Yosemite!

We woke up this morning and actually cooked breakfast.  We had eggs, fresh fruit, and bagels.  We were shocked when we opened the door this morning and were greeted with a cold blast.  The radar even showed snow in the mountains near us.  We bundled up and headed down to the valley floor for our first hike.  We hiked to the Vernal Fall footbridge.   This was ranked as a moderate hike, and we did it.  It was uphill and at times pretty steep for .8 miles.  The girls were troopers.

We had to take several breaks...

We made it to the footbridge marking the bottom of the falls - see them way back in the picture.  It was a strenuous .7 mile hike to the top of the falls, and I could tell James was itching to get up there.  The girls and I made our way back down, while James continued up.  He got some great pictures.

The girls and I had made it back to the car, had a snack and were working on our Junior Ranger books.

We had another picnic lunch in a great little beach area looking up at El Capitan (pictured above).  While eating, James spotted a tiny white dot on the side of the mountain.  Even with the binoculars, we couldn’t figure out exactly what it was.  It looked like a tent or weather balloon.  Later we asked a ranger and he told us that rock climbers will set up a port-a-ledge to sleep.  A WHAT?!?!  No thank you - I don’t do tents on flat ground much less on the face of a mountain.

We made it to the Visitor Center for our badges.  The girls got their Junior Ranger badges and two extra patches:  A Hike Smart patch and a Legacy Junior Ranger patch.  They got the extra patches by doing more activities and participating in programs.   We didn’t realize there was an actual Junior Ranger booklet.  We were given an insert in the Park Newspaper that we completed.  The newspaper insert was good enough for the badge, but we had to purchase and complete the booklet to get the patch.  Aye, aye, aye.  

We had a few more hikes planned but we were all dragging and it looked like rain was coming so we headed back to the cabin.  Check out the road signs to our place.    

The girls couldn’t wait to get back to their loft.  They love this little area of their very own.  With so many hotel stays, we all were ready for a little more space.  We cooked dinner and settled down to a movie.  

The internet here is pretty much non-exsistent, which while frustrating at times, proved to be a blessing.  We didn't piddle around on the computer during the movie.  We read books longer than normal before bed.  I'm not sure what all is happening these days on Facebook, but I am really okay with that!