krnNdug
Distinguished member
- Joined
- May 18, 2014
- Messages
- 270
- Reason
- PALS
- Diagnosis
- 02/2014
- Country
- US
- State
- AZ
- City
- Gilbert
We just finished a fun, but very tiring, vacation. I always wanted to take my wife to Yosemite, I wish it didn't take ALS to get us there, but it did, finally. My sister and her family joined us, our kids and grandkids for a terrific trip. It can be a challenge to do what each of 17 people want to do, but we made it work.
We all did the Ice Bucket Challenge in Yosemite Valley with Yosemite Fall in the background. Karen and I stopped at Hoover Dam on the way. We saw a magic show in Las Vegas (Chris Angel, I would pass, low energy) and went to the lowest point in the US in Death Valley (and saw the highest point in the contiguous US also) . I was surprised by how beautiful I found Death Valley and the mountains between Las Vegas and Yosemite, all so different and pretty.
Yosemite was more beautiful than I remembered it from the last time I was there in the 1990's. So glad we were able to share it with our family. We had a great time in Yosemite in spite of my power chair stopping working while we were walking in the Tuolumne Grove of giant redwoods (Mariposa closed the week before we got there!). That was quite an ordeal since it was a mile uphill to get out of the park and I was very near the bottom. We had a couple of great park rangers who helped us (Dan & Julie). Our oldest son and Julie were even able to scare our family as they drove the ranger truck up to get our van. He pretended to be arrested and she lit up her lights. We always have some kind of problem on our vacation, but we always are able to laugh at it.
Karen & I continued our trip to Monterey so we could drive the Pacific Coast Highway and see the Monterey Aquarium. The aquarium was incredible, a must see if you are near there.
The PCH was very nice, although a little slow for my liking, but we stopped for some very nice scenery. We stopped in Morro Bay and had some of the best seafood at a taco shop (Taco Temple). When we went to the marina to watch the sunset we saw some of the same kinds of jellyfish that we saw at the Monterey Aquarium. Pretty neat.
Then we were able to visit some of Karen's childhood friends which was a lot of fun. Of course, California was in a drought (still is) but we brought them rain from tropical Arizona. I was able to finish my visit introducing Karen to one if the most influential people in my life, Rosey Grier.
The rain on the way home was incredible. I asked Karen to video as I was driving and we noticed later that it was around the same time and location as where the I-10 bridge was washed out. It was intense. She posted it on Facebook and I am tagged if you want to see how hard it was raining. So thankful we made it back safely.
To top it all off, I drove the whole way. I figured my left leg is not working but the driving leg is fine so I might as well do it while I can. Once I feel even the slightest limits on my right leg or foot I will no longer drive and I am very aware of how I feel, so I am being very safe.
Great trip and lots of fun, with a good bit of sadness knowing what the trip really represents - a memory trip.
We all did the Ice Bucket Challenge in Yosemite Valley with Yosemite Fall in the background. Karen and I stopped at Hoover Dam on the way. We saw a magic show in Las Vegas (Chris Angel, I would pass, low energy) and went to the lowest point in the US in Death Valley (and saw the highest point in the contiguous US also) . I was surprised by how beautiful I found Death Valley and the mountains between Las Vegas and Yosemite, all so different and pretty.
Yosemite was more beautiful than I remembered it from the last time I was there in the 1990's. So glad we were able to share it with our family. We had a great time in Yosemite in spite of my power chair stopping working while we were walking in the Tuolumne Grove of giant redwoods (Mariposa closed the week before we got there!). That was quite an ordeal since it was a mile uphill to get out of the park and I was very near the bottom. We had a couple of great park rangers who helped us (Dan & Julie). Our oldest son and Julie were even able to scare our family as they drove the ranger truck up to get our van. He pretended to be arrested and she lit up her lights. We always have some kind of problem on our vacation, but we always are able to laugh at it.
Karen & I continued our trip to Monterey so we could drive the Pacific Coast Highway and see the Monterey Aquarium. The aquarium was incredible, a must see if you are near there.
The PCH was very nice, although a little slow for my liking, but we stopped for some very nice scenery. We stopped in Morro Bay and had some of the best seafood at a taco shop (Taco Temple). When we went to the marina to watch the sunset we saw some of the same kinds of jellyfish that we saw at the Monterey Aquarium. Pretty neat.
Then we were able to visit some of Karen's childhood friends which was a lot of fun. Of course, California was in a drought (still is) but we brought them rain from tropical Arizona. I was able to finish my visit introducing Karen to one if the most influential people in my life, Rosey Grier.
The rain on the way home was incredible. I asked Karen to video as I was driving and we noticed later that it was around the same time and location as where the I-10 bridge was washed out. It was intense. She posted it on Facebook and I am tagged if you want to see how hard it was raining. So thankful we made it back safely.
To top it all off, I drove the whole way. I figured my left leg is not working but the driving leg is fine so I might as well do it while I can. Once I feel even the slightest limits on my right leg or foot I will no longer drive and I am very aware of how I feel, so I am being very safe.
Great trip and lots of fun, with a good bit of sadness knowing what the trip really represents - a memory trip.
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