Turkeys

I think it’s been mentioned once or twice that I believe I should have been born in an era that was long ago. For that reason, it was no surprise to my friend Megan that I would want us to don aprons the entire day of Thanksgiving as we prepared our meal in the woods. I’m lucky to have such accommodating friends! That said, it is always surprising to see how much you turn to your phone or the Internet when it is not available. For 10 days our service was spotty at best and nonexistent for the most part. When we are camped in one location, that is fine, but trying to find our way through the back roads of California as we caravaned from one mountain town to another, a case for cell towers all around can be quickly made!

I can recall one, maybe two road trips that have sent me into meditative breathing exercises as all of my nerves feel as if I am experiencing my last moments on Earth. One was in Nicaragua when I was driving a 15 passenger van around and following our GPS map to a volcano. The road continued to get windier, and steeper and windier and steeper until it just didn't seem possible that we were not going to start rolling down the hill end over end. Even though we had enough room to turn the van around, we were not sure that once we started turning that the van wouldn't simply just slide on the dirt and never stop, so we had everybody but poor Chris get out of the van as he made the perilous turn and drive it partway back up the road until we felt it would retain traction and continue on its way.

Hornitos Road between Sequoia and Yosemite will forever hold that same kind of fear. All things being equal, if we had been in a passenger van I might have felt cautious or anxious, but barreling down what looks like a very steep walkway that just keeps getting skinnier and twistier while maneuvering 46 feet of 20 THOUSAND pounds, had Chris asking me if we needed to “pull over” (IE stop as there was no place to go) so I could get a breathing break. As you drive in long rigs, long curves cannot be over-appreciated. Not only was my mind on what car could be approaching from the other way, but also if our rig even be able to make it the other way.  National Parks have length limits not only because of the size of parking spots, but because of how tight the twists are, and we were on some tight ones! Once we made it past Hornitos, our final approach to our campsite outside of Yosemite took us on a nice long steep road which was not so bad, but guard rails would have been appreciated from my point of view in the passenger seat which felt like I was hanging off the side of the mountain. I actually pictured child birth as a calming exercise. We arrived, the kids played, the camper was once again my safe box on wheels, and we went on with the week exploring and having fun.

Thanksgiving could not have been better. We had all of the traditional dishes of turkey, stuffing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes and green beans along with pumpkin pie and apple crisp but we got it with a huge dose of sunshine and crisp air and enjoyed it under golden leaves with a table decorated by our munchkins. The feeling of the season was palpable as we were surrounded by other families who were up and cooking since 9 am. Kids were playing, smells of home baked goods wafted through on sunbeams and laughter was everywhere. Around the table (where all the males ate topless) we were all thankful that our friends the Rudolphs traveled from Boulder, and Megan’s sister all the way from Atlanta, and packed themselves (a total of 3 adults, 2 children and 4 dogs) into a trailer to explore central California with us! These friends are some of the best you will find as they bring laughter, turkeys and crafts. If you ever have the chance to travel with the Rudolphs, jump on it, you will be talking for weeks about how much fun it is!

This week was spent in the hills surrounding Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park. Our boys got to see the largest tree in the World (The General Sherman), hike to tallest waterfall in North America (Yosemite Falls), and ice skate within the mountains of Yosemite. They got to play in rivers and lakes, hop boulders, climb trees, and throw more stuff into campfires than I can count. A visit to Columbia State Park had us panning for Gold, bowling in an 1850’s bowling alley and purchasing our Thanksgiving Aprons. It was the fall we didn't have as we spent Sept. and Oct. in sunny Phoenix and San Diego and the vacation Chris has not had since we left as he took the week off.

The week has sadly ended with us being unsuccessful in convincing them to join us the rest of the year. They departed and it is back to just being us. We headed West and landed on Sunset State Beach, our first time boondocking, and had a weekend of exploring and eating clam chowder out of bread bowls on the wharf. Maybe if I keep using this modern Internet I will be able to convince our friends to come back and join us in what often feels like an ideal time and place to live.