Giant Trees and Chocolate Cake!

After a quick breakfast of cereal, we headed to Tuolumne Grove and hiked to a small grove of Sequoias. This was my second time seeing redwoods, and I still can’t believe my eyes when I look at these massive trees. It’s hard to comprehend the idea of a tree being over 3,000 years old. We hiked a short way down to the grove, and then made our way along the self-guided tour. Kendra was excited to see the Sequoia that had been carved out in the 1800’s so horse-drawn carriages could pass through. As impressed as I was with the size of the trees, it was the pine cones that really shocked me…

Tired from our hike, we headed back toward Yosemite Valley. On the way, we pulled to the side of the road and walked to the banks of the Merced River to eat lunch. Not too long after we’d stopped, several other cars followed our lead. Having lost our quiet privacy, we packed up and continued into the Valley. Once we neared Yosemite Village, the traffic was at a standstill. With so many visitors, it felt more like an amusement park rather than a National Park. It made me quite happy that we were camping up on Tioga Road, away from the crowds.

We managed to find a parking spot, and then did an easy hike to Lower Yosemite Falls. Addison enjoyed the ride in her stroller. By then end of our walk, we were tired and ready to be away from the crowds, so we went back to our camp site and played with Addie.

On a whim, we made reservations to eat dinner at the White Wolf Lodge. What a great choice! The meal is served family style, and you are seated with several other people at a long table. We ate with a family of four from Belgium, and a lovely older couple from California. The food was delightful, and all you could eat, which I took advantage of when it came time for dessert. What is better than one piece of delicious chocolate cake? Two pieces!

We settled in early tonight as we have a long drive ahead of us tomorrow!