The drive today is less than 300 miles so the distance isn’t too bad. The problem is driving in California. It’s a whole different world out here. People out here are too much into their own selves/heads and can’t be bothered to actually pay attention to driving. Too much twittering and texting and putting on makeup! Plus a 7000 pound truck pulling a 5000 pound trailer does not stop on a dime when a nitwit in a Camry cuts us off.
Anyway…We hitched up the camper and decided to replenish our supplies at the Redding, CA Super Wal-Mart. We are running low on a lot of staples (you can only pack so much in at a time) and don’t want to have to pay small town grocery store prices. The kids always enjoy grocery shopping on vacation and seeing what kind of goodies they can swindle us into (not that they don’t get their fare share of treats at home, they just tend to get a little more when we are on a trip). With the fridge stocked, we gassed up the truck and hit the road. We decided to make a little detour for lunch today. When Tony traveled for work, he used to love to grab a pastrami sandwich and a local sandwich shop chain called TOGO’s. The GPS located one in a town just outside of Sacramento. We pulled off and grabbed the kids McDonald’s (we had promised them Ice Age toys) and were looking forward to getting a good sandwich for ourselves only to discover the restaurant was no longer there! Oh the joys of GPS! Anyway, we located one in a neighboring town (and called to verify it was there) and our little side trip turned into a small road trip, but at least we got some good eats out of the deal. Downside was that put us rolling through a major California city after 3 p.m. Rush hour had already begun, but Tony managed to avoid the crazy drivers and get us safely through.
Little did we know the worst was yet to come! As we neared Groveland (the closest city to Yosemite National Park) we reached an amazing stretch of road that literally took us straight up the side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The road was unbelievable and I was scared out of my mind the whole way up it and trying not to enjoy my yummy pastrami sandwich for the second time that day! In a stretch of about 7 miles, we climbed over 3,000 feet in elevation! I have never seen anything like it (nor do I ever want to again, but since we must go back down the mountain at some point to get to San Francisco, I guess I don’t have much choice). The switch backs were steep and constant and they didn’t level off until we had reached the top. We have a relatively small trailer and a very strong truck. Tony is an excellent driver having driven for a living all of his adult life. He also is very experienced at towing a camper, and it was still all I could do to maintain my composure. Tony asked me if it would make me feel better if I were driving. I told him not if he wanted to actually make it to the top! With the extreme heat and the steep grade, we had to turn the AC off and Tony kept a careful eye on the gauges. We did have to stop at one of the very few pull outs and let Whomper (our nickname for our Ford Excursion) cool off a little because the transmission temperature got a little too high for our comfort. Whew! We made it to the top safe and sound. I am wondering how much I will need to drink before our journey back down!
We arrived at the campground to find the temperature was still well into the 90’s even at over 4000 feet. Welcome to the high desert! We are staying at a neat little campground that has a small petting zoo and nightly hayrides. I hope we can sandwich in enough time to enjoy them!
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