Our route today was to take us through the southern portion of Yosemite toward Sequoia. There were several tunnels along the way - one marked at 10'4" - that we were all nervous about the RV making it through. We had seen many RVs past the point of the tunnels and had also traveled on a tour bus through them so we hoped all would be fine.
We were leading so as I looked back in the mirror going through the first tunnel marked at 13' it appeared to me that she still had 6 more feet of room. They do mark the tunnel height from the top of the curb to the lowest point of the arched top. Meanwhile Grammie's GPS is screaming at her to warn her of the low clearance the entire time.
Next was the lowest tunnel but at least it was short in length. If necessary she could move to the middle of the road at the highest point of the roof to make it through before meeting oncoming traffic. She didn't really need to though because as I held my breath and looked back she still had at least 4 more feet of room. No problem! We beeped our horns for Ryan and a little bit in celebration of making it through tunnel #1 and #2.
Each time we'd driven or been driven into Yosemite we'd all noticed this farm in a valley. There weren't many pull offs so I managed to snap a picture as Dave slowed down just before a turn. I learned these barns were all built in the late 1800s and are the last remaining barns in the park. They are unique because they were built in the "Mormon Pole Barn" style unusual for this area of California.
Tunnel #3 was an easy high one then we turned south and stopped at the popular Tunnel View spot just before out last tunnel. This overlook was created in the 1930s by the CCC to give visitors an amazing view of Yosemite Valley. It was crowded but provided a lovely view of the valley. It wasn't near as good as our view the night before at Glacier Point though! You can see El Capitan on the left and Half Dome far back on the right. We also spotted Bridal Veil Falls - one of the hikes we decided to skip.
The last and longest tunnel I didn't even get to see Grammie go through as she went on ahead without us. We did find her on the other side with all her parts so all seemed well! We stopped at the Wawona Visitors Center to get the kids' passports stamped since I'd forgotten them our first day. There was a ranger outside doing a program on coyotes so we listened for a little while. Did you know coyotes are found in every county in every state today? We touched the coat she had displayed - it was so soft!
About halfway through our drive we stopped at Walmart for a resupply and gas. We had three days ahead of us in Sequoia National Park and now we had a jam packed full cooler. I even had to disassemble some containers so everything could fit!
I set the GPS to our campground as we followed Grammie but it wasn't very happy with her route. I finally muted her and just watched the scenery. We made it into Kings Canyon National Park after about an hour when the real crazy roads began. We traveled the winding General's Highway until we reached Grammie's campground.
We grabbed two kids and continued on to our spot to set up. I routinely consult a website for site reviews and suggestions on the best campsite in a campground. While this spot was tough to find a flat space for our tents it had loads of exploring potential for the kids up the rocky mountain behind us.
As we drove in I noticed a sign with the number of days since the last bear incident. They'd had 5 bear break-ins in the last 7 days. We were definitely in some strict bear country! All food and anything else with a smell including our laundry soap, first aid kits, and unopened drinks and water had to be stored in the bear box at our site. We were used to storing our shower bags and food but wow! Families with toddlers were even advised to pull out their child's car seats and place them inside or on top of the bear box. With our resupply at Walmart that day I wasn't sure it was all going to fit!
Dave and I discussed some different dinner options on our drive today and I remembered I'd brought our dutch oven and had barely used it! Tonight we decided on dutch oven nachos which excited everyone! We made a giant spicy pile and a giant non-spicy pile and we all dug in. I would venture to say these nachos were better than the ones we make in the kitchen at home! Of course, everything tastes better in the woods.
With full bellies Dave, Ryan, and I decided to go searching for the campground amphitheater. While I was cooking the ranger stopped by to tell us about the program and she told me simply it was "just down the hill". We walked down the hill for at least a mile and had only found one vague sign pointing straight ahead so we decided to turn around and drive there when it was time.
The whole time we were walking however we noticed a park ranger patrolling the area as well as the Bear Management team. I assumed it was a normal patrol with everyone cooking dinner and the smells coming from every site. Once we saw the park ranger for the fifth time I decided it was a little more. We were almost back to Grammie's loop when we saw the Bear Management guys out of the truck talking to the ranger. One guy had what looked like a shot gun (rubber bullets I'm sure) and the other was wearing a giant backpack and holding a radio receiver antenna. We were finally going to see bears this trip!
Next to the road in a small meadow next to the woods was a yearling rustling around in the grass. I was bummed I didn't bring the camera! We'd learned on previous trips that these younger bears are often the ones who make the riskiest decisions being away from mom now. We watched him head back toward the woods as the shot gun guy walked into the meadow and that is when we saw another bear hanging out on a log watching him. They had a stare down for a minute or so before he retreated as well. These teenagery bears must be familiar with the rangers and their rubber bullets.
The program tonight was excellent detailing the history of the area and much about how the park came to be. Our interest about the Buffalo Soldiers was piqued and we learned about Morro Rock which we'd be visiting our second day in the park.
We left Grammie and Ryan with plans to meet back up in the morning and utilize the park shuttles to hit the not-to-miss spots on our list. It was already chilly as we zipped up our sleeping bags. Did I mention this is my favorite weather?
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