DV or Bust!

Feb 9: What a slick ride over the Tehachapi Mountains, put it on cruise control at 57 and never missed a beat.  We drove as far as Barstow the first night and spent the night at Wal-Mart. We got a few groceries and had a good night’s sleep.

Death Valley

Today we will get finished packing and we will be all set to go in the morning. This trip will be our first time socializing with any part of the Casita Club happenings. This isn’t a typical rally but an informal event so we will see how we like it. Everything I have read says there is no cell phone service in Death Valley.  We are supposed to have Wi-Fi where we are staying so hopefully we really do!  So off we go to the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere AND Northern Hemisphere!

Yosemite

01-14-2015: Our 31st anniversary. Our drive up was uneventful and we found a campsite in the Upper Pines, number 99.  The Upper Pines campground is the only one open on the valley floor. We are told there are a total of 4 campgrounds open, one for just tents, but it is unclear just what campgrounds these are.

Yosemite Valley, Enduring Beauty

We didn’t investigate the campground situation any further since we have a campsite. In the winter you find your site and set up, then go to the reservation area to pay. $20 is the regular price per night but with the senior discount it is $10. generator operating hours are 7-9am, 12-2pm, and 5-7pm, which is odd, but apparently they just want generators running for those who need them to prepare meals, etc.  Our fees are paid and we decided to drive over too the Yosemite Lodge to see where we will be eating our dinner. It is first come, first served with no reservations at the Mountain Room Restaurant. This used to be called the Yosemite Lodge Grill, it is where we ate  our wedding night dinner. After checking that out and understanding where we will park for dinner, we went on to take a little drive back toward the Lower Yosemite Falls trail and walked along that lovely, easy, developed trail. It is handicapped accessible so you know it is a very improved trail. To our surprise, dogs were allowed to Tony enjoyed the walk with us. At the foot of the falls another couple offered to take our photo and we thanked them and told them it was our anniversary!  It was their anniversary too!  Third anniversary for them, 31 for us. Someone else already took their photo for them so we said farewell and made our way back to the Jeep and on to our dinner.

Lower Yosemite Falls

There was a little confusion as to if they were actually open or not but they were, they just opened late. The lodge area seems very different to us, of course it was a winter wonderland when we came for our honeymoon. Otherwise, it really is different. Not only does the restaurant have a different name, it has been expanded and of course remodeled. Our waiter Jeff has been working there just over 30 years so he was able to tell us some of expansion details. We had a lovely seat by the window with a view of the Upper Falls as the sun faded. I had a delicious filet mignon and John had the lamb shank. They had one of our favorite wines on the menu and we enjoyed that as well. As a surprise they brought us a huge bowl of chocolate and vanilla ice cream for our anniversary dessert.

Happy Anniversary

It was very cold when we left the restaurant. It was a quick walk for Tony and short drive back to our nice, warm trailer. Once again we seem to be having battery problems. I won’t go into the details but apparently the battery charges but does not hold a charge. We ran our generator until after the appointed time but even at that we lost all power. We bundled up and turned everything off and settled in for the night. This is annoying since this is a fairly new battery that we purchased last June when we were in Jackson Hole, WY.

01-15-2015: We were warm enough when in bed last night, the Casita has pretty good insulation. At 7am John went out and started the generator. We debated about just going home but we played cards after breakfast as the sun was in our campsite and it was very comfortable. Boy did the temperature change once the sun went behind the mountains so we finished up the cards, watched a video, and had a snack instead of lunch. Then we decided to head home. My troublesome knee was not up to another walk today. It doesn’t take long to stow everything and head out. I will add they have a free dump station at the campground.

Our Campsite #99

The trip home was uneventful but once we dropped into the valley we hit a solid bank of fog! It was unnerving at best but it cleared slightly as we came into town. We are happy to be home sitting by our fireplace this evening. However, we are very glad we went and we had a great time. The Jeep handled wonderfully and pulled the trailer in a remarkable manner. It was a very nice anniversary trip.

 

Spontaneous!

Who says getting older means you cannot be spontaneous? You just may not be as fast at it!  We were discussing our anniversary (31 years!) coming up on January 14, and discussed a day trip to Yosemite.  This is where we had our honeymoon.  But we’ve been itching to take our Casita out of hiding and hook up to the new Jeep Latitude.  Why not just DO IT!  I hope we can get a first come – first served spot.  I think it is quite possible this time of year and especially midweek.  If not… well we will turn around and find something, somewhere!

No Cell Phones!

I’m starting to do a little bit of research for our February trip to Death Valley. One of the main things they say is “CELL PHONES DO NOT WORK” in Death Valley. One is advised not count on a cell phone for an emergency situation. Where we are staying they say we will have Wi-Fi so that is a way to stay connected and know how things are going with my Mom. There sure is a lot to see. I am concerned it will be too hot to leave Tony in our vehicle even for a few minutes but so far John still wants to take him. We also need new tire chains/cables since we got the new Jeep Latitude! Maybe we will be able to do a little bit of 4x4 on some roads our van just would not be able to handle.  Excited!!!

Death Valley

Part of the Casita Club is taking a little trip to Death Valley in February 2015. They will be staying at Furnace Creek Resort for 3 nights, boon docking (camping without hookups, which we do most of the time anyway) at Fiddlers Campground. We will stay 6 nights at the same location and see everything we want to see. Normally we would stay in a Nat’l Park campsite but this is where the group is staying. I suppose they chose this because it has more amenities. We haven’t been to Death Valley before believe it or not! The lowest, driest, and hottest area in North America. Not a very sought after vacation location most of the year as you can imagine! Of course winter is the only time we would go and the days will supposedly still be warm! Looking forward to our next Road Trip!

Information From the Nat’l Park Service

Weather and Climate:  Death Valley is famous as the hottest place on earth and driest place in North America. The world record highest air temperature of 134°F (57°C) was recorded at Furnace Creek on July 10, 1913. Summer temperatures often top 120°F (49°C) in the shade with overnight lows dipping into the 90s°F (mid-30s°C.) Average rainfall is less than 2 inches (5 cm), a fraction of what most deserts receive. Occasional thunderstorms, especially in late summer, can cause flash floods.

In contrast to the extremes of summertime, winter and spring are very pleasant. Winter daytime temperatures are mild in the low elevations, with cool nights that only occasionally reach freezing. Higher elevations are cooler than the low valley. Temperatures drop 3 to 5°F (2 to 3°C) with every thousand vertical feet (approx. 300m). Sunny skies are the norm in Death Valley, but winter storms and summer monsoons can bring cloud cover and rain. Wind is common in the desert, especially in the spring. Dust storms can suddenly blow up with approaching cold fronts.

Why is Death Valley's weather so extreme?

Why so Dry? Winter storms moving inland from the Pacific Ocean must pass over mountain ranges to continue east. As the clouds rise up they cool and the moisture condenses to fall as rain or snow on the western side of the ranges. By the time the clouds reach the mountain's east side they no longer have as much available moisture, creating a dry "rainshadow". Four major mountain ranges lie between Death Valley and the ocean, each one adding to an increasingly drier rainshadow effect.

Why so Hot? The depth and shape of Death Valley influence its summer temperatures. The valley is a long, narrow basin 282 feet (86 m) below sea level, yet is walled by high, steep mountain ranges. The clear, dry air and sparse plant cover allow sunlight to heat the desert surface. Heat radiates back from the rocks and soil, then becomes trapped in the valley's depths. Summer nights provide little relief as overnight lows may only dip into the 85°F to 95°F (30°C to 35°C) range. Heated air rises, yet is trapped by the high valley walls, is cooled and recycled back down to the valley floor. These pockets of descending air are only slightly cooler than the surrounding hot air. As they descend, they are compressed and heated even more by the low elevation air pressure. These moving masses of super heated air blow through the valley creating extreme high temperatures.

How extreme is Death Valley's climate?

Record Temperatures: The hottest air temperature ever recorded in Death Valley (Furnace Creek) was 134°F (57°C) on July 10, 1913. During the heat wave that peaked with that record, five consecutive days reached 129° F (54°C) or above. Death Valley holds the record for the hottest place on earth.
Oddly enough, 1913 was also the year that saw Death Valley's coldest temperature. On January 8, the temperature dropped to 15°F (-10°C) at Furnace Creek.

Longest summers: The greatest number of consecutive days with a maximum temperature of 100° F or above was 154 days in the summer of 2001. The summer of 1996 had 40 days over 120° F, and 105 days over 110° F. The summer of 1917 had 43 consecutive days with a high temperature of 120° F or above.

Highest ground temperatures: The highest ground temperature recorded was 201° F at Furnace Creek on July 15, 1972. The maximum air temperature for that day was 128° F.

Dry as a bone: No rain was recorded in the years of 1929 and 1953. The driest stretch on record was only 0.64 inches (1.6cm) of rain over a 40-month period in 1931 to 1934.

Weather data was compiled from park and National Weather Service record summaries for the years 1911 through 2007 for Furnace Creek in Death Valley, California.

What If?

Random thoughts…What if we just got rid of all the “stuff” from life, stored things we want to keep for a future living arrangement and just hit the road?  Of course I mean in our Casita 17" Liberty Deluxe. We know we want to downsize and move out of our house and use it as a rental. One thing, it would give us the opportunity to SEE the many things we have talked about going to for years.  I guess if we didn’t like it our things could come out of storage and we would be renting a nice little 2-bedroom place like we have been talking about. Seriously thinking about this since most of the places we want to live seem pretty costly on our retirement income!