benny are better off out of a traditional life and classroom setting. None of your friends are blind to the fact that your round peg doesn’t not belong in a square hole no matter how hard all the teachers tried to push you that direction. Your needs are just as important as Benny’s. At least promise me you’ll give it a think. I can’t stand the idea of you getting stuck in a kitchen someplace, washing dishes for the rest of your life, just because your original plans didn’t work out.”
“Pei …”
“Promise me.”
“Geez. Fine. I’ll … look into it. The timing isn’t great with the economy taking a dump but … maybe. At least it is something more than I had in the cue.”
My friend satisfied, I went on to the other list of people that cared enough to find out whether I was still drawing breath and I tried to answer their emails with the truth without turning each piece of correspondence into War and Peace.
I might as well just go to sleep as stay up. Hopefully the brain hamster will shut up and shut down for a while without medicating it with some caffeine. We change camps tomorrow and I don’t want to wake up hung over.
Weather: No more rain. Finally.
Driving Route:
Wifi/Cell Signal: WiFi is provided by Joshua Tree National Park Association at Oasis Visitor Center, in Twentynine Palms, and Joshua Tree Visitor Center, in Joshua Tree. There is no cellular access throughout the majority of the park. Visitors cannot rely on their cell phones and smart devices in the park, and should plan accordingly. Even our cell booster struggled in areas.
September 14th
No rain. Booya! But it was not fun trying to get out of the parking lot. I had not realized how many RVs and semis had tried to wiggle their way in and I was all the way in the back, with some in the outbound lanes stuck because they ran out of fuel. A lot of panhandling from people looking for fuel, or money to get fuel … or so they claimed. I wasn’t biting and avoided making eye contact. They could hit up the Road Rangers and cops that were starting to pull on-scene. I finally had to utilize the 4x4 aspects of the van and go around the parking lot … and all the vehicles in it … by cutting across a couple of concrete barriers that a vehicle closer to the ground would def have gotten stuck on.
“The van is going to need a bath,” Benny said laughing at the muddy splashing we were doing in the puddles.
“We need a bath. We stink more than the van does … and for a fact, the inside ain’t exactly fresh as daisies.”
Benny laughed some more, a happy boy because I nuked him some of his “special pancakes” and put a little more syrup on them than I usually allow him. Ah, the simple things in life. And yes, that made me feel older than I really am, but I had an “extra syrup” morning too.
It was spooky to see that the nearest two gas stations were limiting the amount of fuel you could buy and that three others were out of fuel completely, or said they were. Reminded me of The Keys too much before or after a storm which made me wonder about the hurricane. Not a thing I could do about it and worrying at it wouldn’t help. Either way I was glad to see that the next mpm-EV fuel station down the road wasn’t rationing and I topped off the tank and the one can I had gotten into just to be on the safe side.
It was only 45 minutes to the park entrance we were using that night. It was nice not to have to drive very far. I checked in with the rangers, but I couldn’t get the site yet because they needed to get everyone out first. They did get my name and marked me “arrived” since they’d had some cancellations and those would go first come first serve. There weren’t any hook ups or showers at the campsite but there was potable water and that was my biggest concern. Driving and solar would re-charge the batteries and I could cook on the butane stove for meals. Or use the solar if there was enough sun.
We also picked up Benny’s Junior Ranger booklet though he had done a lot of “virtual ranger” activities for the park on our long drives the preceding weeks.
We had a lot of time this day and accomplished a lot. Benny and I were both really ready to get the wiggles out. The first four hikes were your typical quickie loop trails:
- Cottonwood Spring (0.1-mile loop) was a short walk to a fan palm oasis with cottonwood trees. It had a lot of nice shade, not the most plentiful in the park, and lots of birds. Lots of noisy, over excited, ADD bird. Benny and I felt an immediate kinship with them.
- Discovery Trail (0.7-mile loop trail) connected Skull Rock and Split Rock Loop trails at Face Rock. Basically piles and piles of boulders and desert washes.
- Hi-View Trail (1.3-mile loop trail) was where we got our first good walk in a Joshua tree forest. We hiked up a ridge on the western side of the park and for our effort got panoramic views of the area. A few stretches were a little steep but the park – and a couple of scout groups – had placed several benches to take a break on and enjoy the view.
- Oasis of Mara Trail (0.5-mile loop trail) explored your typical desert oasis. It was an easy walk and the busiest we were on today. A lot of people who were just driving through stopped at this one because it was easy and pets were allowed so long as they were on leashes.
I’ve been keeping up with the news and it appears all but the craziest of the protest groups have crawled back under their rocks leaving their lawyers and spokes people to deny responsibility for what happened in NYC. I’ll continue to keep an ear to the ground and sent a smoke signal out to one of my buddies from high school and Scouts that had started his own tech equipment business that had started to lean heavily in the area of security. I got an encrypted and coded message in our old gang-speak no one ever did break, giving me a secure phone line I could call if I needed but as far as he'd heard no more major actions were expected. He’d put me down on his list of “to be informed” people if he heard anything, assuming there was anything to hear before a party got started.
Better and more than I probably deserved since I’d lost touch with so many of my old friends when my life exceeded the speed limit I had been learning to drive on. Townzen and I have more in common than we don’t, and he probably could have used an ear for when people were trying to limit his future. Hindsight is 20/20 and sometimes so are good manners. If nothing else there are a few others – like Pei and Charles – that I owe better than what I’d been giving.
Refueled and topped off, we grabbed our packs and plenty of hydrating liquid, and walked to the trailhead by way of the Black Rock Nature and Visitor Center. A ranger had told us it was worth a visit before starting the hike and provided natural exhibits as well as maps and park information such as trail conditions.
We chose to hike the West Side Loop in a clockwise direction, so after entering the trail to the west of the visitor center, we took a right at the first junction and headed west. The trail headed gradually uphill in its first mile, gaining about 200 feet of elevation as it passed through a really neat forest of Joshua trees. Benny asked me to take pictures of several of them in particular and between dinner and the ranger program he got a couple of sketches done that are framing quality in my opinion. Benny’s handwriting, even his printing, is largely illegible but he can draw like a real artist. I’m the opposite. My printing is type face perfect but beyond that my script looks like a chicken on drugs scratched it out and my drawing? The only way for me to draw a straight line is with a compass and ruler and someone else holding the pencil. We both have the same issues … ADHD, OCD, yada yada yada … but while I’m mechanical Benny is artistic. Some people might call that different sides of the same coin. I’m not really sure that is true, but I’m determined to see he reaches his full potential.
At about 0.7 miles, the path intersected with the High Point Nature Loop Trail but we stayed on the on the West Side Loop. After about a mile, the trail crested a ridge and revealed a mountain range in the distance that had previously been hidden from sight. From that point, the trail headed downhill for about half a mile until it reached an intersection with some trails that led out of the park’s northern boundary. The trail flattened out a bit as it headed south, but not for long.
Around 2.4 miles, the West Side Loop Trail climbed steeply up the side of the ridge. The relatively short climb rewarded us with even better views of the mountain range to the west as it followed the ridge. At about 2.5 miles, we began to descend, first continuing southeast and then bending north, heading back toward the campground through the largest grove of Joshua trees on the hike. We got some more pictures. Since no one else was around we played at trying to bend into some of the same shapes as the trees. A couple of those times it took all of my flexibility and wound up looking like some bizarre yoga pose. Benny got a huge kick out of it and so did a covey of Gambel Quail that stood for a moment trying to figure out just what I was.
At about 3.2 miles from the start, we took a short spur that led to a view point with vistas of the high desert to the north and Warren Point to the south. After reaching its highest point of 4550 feet, the trail spent the next mile or so climbing up and down some ridges as it headed east. Eventually, the path looped northeast and descended gradually as it returned us to the trailhead.
We could have hiked more but I don’t want to turn it into a tiresome job where we absolutely must cover so many miles and so many trails every day. Camp sounded good and that’s where we headed, me to cook and Benny to draw and spend some quality time with The Crew. I nearly skipped the ranger program until we heard it was on star gazing and the night was expected to be exceptionally clear after the rain had washed a lot of the pollution out of the sky.
It was neat but we didn’t stay long afterwards, and Benny is now asleep and I spent some more time job-hunting. Yep, it’s my age. Being under twenty-one plus no college degree or training certificate makes it hard for an employer to carry insurance on me and for the jobs I am at least semi-qualified for that is a federal requirement. I don’t know what I am going to do.
I was upset enough that I called Pei even though it was later than good manners dictated. After stopping me from climbing the trees she suggested something that I might want to think about doing is going back to school. I said, “With what? My looks?”
“Don’t be so thick,” she smarted off right back. “See about getting a loan. Even a small one would be better than serving fries and shakes. You might even qualify for a grant from one of those Gold Star Family foundations.”
“I don’t know Pei. I’ve always tried to save those perks for Benny and for people that really need them. I mean yeah, we use park passes and stuff like that but again, it’s for Benny.”
“We really need to break you of that martyr complex. Geez, you weren’t like this in Jacksonville.”
“Excuse me?!”
“Seriously Gus, if you look at it, this IS for Benny. With a scholarship, grant, or loan you won’t have to put Benny in childcare or a classroom setting that …” I heard her sigh over the phone signal. “Please don’t take this the wrong way but both you and Benny are better off out of a traditional life and classroom setting. None of your friends are blind to the fact that your round peg doesn’t not belong in a square hole no matter how hard all the teachers tried to push you that direction. Your needs are just as important as Benny’s. At least promise me you’ll give it a think. I can’t stand the idea of you getting stuck in a kitchen someplace, washing dishes for the rest of your life, just because your original plans didn’t work out.”
“Pei …”
“Promise me.”
“Geez. Fine. I’ll … look into it. The timing isn’t great with the economy taking a dump but … maybe. At least it is something more than I had in the cue.”
My friend satisfied, I went on to the other list of people that cared enough to find out whether I was still drawing breath and I tried to answer their emails with the truth without turning each piece of correspondence into War and Peace.
I might as well just go to sleep as stay up. Hopefully the brain hamster will shut up and shut down for a while without medicating it with some caffeine. We change camps tomorrow and I don’t want to wake up hung over.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you.
September 15th
Changed campsites so we packed up and cleaned up the site before taking off. Only four short hikes planned so we did it on the slow side that included a full breakfast, something we don’t do but a couple of times a week.
Listened to the news off and on today through my earbuds so Benny didn’t have to hear it. It’s like the incident in NYC never happened. Part of the reason is that investigators and the judge have put a federal shut up order on it. The initial request came from the defendants’ lawyers. That tells me that for sure they know their clients are guilty, they’re just trying to get them something short of death row. The only new stuff that might qualify is that a lot of insurance companies have said they will deny any and all claims by the known protestors and their families for violating some small-print caveats in the policy. Meh. You play, you pay. I sympathize with the families, but you control and monitor your own … or you suffer the consequences. The Barrymores have had to live with that reality for generations.
The hikes we did today were:
After a morning of hiking we headed to Hidden Valley Campground. Wow. Very primitive compared to most of our campsites. Pit toilets. No water. But a heck of a neat location.
The bigger plus was that there was an organized Junior Ranger scavenger hunt plus other activities all the way through the ranger program that night of history slides projected onto the rocks around the camp.
Benny did so well today. I am very proud of him. He did better than I was able to do with the adults. I just didn’t know what to say or how to talk to them. They were real parents, I’m … something, but it isn’t Benny’s mom. Most of the families there were made up of more than one kid; a couple of them have a football team of kids. I have gotten out of practice of dealing with large groups of people. I mean I can get along around them without running scared, but interacting with them is a different methodology. How am I supposed to help Benny reach his full potential when I was struggling to reach mine? Ten days until Benny’s birthday and I wonder if I’m really doing what is best for him. No one even wants me to flip burgers or dig ditches.
Stop it Gus, you’re letting the hamster take control. Go listen to some music or something and then get to bed. Tomorrow is another day and another chance to move forward and succeed at something.
Changed campsites so we packed up and cleaned up the site before taking off. Only four short hikes planned so we did it on the slow side that included a full breakfast, something we don’t do but a couple of times a week.
Listened to the news off and on today through my earbuds so Benny didn’t have to hear it. It’s like the incident in NYC never happened. Part of the reason is that investigators and the judge have put a federal shut up order on it. The initial request came from the defendants’ lawyers. That tells me that for sure they know their clients are guilty, they’re just trying to get them something short of death row. The only new stuff that might qualify is that a lot of insurance companies have said they will deny any and all claims by the known protestors and their families for violating some small-print caveats in the policy. Meh. You play, you pay. I sympathize with the families, but you control and monitor your own … or you suffer the consequences. The Barrymores have had to live with that reality for generations.
The hikes we did today were:
- Ryan Ranch Trail, a 1-mile there and back trail along an old ranch road and a historic adobe structure.
- Cap Rock Nature Trail, a 0.4-mile loop trail to view boulder piles, Joshua trees, and other desert plants.
- Hidden Valley Nature Trail, a 1-mile loop trail in a rock-enclosed valley that was once rumored to have been used by cattle rustlers. There were lots of sign-thingies
- Barker Dam Nature Trail, a 1.1-mile loop trail, that was on Benny’s list of activities so he could learn about local cultural history and view a water tank built by early cattle ranchers. We got lucky and also saw some bighorn sheep.
After a morning of hiking we headed to Hidden Valley Campground. Wow. Very primitive compared to most of our campsites. Pit toilets. No water. But a heck of a neat location.
The bigger plus was that there was an organized Junior Ranger scavenger hunt plus other activities all the way through the ranger program that night of history slides projected onto the rocks around the camp.
Benny did so well today. I am very proud of him. He did better than I was able to do with the adults. I just didn’t know what to say or how to talk to them. They were real parents, I’m … something, but it isn’t Benny’s mom. Most of the families there were made up of more than one kid; a couple of them have a football team of kids. I have gotten out of practice of dealing with large groups of people. I mean I can get along around them without running scared, but interacting with them is a different methodology. How am I supposed to help Benny reach his full potential when I was struggling to reach mine? Ten days until Benny’s birthday and I wonder if I’m really doing what is best for him. No one even wants me to flip burgers or dig ditches.
Stop it Gus, you’re letting the hamster take control. Go listen to some music or something and then get to bed. Tomorrow is another day and another chance to move forward and succeed at something.
September 16th
Another new campground tonight. I know a lot of people will say it is a waste of time but actually for us it isn’t. Ultimately saves drive time and we are only using the campsites like a parking spot. Unlike in other places, we don’t bother “setting up camp.”
More detailed news on the hurricane that hit Key West and it isn’t good. It has strengthened and is now a Cat 4 bordering on a Cat 5, worse it is a large system. It looks like it is going to come ashore in the Big Bend area of Florida. There are two other storms systems heading towards the Gulf as well. And they are both predicted to become hurricanes. It isn’t looking good. But there isn’t anything I can do about it.
Spent the morning hiking.
Cholla Cactus Garden Nature Trail was a miniscule 0.25-mile loop trail where you can view thousands of densely concentrated, naturally growing cholla cactus. Signs everywhere warned to stay on the trail, wear closed-toe shoes, and be aware of prickly cactus.
Bajada, another 0.25-mile loop trail was another nature trail with sign-thingies about plants of the Colorado Desert.
Mastadon Peak was the longest of our hikes and was a 3-mile loop. It offered panoramic views of southeastern part of the park. There weren’t any Joshua Trees but there was some beautiful desert landscape. The trail map suggested that the easiest way to complete the loop trail in a counter-clockwise direction, starting from the Cottonwood Spring. We made a left at every junction making it nearly impossible to get lost.
From the oasis we passed through the spring fed palms and headed up the opposite bank. The hard-packed trail climbed gradually to the east past yucca and ocotillo. The first junction was at 0.7 miles.
The trail gained 165 feet over the next quarter mile before coming to the base of Mastodon Peak. We broke from the loop here and followed the spur to the summit. The climb was just one tenth of a mile long, but worth it. A bit of light scrambling was required as the undeveloped trail wraps around the rocky east side of Mastodon to arrive at the 3,400-foot summit. Was kinda fun after the rather wimpy short hikes we’ve been doing.
The views were great from the top of the summit. The large blue body to the south was not a mirage, a sign-thingie assured us we were looking at the Salton Sea. To the east, the highest point in sight was Eagle Mountain at 5,350 feet.
We descended from the summit and continued along the loop trail, passing the remains of Mastodon Mine, which operated there until 1971. The trail kept descending west, crossing and traveling down a series of desert washes.
The trail came to a final junction a mile from the peak, near another set of ruins at the former site of Winona Mine. The 0.4-mile long sandy track curved to the left, running alongside the paved road before returning to the start.
In addition to the summit views and the ruins of the mines, Benny and I enjoyed this trail due to the several desert tortoises we saw. They reminded me of the gopher tortoises we have in Florida.
At the Oasis we ate some lunch and then decided to do an activity listed in Benny’s junior ranger book even though he’d already earned the badge. That’s my overachieving kiddo. The Geology Tour Road is an 18-mile motor tour that led through one of Joshua Tree National Park's most popular landscapes. There are 16 stops along the dirt road and it took us approximately two hours to complete the loop. Any vehicle can access the first few miles of the road but it took 4-wheel-drive to do the entire thing. The road definitely isn’t suitable for campers, trailers, and motor homes but the Ark managed it quite well.
The first six miles to Squaw Tank weren’t particularly interesting but we persevered and it got better. At the six-mile mark, was the turnout for Squaw Tank, which was the primary point of interest on this drive.
We took the tenth-mile walk to see it. Squaw Tank is an old concrete wall that once served as a dam for water in the area. The road then entered into a one-way loop that took us alongside a mountain before arriving at Cottonwood Springs.
Cottonwood Springs is where a lot of backcountry adventures in the park start but we only stopped to take a picture of the two old water tanks near the sign.
The road gets more narrow and rocky at that point and we headed up a small hill to the junction with Berdoo Canyon Road.
The road turned inward and continued the climb before arriving at point of interest 14, 15, and 16.
Point 16 is the best part on this trail as it looks out over the valley and provides a 180-degree view.
After taking some photos at the small pullout, we headed back to where the road split and then drove back the way we came and then on to camp for the night at Cottonwood Campground.
Benny enjoyed some time with The Crew and drawing pictures of the tortoises we saw. I took the time for some adulting which included filling out some applications for a few student loans and grants. I don’t know if anything will come of it but I promised Pei that I would at least try. To be honest I’m not all that thrilled with the idea of going back to college but it is an option that I need to give serious consideration.
Another new campground tonight. I know a lot of people will say it is a waste of time but actually for us it isn’t. Ultimately saves drive time and we are only using the campsites like a parking spot. Unlike in other places, we don’t bother “setting up camp.”
More detailed news on the hurricane that hit Key West and it isn’t good. It has strengthened and is now a Cat 4 bordering on a Cat 5, worse it is a large system. It looks like it is going to come ashore in the Big Bend area of Florida. There are two other storms systems heading towards the Gulf as well. And they are both predicted to become hurricanes. It isn’t looking good. But there isn’t anything I can do about it.
Spent the morning hiking.
Cholla Cactus Garden Nature Trail was a miniscule 0.25-mile loop trail where you can view thousands of densely concentrated, naturally growing cholla cactus. Signs everywhere warned to stay on the trail, wear closed-toe shoes, and be aware of prickly cactus.
Bajada, another 0.25-mile loop trail was another nature trail with sign-thingies about plants of the Colorado Desert.
Mastadon Peak was the longest of our hikes and was a 3-mile loop. It offered panoramic views of southeastern part of the park. There weren’t any Joshua Trees but there was some beautiful desert landscape. The trail map suggested that the easiest way to complete the loop trail in a counter-clockwise direction, starting from the Cottonwood Spring. We made a left at every junction making it nearly impossible to get lost.
From the oasis we passed through the spring fed palms and headed up the opposite bank. The hard-packed trail climbed gradually to the east past yucca and ocotillo. The first junction was at 0.7 miles.
The trail gained 165 feet over the next quarter mile before coming to the base of Mastodon Peak. We broke from the loop here and followed the spur to the summit. The climb was just one tenth of a mile long, but worth it. A bit of light scrambling was required as the undeveloped trail wraps around the rocky east side of Mastodon to arrive at the 3,400-foot summit. Was kinda fun after the rather wimpy short hikes we’ve been doing.
The views were great from the top of the summit. The large blue body to the south was not a mirage, a sign-thingie assured us we were looking at the Salton Sea. To the east, the highest point in sight was Eagle Mountain at 5,350 feet.
We descended from the summit and continued along the loop trail, passing the remains of Mastodon Mine, which operated there until 1971. The trail kept descending west, crossing and traveling down a series of desert washes.
The trail came to a final junction a mile from the peak, near another set of ruins at the former site of Winona Mine. The 0.4-mile long sandy track curved to the left, running alongside the paved road before returning to the start.
In addition to the summit views and the ruins of the mines, Benny and I enjoyed this trail due to the several desert tortoises we saw. They reminded me of the gopher tortoises we have in Florida.
At the Oasis we ate some lunch and then decided to do an activity listed in Benny’s junior ranger book even though he’d already earned the badge. That’s my overachieving kiddo. The Geology Tour Road is an 18-mile motor tour that led through one of Joshua Tree National Park's most popular landscapes. There are 16 stops along the dirt road and it took us approximately two hours to complete the loop. Any vehicle can access the first few miles of the road but it took 4-wheel-drive to do the entire thing. The road definitely isn’t suitable for campers, trailers, and motor homes but the Ark managed it quite well.
The first six miles to Squaw Tank weren’t particularly interesting but we persevered and it got better. At the six-mile mark, was the turnout for Squaw Tank, which was the primary point of interest on this drive.
We took the tenth-mile walk to see it. Squaw Tank is an old concrete wall that once served as a dam for water in the area. The road then entered into a one-way loop that took us alongside a mountain before arriving at Cottonwood Springs.
Cottonwood Springs is where a lot of backcountry adventures in the park start but we only stopped to take a picture of the two old water tanks near the sign.
The road gets more narrow and rocky at that point and we headed up a small hill to the junction with Berdoo Canyon Road.
The road turned inward and continued the climb before arriving at point of interest 14, 15, and 16.
Point 16 is the best part on this trail as it looks out over the valley and provides a 180-degree view.
After taking some photos at the small pullout, we headed back to where the road split and then drove back the way we came and then on to camp for the night at Cottonwood Campground.
Benny enjoyed some time with The Crew and drawing pictures of the tortoises we saw. I took the time for some adulting which included filling out some applications for a few student loans and grants. I don’t know if anything will come of it but I promised Pei that I would at least try. To be honest I’m not all that thrilled with the idea of going back to college but it is an option that I need to give serious consideration.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you this morning, evening though this was put up last night.
beaglemama
Contributing Member
Thanks Kathy! I hope none of those hurricanes hit Gus's storage unit.
September 17th
And another new campsite, this one called Jumbo Rocks. Very cool rock formations and I’m sitting out here right now with Benny asleep in the van. Nice to be able to sit outside under the stars and not be bother by mosquitos.
We did more hiking today than we have for the last couple. All of them cool beans but only one of them really making an impression on me. The brain hamster has tried to screw around with me most of the day.
Speaking of things like the San Andreas Fault (squirrel!), recent events have made me itch to pull out my old digitals copies of the disaster flicks I used to watch with Grandfather Barry. Dad used to roll his eyes at some of the weird ways Grandfather used to teach me things. Take those movies as an example. He let the air out of a bunch of them, critiqued the science, showed how the heroes were really zeroes and all that, but he also would expand on some of the scenes and say the way things should have been handled. Dad preferred cowboy movies and old John Wayne war movies that taught me things in their own way.
One of them that Dad and I watched multiple times was The Longest Day (with John Wayne). In a docu-drama style it followed the days leading up to and the invasion of allied forces into France. Dad liked it because it showed the problems, especially the weather, facing the allied forces planning the D-Day invasion, and the Germans' mistakes and bad judgment that unwittingly helped the allied troops. He liked to show how even the best of the best could still make mistakes and how other people could take advantage of that.
Hmmm, not in the mood for anything serious. I’ve got it! For posterity’s sake I’ll list out some of my favorite old disaster movies:
My favorite funny (to me) disaster movies:
I think I’m feeling a little goofy. Maybe I just want to be a kid again for a while with someone else in charge of the important stuff. I don’t know but just for the heck of it I’m going to go watch one of the old Sharknado flicks and zone out of reality for a while.
Tomorrow we are off to Death Valley (theme related maybe?) and from there on to Lake Mead. I don’t think I’m meant to reside in the desert too long. My brain is drying up. I need water. Lots and lots of water. Maybe even a bottle of bubbly water with caffeine in it. I’ll start with a zombie movie and see how it progresses. Even the hamster likes a good zombie flick.
Resources:
JOTR Park Map December 2020 low res (nps.gov)
Design your own Adaptable Plant (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
Draw a Joshua tree (U.S. National Park Service)
Create your own Constellation (U.S. National Park Service)
Create your own Rock Formation (U.S. National Park Service)
Desert Tortoise Activity (U.S. National Park Service)
From Rock to Small Talk (U.S. National Park Service)
John Wayne's 10 Best World War II Movies, Ranked By IMDb
And another new campsite, this one called Jumbo Rocks. Very cool rock formations and I’m sitting out here right now with Benny asleep in the van. Nice to be able to sit outside under the stars and not be bother by mosquitos.
We did more hiking today than we have for the last couple. All of them cool beans but only one of them really making an impression on me. The brain hamster has tried to screw around with me most of the day.
- Arch Rock Nature Trail was a 1.4-mile lollipop trail through sandy and rocky terrain. The arch is located halfway along the loop.
- Split Rock Loop Trail was a 2.5-mile loop trail. Neat rock formations which included a safe trip to Face Rock, something I hadn’t expected.
- Skull Rock Nature Trail was an easy 1.7-mile loop trail) with boulder piles, desert washes, and of course the namesake Skull Rock.
- Ryan Mountain Trail was a 3-mile there and back trail to the summit of Ryan Mountain. This is one of the most popular hikes in the park and the crowds on the trail proved it.
- Keys Desert Queen Ranch was a 0.25-mile loop trail. Despite its length it was packed with fantastic views of things like the San Andreas Fault, Mount San Jacinto, Mount San Gorgonio, and the Salton Sea. It was also the one that kept my attention the best.
Speaking of things like the San Andreas Fault (squirrel!), recent events have made me itch to pull out my old digitals copies of the disaster flicks I used to watch with Grandfather Barry. Dad used to roll his eyes at some of the weird ways Grandfather used to teach me things. Take those movies as an example. He let the air out of a bunch of them, critiqued the science, showed how the heroes were really zeroes and all that, but he also would expand on some of the scenes and say the way things should have been handled. Dad preferred cowboy movies and old John Wayne war movies that taught me things in their own way.
One of them that Dad and I watched multiple times was The Longest Day (with John Wayne). In a docu-drama style it followed the days leading up to and the invasion of allied forces into France. Dad liked it because it showed the problems, especially the weather, facing the allied forces planning the D-Day invasion, and the Germans' mistakes and bad judgment that unwittingly helped the allied troops. He liked to show how even the best of the best could still make mistakes and how other people could take advantage of that.
Hmmm, not in the mood for anything serious. I’ve got it! For posterity’s sake I’ll list out some of my favorite old disaster movies:
- Dante’s Peak (Volcano)
- Crawl (Hurricanes and Gators)
- Twister (Tornado)
- 127 Hours (Solo Hiker disaster)
- Contagion (Pandemic)
- Outbreak (animal to human disease cross contamination)
- Towering Inferno (building fire)
- Airport 75 (plane crash)
- The Day The Earth Caught Fire (human meddling)
- The Hindenburg (air disaster)
- Deep Impact (asteroid/comet)
- The Wave (Underwater quake/tidal wave)
- The Impossible (Thai Tidal Wave)
- Geostorm (human meddling)
My favorite funny (to me) disaster movies:
- Sharknado (flying sharks in tornados)
- Arachnophobia (phobia = spider)
- The Birds (phobia = birds)
- Mammoth (dinosaurs reanimated)
- The Happening (plants take over the world)
- Zombieland (zombies)
- Warm Bodies (cute zombies with romance thrown in)
- Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (zombies)
- Freaks of Nature (1 human, 1 vamp, 1 zombie, all teenagers)
- Cooties (kid zombies)
- World War Z (zombies)
- Shaun of the Dead (British zombies)
I think I’m feeling a little goofy. Maybe I just want to be a kid again for a while with someone else in charge of the important stuff. I don’t know but just for the heck of it I’m going to go watch one of the old Sharknado flicks and zone out of reality for a while.
Tomorrow we are off to Death Valley (theme related maybe?) and from there on to Lake Mead. I don’t think I’m meant to reside in the desert too long. My brain is drying up. I need water. Lots and lots of water. Maybe even a bottle of bubbly water with caffeine in it. I’ll start with a zombie movie and see how it progresses. Even the hamster likes a good zombie flick.
Resources:
JOTR Park Map December 2020 low res (nps.gov)
Design your own Adaptable Plant (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
Draw a Joshua tree (U.S. National Park Service)
Create your own Constellation (U.S. National Park Service)
Create your own Rock Formation (U.S. National Park Service)
Desert Tortoise Activity (U.S. National Park Service)
From Rock to Small Talk (U.S. National Park Service)
John Wayne's 10 Best World War II Movies, Ranked By IMDb
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sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you.
i forgot Shaun of the Dead. Oh crap. Lol. Fixed it.