Cannon Beach, Oregon

Seven Weeks Across America

We spent a day driving up the Oregon coast, which is dotted with little towns and very little RV parking.  It was so charming, but there was hardly anywhere to pull over, even in parking lots.  We got hungry and had to wait two hours before we could find somewhere to pull over.  We would have liked to explore more, but there was just nothing for it.  

Luckily, we had planned a two-day stop at Cannon Beach.  There was designated RV parking in the town center, and from there we walked to our hotel (a splurge!), where we had this view of Haystack Rock from our balcony.  I could have sat on the balcony all day, but there were tide pools to explore (I can check tide pool exploring off my life list), and a very cute little town to explore on foot.  We had several fantastic meals, and W had fun exploring the beach and swimming in the hotel pool. 

I was hoping for a Milky Way shot of Haystack Rock, but it was not to be.  We enjoyed both the foggy and sunny weather in just two days, but the night leaned toward foggy.

William M. Tugman State Park

Seven Weeks Across America

We pulled into William M. Tugman State Park in Oregon  pretty late in the day.  It was drizzling, and we hunkered down inside our cozy camper to share an Instant Pot meal of beef stroganoff and later, my daughter's first game of cribbage.  The next morning before we left, I spent a half hour with two ravens, who I asked to fly from tree to tree right over this little opening through the branches.  And they did - six times in all.  I have no idea why they humored me, but I was delighted.  I think they are such curious creatures that they enjoy interacting with humans.  It certainly seems to me that they enjoy being photographed.

Sequioa National Park

Seven Weeks Across America

General Sherman Tree

Even if you've seen sequoia trees in a small grove before, you should still visit Sequoia National Park.  It is so awe-inspiring to see them everywhere you look.  There are paved trails that make accessing them easy. It's one of these paths that lead to the General Sherman tree - the largest tree in the world by volume.  It's about 2,000 years old.  Many other sequoias in the park are older, but it found a prime spot to grow which is why it is so very large.  It's really quite an experience to tilt your head back and just look up to the top of the tree.

That's not really a solitary experience in the summer, particularly when you are depending on the bus system to shuttle you around.  It was in fact a little distressing to see so many people behaving badly, collecting pine cones in bags, clearly to take home, and stepping off the trail to take photos with the sequoia trees, which hurts their shallow roots.  It was a tough lesson to teach my little Junior Ranger to hold her tongue instead of correcting the many people who were breaking the park rules. 

We found some solace later by taking the Soldiers Loop Trail.  We saw only two other families on our hike, and we even left behind the sounds of the road. This, to me, was the best part of our Sequoia National Park experience. 

That and not having a bear break into our camper.  When we arrived at our campground, there was a sign saying there had been 3 car break-ins by bears in the past week.  A ranger drove through the campground every 15 minutes to look for any food that had been left unattended.  I'm happy to report I didn't so much as see a bear during our stay.

Tunnel Log, which you can still drive through. Unless you are in an RV.

Inyo National Forest

Seven Weeks Across America

As we left Nevada, we decided to skip Death Valley National Park.  It was hot - very hot - and that park does not offer electricity at its campground.  We figured we'd just be miserable, so we changed the plan.  The fastest way to our next stop, Sequoia National Park, was to drive Tioga Road through Yosemite.  However, that put us looking for a campground near Yosemite in the evening, which is a near-impossible score.  Luckily, our route took us through the Inyo National  Forest.  It was beautiful in the late evening light.  As we neared Mono Lake we found a spot to boondock (that's camping legally somewhere other than a campground - our national forests are great for this).  We found welcome relief from the heat.  And it was the cheapest night of the trip (free!) and put us in a great spot to hit Tioga Pass early the next morning.  Though I have to say, there is no good time to try to get through Tioga Pass, the eastern entrance to Yosemite, on a weekend.  We sat in traffic for at least an hour to get through the gate, but at least the view was lovely.  If you like meadows, then Tioga Road is one of the prettiest drives you can take.

Tonopah Mining Park

Seven Weeks Across America

We visited the Tonopah Mining Museum in Nevada, located on the original site of the claims.  It's got a huge amount of equipment on display, as well as several buildings from the mining operations.  There's even a short mine shaft where you can stand in a metal cage over the abyss of the excavated earth below.  

Great Basin National Park

Seven Weeks Across America

The aspens were moving and shaking at our campground in Great Basin National Park.  This one stopped for a moment so I could get its photo.

Bryce Canyon National Park

Seven Weeks Across America

Bryce Canyon National Park is famous for its spire-like hoodoo rocks.  When I wondering just how there can be another unique type of rock formation, there was Bryce, with hoodoos as far as the eye can see.  We hiked the Navajo Loop Trail, where we descended among the hoodoos, walked among them, and threaded this slot canyon, and hiked back up switchbacks.  It was a truly beautiful hike.