Yosemite in the spring

So I know that it has been a while since I have written on this blog. Some of you may be thinking I am neglecting my loyal readers, but I submit that I am much more faithful than many of my other blogger friends who don’t post for weeks, dare I say months, at a time (you know who you are myron).

Last weekend we moved into our new apartment on Friday and got it all done fairly quickly and am just doing the last of the picture hanging and other things before our apartment is presentable to the public. On Saturday we got a chance to go to the great booming metropolis/mecca of Ripon Ca to see our friends the Schenks. Kevin and Lindsay have been friends of ours for four years now and we always love going to see them especially now that they have a young child named Ethan John (his middle name is a tribute to me I’ve been told). Kevin is a teacher at RC(for those of you not familiar with the lingo that is Ripon Christian) and was directing Oklahoma for the Junior high. We had a great time spending the night and hanging out and tipping a few back for "old time sake" (the expression "old time sake" seems to make a lot of things that might be looked down upon by some, acceptable and fun).

Kevin in a "cool" hat (standard ripon attire).

This weekend we headed out for the hills (Yosemite) as we have done for the two previous memorial days with friends. Last year as well as this year we went camping with Myron Kamper and Andrea Van Wyk (soon to be Kamper). Last year we hiked half dome and had a great time, but this year we chose a shorter hike with great views. I guess I should start at the beginning. We arrived on Sat. about noon set up camp, had lunch, and then went for a short hike. We have this great spot in the national forest that we go to with a stream 10' away from our tents so we can fall asleep to the sounds of running water, very nice. The running water is not so nice in the middle of the night when you have to pee and do not want to get up, but the spot was perfect and of course free. Our hike took us along the Tuolome river towards Hetch Hetchy lake. After a 1hr hike we arrived at a spot in the river that I had heard about. Deep pools and steep walls on both sides make perfect spots to cliff jump off and just relax for a few hours in the crystal clear water. The spot is not on the maps (as many of the best places to go are not as well) and since it was not in the National Park we had the whole area to ourselves the entire afternoon. In California this is very rare let alone the fact it was a holiday.

Brenda and I jumping off of the rock.
Me jumping and Myron is wondering how far it is down and how cold is it going to be.

The next morning we got up and I had a problem of the intestinal kind. We had eaten Hobo dinners(meat, potatoes, veggies and butter in tin foil and stuck in the fire) the night before. I apparently had a reaction and experienced the worst farts I think I have ever had. It is usually hard to wake Brenda up, but apparently not when the tent stinks. I also thought Myron and Andrea needed to get up so I loaded my 12 gauge and shot a round off just outside of the tent. They awoke as expected and were frightened to say the least. We then drove to Yosemite Valley and hiked Four Mile Trail (actually 4.6 miles one way with a 3000' elevation gain) to glacier point. The views of the valley the whole trip were great and lunch at the top followed by a short nap was a great break before we hiked back down. While at the top tour buses come with the weak and or otherwise lazy people, who would rather drive for 2 hours to the top than hike the 3 hours up. When I got there it took about 20 minutes of sitting around to hear the English language (not a joke). Do people who speak English not travel, or is it that English is out of style. Call me old fashioned, but I like English and I done speak it good and are sure proud of it.

The group at the top with Half Dome, Vernal and Nevada falls in the background.
Brenda and I at the top.

The freaking awsome campsite.

Vernal (lower) and Nevada(upper) falls.

Yosemite falls in all of its glory. By the end of the summer it will just be a trickle.

Today we had a great breakfast and headed to Oakdale to Myron parents house for a lunch and a good old fashioned butchering(I just realized how much I say old fashioned, but refuse to do anything about it). Bryan and Rosemary always seem to put on a good spread of food. We had oysters and hot links as appetizers and burgers and the works for the meal (very good). We were just about to leave when the butcher showed up to shoot a cow that was not doing so good and butcher it. A .22 bullet, a lot of guts, and blood made for a new experience for Brenda and Andrea. Myron has the pictures and is going to send them to me soon so I will post those as soon as I get them.

All in all a good weekend