Thomas Cole and Martin Van Buren

Well this blog is really living up to its name now! I’ve been “burnin up the road” since April and knocking out many more National Park Service sites. I got both Monday and Tuesday off for July 4^th so I enjoyed a nice 4 day weekend. I left after work on Friday and drove east to Oneonta where I made camp for the night. When I made my reservation they told me to get there before 9 and I showed up around 8:30. The lights were on and the sign said open but no one was around. There was a gate to get in so I couldn’t really drive in and set up. I decided to just call the number and just as I rang a guy pulled up on a golf cart and got me squared away. He gave me an incredulous look when I told him it would just be me for the night. Why do people find it so hard to believe that A) some people travel alone, and B) some of those people are young women!? Anyway I had a nice spot by the water and despite an annoying neighbor and a training blowing through at 3:00am, I slept well. The next morning I headed out bright and early in heavy fog. It burned off in time for my first stop in Catskill, NY. For some reason the Thomas Cole National Historic site is a hidden part of the NPS. A few years back Mom and I had traveled around this area so I could check off a few more NPS sites and I never knew this place existed because it’s not on any map or listing of the NPS. I forget where I even stumbled across it but I knew that I had to stop by and check it off my list. It encompasses the home and studio of Thomas Cole, founder of the Hudson River School of landscape painting. The front porch has a great view of the Catskills and the gardens were landscaped very nicely. On my way out I saw a brochure for The Hudson River School Art Trail that takes you to the sites that inspired America’s first great landscape painters. Two were right in town so I decided to check them out. The first was a view on the Catskill Creek but it has lost its charm as you have to stand on a busy highway bridge to see it. The next sight however was stunning! Olana State Historic Site was the home of Frederic Edwin Church one of the major figures in the Hudson River School of landscape painting. The stone, brick, and polychrome-stenciled villa is a mixture of Victorian, Persian and Moorish styles. I’ve never seen a house with so much detail. I was there too early to go inside but I really enjoyed the exterior, the views from the hill top and especially the gardens which had some really beautiful flowers.

I then raced over to Kinderhook, NY to make the 10am tour of the Martin Van Buren house.
When Mom and I had come to this area a few years ago we got to Martin’s house after dark and were nicely escorted off the grounds by some rangers and told to come back when it was open. Well I am really glad I came back because the tour was really great. Our guide was very knowledgeable and informative and I learned a ton. She even asked some trivia questions and I got them all right! I was very proud of myself. The house was huge and it seemed half of it was servant’s quarters. I really liked the main dining room because of the wallpaper depicting a hunt.

This room was also interesting because of the arch. I also got to look up at the 4 story tower.

Lastly I got to see MVB’s room where he had a cane given to him by Andrew Jackson. I had no idea but those two were quite the BFF’s. I really like the presidential sites that are preserved by the NPS because they teach me so much about the Presidents and where they come from and how they became President. For instance, MVB was known as the Red Fox and Old Kinderhook (which is partially where we get the term o.k. from). He was also the first President to be born in the United States

Last Day in Yosemite

Just as I got up on the last day, Jess ran by the tent and yelled "there's a bear!" Running outside I saw the bear ambling down the paved sidewalk by the bathroom. Just moseying through...The night before, the video shown in the ranger program was about The Ahwahnee Hotel. I learned a lot about its history and was glad when we stopped by on our way out of the Valley. Even though I had been there 2 days ago, I really paid attention this time to the architectural details that the video pointed out.The main dining hall was impressive.
Since we still had time to kill we walked along the Lower Yosemite Falls trail again to see the falls in the morning sun.
I liked this exhibit that showed the flow in different seasons. I think we came at the absolute perfect time when everything is raging.
Below is one of my favorite pictures of the trip. I was trying to take pictures of the flora and Jess felt the need to just jump in front of my shot. It actually ended up looking really cool.
Continuing with our nature sighting, there was a deer in the meadow by the falls.We then began the long drive back to the airport. We got there around 3:30 and my flight didn't leave until 11:00pm. It was my first red eye and it was exhausting. I got to Atlanta at 6:00am and could barely stay awake on my 3 hour layover. I finally arrived at 11:00am in Buffalo. The journey was long but at least everything was on time so I can't complain.
I had such an amazing time in Yosemite and I'm very thankful to Jess's family for having me along. I got to see a ton of stuff but the pace was very relaxing. Another major national park is now crossed off my list!

More of Yosemite Valley

After reviving myself with a quick lunch, I decided to take advantage of the parks shuttle system and go explore some more of the Valley.I went to the Visitor Center and read over the exhibits explaining Yosemite's history and also caught the park's movie "Spirit of Yosemite". I loved the video because it showed the park in the different seasons. I think winter would be so calm and peaceful (mostly because of the lack of people). I also caught sight of John Muir the founding father of Yosemite.Right by the Visitor Center is the Indian Village. Yosemite Valley was called "awahni" by the Southern Miwok. While this word has been the subject of many fanciful translations, Southern Miwok speakers contend it means "place like a gaping mouth," likening the shape of Yosemite Valley to that of a huge mouth. I also learned that the name "Yosemite" means literally "among them are killers" or "there are killers among them" and is a corrupted form of an American Indian word used to describe the Ahwahneechee people. Also nearby was the Pioneer Cemetery.I moseyed on down the valley floor past Yosemite Falls.I grabbed some souvenirs at Yosemite Lodge and then walked over to Camp 4.Camp 4 is a campground in Yosemite National Park. It became notable after World War II as the hangout for rock climbers with many spending months there (not necessarily legally). Physically unimpressive, Camp 4 was nevertheless a center of rock climbing development during the middle of the 20th century. Dozens of the most famous climbers in the world would congregate at Camp 4, learning from each other and trying out new ideas on Yosemite's walls. I wanted to check it out because it also featured in my Anna Pigeon book.
I once again hopped on the shuttle and went over to see Yosemite Chapel-the oldest structure in the park. The large meadow in front of the chapel used to be the hub of Yosemite Valley but it is now restored to just meadows. These are prone to flooding and I saw a fascinating exhibit on historic flood levels. The top of the marker in the picture below is as tall as me!! I cannot even fathom a flood that high.I then had to make my way back to meet up for dinner. After dinner we strolled by Yosemite Falls. There's a nice short trail to the base of them and you can get a nice mist off of them.

Mist and John Muir Trail

Well the original goal of this trip was to hike the Half Dome. However, it is only accessible when the cables are up and because of the nearly 200% snow pack this year, the cables were not up (until exactly a week after we hiked it I found out). Regardless we still decided to hike the trail because it still has a lot going for it.
Hidden Falls

The Mist Trail is one of the most popular short hikes in Yosemite. The hike follows the Merced River, starting at Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley, past Vernal Fall, Emerald Pool, to Nevada Fall. And boy was that river raging! It is called the Mist Trail for a reason and in the spring you are guaranteed to get soaked. After awhile you can barely see for all the mist and the trail is basically covered by running water.

I did manage to get shot of the falls when I finally emerged from the mist. The viewpoint at the top is gorgeous though because of the rainbow. It looks magical!

The river is raging up top and even spilling over the barriers!

Next up was Nevada Fall and you could see the mist from this one coming from a long ways away. This is one of my favorite shots.

I actually liked the side view of Nevada Fall better because you could actually see really well without a lot of mist obstructing the view.I have never seen a waterfall with such concentrated power (and I grew up by Niagara!). The water was literally shooting down from the mountain tops. All the falls and rivers were just roiling white.
Past Nevada Fall we stopped at the Emerald Pool for a snack break.
We finally reached the top where the trail splits off to Half Dome. There was a mule train passing through that was so cool! How awesome would that job be? After looking down from atop Nevada Fall we started our descent down the John Muir trail.
There were amazing viewpoints of Nevada Fall. Check out the sky-literally not a cloud in it.
I had so much trepidation about hiking Half Dome but after hiking the majority of the trail I am eager to come back and finally conquer it. I was expecting myself to be completely out of breath all the time from the elevation and altitude but I never once felt exerted. California's climate certainly agrees with me :)

Four Mile Trail

At the Visitor Center the day before we were looking over a relief map of the entire park and noticed there was a trail leading down from Glacier Point. A girl standing nearby heard us point it out and mentioned that she’d done it that morning and that the views were great and it took about 3 hours. With that ringing endorsement Jess, her dad, Daniel and I decided to descend. We got to see Half Dome:Many different angles of Yosemite Falls:

Cathedral Spires: and many different views of the Valley. We were picked up at the end of the trail by the rest of our party, exhausted but exhilarated. The trail is 4.7 miles with an elevation drop of 3,200 feet all downhill. The views were really great because there's such a different take on things than you get from driving along the valley floor. It was nice to get out of the car and get on a trail without a ton of other people around.

That night Jess and I walked through some employee housing and over to the LeConte Memorial Lodge. The LeConte Memorial Lodge was built by the Sierra Club in 1903 in memory of Joseph LeConte, one of the founding members of the Sierra Club, who died in 1901.

We also checked out housekeeping camp which is more rustic lodging area. Half of the tents were closed due to flooding though.