The Ben 2015 Vacation - Sequioa

Off We Go!

We begin another adventure in vacationing for the year 2015!! J  As I’ve mentioned whilst chronicling other experiences we’ve had over the last several months (here for example), I’ve found myself focused on the fact that this will be the last vacation Ben will take with us.  Oh, there may be others after his mission—possibly, I won’t rule anything out—but, even if there is, it won’t be the same.  Since I have titled the last two vacations, I have subsequently decided to call this adventure: The Ben Vacation 2015.  I’m calling it this for two reasons: 1) because it is Ben’s last vacation before he leaves for Colorado; and 2) he chose the National Parks we would visit during our first week.

Photo Bomb

Today was our first day and it didn’t get off to the most auspicious start.  The plan was to leave at 8 this morning.  To accommodate this desire of mine, we picked up the rental car yesterday after I came home from work (a red Ford Fusion; not what I was hoping for, but it has the trunk space I was hoping for) and we tried to get things packed and as ready as possible last night.  What I wasn’t expecting this morning was the realization that we had more stuff to pack than I anticipated.  Packing the car for our “back East” trip two years had gone so well that I guess I automatically figured on a similar result this time—no such luck.  As I was trying to figure out where to put the things laid out in the garage, more things were trotted out for me to include.  With each new thing, I became more and more frustrated.  When frustration and I become reacquainted, I have to warn people to give me a wide berth.  Jennifer, Ben and Isaac wanted to help, but additional people giving suggestions would have made me worse; not better. L  I needed space to work out the problem in my head and try some different tactics and asked everyone to go back inside the house.

Sequoias

After puzzling several tries, I finally puzzled most of the items into the trunk (a couple had to go into the car) and we were finally on our way … 2 hours later than I had planned.  I wasn’t happy about it, but I think I did a pretty good job of getting over my disappointment fairly quickly.  Our first stop, as chosen by Ben, was Sequoia National Park.  The one place he most wanted to see again was Crater Lake in Oregon—Sequoia and the Redwoods were along the general route, so they were chosen as well, with a final stop at Yellowstone.  In my planning, I realized Sequoia would need to be a quick, one day trip (which is why I wanted to leave early; the sooner we left home, the more we’d be able to see throughout the day).  Losing two hours curtailed plans, but I was still determined to make the most of it.

Spider-Men 7 years ago

Ben and Isaac wanted to go to the Crystal Cave.  We’ve visited the cave the other two times we have come to Sequoia Park.  It has some fun formations and is nice change of pace from the trees.  Although they didn’t say it out loud, I think the boys wanted to revisit the cave for two reasons: 1) nostalgia; the cave is sealed from unwanted (or non-paying) visitors by a huge gate fashioned like a spider’s web complete with a spider statue (both times we’ve come previously, they had their picture taken in front of it giving “Spider-Man poses); and 2) because they wanted to do a scene from their “movie” at the cave.  *A Quick Digression*  Ben and Isaac have been working on this ongoing story for the last 14 years or so.  They call it “the movie.”  It has been become an elaborate story involving Legos, their various stuffed animals, toys and humans.  They are trying to wrap up their 14-year-old plot line before Ben leaves and I think they wanted to use the cave for one of their scenes. *Back to your normally scheduled programming* J  Unfortunately (but fortunately; I’ll explain in a moment J), Jen and I forgot that tickets for the cave needed to be purchased at the visitor’s center of the park (there was another purchase place, but I’m not sure where it was located).  Since tickets could not be purchased at the head of the trail for the Crystal Cave, we had to scratch it from our list of things to do.  The boys were disappointed, but accepting of the set-back.

In front of the Sherman Tree

General Sherman Tree

Blocked in our desire to see the Crystal Cave, we drove to the General Sherman tree.  We parked in the upper lot, began at the top of the trail and worked our way down toward the General Sherman tree.  Not only is the General Sherman tree the largest sequoia tree in the park, it is the largest known tree in the world.  As we walked down into the grove, I was reminded that one of the things I like about the sequoia trees is their thick trunks.  Even though both sequoias and redwoods have huge trunk diameters and grow so tall, sequoias seem so ... solid.  With their orange-red bark and their stout branches, exude a feeling of permanence.  They are stately and thick and venerable and are magnificent creations.  Another thing I find interesting about them is how they grow in scattered groves throughout the park.  Unlike the redwoods which seem to be everywhere once you enter into their domain, sequoias groves are scattered haphazardly over the mountainside.

Sequoia tunnel near Sherman Tree

General Grant Tree

After viewing the General Sherman tree and looking at some of the other specimens nearby, we were ready to move on to the General Grant grove.  As he looked back up the trail we had descended, Ben realized that returning to the car would be a difficult trek.  There was a shuttle drop-off not far from the Sherman tree, so we decided that the 3 members of my family would wait there while I hiked back up to the upper parking lot to retrieve the car and drive it back down to them.  As I was ascending the trail, I realized that it was a blessing that we hadn't gone to Crystal Cave.  The trail to the cave was mostly a descent, but coming back from the cave would have been problematic for Ben.  The difference between the Sherman tree and the cave was that I could bring the car down to pick up my family at the tree; at the cave, he would have needed to walk out on his own and that could have taken a while.

Me, Jen & General Grant

Gamlin Cabin 7 years ago

Gamlin Cabin now

It took about 40 minutes to drive to the General Grant tree.  The largest tree in this particular grove, the Grant tree is, I believe, the second largest tree in the park.  It is also called "the Nation's Christmas tree."  I guess it is decorated with a wreath each year at Christmas-time.  The tree has a thick base which has been scarred on one side by fire.  One of the interesting things about this particular area is that it was actually part of a timber claim at one time.  The outer shell of a cabin built by the Gamlin brothers who staked the claim still stands within the grove and can be viewed and entered by visitors.  Ben and Isaac used this cabin for a scene in their movie story and then Jennifer asked them to stand in the doorway of the cabin in an attempt to recreate a picture we had taken of the two of them 7 years earlier.  I offer both pictures here as a comparison. ☺  Another fun part of this area is the hollowed out trunk of a fallen sequoia that people can walk through.  We made sure to do so before we left.

Fallen tree tunnel

Sequoia bear

Even though it was an abbreviated trip because of our later start and we didn't get to see as much as I had hoped, everyone was satisfied with the things we were able see and do in the park.  On our way out of the park, we saw our first major (other than a squirrel) animal as we found a brown bear foraging for food off the side of the road.  Hungry and tired, we drove toward Visalia and our first KOA of our trip.  We were looking for somewhere to eat as we drove.  Hamburgers were the first choice, but our route didn't seem to be in an area where burger places were readily available.  Jennifer kept seeing Subways and would point them out as we passed.  The boys and I tried to hold out, but before we knew it we were near the KOA and another Subway popped up nearby.  After checking in first, we drove back to the Subway for sandwiches.  After filling our stomachs, we set up our tent and prepared for bed.  Tomorrow is a major travel day that will get us through central and Northern California to Eureka.  After that, our next stop will be the redwoods. ☺