We spent two weeks on the road traveling through the Western states to see some of the National Parks and to see family in California. In total, we covered over 5 thousand miles in our Sienna and visited 5 of the major national parks plus a couple significant places that are fun to spend time at. This was the first road trip with us that Mia and Kalyn have gone on, plus we had Charlie along as well. We drove through 8 states over 14 days visiting 5 National Parks - quite a trek.

Trip Itinerary

So we got an early start driving, stopped and picked up doughnuts and drove all day. We too the usual path north up Hwy 287 to Amarillo and the into New Mexico. We discovered that there is a a volcano in New Mexico - didn't know that. We stopped for dinner at a Denny's in Raton, NM before finishing the drive to get to the outskirts of Denver to stop for the night. It was a long day of driving for sure but we made good progress.

More driving this day. As we started out from Denver, we passed Mile High Stadium where the Broncos play. We crossed over into Wyoming and stopped at the Visitor Welcome Center in Cheyenne, WY. It was a nice display of all aspects of Wyoming - history, outdoors, land marks, archaeological things, etc. We continued driving north and started getting into more mountainous landscapes as we got closer to Yellowstone. Snow was visible on the peaks given it was a heavy snow year for the region. We passed through Cody WY and then entered Yellowstone through the east entrance. As we drove along there was still snow on the roadside at these higher elevations and we ended up seeing some elk in distance as we made our way to the Yellowstone Canyon Lodge where we stayed. Yellowstone was something Mia was interested in seeing since we saw a picture of the Grand Prismatic Pool on the front of a National Geographic magazine on Yellowstone in Barnes and Noble. Now she will get to see it in person and all the other interesting sights that Yellowstone has to offer.

Our goal for today was to explore sights in the northern part of the park. After getting breakfast at the Lodge, we stopped in at the visitor center and Mia picked up the Junior Ranger package so she could earn a badge. Then we headed for Grand Canyon of Yellowstone which was not far from our hotel. We hiked down to a spot with a view of the Upper falls and the overlook at the top of the lower falls. The was was rushing furiously and there was still some snow on the canyon walls where sunlight doesn't hit. Temperatures were balmy so I can see how the snow sticks around this late. Charlie and Mia climbed around on some rocks and Mia and Grandma worked on her badge questions. Mia got to meet and talk with a Park Ranger who gave here some insights on the canyon and surrounding flora and fauna. We then headed north on the east loop of the park to go over the mountains towards Mammoth Hot Springs area. There was quite a bit of snow still at the summit - we got out and explored it a little. it was colder up there and a rain storm was approaching across the valley. We stopped at another visitor center and spotted a mother bear and her cubs across the road on a mountain side. We then continued on to Mammoth and stopped at their visitor center and museum. There were quite a few elk laying around the grounds eating the grass and relaxing. We walked around the Mammoth Hot springs which are quite impressive and spotted a snake off the walkway which drew quite a bit of attention. We then continued driving south on the western side and went to Norrie Geyser Basin and walked around there. We then headed back to the lodge and went to dinner at a local eatery in the area before heading in for the night. Tomorrow we'll finish the southern part of the park and head south.

We started the day at the Visitor center so Mia could earn her Junior Ranger badge. A very nice ranger tested her and presented her with her badge. He even let her wear his ranger hat. We then headed back back to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, this time at lookout point. Taking in a different view of the canyon. We then headed for the Fountain Paint Pot trail to see the mud pots and pools in that area. Nice view across the valley from the view points. Say several different types of pots and pools with different colors and such. We also so some bear foot prints across the area. We then headed to the Grand Prismatic Pool area and walked around there. All the different colors and steam coming from the pools - very impressive. Unfortunately we didn't hike up to the overlook to see the pool from a higher level - it was just too far. We did get to see some Buffalo close up though near the river along the pools - got some good pictures of them. Be careful saying "Buffalo" around Mia, she might break out into a version of the veggie tales tune about water buffaloes (the theme of this whole trip it seemed). Next we headed to Old Faithful and checked out that area. We had to wait a while until the geyser went off but it was worth it. Yellowstone is still an active volcanic area which is what drives the geysers - pretty amazing stuff. We then headed south out of the park and continued on to the Grand Tetons. We stopped at a overlook and took some pictures of the mountains, but we didn't go into the park. Continuing south we arrived in Jackson Hole WY in the late afternoon and checked out the downtown area. We ended up eating at a place called Liberty Burgers which was pretty good. We did some shopping and then headed further south to get to Salt Lake City - it was a long day but we saw so much stuff!

After breakfast at the hotel, we headed south to Zion National Park. Like Yellowstone, we found the visitor center and started Mia on a Junior Ranger Badge quest. We worked on her badge topics walking around the paths to find specific things. It was a little hot walking around I have to say - quite different than up in Yellowstone. We then spent some time in the Nature Center where Mia got to work with a Ranger to make a fossil. The Nature Center had some really neat displays about the region, the geology and the animals. Mia finished her workbook for the badge and went to the ranger to get tested - of course she passed and earned her 2nd Badge of the trip. We got back in the car and headed for Las Vegas to spend the night. We got into Vegas around sundown and checked into the Excalibur Hotel (aka. The Beast Castle) for the night. We ate dinner at Bucca de Peppo's inside the hotel and then went out to look at the lights and walk around the strip for a little while. We ended up at the M&M store which was fun. I have to say, the Vegas strip at night can be a little scary - lots of transients and sketchy persons wandering around. But, you can't beat the lights - always fun to see.

This was mostly a driving day. We headed towards California and of course, had to make a stop at the famous Barstow Station McDonalds in Barstow CA. Its eating areas are old train cars which is kinda cool. We then headed north and reached the gates of Sequoia late afternoon. The park was going to close soon so we found our hotel and went and had some dinner at a local Mexican eatery that was reccomended by the hotel - not bad. Then we called it a night.

We started driving into Sequoia early and stopped at some vista points. We also stopped at the visitor center and got Mia started on her next Badge assignment. One stop in particular is the old rock tunnel that you used to be able to drive your car through. The kids hiked up on top of it to get a look. Then we got into the Giant tree Forrest and stopped at the redwood museum. The giant sequoia trees are amazing. Thousands of years old in some cases, and so tall. Unfortunately, wild fires in the last few years have been really close to this area and some trees have been damaged. We walked through the groves and saw some of the more famous trees like the Sentinel tree, the General Sherman, and others. We also came across some deer laying in the underbrush within the trees - they didn't seem to be bothered by the people walking through which was neat. Mia went into the Lodge Pole visitor center and tested for her badge - amazingly, she got it :-) We then headed out through Kings Canyon and drove to El Portal and the Yosemite View Lodge. We had a room with the Merced river running right off the balcony - such a nice view. Tomorrow we'll explore Yosemite!

So we tried to pull a surprise on Kalyn at this stop. We reached out to Rhonda ahead of our trip and agreed to meet for the day at Yosemite but we wouldn't tell Kalyn. Rhonda and Shelly arrived early in the morning and we surprised Kalyn at the bus stop when they were there. We all spent the day touring the valley floor by foot and took the valley floor tram tour to all the key scenic spots. We had a really good guide who was very informative and pointed out several things I had not heard or was aware of previously. He also engaged with Mia about her badge project (of course we had to achieve another Jr. Ranger badge). We also saw the sight where Ansel Adams was at in the park where they had some of his famous shots on display. It was really neat. All in all, it was a good day and great to get to catch up with Shelly and Rhonda. Yosemite is an amazing place to see, I ove to spend time there and see all the different formations and waterfalls. In the evening, we had dinner at the restaurant in the Yosemite View Lodge and Mia has a blast with the waiter who doted on her quite a bit. Made for a good way to close out the day.

We got up in the morning and hit the road heading for San Francisco. One problem, coming down out of the mountains got Mia car sick and she threw up. First time she's ever done it - had no idea it was coming. We had to pull over and clean everything up, but we all survived it. We continued on to get to SF. I booked a hotel down in the Fisherman's Wharf area close to all the tourist attractions. We checked in and started exploring - heading for the Trolley Car end point near the wharf area. We got to see how they turn trolley cars around and the turn about which is pretty neat. We had a good view of the bay and Alcatraz Island plus the Golden Gate Bridge. We rode the trolley car over to China Town and started walking around. It was late in the afternoon mid-week so many of the shops were already closing for the day unfortunately. We ended up finding a restaurant that looked good (I think someone we talked with recommended the place?) and sat down for a Chinese dinner. Mia got to use chop sticks which was an adventure. We walked around the street some more after dinner but almost all the stores were closed by then. We ended up catching a cab and heading back to the hotel for the night to make plans for what to see tomorrow.

So this morning I didn't feel really great, so everyone else went out exploring while I rested. Melody and the kids headed back to China Town to do some shopping for the morning and came back around noon. We then went down to Pier 39 and had some lunch at Fisherman's wharf. We visited the Boudin Sourdough Bakery (Unfortunately they weren't doing tours due to Covid restrictions still) but it was neat to see the animal breads and such. Several of the older restaurants on wharf seemed to have closed since Covid hit which is a shame. The area wasn't as lively as I remembered but again, its mid-week so that may have played a part. We then decided to take a bus tour around the city which was great. We cross the Golden Gate Bridge to the other side where there's a nice vista point which a great view of the city and the bridge. We then traveled around the city to see some of the key sights and neighborhoods that define San Francisco. When we got back, we went to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants on the wharf - Scoma's. Glad to see it survived Covid. Food was really good as always - had some really good fish. We then called it a night and headed back to the hotel to get ready for the next day.

This morning we checked out and headed south for San Jose to make a couple quick stops. We traveled down 101 and pulled into San Jose to check out the Sharks Store at the SAP Center. Unfortunately, it was closed :-(. So we traveled over to the Blossom Hill area and checked out our old house on Azule Ave. Some minor changes, and the trees have all grown so much but it still looks the same. We also passed by the house we rented on Meridian Ave when we first got together - some 30 years ago. Then we proceed to head over to the Los Gatos area and got on Hwy 17 to go up to Scotts Valley. We went to Christmas tree farm in the mountains where Paula and Barry went every year to cut down their Christmas tree. Paula has arranged a small memorial get together at the farm to dedicate a bench in memory of Barry - this place was very special to their family. Paula, Mitchell, Allie, and Angie all participated in spreading Barry's ashes in the area - very fitting given how special this place was to all of them. Following the memorial, we all went to Tim and Linda's Mobile Home park and spent time together in the clubhouse eating lunch and conversing. It was really nice to see so many of the extended family together for the event. In the late afternoon we headed for Morgan Hill to check into a hotel for tomorrow's more formal memorial.

Today was Barry's formal memorial session in Morgan Hill. Paula rented a nice venue and catered a lunch for the group. Family and friends and co-workers took turns speaking about Barry and sharing memories and thoughts about him and his life. Barry had an impact on many people it was quite evident. Many of the recollections were humorous, some were very thoughtful and poignant. Again, it was really nice to see extended family and all the different friends and such that Barry touched in some manner show up for this. It was a nice celebration of his life and accomplishments.

In the morning, we went to the Visitor's Center and got Mia's last Jr Ranger Badge kit - this would be #5 on the trip. We walked around to find the answer to her test and went back to get her tested - as usual, she passed with flying colors :-) We then went to the gift store and did some shopping. We ventured out to a different vista point on the canyon rim that had another visitor center and geological displays to describe the canyon. This was a view I don't think I've ever seen previously. A wider view of the canyon. Not as colorful as at sundown but still amazing. The canyon is so huge. When we were done, we started the trek for home. We stopped at a couple roadside gift stores to break of the drive and stopped for food as usual. It was a long drive but we made good time. Overall, this was a good trip. Looooooong, but a good trip. We crammed a lot of things in during 14 days. Glad to get Mia to experience some of the natural things this country has to offer.