California and Great Parks 2015 Summary

Enjoy this summary from our California and Great Parks Tour 2015!  Traveling is such an adventure and journey!  What great memories and experiences to take with us for a lifetime!

California and Great Parks, April 20 – May 2, 2015 – Written by Tour Director, Janice Jones

Our trip began with delays and detours – it’s only appropriate that we finish our journey with delays. Thirteen days, 12 nights, and 11 different hotels. Those detours and delays made our trip unique and one of a kind.

We experienced the extremes of nature – haze from Siberia, a fire requiring Hazmat teams, and the drought in California. On the positive side, we missed twisters, hurricanes, earthquakes, extreme winds, hail, flash floods, smog and driving through snow. We’ve had the best weather ever! The drizzle and rain happened only while we were driving and the snow didn’t stick. When we stopped for breaks, so did the rain. We also missed the experience of seeing chains put on a motorcoach. We saw Donner Pass and left before they experienced their foot of snow.

We’ve survived 2 time zone changes – and will complete the reversal tomorrow. It’s tougher going east. We’ve witnessed Paul’s special ability to u-turn a 45-foot bus on a dime and experienced hair-raising mountain drives without guardrails. With Paul at the helm, we’ve survived traffic challenges of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Denver and Vail.

We’ve traveled on shuttles in Yosemite, Muir Woods, Zion and trolleys in San Francisco.

We missed the mountain climbers of Yosemite because of weather conditions, but found them in Zion. We experienced motorcycles driving on the line in Los Angeles – folks with a death wish!

Luggage may have been late, but it was never lost. We’ve also lost red hats and white hats, billfolds, Kindles, water bottles, ear rings, phones, coats, pocket knives, leather glass cases, pill boxes, and people – some of which have been found and some not.

We lost a couple to sickness early on. A few have experienced flu like symptoms. We’ve had some falls. But our group is strong. Our women can take over a men’s bathroom when necessary. They can find the best bargains in Solvang. Our men can survive elevators that fight back.

But what wonderful memories Joey has chosen for us
– Yosemite, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Colorado National Monument
– 17-mile drive with its beautiful waves, seals, lone tree and Pebble Beach golf course
– Cannery Row, Monterrey Bay, Hearst Castle, Pier 39’s sea lions
– Hollywood, the Crystal Cathedral, even though it’s still under construction.

And the food! Hasn’t Joey picked the best places! You have no excuse if you are still hungry. And most of the places where we stayed have been exceptional.

We’ve been to the mountain summits and the deserts; to the wine country and the strawberry country; to Carmel, tinsel town and Solvang.

We’ve seen more animals than folks see at Denali – antelope, deer, birds, mountain goats, buffalo, elk zebras, llamas, ostriches, long horns, egrets, squirrels, sea lions, penguins, turkeys, eagles, ducks, geese, frogs, quail, mountain sheep, and rocks with tails – some stuffed, most alive. We missed Bigfoot, jackalopes and Tahoe Tesse.

We’ve seen unique trees – jacaranda, sequoia, sugar pine, ponderosa pine.

We’ve watched classic cars pass by while we stood in a 3-hour parking lot called California traffic.

We’ve seen $3.99 gas, multi-million dollar mansions, billion dollar bridges, and quizzes with wrong answers.

It’s the special people on this trip that have added so much to our enjoyment. But the time has come. Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home. It will be so nice to sleep in our own beds tomorrow. 500,000 sandhill cranes cannot be wrong – there is no place like Nebraska. . . .or Iowa, or Missouri, or Colorado, or Germany.