|
Page 2 of 2
There are 5 distinctly different sight seeing
excursions you'll want to participate if you visit Yosemite Park: Yosemite
Valley, Wawona and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, Glacier Point, the
Tioga Road and Tuolumne Meadows, and Hetch Hetchy. Each has its own pristine,
breathtaking and distinctive attributes. I was efficient with my time and made
it a priority to see as much of Yosemite as possible. Using the road self
guided tour guide from books I saw Glacier Point, Hetch Hetchy, Yosemite
Valley, Mariposa Grove and Tioga Road and Tuolumne Meadows all in 3 days with
the full day Half Dome hike included in those 3 days. You'll want to get out of
the car along the way and walk to the various outlooks. If you desire to do
some more hiking in these areas make sure you add on an additional day and plan
accordingly. You are lucky if you have the time because it is well worth it.
You can save up to three hours of your time
and money at the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias by walking to "The Giant"
Sequoia tree and checking out some of the other trees you'll pass on your way
there rather than taking the shuttle ride. If you are interested in some
fantastic hiking in tree groves then I recommend beginning your trip at Redwood
National Forest near Crescent City, CA and driving to Yosemite a day or two
later. Here you'll see the tallest trees in the world. Redwood forest has some
neat hiking in all of it's tree groves. Stout grove was my personal favorite as
it had very few people on the short trail and a large concentration of these
amazing trees all around you. You will feel like you are in an imaginary world
as you walk among the towering trees. While you are there you can camp with
your g-friends at an awesome campsite along the beach at Gold Bluffs Beach. The
dirt road along the coast to get to the beach forces you to cross a large creek
without the help of a bridge, but if our car can make it your can too. There
are trails at the beach that offer unique sights. Many of the campers had open
fires on this remote uncrowned beach. It had a laid back feeling with extremely
friendly people. There are wild Elk herds that travel through so if you have a
fear of Elk then this campsite isn't for you.
When you decide to leave Golds Bluffs Beach
definitely take route 36 to Yosemite Park rather than the main highway. Route
36 will offer you and your gals another crazy adventure where you'll experience
a super windy road with amazing valley views. This drive will last about 4
hours. It is an exciting drive as you never know what you will see. I
experienced driving through wildfires, rock slides and had to stop for a group
of wild horses walking up the middle of the road. It's also a great way to see
the CA countryside. Here's some helpful advice...make sure you fill up with gas
as often as possible because I didn't even see a gas station on route 36. Yosemite
has only a few gas stations as well.
It may take up to an hour and a ½ to drive to
the several distinct areas of Yosemite that I mentioned above. You'll need time
to drive the tour, get out and see the view points and perhaps enjoy hiking
some of the trails at each area. The Yosemite Handbook by Ann Marie Brown
offers some great hiking descriptions, maps of the park and lodging
information. I also recommend the Yosemite driving tour books so that you can
see all of Yosemite and choose other areas you want to explore by foot. You can
order these books on-line from the Yosemite park website.
You can do the tour of Glacier Point and also
see Hetch Hetchy all in one day. You'll want to hike some of the viewing
opportunities at Glacier Point. The views at Glacier Point are unbelievable.
Hetch Hetchy is nice to do around 7 p.m. and on the way out of the park you'll
see the sun setting behind the huge mountains. The park closes around 8:30
p.m., but in an hour you can do a hike through a huge dark tunnel and along the
adjacent water bank. http://www.hetchhetchy.org/history.html From Hetch Hetchy you can get to Evergreen Lodge in
minutes and enjoy your next tasty meal and favorite drink from the bar for hard
earned rest.
I know you'll enjoy your chicks vacation in
Yosemite and perhaps Redwood National Park! A woman working at the grocery
store near the park described Yosemite best..."mind blowing". She was right.
Visit http://www.yosemitepark.com/
for further fun adventurous guided and self-guided excursions available.
Written By: Bianca Brdaric "Adventure Chick"
|
Chick Travel Ideas 
