Thank You:)

The trip is over and we made it back to Phoenix on Friday, July 2nd at about 3:30pm.

Thank you all for watching the blog and keeping track of us. It was a great trip and we had a great time.

We definitely have already started putting together our list for places that we need to get back to. It was a wonderful time and I am so thankful that I was able to do this trip and also to include Mikayla with me. It is a trip that we are going to remember for many years to come. I can't believe that we are already done and then again I am glad to be home and see everyone.

Now that we are done, the final mileage count is 5,151.3 miles all together. I can't believe that we did that many miles all in 19 days.

The fun has ended and now we are back in the heat and I get to swim for the rest of the summer.

The trip is coming to an end

Mikayla doing dishes at our shady site outside of Bakersfield. Got to love someone else doing the dishes:)

This is the "shady" spot, only 3 other people in the entire place and we where in the middle of nowhere, right by the mountains.


When we left Yosemite we headed south and stayed the night about 30 miles east of Bakersfield, CA. This was probably the "shadiest" place that we have stayed in throughout the trip. Thank goodness it was at the end of the trip.

From here we headed into Arizona. My mother said that it would only take about 2 hours to get to Kingman from here. Well she was slightly off, it took us 5 hours to get into Kingman. From here were drove for about another hour and stayed the night with some family friends (Jack and Susan). They have some property in the area and it was such a relief to get off of the road and to have a place to stay for the night. We even got a home-cooked meal this night and also breakfast in the morning. It was awesome!!!

Yosemite

This shot has Notre Dame on the left, some arches in the middle and then half dome on the right.

Bridalvail waterfall, Mikayla said that it is about 620 feet tall.

This has the Upper Falls, the Middle Falls and Lower Falls all together. The Middle Falls are rather short but if you look close they are right above the lower falls.

A pic of El Capitan as we were driving into the park. Just a massive sight to behold, I can't believe that we were there.


Today we headed into Yosemite National Park. We stayed the night about 30 miles from the park and it was a strange camp site. The tent area was separate from the parking and seating area. Also the car was at a slight angle and I wouldn't let Mikayla get on the car because from her side it started to sway slightly that way. A little scary but I don't think that the car would have tipped over but I just wanted to be safe.

When we went to Yosemite I really didn't know what to expect, it was just another great park along the way. When we started driving in, I knew that it was a great park to be at. Just breathe taking views from every angle and you had to keep stopping to get out and take pictures.

I finally found out why this park is great. It was El Capitan and also the Half Dome. Not to mention all the beautiful waterfalls that we saw from the road. It was spectacular!!!!

We went to the Lower Falls and the Upper Falls, it was a great walk and the lower falls you get right next up to. We even felt the mist coming off of the the falls.

After roaming around for awhile we went back to the car and got the bikes and went to Mirror Lake. It was about a mile and a half each way but it was a great little lake and there where even people swimming in it. Mikayla put her feet in the water and said that it was freezing cold.

San Francisco

Getting ready to cross the bridge.

A view from the ferry on our way to San Francisco.

Mikayla's new man that we found at the restaurant at the Pier.

The automatic toilet in San Fran, Mikalya is in the toilet right now and didn't know that I was taking this.

Okay, the internet in the middle of nowhere is good for some things but it really doesn't like to upload pics so we will try that another day. :) Sorry:(

Today we started by heading out to Sausalito. We talked to Charla last night and she said that you can take a ferry across the bay and then I wouldn't have to worry about parking down there. I wasn't too keen on the idea of driving through San Fran so the ferry sounded perfect.

Once we got there we had to wait about 30 minutes for the next ferry and it was great to be able to see the bridge from the drive as well as Alcatraz. The only down fall was we came into the bay at Pier 1 and we needed to go to Pier 39. So a little walking this morning felt good and it was our exercise for the day or at least part of it.

We got down to the pier and started wondering around. It is so great just to people watch and see all the interesting people and what they are doing. Mikayla got her first glimpse of some street performs at their best. Pretty good education for her. :0) That was her look a lot of times.

We had lunch down at the pier and got to watch the end of a soccer game and had some really great nachos and beer (at least one of us did).

We wanted to head back across the bay at about 2 but the next ferry wasn't until 3:20. So guess what? We found some ice cream to have. It was great but this time we actually shared one.

By the time we got back to Sausalito it was a little after 4 o'clock and then we headed to go over the bridge. It was so amazing to see up close and personal.

But then we got to go on the Bay Bridge also and that bridge is about 5 miles long and a double decker bridge. The only sad part was that we were on the bottom level and didn't get to enjoy the wonderful view as much. Still a very cool bridge to go over.

I truly feel blessed every time that we go some place else and I get to see such great works done by man or by nature.

We got stuck in some wonderful San Fran rush hour traffic and it really reminds me why I don't like to drive in California. It is hard when you aren't really sure where to go and your navigator doesn't either. I think that it made for a little stressful time but we made it through.

We started heading east to Yosemite and have landed in Groveland, CA for the night. The camp site is probably our least favorite so far. It is really slanted and every time that we walk anywhere we both feel like we are falling. But at least we are in for the night and you get to hear all about it.

Redwood Forest

Just a great shot with the sunlight coming through.

Getting a hug from the huge trees.

A tree with a hollow in it from a fire. It was cool that I could sit in it like that.

This was a fallen tree and it was so big that Mikayla could stand up in it.


Today was all about exploring the Redwoods. We started up in Crescent City and started working our way down Highway 101. We got our stamp for our passport books before the office even opened. The rangers were nice enough to talk to us and let us get our stamps. It was 10 till 9 and they didn't open this morning until 9.

We stopped at a couple of pull outs that the ranger suggested and they were very beautiful. There was a ton of fog this morning. Mikayla hasn't had the pleasure of fog before and it was very interesting only being able to see about 200-300 yards in front of you. Going around corners on the highway and just looking for the next car or the road really isn't my idea of fun. But I guess they really like it in California. :)

We spent about 1-2 hours in the park and then headed down just past Eureka to the Avenue of the Giants and spent about 2 hours driving the 31 miles that it encompasses. It was very cool and Mikayla even said that she felt small in amongst the Redwoods. They are truly amazing trees and it just awesome to be with them.

We kept thinking that we felt as though we were in a scene from Jurassic Park. Everything was so big and it felt like a dinosaur might just jump out at you at any second. I don't think that it helped that I kept making noises last night and almost made Mikayla have nightmares.:) It was fun though!!!!!

After that we kept driving down Highway 101 and have found a KOA in Cloverdale. (Can you believe it Charla:) It was an adventure getting to this one but it is very nice. It is only 6 o'clock and the office attendants have already left for the night so we will have to pay for the place tomorrow.

I think that we are about 100 miles outside of San Francisco, I haven't decided if we are going to stay on the 101 or try and go to a highway that will be faster. I like the 101 but it does get pretty slow at times and I want to see more things.

I will try and post some pictures later of the Redwoods otherwise you might have to wait until tomorrow.

Love you all and we love to see what you guys have to say. Just about a week and we should be home, can you believe that we have already been in 10 states:) When we start talking about where we have been we start mixing up our days and it really has gone by fast. Maybe too fast but it sure has been a blast!!!!!

Tillamook Cheese Factory

Just at a pull off point along the way, but it was on the coast and was beautiful.

Mikayla with the frying pan in Long Beach. Yes, Scott and John we were being tourists when we left you on Saturday.

This is the bridge that we crossed to get from Washington to Oregon. It was a great sight when you were out in the middle and looking at the Columbia River.

Tillamook Cheese factory, great cheese but also great ice cream. You have to go and try it and don't forget to pick up some squeaky cheese. It is delicious.


Today we left Scott and John after another great morning with them. We got to explore some more of Long Beach and I truly understand why they love going there so much. It is a great place to go and visit and everyone makes you feel at home.

We headed south and got to cross a really long bridge to get to Astoria, OR. It was a beautiful sight. We drove for about 100 miles along the coast until we got to Tillamook. We took a tour of the cheese factory and it was great. I loved the squeaky cheese and got some to bring home. But the best part was the ice cream. (Thanks for telling us John:) It is really cool to see a factory up close and personal.
Kendra would have been in heaven because there were so many cows here. They had souvenirs of every kind that had a cow on it. She wouldn't have know what to buy first. :)
When we left there we started to head in land more so that we could get moving a little more. We ended up staying in National Park by Cottage Grove. It was just south of Eugene, OR.

On to the Oregon Caves.

Oregon Caves

This was in a small room that we had to climb 45 stairs up to. It was covered in this flow stone and looked like a whole bunch of jelly fish. It is supposed to be one of the most beautiful rooms in the cave. We both really liked it and then had to climb the 45 stairs to get back down. :(

This is the biggest column in this cave. They said that there was actually a couple that got married by this column at one time. That is why it is called the chapel room.

Outside of the cave in the area by a gift shop and coffee shot there is this little waterfall and pool around it. Very pretty to sit by and have ice cream.

A heart formation that is located in the cave. I don't remember what type of formation it is.


We headed out this morning and went looking for the Oregon Caves. You would think that when you put something into the Garmin that it will take you there, especially when it has the address and everything.

Well needless to say it was definitely an adventure. We ended up on some Forest Roads and were driving next to some logging equipment. I don't think that Mikayla or I said anything to each other the entire time that we were on that road. Luckily it is Sunday and I don't think that any of the loggers were working today. The road was pretty quiet, we only had two other cars pass us going the other way. (Maybe they were having issues with their Garmin as well.)

Eventually we finally made it to the Oregon Caves and went on the tour that lasted about 90 minutes and had about 500 stairs all together in it. They said that it was moderately strenuous and I can see why. There were a couple of times that we were glad that the ranger stopped so that we could catch our breathe. :) It was really cool to see another cave and this one you could hear the river around you when you first went in. The average temperature of the this cave was only 44 degrees so we needed to bring out jackets again. Bummer:(

When we got done with the caves, we had lunch in the parking lot. It was about an hour drive back to a main highway. And then we took off for California and Crescent City. We stopped tonight at a KOA that is about a mile north of Crescent City and are doing laundry for the 3rd and we hope last time of the trip.

Tomorrow we are hoping to see the Redwoods and to do the drive that is called the Avenue of the Giants that is just south of Eureka, CA.

On the drive to our campsite we stopped along the road because we have already caught a glimpse of the Redwoods. They are huge but I just can't wait to see them tomorrow in all their glory.