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Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Driving to Yosemite - 4/28/2014

I think the Flowers Family is overdue for a vacation. What do you think?
A few weeks ago, Theresa was getting the itch to go somewhere and we've wanted to see Yosemite for a while. The last time we went a few years ago was in August, and all the waterfalls had slowed to a trickle. We're hoping for big waterfalls this time!

Even better, we're taking the week off work! Us and the grandparents pile in the car after getting packed up on Monday morning.

It's your first big trip buddy! I hope you're excited!

We only make it a mile down the road before we stop for breakfast. Chick-fil-A chicken biscuits and Chick-n-minis are delicious!

Get back in the car! We're losing time!

If I stretch I can allllmost reach the pedals.

Three hours into the trip, we're stopping by Burger King for lunch. Theresa and I were happy for the $1 Icees!

Ian got the full service experience. An hour later we're back on the road.

Just let me drive around the parking lot Dad?

Leading up to the trip, T and I were really wondering how Ian was going to do on the super long car trip. The longest trip we'd taken to this point was a 35 minute drive to Disneyland. We were worried for nothing though. Ian was about the best we could have hoped for. He slept a whole bunch, kept himself entertained with his toys, and wasn't fussy at all. It was great!

Just one more quick (not really, 1 hour) stop at the McDonalds before we headed into the park.

After 26 miles of twisty and windy roads, which Theresa and Chi just hate, we emerged from the Wawona Tunnel and see the vista that has inspired so many artists and photographers.

Officially called Tunnel View, this viewpoints shows off Yosemite Valley, Bridalveil Falls, El Capitan, and Half Dome.


I'm with you buddy. That sun is too bright to be looking at the camera right now.

As far as accommodations, during our visit, we had two thoughts on it. Yosemite Lodge is in the middle of the valley in a great location, but the rooms are small and dated. It's also not cheap, costing $250/night, and we'd need two rooms for us and the grandparents.

Instead Theresa started looking at other options and found a fantastic vacation rental home in nearby Foresta. Still located inside Yosemite National Park, Foresta is a short 10 minute drive out of the valley. The place we chose is called Owl Moon cabin and what it lacks location, it more than makes up for in amenities. This cute little cabin has 1200 sq ft of space, sleeps up to 6 adults comfortably and even better, it's just $350/night! I highly recommend it (just not for the nights that I'll be booking it next time).

The inside is beautiful and there's a large living room.

And we made great use of the full kitchen, eating here for breakfast and dinner every day.

Upstairs, the king bedroom had plenty of space for Ian's pack-and-play.

And the queen bedroom was even bigger.

Add two full bathrooms, a washer/dryer, a fireplace, gas grill in the back, and as one friend put it, we're not camping, we're glamping.

It didn't take too long for Ian to make it to the living room floor and spread out.

Wow babies are flexible.

After dinner, we all relaxed after a long day in the car then went to bed early. Tomorrow we're going to explore Yosemite a bit more.

Well, most of us went to sleep early. I headed outside to see what the stars looked like. The sky was amazing! There's no moon tonight and there is hardly any light pollution. This is pretty much how I ended each night up here. You'll see a few more of these kinds of shots as the trip report continues.

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