We had a great family vacation to California this summer! We flew into Los Angeles and rented a camper van to drive up to Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks, then we returned the camper van to LA and picked up a car to go to Disneyland for 4 days and finally headed down to San Diego. We even got to see all of our CA friends and family along the way.
I'll let the pictures and captions tell the story of the first leg of our trip...Sequoia National Park...
 |
| Dylan and I flew out on a different flight than Mark and Gavin (we used miles), so Mark and I texted each other pictures of the kids along the way :) |
 |
| Dylan and I had a layover in San Fransisco where we grabbed breakfast |
 |
| Gavin is ready for his flight! These boys are great travel companions! |
 |
| I really loved the SF airport...breakfast at the "Farms Market," Dylan and I made a quick stop in the Yoga room to stretch in between our flights, and Dylan was invited to check out the cockpit of the plane when we boarded to head to LA. |
 |
| The boys were excited to ride in the camper van. The back seat folded down into a queen size bed and behind the seat was a small refrigerator, sink, and propane stove. It was the perfect size to drive on the curvy mountain roads in the National Parks - not too big but big enough for us to camp in each night. |
 |
| It didn't take the boys long to pass out on the drive up to Sequoia. Those red eye flights leaving HI are tough! |
 |
| Our first two nights camping were at Sequoia RV park right outside of the National Park. The campsite had a great little swimming hole at the river running through it. |
 |
| Having breakfast before we go into the park |
 |
| Our home for the week... the Key West :) |
 |
| Our first adventure in Sequoia National Park was to hike this dome - Moro Rock |
 |
| View from the top of Moro Rock |
 |
| Adventure #2 in the park was to check out the Tunnel Log- a fallen Sequoia tree that has a road carved through it. |
 |
| Tunnel Tree |
 |
| Adventure #3 was to hike around the Crescent Meadow in the Giant Forest. |
 |
| Where's Gavin? These trees were so majestic |
|
 |
| Tharp's Log is a fallen sequoia tree that a man turned into a cabin. |
 |
| The boys first time seeing pine cones. We realized how much of "island boys" they were on this trip when things that were such a part of our lives growing up are not a part of theirs...pine cones were one example. On the other hand, they are experiencing cultures and natural beauty that we never did by living in Hawaii. |
 |
| No kidding, active bear area! We came across this bear on the trail! Since we lived to talk about it, the experience was memorable but we were scared in the moment. |
 |
| Tree pose with the Sequoia |
 |
| National Parks have great programs for kids. We bought the boys a National Park passport book to document their travels (for this trip and for years to come) and they completed the Sequoia National Park Junior Ranger program while we were there. It was a great way for them to learn about the natural environment of the park. They had to bring in their completed task sheets to a ranger station and she swore them in as official junior rangers. They received their very own Sequoia National Park Junior Ranger Badges and a certificate. |
 |
| The boys' passport and Ranger Badge |
 |
| This was part of Gavin's Junior Ranger booklet. He told the ranger all about the bear encounter. |
 |
| Dylan's Junior Ranger task - a scavenger hunt |
 |
| Pencil boxes turned to Lego boxes and plastic trays from the Dollar Store are great for road trips after a long day! |
No comments:
Post a Comment