My First Adventure!

As I have the time, I'm going to add some of my old trips into this blog...   This one was my very first trip - way back in 2004!   I got to spend Thanksgiving up in Oakhurst, CA with Melanie and her parents.

Here I am with Melanie & Roger Baby (her step-father).   We're killing time before Thanksgiving dinner making Christmas ornaments.

Yeah, I know, it's silly, but hey, you've got to do something to keep busy while the turkey's baking!

And the ornaments turned out pretty darn nice actually!   They're wire & beads and shaped like snowflakes.   They look very pretty on the tree....

Mel's mom makes a darn good Thanksgiving turkey!

She soaks it in bourbon overnight then stuffs herbs under the skin, seasons the whole bird really well and roasts it all day, basting it with butter & wine.   Yummy Yum Yum Yum!   I'm drooling just thinking about it!    That turkey comes out so moist and tender, it practically carves itself!    Of course, the best part is eating pieces of the skin while Roger is carving it.....

Oakhurst is in the Sierra Mountains, about 15 miles outside the south gate of Yosemite National Park, so naturally it's really pretty there and they get a LOT of critters visiting them there at the house.    I got to know Rocky the squirrel really well.   He comes to the house every day to get peanuts - of course, they feed him by hand!  

There is also a cat in the house named Bud.  Bud is a big enormous cat, although I didn't have to worry because he never tried to eat me or anything.   He's pretty nice, but suspicious of strangers so it took me awhile to win him over.

I have also seen a lot of deer in Mom & Rog's yard and one night we heard a screech owl - what a CRAZY sound that is! Scared the daylights out of me! They say they've had bobcats, mountain lions, and bears in their yard too. I'm really glad not to have seen them!!

On the day after Thanksgiving, Mom & Rog drove us around Oakhurst and up to Yosemite National Park. 

  Oakhurst is a nice small mountain community.   I got a big kick out of the "Talking Bear", which is a local landmark.    It's right at the corner as you turn off the main highway.   We stopped and checked it out.   It tells you about the local real estate market.   Kind of funny.

I like all the cute little shops on the main street in town.  There are all sorts of tourist shops, which of course I love, and a nice local coffee shop.

FINALLY, we headed up to Yosemite.   What a pretty drive that is up through the trees.   And when we got in the main gate, I thought we were almost there, but I was wrong - there's a long drive down to the valley.   But boy is it worth it.   You're going through these winding mountain roads and through a tunnel and then BAM!   The best view in the whole wide world!   All of a sudden the tunnel opens up to a view of the valley with El Capitan on one side and Half Dome on the other side.   It's just spectacular!   Don't you think?