Sunday, March 31, 2013

A long day starting at 6am

We left Reno this morning a little after 6am and everyone slept terribly the night before. Hence why pops is passed out, and mom too.



Last day and last bowl

In Klamath Falls and bowling for the last time as we near home

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Reno!



Desperate times call for desperate measures

Alas we have been reduced to staying in the cheapest room at the Grand Sierra Resort. The is due to our last night of the trip but also because the door to our bathroom was ripped off today which driving down the road where the boulders were. Father was in dire need of a shower, so much so that we checked into a room and said "screw you trailer."

Climbing Near Bishop

Thanks to the buyer of the crash pad! That is a lot of caulk on the rock.















Friday, March 29, 2013

Slacklining fun!

A fun last night slacklining and somehow mom got tied up!

No this is hotter....



Nice Day!

Hottest day yet!





Friday Hike

Nice 2 hour hike above camp to a viewpoint. View is of the Furnace Creek area. Our RV is in the parking lot in front (cheap camping @12 bucks a night!). This view also shows the golf course, all the palm trees and the big solar power facility.

Friday and a Perfect Morning

I love this place! Our first morning with a perfectly clear blue sky. Generally there has been early wispy clouds to keep the temperature down. I think this is going to be our warmest day yet. Yesterday I did some laundry and I hung them on a clothesline to dry as the Sun went down. They were dry this morning when I got up. That's the first time I've ever dried clothes outside at night. The air here is so incredibly dry it doesn't take long even at night.

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

More Tuesday Shenanigans






Wednesday's Fun

Monarch Canyon today. Fantastic dry fall (as opposed to a waterfall) maybe 70 feet tall. Nice intact mine stamping mill (makes big rocks into little rocks). I hiked down canyon to a spring that fed so much foliage on the canyon floor that it was pretty much impenetrable. The road into the canyon hike was ready but for one spot with deep hole - the picture doesn't capture it. We hiked up to the mine that supplied the mill. That is Sarah wondering where her brother is. Back at camp Sam and I went for a short hike to a nearby ridge. The ridge seemed very Mars like based on the photographs from Mars.















Sunset Tuesday Evening

This is a panorama shot from my iphone. I don't know how well it will show but we had a really nice beautiful view behind our trailer of the fading sun on the mountains around us. These are called the Funeral Mountains.

Tuesday in Paradise

Today we hiked a new Canyon for us called Willow Canyon. The book we have on trails said that there could be water running in the canyon which would be very unusual. We've never come across water in a canyon in Death Valley except for one canyon that always has water (and it's always crowded because of this). It was really a delight to come across this small flow of water and the sounds it made on the canyon walls. There are several hikes near Furnace Creek that are extremely popular. One thing I love about Death Valley National Park - it is so easy to get away from crowds and have a canyon to yourself. This is because the park is so big and there are so many canyons. Willow Canyon was a good example of this. We met 1 couple on the way down but otherwise had the place to ourselves. The weather warmed up nicely today. I got in a little golf, we were shocked by the price of gas, and we had a wonderful moonrise to start the evening.