last minute accommodations

Ahoy,

As a somewhat last minute trip, we scrambled and made our way out to Yosemite on probably one of the busiest weekends. It didn't take long to drive to the general vicinity, but there was a ton of traffic up to and past the gates into Yosemite Valley. It probably took about 1.5 hours to get through Yosemite Valley. In addition to our lack of preparedness, we weren't able to make any reservations because it was less than a week's notice we gave ourselves to plan this trip. The RRS selected one of the walk-in camp sites farther from the Valley, figuring it would be less full. He was wrong, they were full. All full. The whole park was full from now until kingdom come. The park ranger told us not to rely on cancellations and directed us to outside the gates to forest service or a hotel. I stuck around and asked questions that led to our eventual entry with the mission to go make friends with campers who had the foresight to be better prepared and forward thinking than us.

We got a "home run" on the second try and this nice family from the East Bay let us stay with them. They even had a fire roaring. I couldn't believe our good fortune in successfully finding somewhere to sleep, and also the fire that they let us cook with. You all are probably well aware that neither the RRS nor I were boy scouts and our perpetual struggles with making our own means of cooking. It probably would have taken him days to get a fire going like that on his own.

The folks we stayed with ended up being familiar with trad climbing, and one of the guys even wrote a book about Yosemite adventures. One of the best parts about places like this is the interesting people and friends you can make along the way. Everybody is always so nice. We even thought the park rangers were very nice during our trip. Their blatant avoidance of our infractions and cheerful greetings are definitely something to remember.

More to come.

sneakily mosquito'd,
jt

late out the gate

Ahoy,

We went to Tram this past weekend, but I forgot a camera because I'm a bad documentarian. And also, we probably should have stopped watching tv/climbing videos earlier than we did the night prior. We awoke so much later than we were planning. Thanks in great part to our friends we were riding with giving us a shamefully much needed wake up call, we made it out the door with absolutely no time to spare. Perhaps we should begin instituting a wake-up call system, wherein the first awake calls someone else to confirm everyone is going to be on time. I feel like I'm still not at the point in my life where I can be relied upon to rise and arrive somewhere early on a weekend. Is that even a reasonable goal in my lifetime?

It was our first Tram trip of the season and weather was perfect. Given our past experience (READ: fumblings) with Tram season passes, we opted against it this summer. It's always been somewhat of a scramble to get our money's worth out of it. Last summer, it was closed for 1/3 of the time due to everything being on fire. The pressure to not get gypped is too much, maybe because we are suckers. But this year is a new year and we will not be fooled once more!

We ended up running into a ton of friends up there, kind of a rarity I'm told because it's so easy to hide from/avoid people. I'm always delighted when other people are there that are girls. Too many of these trips I feel like I'm the token female and it is always drastically less fascinating than the boys lead you to believe. It was a great intro to the climbing season and the brisk temperatures were oh-so-refreshing as we came out of that heat wave that set all of southern California on fire. It is not even summer.

meekly trained,
jt

love letter

Dear Morning Rice,

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love you cool and fresh straight out of a bottle bigger than my head. I love you in more appropriately sized bottles. I love you chilled in a glass if I must absolutely share. I love you abroad and imported. I love you anytime, all the time, not just in the morning time. I love your elusive nature, and exotic locales. I have spent far too many days without you in my life. Far too many years not knowing of your clean and crisp riceyness. If I could have kegs, swimming pools filled with your glorious liquid, I could finally die happy. A little bit nutty, a little bit toasted, a little bit sweet, but entirely riced to perfection.

forever & always,
jt

shouldn't be summer yet

Ahoy,

This seems so long ago, so far away. The frozen depths of winter was not here long enough for me to appreciate the emergence of 90+ degree days. Sometimes I am certain I will perish and crumble into the dust of this questionably habitable desert. 

aridly dusted,

jt

secret stairs round 2

Ahoy,

On a terribly hot Sunday morning, the RRS and I inched our way to Sunset and Santa Monica Blvd to where walk #20, the Sunset Junction Loop began. He picked this one because the description mentioned "coffee and sweets." The highlight was at the top of the neighborhood on a horrifyingly steep hill that afforded a great view of downtown LA. We ended at a crowded Intelligentsia. You can guess whose idea that was.

The following weekend, we made our way to walk #41, Pacific Palisades-Castellammare. It's right across from the ocean, and probably has the best views of the ones we've been on. More than once, we would come up to a view of the ocean on one side and the mountains on the other side. It was magical. The neighborhood is "plagued" with landslides so there was evidence of desperate measures on every hillside. The houses here were incredibly extravagant and varied. The end of the walk takes you onto the beach. We finished with a "snack" at Gladstone's that totally spoiled our dinner.

I spent an afternoon with a friend and we went on walk #18, the Music Box Loop. The stairs featured here were used in the 1932 academy award winning short film, The Music Box. The roads in this neighborhood could definitely use some looking after. It was a really windy day and palm tree fronds were crashing all around us. This walk ended at Cafe Tropical where they have massive pastries.  We started with dessert because we are responsible grown-ups.

This book has been a lot of fun so far. I've had it from the library for months. I should probably just get my own copy rather than monopolize this public resource.

frightfully astir,
jt

yoga & pizza

Ahoy,

"I don't mind getting my butt kicked first thing in the morning." The RRS on going to yoga that weekend. I was just happy to get pizza after. I had been thinking about pizza since the night before when we first decided to go to yoga. And visions of pizza were the only thing holding those poses.

enchantingly whipped,
jt

dads are like big kids

Ahoy,

"Fathers are like children in that they're always scheming to see exactly what they can get away with. I think a lot of men get married so that they'll have someone around to rebel against. Once you get out of school, there are no more parents or teachers to defy. Who's left? The old ball and chain."

pg 96 Someone Could Get Hurt, Drew Magary

I love this thought. I often think of the RRS like a big kid, and one day when we have real kids, he'll just be another kid I have to manage. Life will be so entertaining.

cozily wrapped,
jt

bridge to nowhere

Ahoy,

There's something gratifying about walking a long time on dirt and rock strewn paths to get to a bridge that has lived past its glory days. E & W were kind enough to invite us along on their endeavor to hike the Bridge to Nowhere. Unfortunately, I'm told their last attempt brought them to the Road to Nowhere, which gives you a more arduous walk with tantalizing views of where you had intended to be.





With optimistic hearts and light feet, we set off for the bridge. It was built as part of a road that would connect San Gabriel Valley to Wrightwood. During construction there was a massive flood that washed out many parts of the road and other bridges. You can tell along the trail where there was paving at one point and the remnants of other bridges that were victim to mother nature. Due to a lack of funds this project was never reconstructed or completed. Today, you can only reach this bridge on foot and it leads right into the bottom of a mountain.

There are multiple river crossings to get to the bridge, which make it really fun. I would much rather just go in the water than try to skip, hop, jump across the river, but I left my water shoes in Chicago. A & I both ended up getting our shoes soaked by the end anyway. At the bridge, you can go beyond and traverse down the side of the mountain and up the river a bit to wade in the pools and waterfalls. It's really fun to jump around in the water here. After a refreshing break, you can go back the way you came. It's a good trip even on a hot day because the water is so refreshing and parts of it are shaded.

stompily glorified,
jt