On the edge of the United States

Day 138 - Big Sur, CA - Sunny Mid 70's:

We woke a little later than normal and packed up camp making our way to Juliet Pfeiffer State Park. Here we went on a short hike that led us to the only waterfall located on the entire Pacific Coast. It was beautiful. The area where the beach and waterfall area are located are closed to the public in order to ensure their safety for generations to come. After the hike we made our way to Fernwood Campground to have our lunch. We unpacked a little and then headed back out to Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park for some additional hiking. We started with the Buzzard's Roost trail. This was supposed to be about a four mile "rugged" hike that would take about two hours. Well we finished in about an hour which really forced us to re-plan the day. So from there we went to the Pfeiffer Falls hike. This was about a two mile round trip hike that led to a waterfall. Unfortunately due to recent rock slides, we really couldn't explore much once we got there because it had been closed off. It was a nice hike regardless.

After the hike we returned to the campground where I was able to check my email and Ben was able to practice his fly fishing. He was quite happy about this!! After that Ben cooked a GREAT dinner while I was in the shower. We enjoyed dinner and then cooked a pasta lunch so that it was all ready for the next day. Once dinner was over I finished my bathroom routine (blow drying my hair was really all that was left). Ben tried to get a fire going but the wood that had been given to us as a gift was too wet to burn so we decided to hit the sack!

Day 137 - Sequoia National Park to Lucia, CA - Low 70's to Mid 40's to Low 70's:

Today we awoke to a beautiful morning. It was in the mid-60's when we awoke and packed up to make our way to Sequoia National Park. This was something that was on my list of "can't wait to/must sees." Our camp sight was about fifteen miles from the park and about thirty miles from the Giant Forest. We made our way up a VERY windy road. It was funny to look at the GPS because it was like someone just scribbled on the screen. As we drove UP the temperature went DOWN. By the time we reached the Giant Forest the temperature had dipped to about fifty degrees and there was EIGHT FEET of snow. It didn't matter one bit though because what we witnessed was unlike anything I'd ever seen. These trees are amazing. They look out of place in the woods and yet this is the only place in the WORLD that they grow. Our first stop was at the Giant Forest Museum where we got to touch the tree bark and were able to go inside a fake tree stump. From there we went outside and started taking in the views. We both kept saying just how AMAZING they were.

From the museum we continued through the Giant Forest and made our way to General Sherman. The path leading to the tree was quite fun and even had a tree that we got to walk through! CRAZY.

General Sherman Facts:
- This is the largest tree by volume in the entire world (see the video on the video page).
- This is the heaviest tree by weight in the world.
- The tree is approximately 2,200 years old.
- The diameter of this tree is 36.5 feet at the base.
- The largest branch is 6.8 feet in diameter.
- The weight of the tree is 1,385 TONS.
- The circumference of the tree is 103 feet around.
- The volume of the tree is 52,500 cubic feet. To put this in perspective this tree could be filled with enough water for 9,844 baths. That means you could take a bath everyday for 27 years.
- The tree is 275 feet tall. To put this in perspective, a human looking up at this tree is the same as a mouse looking up at a six-foot tall human.
- 180 feet up, the tree still has a diameter of 13.7 feet.

We spent time walking through the snow (thank goodness for waterproof hiking boots) getting views of not only General Sherman but of many other Sequoias. It's amazing because it seemed like it wasn't until we looked at the pictures that we really got how big they were...we knew as we looked at them but when your in the midst you don't really get it. I am SO HAPPY that we made our way here. Unfortunately we could drive much further into park because there had been an avalanche earlier in the week and so we had to turn around and head out the same way we came in! On our way we were looking at the map and Ben noticed there was an "auto log." The road to this was closed but Ben decided he wanted to walk in the snow to reach it...so he did that while I sat in the car. Partially because I didn't want to trudge through the snow in jeans but even more because the rangers told us not to leave the car unattended. We had lots of food in the car and if there's one thing bears who are just waking up from hibernation like...it's food!

We made our way back out and started the LONG ride to Big Sur. The drive was gorgeous and curvy. Rolling hills of green will always make me happy...they are just so beautiful and so foreign to me. The roads we were on were rather obscure and before we knew it we were entering Fort Henry Liggett where we both had to present our ID's in addition to the car registration and insurance. Here's where it got interesting. Our insurance card was expired and as the officer (who was incredibly kind) informed us as he was getting ready to call it in and make sure we were insured...it is a $700 fine. He was kind enough to offer us time to check and make sure we were up to date with our payments but we knew we were and once we had been cleared we continued on our way.

We arrived at Big Sur around 7:30pm with the intention of finding a pizza place for dinner. Well that didn't work out because there is little to nothing near the "town" of Lucia. When I say little to nothing I mean one building. So we made our way to Kirk Creek Campground and made our own dinner. The campground was in a stunning location right on the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean. It was a long day of driving and we were happy to hit the hay!