Welcome to our 60s and then our 70s

2017
Yosemite at the Evergreen Lodge
2007
Wine Country at Mayacamas Ranch.

We stayed in the…

We stayed in the John Muir House at the Evergreen Lodge in a beautiful location about 45 minutes outside the Yosemite Valley floor. Plenty of room, views and the fragrant smells of Yosemite, a big hot tub, a fire pit, many lounging and dining options, and a full service resort with a swimming pool, restaurants, ETC!

(Evergreen website)

Along the way we…

Along the way we were worried that we would see nothing at all and have a hard time breathing but by the time we got to Yosemite Lodge to pick up our valley floor tour the air was much better, not perfect, but better.

This is a clear…

This is a clear and illustrative picture from Wikipedia.

“Tunnel View is a scenic overlook on State Route 41 in Yosemite National Park. The iconic and expansive view of Yosemite Valley from the view point has been seen and documented by visitors since it opened in 1933. …

“The view looks eastward into Yosemite Valley, and includes surrounding features, such as the southwest face of El Capitan on the left, Half Dome on axis, and Bridalveil Fall on the right.”

(Wikipedia)

We’re off on the…

We’re off on the trail to Mirror Lake.

“With a fresh perspective looking up at Half Dome directly from its base, you’ll be rewarded with views of Tenaya Canyon, Mount Watkins, Washington Column, and more.”

“Mirror Lake has little…

“Mirror Lake has little water much of the year and, while pleasant at any time of year, it is fullest in spring and early summer, when Tenaya Creek flows freely with fresh snowmelt.”

So true, it was more of a bog than a lake, but pretty anyway.

More of Mirror Lake….

More of Mirror Lake.

“When water is calm, the lake offers beautiful reflections of surrounding cliffs. Exhibits along the trail tell the story of Mirror Lake’s lake-to-meadow succession, and also highlight some of the cultural history of the area. Mirror Lake is often referred to as Mirror Meadow in late summer due to the lack of water and the influx of grasses and sandy areas.”

“Hetch Hetchy is the…

“Hetch Hetchy is the name of a valley, a reservoir and a water system in California in the United States. The glacial Hetch Hetchy Valley lies in the northwestern part of Yosemite National Park and is drained by the Tuolumne River. For thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans in the 1850s, the valley was inhabited by Native Americans who practiced subsistence hunting-gathering.

“During the late 19th century, the valley was renowned for its natural beauty – often compared to that of Yosemite Valley – but also targeted for the development of water supply for irrigation and municipal interests.
In 1923, the O’Shaughnessy Dam was completed on the Tuolumne River, flooding the entire valley under the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir.”

The water flowing out…

The water flowing out of the dam.

“The dam and reservoir are the centerpiece of the Hetch Hetchy Project, which in 1934 began to deliver water 167 miles (269 km) west to San Francisco and its client municipalities in the greater San Francisco Bay Area.”

A pano of the…

A pano of the reservoir from just past the dam. It goes on much further.

We sat on the ground amazing at the view, eating lunch, having a meditation. It was grand.

(Ben)

And then STARS at…

And then STARS at the star viewing platform at Evergreen Lodge. What a lovely festivity to end our Happy Birthday weekend.

(I borrowed this picture from the internet as a reminder of our time under the stars.)

.S’Mores! Yummy AND…

.S’Mores! Yummy AND fun. We shut out all the lights and enjoyed seeing an especially vivid display of stars with an entertaining and informative narration from Robert. After a song and some hugs, it was off to bed. (This being the part that’s really not much like camp and more like resort living.)

A stroll through a…

A stroll through a just-harvested plot and the chance to enjoy the leavings of fully ripened cabernet sauvignon grapes.

We learned about the mechanical picking machines and it was really interesting. These huge ‘things’ straddle the vines, hauling b*tt down the rows at 20 miles per hour, they Shake the vines, dropping the fruit into a collecting hopper. Fast and Furious.

We complete our Beringer…

We complete our Beringer tour in a cave-like room, including a barrel tasting and three other selections. Our guide wanted us to get the idea of what the wine tasted like with food so we sucked on lemons and licked salt.

Then we moved on…

Then we moved on to Markham Winery where they were having a show of old photos from the olden days of Rock ‘n Roll. Everyone was whooping it up over what they did in those days. Oh yea…

We arrived right at…

We arrived right at the biggest week for the harvest and the crush. It’s a real industrial process.

The guide on this tour was all about the business side – how many cases they make of what and how fast it sells out. The contrast with Beringer’s tour made for an even more interesting experience.

After the wine tour…

After the wine tour and a great hour or so of swimming, hot tubbing, and chatting, I went back to take a little nap, just resting my eyes, and someone had to come bang on my door for dinner.

The owner, who bought…

The owner, who bought the place about a year ago, dropped by to say hello and to tell us of his vision for Mayacamas Ranch.

The emphasis seemed to be on two parallel ideas – healing and philanthropy including a group called The GeneroCity Institute.

Here’s something from their website. ‘The GeneroCity Institute was founded by a small group of philanthropists and social artists with the belief that we are all connected and that each of us is a champion for something larger than ourselves. Through this understanding we hope to shape a better future for our own lives, our families, our communities and succeeding generations.’

We went out for…

We went out for a short hike around the property and at one point there was a steep slippery spot so the guys made a chain and hand to hand passed down the gals. It was so charming…

MY DRIVE…September 8, 2007…

MY DRIVE…September 8, 2007

Time to head up north for the acknowledgment of our Big Six OH. We’re meeting in Calistoga, an extra hour and a half past SF to the far end of the Napa Valley.

So I decided to take two days on the drive. And I decided to stop maany times along the way, to see if that makes for a more pleasant journey.

Remember when cars used to overheat all the time? And the signs that say ‘turn off a/c next 6 miles’ are still out there. But no way are we going to turn off our a/c!

And now over the…

And now over the top and into the San Joaquin Valley, breadbasket of America. There are buildings and trees and powerlines back there but you can’t see them.

From The Wiki: ‘Hemmed in by mountains and lacking any prevailing winds to disperse smog, the San Joaquin Valley has long suffered from some of the United States’ worst air pollution. This pollution, exacerbated by stagnant weather, comes mainly from diesel- and gasoline-fueled vehicles and agricultural operations such as dairies and field-tilling.

‘Population growth has caused the San Joaquin Valley to rank with Los Angeles and Houston in most measures of air pollution. Only the Inland Empire region east of Los Angeles has worse overall air quality than the San Joaquin Valley.’

Here’s a gas and…

Here’s a gas and burger stop along the way. And I stopped a couple times without photos too. It took an extra hour or so with all the stops but my *ss does feel better.

I spent the night in Merced and for dinner I ate a couple of tacos off the taco truck and an entire package of Nutter Butters. Yum.

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