Our vacation to Yosemite National Park, finally happened on this date. We did not go home until July 21. It was amazing. The weather was perfect, 80's during the day and in the 50's at night.
My family loves to sleep in tents, so we took two new tents from Costco and some nice air mattresses, several chairs, and everything else that made the trip perfect.
Well, almost. I forgot my shoes. I packed the van in sandals, and everything else. I had not worn my regular shoes in a few days, so they were out of sight and out of mind. Our hike to the top of Half Dome was obviously cancelled.
I was able to get by without any major issues at all.
My boys and I have a tradition when we camp, that keeps us closer to nature. We bring a biodegradable soap and shampoo, and only bathe in the river. The water is freezing the first day, but if you can fight through the chill, you will be able to enjoy an entire week of morning and evening trips to the river. It feels great while you are outside all day long.
Here is a picture we took while were there.
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| Merced River Yosemite Valley |
This is a picture taken from the bridge that is between the pines
campgrounds. We usually stay in Lower Pines when we go. The camp
host is a great guy and does a great job keeping people in line. If the
people do not put food away properly, it is guaranteed that a bear will make a
visit to the campground, and you will be hearing some very noisy campers,
trying to scare it away.
One year we saw a
bear right outside our camp, eating an entire bag of pancake mix. The sad
thing is, is that they become fearless of humans, then aggressive.
Eventually the Rangers are forced to put them down in order to protect
the public.
Another thing that
I have added to the Jr Ranger Series, is the trash issue in Yosemite.
There are many issues, but I have decided to mention two.
The first is the
missing clip issue, on the large green dumpsters the campers and visitors, use
to dump their trash. If they don’t put the clip back at night, a bear
could climb in and be trapped and killed in the morning, when the garbage truck
comes to take the trash.
The second is the
Landfill issue in Yosemite. The Landfills in, and near Yosemite Valley
are filling up faster and faster, causing the trash companies to travel farther
and farther to get rid of the trash. I dedicated a fun portion of this
first book, into finding solutions, especially this solution.
If you ever have a
chance to camp, or visit Yosemite, bring a bike, and float down the river.
You will never forget these moments, ever, for the rest of your life.
I have written
this first book, as if you are actually camping with me and my family in
Yosemite. I plan on posting the entire book, here on my blog, as soon as
I feel comfortable with the results, possibly tomorrow or Monday.
Cross your
fingers.
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Copyright © 2016 Derek Ryan Jensen. All rights reserved.
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