California: Beginning

Today I write to you from Estes Park, Colorado from our trailer just outside of the Rocky Mountain park entrance. It is a bittersweet time, as this is our last national park stop and we will be on our way home shortly. The adventure has been more than we could have ever expected and we are sad to leave and a little ready for routine.

After our amazing stop at the Grand Canyon we spent one night in the hot air of Las Vegas near Lake Mead. We crossed the Hoover Dam at sunset and it was still 98 degrees out, Eric had the perfect description, "it feels like someone is blowing a giant hair dryer on you!"

 After our short stay in Vegas we were on the road again to Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park in California and in to bear country. The park even required us to place the kids car seats in the bear box.


We spent the day playing in the most amazing sequoia trees and forest for that matter. The weather was perfect and we wish we could have stayed there longer. The hardest thing to capture in photos, in a lot of these parks, is the true scale of how large these trees, canyons and mountains really are.

 Eric was very anxious to fish in the crystal clear rivers and caught 5 pretty trout in Sequoia. Sydney also experienced the river in a more intimate way, by falling in. :) All was good and her boots got to ride on the roof up to King's Canyon. The kids also were able to see their first wild rattle snake and thought that was pretty cool.

We ended the day with an awesome hike up Morro Rock and enjoyed the beautiful view and the wonders that our God has made.

  

Very Grand Canyon

Our next stop brought us to the Grand Canyon and although the park was very crowded with many tourists the shuttle system was great and easy to use. We were able to catch the shuttle from our campground and explore the entire rim. Sydney finally got to set up her hammock and enjoy reading and we all enjoyed getting to see some wildlife. The elk freely roam the park and frequently came through our site.

We also really enjoyed a great Junior Ranger Program and all 3 of us earned our badge. Yes, I did too, it's for 4 and up! I highly recommend getting the Jr. Ranger booklets at any park even if you are not there long enough to complete the program, it is a great tool to learn so much more about the park.

 

Petrified Forest ROCKS!

 We took a little break from the trailer for one night and instead spent the night in this cozy little wigwam in Holbrook, AZ. The tiny sleepy town is quaint and it was fun for us to compare the movie Cars to all the little shops and sights. Our search for dinner led us to a Native American group dancing in a square. We decided to stop and watch and Emmett desperately wanted to dance. I said if they invite you to join them then of course he can. Well he ended up winning a t-shirt for his amazing dance effort and cuteness. He was very proud!

Our visit to our next national park was timed so perfectly to be able to see the summer solstice at Petrified Forest. Here the Puebloan's created many petroglyphs on the rocks and used the summer solstice for marking the changing season for crops.

This park is truly one of a kind and the petrified wood is beautiful in this stark desert landscape. The drive through the park also reveals the Painted Desert and the many colorful layers. We also were able to see many fossils, an ancient Pueblo village and enjoyed both interactive visitor centers, definitely worth a visit.

Collared Lizard

Kids in front of Old Faithful, biggest petrified tree

Carlsbad Caverns & BATS!!!!!

Our visit to Carlsbad Caverns started with an 800 foot elevator ride down into the earth and brought us to the unique formations of the cave. The Hall of Giants and the Big Room were some of our favorites. The Big Room is so hard to capture the immense size on film, it is a 14 acre room.

The Hall of Giants

A portion of the Big Room

The kids have really enjoyed the Junior Ranger programs at all the parks. Here in Carlsbad they earned their first badge with Ranger Landis and both learned a lot about the caves, the desert and animals. In the pledge they promise to care for the parks and animals to learn more about the national parks and their own parks at home and to also eat their vegetables. :)

Telling Ranger Landis what they saw in the cave.

After a quick bite to eat for dinner we made our way to the largest natural cave entrance at Carlsbad to their amphitheater for an amazing wild display of the bat flight. Hundreds of thousands of bats come swirling out of the cave and head southwest. It is truly a wild and unique experience.

Kids waiting for bat flight to begin.