Paradise on Earth - Yosemite National Park

There are so many fabulous far away places to see...

This one brought me to my knees.

The journey was a rough one. I set out from Ohio on the 7:30 flight via Chicago O Hare, to SFO International Airport. It landed at 12:30 am midnight. My little sis, drove up in her car, having a hard time finding the right terminal and gate etc., it was cute to listen to her navigate and finally find me. I don't remember if we hugged, but I do remember her asking me immediately afterward, "will you please drive back?" I was tired, and sick, and sick, and tired, not to forget hungry!
We found a late night sushi place in Oakland, cause such places exist in cities that are not Cleveland.
We went to Kansai Sushi in oakland (off of 44th and Telegraph Ave.), and ordered a bunch of rolls, including a delicious Ryan roll (cause it was named after my boyfriend, although he had nothing to do with its creation). It hit the spot. After a satisfying short meal, we headed to her little house in the Berkeley hills.

We got home, slept, and woke up bright and early. We went for a walk/ run through a little rose garden, a park, a very steep up hill run, and when we got home we made breakfast. We left for Yoga at the Yoga to the People studio, lunch at Udipi Palace in Berkeley and finally quick stop for groceries at Trader Joes. We were finally done by 3 pm and we set off to Yosemite - Curry Village. The GPS told us it was 3 hours and 40 some minutes away. There was traffic, the weather was wonderful and we did need to stop for gas.

As we got closer to Yosemite we got onto Rt 120, there was a very scary portion of the road after passing "Moccasin Point", (near a place called Groveland), where the road was very windy with hairpin curves and turns, and it was 20 miles/ hour speed limit, and there was no barrier to the steep drop. It was daylight still and we could see this steep drop. I was flipping out, and my sis kept reminding me her GPS was saying 30 miles for the last 30 minutes as we slowly took the curves carefully. Shortly after that nightmare of a windy road, we entered Yosemite National park, but then it became dark. The road was pretty smooth, other than signs for watch out for large herds of cattle- Ok! It was still 47 miles so it took about an hour, and we passed all the great rocks - El Capitan, Cathedral Rocks etc. However we had no idea, because it was pitch black.

Curry Village was cute set in the heart of the Yosemite Valley Village. It has a skate rink, and there are shuttle buses running in the day, all the way up to 10 pm. There are a ton of activities one can pursue there from ice skating, skiing, to bicycling, rock climbing, horse riding and just hiking. I think in the summer there are food and wine events and there are also other fancy lodges there. Anyway we checked in, found our tent, settled in and headed to meet some friends from Ohio for dinner at the fancier part of the Valley Village. After which we were so tired and cold, and cold and tired, we passed out (before which I walked to and from a bathroom three times since I couldn't figure out how to get in. Ah see you would think it would be easy, but the bathrooms have a code!). There is a quiet time after 10 pm however we had noisy neighbors so I had a hard time sleeping, besides having to wake up to go to the bathroom, and having to wake up to shivering, since the bottom of the mattress was not insulated, and also because the warm air rises, so I was warm from above with three woolen blankets, but freezing. It was only a little below 30*F that night (mid-February).

My sis woke up and said- "Hey let's get going", or something to that effect. We got out tooth brushes, some towels, and got ready to go to the bathroom. We stepped out of the tent, and it was a jaw dropping, falling to your knees kind of sight. The tents were scattered in a grove of red woods, which were relatively young. Looming up and around the valley around us, above these young trees were cliffs, chunks of massive rock, greeting us by reflecting the rising sun. I couldn't stop looking, and I had stopped breathing. There's something about that sight. It's gigantic rocks split in half, so odd, yet natural. So normal yet so fantastical... I don't know what it was about that place but it is insane as in, it's unimaginably magical in an inexplicable way.

Finally my sister reminded me we needed to get closer to those things (the rocks), but we had to wash, eat breakfast, check out and then head to the trail. So we did. We had breakfast at the Curry Village Coffee shop very quickly and headed on to "Mirror Lake Trail Head". This is an easy hike, and it leads to this crystal clear lake which gets its water from the depleting glacier, and is thus a mirror to the amazing cliffs around it which include Half Dome. The hike was easy, but since it was in the shade of the cliffs, and in the valley, it was still frigid, and the cold was biting. We kept moving to stay warm. There were other hikers from all over the world; it was amazing to see so many people there in February, I can't imagine what Summer is like. We got to see the amazing sights near mirror lane, we saw the glacier and snow capped peaks beyond the lake. We hiked the loop, got lost, and had to turn around. So what was supposed to be a 2 mile hike max, became a 5 mile hike. Anyway we ended up right by Curry Village.

We went to some of the scenic stopping areas and took pictures. We were so awestruck we were just taking it all in. I knew this is why we needed a short trip so that we could absorb the shock of the beauty, and let the overwhelming immensity of Nature sink in, so that next time we could hike and see more, without being stunned. I don't know if others experience this, but I sure as heck do and did. This time we did see El Cap, Cathedral rock, and other amazing rocks. The drive back was still scary but the weather was perfect. We said good bye, and vowed to return again soon. I kind of want to live there.

I highly recommend adding Yosemite to your places to visit, and see.

Backpacking Love

I love this place, I love this man,
The sun I love, and even the sand...
From atop the dunes we survey the beach,
The bald eagle flies just out of reach,
High we sit, and watch the sparkling lake,
Leaving only footprints, only pictures we take...
We own no land, nor the skies,
But today this is ours, fleeting moments, as the eagle flies.
We do have each others' love and trust,
For us, right now, that is enough.

Ryan and I at Manistee National Forest, Michigan... Pure Michigan.

 Breathe!

A Day in the Valley

History, so much history to a place!

My history with the towpath, and Cuyahoga Valley National Park began in 2003 when I moved to Ohio, and began exploring parks. I had no idea there was a National Park in our backyard (not literally, but a few miles off). I finally began going there knowing it was the National Park in 2005, till then I just thought it was a nice forested area (Brecksville portion of the park). I began biking the towpath in 2005, and then got my first serious bicycle in 2009. I also had my first serious bicycle crash in 2009 in the park! I worked at CVNP from 2007 to 2008 as an Interpretive Seasonal Ranger. It the most amazing experience and amazing to serve the country in that way, in a peaceful yet protective way. Yes, we get to protect and inform the visitors and the natural resource.

I visit the park as often as I can, we climb near there, job, hike, bicycle. There is tonnes to see and do, so much wildlife, and the culture in the valley is amazing. (Below are links for planning your visit, and information, history etc.).

Yesterday Ryan and I biked the towpath, about 40 miles, and the interesting things we saw. Earlier that week we went to an event called "Music in the Meadow" which is a free concert by a local band, at Howe Meadow. There is nothing like listening to reggae, Celtic, folk, blues, while sitting in the nature and enjoying a snack, or tossing a frisbee.

The bike ride: starting at Botzum Trail head, we headed north, through Peninsula, to Canal-way Visitor Center 36 miles round trip. However we did take a few side tours to outhouses, and picnic areas, snacking areas, so it took longer than if we kept at it.
The wild life: we saw turtles, great blue heron, doggies on leashes, chipmunk, fish, duck, geese, the great bald eagle etc.
Other things to do: We spun poi, and relaxed, watched people, biked hard, and stopped by at trail mix for a snack or two. We got ice cream and some granola bars, which were yum! There was a live Owl, Falcon, and Red Tailed Hawk display at Hunt Farm. It was really cool, lots of rangers and volunteers, being seriosuly close to some awesome birds of prey!

The towpath was ridiculously crowded, it was a Sunday! There were people with their families, little children winding around the towpath on their little bicycles, casual riders, first time riders, so many different types of bicycles and people. Lots of joggers, dog walkers, and families with strollers. Lots of traffic, and serious bikers like us needed to be careful. We did not go above 15 mph.

Weirdest moment: So I sing when I bike, its better than having a radio, which annoys the wilderness as well as fellow journeymen, but nothing like live music, right? Well I was singing "Colors of the Wind" from Disney's Pocahontas. "come run the hidden pine trails of the forest, come taste the sun-sweet berries of the earth, come roll in all the riches all around you, and for once, never wonder what their worth! the rainstorm and the river are my brothers, the heron and the otter are my friends, and we are all connected to each other... in a circle in a hoop that never ends... " etc.
My mouth opens wide as I sing loudly and peddle ferociously so, and lo and behold, something from above falls into my mouth. I am usually used to bugs and such, good source of protein. However this texture was wrong, not buggy at all. I know it was bird poop. How it found its way into my mouth could only have been an act of god, or nature herself! Cruel cruel joke! Luckily and unfortunately I only had my camelbak, and 18 more miles to go. So Ryan and I had to come up with a strange adult bird feeding the baby bird method of rinsing my mouth out, without getting the camelbak mouth piece dirty.

What is a good day in the great outdoors, without strange experiences and adventures such as this?



It is such things that make life interesting, and gives you stories to tell, and makes us more innovative.


We took a potty break by Ira trail head, where I decided to break out the flag poi. I began spinning, and had a lot of spectators, and encouraging comments, curious passer by's who wanted to try it too! It was my pleasure to explain to them and tell them about it. A Chinese family, remarked it was much like the Chinese art of dancing with the ribbon. Kind of true, except Poi is usually done with fire. I can't wait to try fire.


We ended the bike ride, sore, lactic acid consuming our muscles, badly needing of hot showers, and massages! Oh and maybe some dinner, to replenish some of the lost calories. Despite the pain, the how hard it was to walk later, it was well worth it. To more, and longer bike rides in the valley!

Looking to the horizon

Rest Stop

Grub

Birds at Hunt Farm

Flag Poi

Game of Frisbee

Day in the Valley - Website for all events

Cuyahoga Valley National Park
The Scenic Railroad
The Conservancy for CVNP
A different website for the park
Trailmix Store
Hiking Trails and More
Ohio Erie Canalway
The Towpath

Under The Stars

Man creates his own world; dazzling and glamorous. Cities bustling, filled with pop-culture, entertainment, foods, music, cars, technology... its full of life. In the process we, mankind, miss out on the entire universe. When I mean the Universe, I mean the serenity of silence, the vastness of it all, what are we in the big picture. The Universe is glamorous, larger than life, too great to behold... but the little bubbles we create for ourselves, we never step out from it, we forget to look up and understand our place in it all. We are out own universes, we our own gods. We live a lie.

We went to the Allegheny Mountains and camped in the Allegheny National Forest. It was my first time. We camped Minister's Creek trail to a camp site. There we set up camp, and made our own fire pit. It was very nice. We collected fire wood, and it is something which came very naturally to me. I was born to do this.

At night, the embers glowed dimly in the dark, and the other campers around were quiet and settling down around their fires, or their tents for the night. I stepped out of mine to look up and be caught by the magnificence of the sky. I stood stunned by the glory of it... the stars.

Have you ever seen the milky way? The entire milky way... in the silence of the night?

I froze and did not account to how much time passed, I think I said "OMG it's amazing!" Many times. It was as though someone had shut out all the light in the world by draping a thick black cloth over it. However someone had made holes in it... and through that the light shined - bright. Like jewels on black leather it was beautiful, anyone could have cried. That's how the sky should look, but many of us do not know it can look that beautiful from earth itself. Standing there I imagined, if it looks so beautiful from here, Imagine the other wonders out there.

There are so many beautiful things to see in the Universe... and even on our planet. And truly they surpass human beauty, and material things... waterfall such as the Niagra Falls, wonders such as the Grand Canyon ... just to name a few. They are there for a reason, and we miss the message.

That night I realized looking out my window with city lights shinning up, it wont ever be the same. Another time when I had seen that kind of beauty was when I went to Sedona and saw the rock formations there. It was unbelievable.

The National Parks program is on PBS this week, and it should remind us all that there is the beauty of America and the World which we have to live for. There's so much to see, it truly is a beautiful world a beautiful life... once we see the bigger picture.