Yosemite National Park, California, Carmel, 17 Mile Drive, Monterey

First off, we would like to send congratulations out to the following people for playing and answering our trivia correctly. When we get home, you will receive special presents. For everybody else, the trip isn’t over and you still have chances to win special prizes.

Lindsay and Mark – Bookkeeper

Kelsey and Krystina – Peacock Feathers

Kathy – The U.S. purchased Alaska from Russia for 2 million dollars.

We spent the next day driving through San Joaquin Valley, Climbed through the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and passed through some old mining towns from the gold rush. We had a rest stop during this 5 ½ hour journey, and the scenery was amazing. We then stopped at our hotel and had a free evening. We spent the next day at Yosemite National Park. Yosemite National Park was established in 1890. It is over 1,000 square miles with granite peaks and waterfalls. We took a trolley tour through the valley and saw some famous spots such as the Yosemite Waterfall (which is almost dried up this time of the year), El Capitan (a mountain used for rock climbing), and Yosemite Village (filled with museums, a movie theater, and restaurants). It was a great day and very hot. The highlight was when we returned to the hotel and went to cool off in the Merced River which was just steps from our door. We hiked about 50 feet, and found our own little spot. We moved some rocks and made “Lazy – Boys” in the mild rapids. We just relaxed, drank our drinks and enjoyed the sunset. It was definitely a highlight of the trip!!!

After an early morning departure, we spent a majority of the day on the bus as we are still making our way down towards Beverly Hills and Los Angeles. We made some stops along the way as we traveled through the Garlic and Avocado capitals of the world. Our first stop was at this place called Casa Fruita. Casa Fruita is located in the “Salad Bowl” of California. Everywhere you looked for miles and miles, fruits and vegetables were being grown.

After a lunch stop, we continued on to Monterey, California, where we had time to explore Cannery Row. This was a nice scenic area with an excellent aquarium. We then boarded the bus an hour later and drove along the 17 mile coastline to the famed Pebble Beach Golf Course. We got ourselves some souvenirs including little pencils, scorecards, and T’s. Pebble Beach Golf Course is a very beautiful course where the US Open is held. For a group of four to play 18 holes, it coasts over $2500.00 and that doesn’t include a caddy or golf cart.

We ended the day with a visit to Carmel, California. This is a very expensive area that kind of reminded us of the Hamptons on Long Island. It was a fun town to explore and we found some great bargains.

Now it is off to bed, for we have to get ready for another full day of touring with an early departure and the Olympics Opening Ceremony.