All posts in category National Parks

Bonnie and Kim Go to Yosemite (Part 2 of 2)

Part of the fun of being in a national park is the people you meet. I think being surrounded by all that beauty and feeling small in the enormity of creation brings out the best in people.

During our 3.5 days in Yosemite, we met an adorable family from Germany. Actually, I met so many Germans that I wondered who was left over there. This particular family captured my heart as they consisted of parents approaching my age and four sons who appeared to be in their twenties.

The young men were having a blast climbing on everything. They had beautiful walking sticks which were scavenged from the forest floor. I noticed one of the guys with his slung over his shoulder. When I questioned his unusual way of using a walking stick on this mostly uphill trail, he began using it in normal fashion and said that it was much more helpful that way. This began a conversation that continued on and off as we hiked the 1.9 miles of Washburn Trail toward Mariposa Grove.

Washburn Trail is purported to be a moderate hike. It is mostly uphill and this Florida girl knew she was no longer at sea level. The elevation was 7500 feet, which made it more necessary than usual to take a break to breathe. The German family was also taking breaks (I’m sure for the sake of the parents). This enabled our ongoing conversation.

As we were admiring their walking sticks, one fellow offered proudly that his brother was the finder of walking sticks. After hesitating for effect, he added, and wasps. His outstretched hand revealed the swelling resultant from encountering the wasps. Kim offered first aid, which was declined. She said she was sure she would be in tears with that kind of swelling.

The young man’s response was simple, “We don’t cry in Germany.” And then they all climbed up a big bolder and posed for pictures for their mama. How I missed my own sons as I watched this sweet group.

We also met the Simon Says guy. Steve Max is a professional Simon Says caller who has frequented pre-game shows of teams including the Orlando Magic. He was camera shy, but I googled him and discovered he is as real as bigfoot Half Dome.

We never saw any bears on this trip, but there were signs everywhere to warn of their presence. I spoke to another group of German women who asked if I had seen any bears and I admitted I had not. At least not since I was home in Florida where they do frequent my backyard. This blew their minds as they confessed to knowledge of alligators in Florida but not bears. I shared my backyard video and from the looks on their faces I am sure that they will never come to Florida for fear of our wildlife. I assured them that Interstate 4 is far more dangerous than any animal they might encounter.

My backyard visitor here in the Orlando suburbs.

In Mariposa Grove we met a three-generation Amish family who were camping just outside the park in BLM (Bureau of Land Management) territory. I was unaware of this cost-free option, but when they informed of us the rigors of BLM camping, I could see why I never came across it on a google search. There are no electrical hook-ups, no showers, no potties – just land. This group told us of bringing in their own water and latrine system. Every one of the children had their hair done nicely and they were dressed so cute. They were super polite and friendly. The only thing that gave away the lack of easy access to water was their dirty feet. Makes sense. Dirty feet mean lots of outdoor fun.

Another thing of note to be found in Yosemite is the plague. I don’t think it is of Biblical proportion, but there are signs warning people to stay away from wildlife – especially cute wildlife like chipmunks and ground squirrels, whose fleas can carry the disease. Just one more reason to give animals a wide berth.

One of the strangest things which I encountered in the park and something I think my grandchildren would struggle to identify, even with a smart phone, was in the Glacier Point area. This was a relic of the twentieth century. Conjecture would say it’s there because of poor internet availability. At least you could dial 911, though that may need to be made clearer for coming generations.

By this point of the trip, I was half crazed with trying to identify landmarks, birds, and trees with my iPhone. I so wanted it to get things right. My phone did not offer any explanation as to what this was. It did not even say it was Half Dome, which was a pleasant surprise.

Along the lines of “Take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints,” I had to wonder who was trying to abscond with the heavy picnic tables scattered throughout the park. Is this kind of deterrent really necessary?

One thing we did take that I’ll share with you as long as you promise not to report us, is rocks. Full disclosure, there may have been a few pinecones, too. I think they have enough and more seem to be falling all the time, but Kim is obsessed with rocks and that rubbed off on me. As I was flying this trip, I did not have the luxury of collecting a lot of rocks, but while we were down at the edge of a stream, I found the prettiest little rock with pink and blue through it. I showed it to Kim and said there must be a be another one around here somewhere. Maybe it chipped off a bigger rock. The excitement was building for this one-of-a-kind rock. Then, as I rubbed it with my fingers to get dirt off, it became rubbery and I realized I had found a piece of chewed up gum.

I did not bring this sappy pinecone home.

How can I sum up my Yosemite experience? In one word – WOW! Kim and I kept coming back to this simple word as all adjectives had been used and overused to describe the beauty around us. I will share some of my favorite pictures with you and when you think, WOW, remember that a picture can only capture a small portion of how majestic and beautiful this park truly is.

Also, a big thank you to my sweet husband for making it possible for me to join my friend in his favorite park. If he ever has the opportunity to visit Yellowstone without me, I’ll have to remember how gracious he was.

If you’d like to read about Kim’s adventure, she is on Instagram #following_helen

6 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on November 8, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Animals, Friendship, National Parks, People that I Meet, Travel
Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on November 8, 2024

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2024/11/08/bonnie-and-kim-go-to-yosemite-part-2-of-2/

Bonnie and Kim Go to Yosemite! (Part 1)

Preface: If you are a regular reader, you know that I travel a fair amount, usually with my husband. This is helpful in many ways, but none more than in his ability to read a map and know which way is north. I am directionally challenged and get overwhelmed when I’m taking in a lot of information. He keeps me headed in the right direction and has almost an eidetic memory when it comes to geography.

“Really?” you may ask. Well, that is my opinion but don’t tell him because it will go right to his head. Even if he doesn’t, he makes his claims of what-is-what with such certainty that I rarely question him. Then I can go merrily on my way to whatever comes up next.

On this trip, Bob was not my travel partner. I was privileged to travel with my friend, Kim, who is also somewhat navigationally impaired. But I digress. First let me tell you where I went, but savvy reader, I know you are quite the smart cookie, I’ll bet you already know. Following is the account of my trip:

Yosemite rocks! My jaw dropped at the fresh beauty of every turn, but after three and a half days of taking it all in, I remained confused as to the true identity of the granite wonders. You might take it for granted that I could identify the main rock formations and waterfalls since I have been to Yosemite twice, but it’s been twenty years, so I needed to refresh my knowledge. There are a lot of players, so I knew I’d need to smarten up a bit. No problem I have a smart phone.

Smart. That versatile little adjective. One can be a smart aleck, a smarty pants, book smart, street smart, regular smart, i.e. intelligent, or a smart dresser. While I may not be considered a smart dresser in my travel outfit, I made smart choices of walking sandals paired with compression hose for my cross-continental flight. Since San Jose, CA, was hitting 100 degrees when I landed, I could easily let my Florida feet out of their confines once I disembarked from the plane.

One can and likely does have a smart phone, which should make the owner appear even smarter with all the knowledge of the universe in the palm of your hand.

It doesn’t always work that way, though.

I was stoked to embark on a trip to Yosemite with my friend of many decades, Kim Sutter. Kim was having quite the adventure retracing the eight-week trip which her grandmother and her grandmother’s friend made from Michigan westward through many national parks in 1930. Unheard of at a time when most women didn’t know how to drive, these intrepid twenty-something year-olds drove a 1929 Model-A Ford Standard Coupe and were guided by a 1930 Shell Oil Company map. Kim and I traveled in an air-conditioned Toyota RAV4, which is quite the improvement.

Kim, who lives in Oklahoma and is a member of my zoom writers’ group, is writing a book about these parallel adventures and the impact her grandmother had on her life. Her journey was the best kind of research and extremely well-planned by my super-organized friend. As with any trip, there were a few things for which she could not have planned. Not unlike the deaths of celebrities, Kim’s changes of plans came close together and in a set of three.

Thankfully they weren’t as dire as someone dying, but they did involve a death of Kim’s original plan. Each of her two adult daughters and her mother had been set to do separate legs of the trip with Kim. All three of these women had circumstances prevent them from the original plan within about two weeks of Kim’s scheduled departure. Kim called me to give me the updates and I could hear the sadness in her voice. Yet, she was determined that God knew what the plan ultimately would be and that she would take the fifty-day trek on her own. She is brave.

As I recounted these new details to Bob and told him I wished I could go be with my friend, I could see that travel spark in his eyes. Within a couple of hours, we were on the phone with Kim proposing that I join her in Yosemite and encouraging her to take a few days to respond to our idea so she wouldn’t feel put on the spot. Long story short, I booked a flight to California.

It had been years since Kim and I were together in person. Our journey together was easy, and our conversations covered a wide span as we took in the beauty of Northern California.

Cedar Lodge in El Portal is one of the closer hotels to Yosemite National Park – a lovely 15-minute drive to the entrance. It affords exquisite views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, some of which we could see through the gaps around the entry door to our room. If you are staying near the national parks, you should know that the hotels are pricey and may not have had updates since the Roosevelt administration, but that’s part of the historic charm of the areas.

We assumed that the flying insects around the light fixtures in our room, which must have found entry through our door-gap view of the mountains, were part of the outdoor experience. Kim admitted she did not pay extra for them. The insects were on the house.

Access to the internet should also not be assumed when traveling to these remote areas. I inquired of our innkeeper if there was a maximum number of devices per room to obtain use of Wi-Fi. He laughed out loud, which disturbed the lobby full of people who were trying to get close to the hotel’s Wi-Fi source. Kim and I found three usable outlets to charge our devices (one in the bathroom and another hidden behind my bed). Reminding yourself that you are roughing it and seeing some of the most beautiful sights which God created is helpful to keep things in perspective. Kim’s grandmother would have gotten a kick out of our lack of modern conveniences.

Although I can pull up a map on my phone that shows grids for ease of navigation, much of Yosemite was off the grid, so checking in with the park ranger is a smart thing to do. While their maps are not inclusive of every turn, they are vital to getting around because sometimes signage can be missed while you are gawking at the latest magnificent waterfall or rock formation.

Bridalveil Falls was the highlight of the waterfalls for us, mainly because the other falls we could have seen were dry due to a prolonged dry season. You can see from the picture how wide the falls typically can be.

One day while we were finalizing our plans with Ranger Mark, I asked him to help me identify the main rock formations. My smart phone was driving me crazy.

Half Dome

Three of the most famous rock formations of Yosemite are Half Dome, El Capitan, and the Three Brothers. Half Dome looms large over the park at 5000 feet over the valley floor. My iPhone is obsessed with Half Dome. I showed Ranger Mark my picture of what I thought was El Capitan, which I had captured outside of the Yosemite Valley Welcome Center. I clicked the little i icon and it revealed the landmark Half Dome. I clicked on a different picture of El Capitan, and it said Yosemite National Park. Ranger Mark assured me that my picture was not Half Dome, as my alleged smartphone claimed. It was El Capitan. Half Dome may be the big deal of the day, but it is not everything!

El Capitan

My conclusion is that my smartphone is not all-knowing and Ranger Mark agrees. He said I should report it but that sounded like work to me, and I was on vacation!

Instead, I bought myself a handy-dandy rock identifier to help me along my way. But now I have doubts, and I am still semi-obsessed with having my iPhone identify things correctly.

This morning before I sat down to write this post, I took a picture of a bird on my feeder. I used my iPhone, of course, and zoomed in and then clicked the stupid little icon to identify the bird. It said, “Look up landmark.” This was not helpful, but I did take the time to report it to the good people at Apple. They need to get their act together before the whole world is unable to tell the difference between El Capitan and Half Dome. At least the phone did not identify the bird on my feeder as Half Dome.

For now, I’ll leave you with a cliffhanger appropriate to the park. Will Bonnie ever figure out the names of the rocks? Part 2 is to come…

4 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on October 31, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Friendship, National Parks, Stuff I Go Through
Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on October 31, 2024

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2024/10/31/bonnie-and-kim-go-to-yosemite-part-1/

Cozy Conflicts

As I sit at my computer typing this post, I am looking at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and my backyard. The view of my backyard needs no explanation, of course. My water bottle cozy which dons a rendering of that national park explains the rest. Plus, it makes me happy. A pair of nene (Hawaiian geese) are observing the eruption and yet somehow choose not to flee the scene even though they can fly. I smile. Silly goose. Silly artist.

Two years ago, Bob and I visited that park, and we saw the nene. Now I can look at it from the cover of my sweating water bottle all the while keeping my hands dry. It’s a modern-day, neoprene convenience which is underappreciated. I mean, no more wet hands from drinking a cold drink from a disposable can or bottle, plus you know which drink is yours. It truly is the simple things that can bring happiness.

I used to collect mugs from places we visited, but that practice filled our cabinets to overflowing. Transporting the breakable and bulky souvenirs in my luggage was also problematic. I need to confess right here and now, though, that I do on occasion grab a mug from our travels. When I do, I promise myself that I will get rid of another mug to keep the mug population down to a minimum. That reminds me, I need to go throw out a couple of mugs when I finish writing this, but I digress.

Collecting can koozies® just makes sense, except for one thing. That is the great controversy surrounding their names. Koozie is a trademark. Similar products may be called a coozie or a cozy, but they are simply avoiding trademark infringement. I’m not sure how that all works, but to me it’s like calling a tissue a Kleenex or a copier a Xerox machine, or even worse since I am a former Tupperware dealer, a plastic container Tupperware. You get the picture, and there I go again.

I don’t like to bring up the past, especially if it makes me look like an out-of-control idiot, but collecting things makes me happy. Can koozies offer a great improvement over other things I’ve collected, such as the over-priced yet adorable Lizzie High dolls, or Great Era and Christmas Barbie dolls which needed to remain NRFB (never removed from box), and two of which are currently on a top closet shelf, largely forgotten and their fate undetermined since all my granddaughters have outgrown that stuff and I forgot to pass them along. Or there were the happy meal toys which I collected when my kids were young. I always got myself a meal so I could have the satisfaction of completing the collection all the while eating cheeseburgers and fries every Friday with my kids.

Now I try to limit myself to collecting koozies and friends. The koozies fit nicely in a kitchen drawer and the friends fit nicely in my life without taking up cabinet space.

My friend, Doug, knew of my cozy collection, so he added a couple of dozen freebees which he had gathered over the years. That’s why I have some random racing cozies, which I try to relegate to my car, because I don’t care if they get left somewhere. Sorry, Doug.

By now you have probably forgotten the name of this post and how it fits into this rambling story. Cozy conflict is what happens when I accidentally drink out of Bob’s koozie-covered water bottle right after he has taken his daily dose of dozens of pills, including fish oil, or worse when he accidentally uses my water bottle to take his pills.

Lightbulb moment: I have just come to the realization that while I have collected weird stuff in my life, for instance bottle caps when I was a kid, Bob collects pills – both prescription and supplements. His collection is large, but it seems to be keeping him alive, so no complaints there. But fish oil leaves an awful taste in my mouth, that is why I refuse to take it. When Bob accidentally picks up my Hawaii Volcanoes koozie instead of his Sedona, Arizona, one, which looks strikingly similar to Hawaii, I know there has been fish oil in the proximity of my water bottle.

Of course, Bob is emphatic that he doesn’t backwash, and I choose to believe him. Fish oil seems to have an overwhelming presence that defies all backwashing principles and gets its essence into Bob’s water bottle somehow. My disdain at tasting fish oil is always obvious and confusing to Bob. How can I be that sensitive? Yet, he chooses to believe me when I tell him that I sense it like a dolphin senses whatever dolphin chase down to eat. (Forgive me for not googling that.) This is why we have a strong marriage.

While we’re on the topic of water bottles, I apologize to the planet for the number of them that we use. We do recycle, but it’s dubious how effective that is. Bob, on the other hand, will use the same water bottle all day long. He refills it from the filtered water in the refrigerator. Sometimes he may use the bottle for multiple days until I see a police-like line-up of them in the refrigerator – his way of keeping them cool. Then some will mysteriously disappear with a slight-of-hand my magician father would have appreciated.

None of this is a big deal in our 49-year-old marriage. It is part of the quirks which I get to share on my blog but he does not because he doesn’t write a blog. To sum up: Bob drinks a lot of water and has no concept of can koozie etiquette. It’s his one and only fault. (Need I mention here that Bob reads my blog?)

So, if you come to my house and find or leave a water bottle around, no worries. Bob will take care of it for you unless I find it first and water the plants with it. Bob would just drink it or put it in the line-up.

Leave a comment
by Bonnie Anderson on September 12, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in marriage, National Parks
Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on September 12, 2024

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2024/09/12/cozy-conflicts/

Lava, Oh Boy! (Hawaii Volcanoes National Park)

When Bob and I set foot in Volcanoes National Park last October, it was as if we had never been there. Our prior visit was for our 25th anniversary, back in 2000. Kilauea had a devastating eruption in 2018, which changed the geography drastically. I did recognize a building that formerly was a gift shop and information area, but it is now deemed unsafe and is barricaded off to the public.

I’m no scientist, which I’m sure you have figured out by now, but I have learned a thing or maybe even two about volcanoes. First, they can hang around a long time without doing really much of anything except looking majestic and/or foreboding. Second, when they have a major eruption, everything changes.

Top row of pictures is before 2018 eruption; bottom row is after.

“In 2018, a new eruption of Kīlauea volcano changed the island of Hawai‘i forever. From May through August, large lava flows covered land southeast of the park destroying over 700 homes and devastating residential areas in the Puna District. At the same time, the summit area of the park was dramatically changed by tens of thousands of earthquakes, towering ash plumes, and a massive collapse of Kīlauea caldera.” – https://www.nps.gov/havo/learn/nature/2018-eruption.htm

“On May 3rd 2018, the first fissure of the eruption opened up in a residential subdivision, Leilani Estates. The following day, on May 4th, the island was struck by a magnitude 6.9 earthquake as magma continued its move to the Lower East Rift Zone. Over the next two months, lava covered 13.7 square miles of land, several dozens of feet deep in places. The flows in the Lower East Rift Zone destroyed 700 homes, displaced over 2,000 people, covered 30 miles of road, and added an astounding 875 acres of new land to the island.” – https://www.nps.gov/havo/learn/nature/2018-eruption.htm

I confess, I didn’t really think about the “You Are Here” sign until I looked back at the pictures. I was too busy taking in everything to realize the here where I was seemed very close to the slope to Kilauea’s caldera. Maybe this isn’t to scale. Either way, I made it out without falling, slipping, or sliding into anything. That kept in step with our goal of not injuring ourselves.

Since I have practically no sense of direction, I rely on signs like this to get me around. Bob loves maps and likes to impress people with his ability to say things like, “Go east at the crossroad.” That kind of talk just makes me angry. I only know where east is if it’s sunrise or sunset, like a normal person.

On the way to view the eruption viewing area, we passed several young trees which were making their way through the volcanic soil, lifting their arms to the sky. I’m not sure who put the rocks around them for protection, but this was a perfect example of new life being protected while it emerges after destruction and devastation.

And there it was. Eruption is not always like you see in the movies. Eruptions go on constantly through fissures in the mountain. When we arrived at this place, there was a large crowd gathered. I did my best to avoid them and grab a quiet volcano caldera moment. I used binoculars to see the lava flow, which was hard to spot and looked tiny from my vantage point.

Meanwhile, Bob was circulating among the crowd, none of whom had binoculars. He was sharing his and pointing out the lava flow. And, as it turned out, he was schmoozing with the Governor of Hawaii, David Ige, who also borrowed Bob’s binoculars as he surveyed the lava flow while touring the national park. (You would think that somebody would have remembered to bring binoculars!) Most of the crowd were not tourists but part of the entourage of the Governor.

In keeping with my love of signs, soon we were faced with the decision of heading to devastation or not. We did not, but I loved the fact that a sign would lead you to devastation. Maybe the National Park Department does have a sense of humor.

This is one of my favorite signs and I photographed it in honor of our friend, Cliff, who is anything but unstable. We have no need to beware of him.

This area reminded me of Yellowstone National Park with its steam vents, which Yellowstone calls fumaroles. Here they were just referred to as steam vents and they lined the hiking trail.

On our way back to our resort, we passed the most dangerous place of all, Mauna Loa, the macadamia nut factory, not the mountain. The sign said “free samples,” so we veered off the road to get a macadamia nut fix. We managed to buy what became an extra suitcase full of chocolate-covered macadamias, onion flavored macadamias, and Hawaiian sea salt macadamias, most of which we could have picked up at Costco. We went nuts and were totally unable to resist the lure of the macadamia. I’d say anyplace that is offering yummy chocolate covered macadamias and is technically on a volcano qualifies as dangerous.

Mauna Loa, the mountain/volcano which is part of Volcanoes National Park, not the candy factory, erupted in 1843. This is the earliest, well-documented eruption. It has erupted dozens of times since, sometimes with months or even decades between eruptions. We were in Hawaii in October. Just weeks later, Mauna Loa erupted again. Click here to see the grandeur and destructiveness of that eruption.

We were thankful to have gone to this unique national park on the beautiful island of Hawaii. Also, in our pursuit of checking off as many national parks as possible, this is a good one. It and Haleakala are the two farthest from our home in Florida and we feel privileged to have visited them twice.

2 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on April 20, 2023  •  Permalink
Posted in Costco, National Parks, Travel
Tagged , , , , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on April 20, 2023

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2023/04/20/lava-oh-boy-hawaii-volcanoes-national-park/

The Road to Hana

In my last Hawaii post I told you about our trip to Haleakala National Park. What I didn’t realize 22 years ago was that there is another entrance to the park that is only accessed on the Road to Hana, after you pass the town of Hana. Within that more remote part of the park was the other main reason why I wanted to return to Maui.

The Pools of ‘Ohe’o have been more commonly referred to as the Seven Sacred Pools. The National Park Service and the state of Hawaii are trying to teach us the actual name, but you know how we are. Also, there are many more than seven pools, especially depending on how rainy it has been. Legend has it that they got their familiar name in the 1940s from an employee of the Hotel Hana-Maui to market this then-secret place to tourists. I must say – it worked!

I first heard about this special location in the 1994 movie IQ. Meg Ryan dreams about going there on her honeymoon. She muses that swimming in the Seven Sacred Pools is said to feel like “a million kisses on your skin” because of how aerated the water is. That does sound special, and the definition of the word “‘ohe’o” just happens to be “something special.” I suppose the actual name Pools of ‘Ohe’o would not exactly have rolled off Meg’s tongue in the movie dialogue, but my interest was piqued, so I’ve been wanting to see this area since 1994. (Not enough to figure out how to see it in 2020, though. I blame that on having teenagers at home, limited brain space for planning, and eternal fatigue. Plus, there were no iPhones.)

Before you pretend to get in our rented jeep with me and see the sites – a little background on the parks. In 1916 Hawaii National Park got its official designation. It included Haleakala on Maui and Hawaii Volcanoes on the Big Island. It took until 1961 for them to figure out that this was just weird and that’s when they were separated into two distinct parks.

On October 3, we climbed into our yellow rental jeep and began our journey. Maui’s Road to Hana meanders roughly 60 miles. Once on the road, you turn left, then right approximately 617 times before you arrive in Hana – about three hours later. There are many blind turns and 56 bridges, several of which are one-way only. It is not for the faint of heart or those who easily get car sick. But it is amazingly beautiful.

As soon as we got on the road, it began to rain, and it continued all day. Bob and I had done this part of the trip before, so that lessened the disappointment. We downloaded the shaka guide, which kept us on point as to what we were seeing. He tells you when to stop and when to drive past and gives some history mixed with Hawaiian music along the way. He makes sure you get banana bread as this seems to be an integral part of the trip. This is a current version of audio tours – quite an improvement over the cassette tape we had in 2000.

I chose to do my sightseeing mainly through the car window, but Bob would get out and do short walks. The waterfalls were fully on display due to all the rain, so there’s that.

The sea was rough that day (as seen through the car window).

We had a (required) reservation at Wai’anapanapa State Park, which is just a few miles from Hana, from 3-6 PM. Thankfully, the rain had stopped. Wai’anapanapa means glistening waters. It is home to one of the famous black sand beaches and has stunning views. Among the beauty on display there was a Hawaiian monk seal. He was going through the molting process so he wasn’t too energetic. He was guarded but fine to pose for pictures.

Years ago mongoose were brought to the islands to combat the rat problem in the sugarcane. The problem was not solved as mongoose are diurnal and rats and nocturnal.

Water shoes are obviously necessary here as the black sand and volcanic rock don’t exactly squish between your toes.

The dry weather that was forecast for the following day, magically appeared and we were ready to embark to our much anticipated destination – the Seven Sacred Pools Pools of ‘Ohe’o. Staying in Hana for the night is a good idea if you want to do the entire loop in daylight.

This sign reflects the island mentality. No matter that it’s leaning. It’s all good.

We stopped for coffee, Hawaiian style and began the ten-mile drive to Haleakala National Park.

We heard rumors that we would not be able to complete the entire road because of the rains from the day before. Undaunted, we climbed into our trusty jeep

Pipiwai Trail is said to be one of the most beautiful trails in Hawaii. We decided to do it second. All energy available must go to seeing those pools! After we saw the pools, we headed onto the Pipiwai Trail. This is what it looked like – so beautiful and so many roots to trip over. We happily turned back in keeping with our main goal of not injuring ourselves.

The first glimpses of the pools were captivating, and it just got better and better as we walked along the water’s edge. Here we spotted another Hawaiian monk seal enter the water from the beach. Here I just wanted to sit and be still while I took in all the beauty. You must go there if at all possible!

When Bob was able to pull me away, we slowly walked back to the trailhead and wandered through the park. It’s magnificent. When we left the park, the ranger told us that the road was out ahead, but you never know, it may be fixed before we got there. We were game. We passed several fruit stands along the way.

Our inevitable end of the road soon appeared. We did a u-turn and headed back the way we came. It was disappointing but it was hard to be too upset given all the beauty we had seen on the Road to Hana. Plus, with this being a sunny day we could stop and see the rainbow eucalyptus at the Keanae Arboretum. We had seen them 22 years prior and they continue to stand out as one of my favorite Hawaiian things.

It is so grievous to deface these lovely trees, but I wanted you to see a close-up of how beautiful the colors are.

Take time to smell the eucalyptus!

We were near the end of our journey and the Shaka Guide told us to pull over one more time. This is a beach where women’s surfing competitions take place. Parasailing and windsurfing, as well as regular surfing, were all happening as we cast our eyes down the beach.

And there were turtles – green sea turtles, or honu, which is their Hawaiian name. This is the largest of the sea turtles. We were there toward the end of nesting season. There must have been 20 or more of them.

So ended our Road to Hana. We did not expect to see so many turtles or a Hawaiian monk seal. We did think we’d make it all the way around the loop, but that’s the thing about nature and weather – things are subject to a change in the elements and that’s okay. We’re thankful.

5 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on February 16, 2023  •  Permalink
Posted in National Parks, Travel
Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on February 16, 2023

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2023/02/16/the-road-to-hana/

Haleakala National Park

Have you ever thought about the things you have intentionally or even inadvertently done that influence people in your life, especially your children? I attribute my fascination with Hawaii and my love of national parks to my dad. When I was about nine years old, our family of six camped across the country in our modified VW microbus. We stopped at some of the biggies – Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Sequoia, and Rocky Mountain National Park. I loved being in the parks and still consider them high up on my list of happy places.

Bob and I have made this trip with our four children, so we now understand what an undertaking it was and how we probably had more fun than our parents did, though they appreciated it more.

My dad and little sister Linda posing in front of one of the iconic signs. My nine-year-old self took this with my brand new camera.

I think my love and fascination of Hawaii came about a bit more subliminally. Dad made several business trips there and took lots of pictures, which were viewed as slides. That was the choice medium of the day – I don’t know why! Believe it or not, sometimes we kids would ask our parents if we could watch home movies and slides. If you can remember a time before the internet and cable TV, that makes more sense.

The problem was, every time we’d ask him to set up the projectors so we could see how cute we all were when we were younger, the first thing he would show us was Hawaii. He loved Hawaii and communicated that well and often, but when you’re a kid you can only sit through so many landscapes and beach scenes before you mentally check out. Something must have stuck in my brain though, because as an adult, Hawaii was on the top of my list of places to visit.

Fast forward to the year 2000. Bob and I celebrated our 25th anniversary with a trip to Hawaii. My dad was very excited to help with the planning. He had saved every brochure from his trips there in the 1960s. He presented them to us, I’m sure, with joyful memories hula-dancing through his head. We stared at them in only slight disbelief that he saved these black and white relics from over three decades ago. “Thanks, Dad!”

Fast forward another 22 years and Hawaii was calling us again. We had two major things in Maui that were unfinished from the year 2000 trip – both involved the spectacular Haleakala National Park, which we visited then. It’s a big park, and it is famous for its sunrises. People make reservations to be transported to the summit for coveted glimpses of the sun rising and then a bike ride down the mountain. On our 25th anniversary trip, we opted out of this because we would have had to leave our resort at 3:00 in the morning to get to the top on time. Sunrises are not dependable, as clouds and rain can quite literally put a damper on them, so you go with that in mind as well. In that season of our lives, we had four kids at home, and there wasn’t much to entice me out of bed at that time of day – not even Haleakala. We have regretted this decision, so when we booked this trip back in January, we determined to embrace that adventure.

That was before I broke my shoulder in February. Would we embrace the biking adventure? Could I embrace the biking adventure? Could I even keep a good hold on the handlebars? Can we wake up at 2:30 in the morning? We decided to hold it loosely – kind of like I would have to hold handlebars on a bike.

My shoulder was doing pretty well, definitely well enough to ride a bike, but my stamina was another thing. Plus, we would be riding along the side of the mountain road for a few hours and my entire body, much less my shoulder, was untested in this arena. Add to that I was beginning to suspect that Hawaii was trying to kill me as everything was just so hard compared to 22 years earlier. I was beginning to lose my drive.

Could 22 years make that much difference? YES! Throw in the broken shoulder and lack of movement for so much of this calendar year, mix it with altitude and elevation changes, and that could be a recipe for a last meal. Even Bob, who continues to mock me by playing pickleball three times a week, was hesitant on this one. We talked about it for a few days and then opted out. It was the mix of getting up early and riding down the mountain all the while remembering that our main goal of this trip was not to injure ourselves. And, we were tired. We were managing to keep up the pace of this trip only by fueling with coffee and diet coke. So, unlike our anniversary trip, we have no regrets.

Where there are sunrises on a mountain top, there must also be sunsets. We’d simply have to look the opposite way. Yep, we’re sunset people, so we headed to the park late morning to do some hiking and would arrive at the summit in time to get a good spot to relax and watch the show.

Our first stop in the park was Hosmer Grove, which was advised for birdwatching.

There is something special about feeling small in the forest.

After hiking through the forest we came to a clearing looking down on a tree covered valley. The birding here is mainly small song birds so I didn’t get any good pictures, but this place was a real treat. We did see several beautiful, red I’iwi and a few yellow ‘Amakihi flitting from tree to tree. This was a most relaxing hike. Bird watching takes my mind off of what my feet are doing.

Photos are from Hawaii.gov online guide to Hawaii’s birds. These beauties were too fast and small to capture with my iPhone.

Thankfully, driving up Haleakala is relatively easy. It’s a slow drive but the landscape is fantastic. We got out periodically and did little off the road hikes and were afforded breathtaking views along the way to its 10,023 foot summit.

This cliff at Kalahaku Overlook had interesting vegetation popping up from the rugged terrain. I loved how the blue sky gave way to the clouds. Literally one minute later we saw this:

Fogbow – I had never heard of them. Fascinating!

Not only are there lots of paths up mountains, Hawaii likes to throw in stairs, too. I guess they like to mix it up.

We made it to the summit and took in the views while walking slowly as the air was a little thin. Also, this was our moment of truth. Would we stay for the sunset? We arrived here at 4:30, over five hours since this journey began, and people were setting up chairs and blankets. We got one of the last parking places.

Japanese Quail

I think this looks like something out of a science fiction movie. It’s the Haleakala Observatories on the summit.

This picture was taken from the top of Haleakala at 4:50 PM. Doesn’t it look like we’re in an airplane? There was still more than an hour until official sunset time not including the beauty that would follow until dark. But, as had become the norm for us in Hawaii, by this time of day we were very tired. Our resort restaurant was having prime rib night. Hummmmm

The trip down the mountain would be over three hours if we waited until the sunset was over. We would be driving in the dark on roads without guardrails in traffic. We would miss prime rib and probably grab fast food. What should we do?

Prime rib? Beautiful sunset? Prime rib? Sunset?

Well, the prime rib was delicious.

The drive down the mountain was lovely. There was no traffic as everyone was heading up. We stopped and took in some great views. And, like I said the prime rib was delicious.

We drove down to this area and were blessed with more beauty and fog bows.

I was enjoying some final views near the top of the mountain when Bob started heading back to our rental jeep. It’s not exactly walking into the sunset, but it’ll do!

4 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on November 10, 2022  •  Permalink
Posted in aging, Birding, National Parks, Stuff I Go Through, Travel
Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on November 10, 2022

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2022/11/10/haleakala-national-park/

We are Puzzled

Usually summer is a time to kick back, relax by the pool, go to the beach, visit with family and friends, take a vacation, and so much more. For our family it also means game playing and jigsaw puzzles. But this is not the usual summer. While still able to do many of the above-mentioned things, we have done an exorbitant amount of puzzles. In all fairness, though, that began back in March. We took a little break during June as our eyes were glazing over after doing a couple of 1000 piecers with writing on them so small we had to use magnifiers, but the puzzling continued after that short respite.

As I’ve mentioned before, puzzles are in short supply around the country. We have borrowed and lent out puzzles. We have done every puzzle in our closet with the exception of the holiday/winter ones. I have even gotten in a virtual line at http://www.libertypuzzles.com to purchase a single puzzle. They simply cannot keep up. It took two weeks before my name made it to the top of the list and then I had 24 hours to place my order – one per customer. It is due to arrive this week. I’m so excited. Yes, it’s come to that. I’m excited about getting a new puzzle.

Also, my favorite local used bookstore, BrightLight Books, has taken some of my puzzles on trade (or they’ll pay you a reduced price – http://www.brightlightbooks.com). I love that store and they were happy to have the puzzles which caused eyestrain to Bob and me.

Picking out the perfect puzzle to reflect the mood of the day can be challenging. When I saw this Blockbuster puzzle, it took me back to 1975, the year I was married; and people were impacted in such a great way by a single movie that the beaches were a lot less crowded that year.

Of course we had to go birding. This 1000-piece puzzle about did us in. I’m sure someone has bought it by now and is cursing the day they did – unless, of course, they are under 40.

 

Yellowstone National Park and Grand Canyon National Park were on our puzzle travel list.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We did a quick pass of all the major national parks as well.

 

 

 

Bob wanted to go to the place where golf was invented. No problem.

I insisted on more bird watching.

We really loved our trip to Utah which we took two years ago. It was nice to revisit.

But I don’t know what I was thinking when we did the map of Bryce Canyon. Maps, maps, maps. Sigh… Bob wouldn’t let me quit though, even though the printing on the puzzle was miniscule.

This was as tall as we let our tower of puzzles get. Oh, this is not all that we did, but it is still a fun memory.

 

Enjoy your summer as best you can. We have a lot to be thankful for, and if you’re in my area, you can always stop by and borrow a puzzle.

5 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on July 16, 2020  •  Permalink
Posted in Current Events, Family, National Parks
Tagged , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on July 16, 2020

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2020/07/16/we-are-puzzled/

High in Colorado

The final destination of our Arizona trip was Colorado Springs, where we were going to meet up with family. That was what gave us the thought to go to Sedona and check it off our bucket list, you know, as long as we were in the area. By “in the area,” I mean some place out west.

We traveled via rental car from Sedona to Colorado, thereby allowing us to check off another national park from our national park list. We like lists. Be they bucket, national park, grocery, to-do, birthday, or Christmas – we are very pro list.

We were given a welcome to Colorado which was worthy of any westward-ho band of travelers. I loved their sign and the view in the distance. I wish I could tell you the route we took because it seemed to be off the beaten path, but alas I have no idea where we were. Frankly, I didn’t care. I left all that to my trusty engineer who loves maps almost as much as he loves me.

I wonder if people in Colorado notice its beauty on a daily basis. I hope they don’t take it for granted like I sometimes do the palm trees and beaches where I live. Maybe that’s why it’s extra special for those of us from flat Florida. Any hill is a novelty in Orlando, so those Rocky Mountains almost put me on my face. Gawking at the scenery was a huge part of the trip.

The reason for our specific route was so we could stop at Great Sand Dunes National Park. It contains the tallest dunes in North America. From a distance we could see the dunes lined up along the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. As we drove closer, we could see the clear demarcation of mountainside, dunes, and water.

Dunes in the distance

You have to cross Medano Creek to get to the dunes.

The temperature was still much lower than normal, and the wind was making it feel even cooler. These things combined made the decision to look at instead of hike through the dunes an easy one. We watched children floating along Medano Creek as others waded through it to get (to the other side) to the Dunes. We grabbed our sandwiches and sat at a picnic table shivering and enjoying the view. It was a quick visit, but it counts!

We spent Memorial Day weekend in Colorado Springs, and may I say I highly recommend it. Plus, the weather finally caught up with the calendar and I began to thaw out. The time spent with family and friends there was memorable. The views of the mountains would have been enough for me, but when you add in golf for the guys and spa time for the ladies – it doesn’t get much better than that. Unless you get daring and stretch yourself out of your comfort zone.

Most of our group decided to go zip-lining at Seven Falls, which I believe is now owned by the Broadmoor. Bob and I had hiked around Seven Falls during a past trip with our son and his family, before this zip-line existed. I had zip-lined before, and I thought it might be fun to do it again, but what I did before barely prepared me for this course. This course includes 5 zip-lines, 2 rope bridges (over canyons, way over canyons), and a 180-foot assisted rappel, which felt more like being lowered, but that was freaky enough for me.

Bob and I in our gear

The adventure began with a van trip up a mountain where they pulled off the side of the road and dropped us off. We hiked down to our practice area where we were outfitted with 15 pounds of gear and given a ten-minute instruction followed by a 10-second practice zip-line. Then we climbed the ladder to our first zip-line.

The first three were fun and easy, but they simply prepared you for what was ahead, which was two terrifying-looking rope bridges and two more zip-lines across the canyon above the tree line. These two zips are so far from start to finish that you cannot really see where you are going, but we followed our trusty guides (one in front and one behind).

New zip line adventure awaits at Seven Falls in Colorado Springs

photo credit: gazette.com

At the bridges there is a point of no return. We lost three of our group at that point (not the tragic type of loss). They were happy to have done the three zip-lines and happy to take pictures from below so they turned back.

Surprisingly, I was not one of the three. I maneuvered across the rope bridges even stopping to look down at the canyon and do some bird watching from the bird’s point of view. I cannot say enough good things about our guides. They really put me at ease. We were told to maintain three points of contact across the bridges at all times. No problem!

After the rope bridges came the two main zip-lines. The guide would take one of the lines which was attached to us, remove it from where it was hooked on the center post of the platform (which has no railings, by the way), and attach it to the zip-line. She repeats the process with the second line so we are always secure. The first guide soars across the canyon and waits as one-by-one we leave the security of our elevated platform to soar across the canyon. The second guide follows the last person.

This takes a bit of time as they recheck all of our equipment and send the group of 6 or 7 of us across individually. When I was waiting on the platform, I was pretty calm but I did become best friends with that center post to which I was attached.

The final zip-line is a quarter of a mile long. It takes about 45 second to cross it and it was exhilarating! I loved it.

The most awkward part was the rappel. You had to kind of step and lean out off of the platform before you (slowly) plunged to the ground. It wasn’t bad once I figured it out. But it sure felt strange.

Fins Course

The rappel down. Photo credit: gazette.com

I’ve included about 17 seconds of the 45 second glide that was the last zip-line. That tiny spot with the greenish/blue shirt is me. By the way, you’re traveling about 45 mph on this course. Did I mention it was awesome? It was!

 

Thanks for coming along on my adventure!

18 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on June 13, 2019  •  Permalink
Posted in Family, National Parks, Travel
Tagged , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on June 13, 2019

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2019/06/13/high-in-colorado/

Another Public Service Announcement for Fans of Florida

It’s a little bit safer to traipse around in the swamps in South Florida today. A 17-foot python was hunted and killed down in Big Cypress National Preserve in the Everglades a few days ago. I try to keep abreast of things that can squeeze the life out of you, like The I-4 Ultimate Project, phone solicitors, and big snakes. I know how you depend on me for just such information!

The problem with this invasive species is huge, like the snakes themselves. Interestingly, the increase in this snake’s population in South Florida is linked to Hurricane Andrew, which struck in 1992. Along its path were several exotic pet stores. When they were leveled, the pets found a suitable home in the swampy jungles of South Florida and have continued to devastate our native species while increasing their presence in the way that birds and bees and snakes do.

Florida is aggressively fighting this problem. There are even Python Elimination Programs, but in case you’re wondering SFWMD (South Florida Water Management Department) is not currently accepting applications for new participants.

They are getting very scientific in their battle against the Burmese Pythons. Tracking devices are implanted in male pythons (another job I wouldn’t want) to lead the trackers to breeding females. This 17-foot mama had 73 developing eggs inside of her.

 

main article image

Photo credit: Big Cypress National Preserve/FaceBook

Despite the possibility of being strangled by a python, attacked by an alligator, injured by venomous toads, swarmed by mosquitoes, or literally driven crazy on I-4, I still find Florida a pleasant place to live. As they say though, I live in Florida under one condition. Air condition. If you come to visit, please leave your exotic reptiles at home and enjoy your stay.

 

This is Post #10 in the Ultimate Blog Challenge to post every day in April.

2 Comments
by Bonnie Anderson on April 10, 2019  •  Permalink
Posted in Current Events, Florida Living, National Parks, Ultimate Blog Challenge
Tagged , , , , , ,

Posted by Bonnie Anderson on April 10, 2019

https://lifeonthelighterside.com/2019/04/10/another-public-service-announcement-for-fans-of-florida/