Adventures with Grandma and Yosemite

Grandma came for a visit for most of August.  We had many adventures during her stay.  This was her first time visiting California so we showed her many of the sites from the Sierras, Yosemite and the ocean.

At the start of the visit Charm and I did a half day horseback ride in the Sequoia National Forest.  It was a good ride, the trail was a bit rough but it was just the two of us and our guide.  We stopped for lunch in a beautiful meadow.

Getting ready to head out

Charm

Heading up the mountain

Lunch at the meadow

Charm

Zane, Casey and Grandma climbed up the hill behind Hartland to the cross on the hill.

At the cross

During Charm's visit we were able to take a short 4 day trip to see Yosemite National Park and areas nearby.

Tunnel tree at a Sequoia grove

Half Dome

El Capitan

Bridalveil Falls

A lake we stopped at for a lunch break, Zane loved the cold mountain water.

Rock pillars at Crowley Lake on the east side of the Sierras

At the end of Charm's visit we did a little trip to the coast.  We took a whole day to drive up Highway One from San Simeon to Moss Landing.  Sadly most of the day was spent in the fog along the coast.  We did 17 mile drive at Monterey and had dinner at a wonderful seafood place.  We saw elephant seals, harbor seals, sea lions and otters all in one day. 

Elephant seals

Monteray Bay in the Fog

Our last stop was Nisean Marks State Park to walk through some Redwood groves.  Both Sequoias and Redwoods are extremely large trees but are very different in where they live and in looks.  Charm go to see them both.

Funny picture with Grandma at Nisean Marks

We had a great visit with Grandma and enjoyed sharing our new home and state with her.