The Adventures of Charlie and Becca

March 11 was a big day for us. It marked the end of my third quarter of nursing school and Charlie's return from Santa Fe Springs, CA. Charlie was down in LA for a week installing the Martin Scrubber, a machine he has been designing for the last six months and recently filed a patent for in his name. We decided to celebrate with a Spanish themed Dinner Club followed by our much awaited trip to Glacier Point in Yosemite!

Chorizo cooked in red wine, garlic, thyme, and chives

Caramelized onions with sherry wine vinegar, blue cheese, and almond slices. Homemade roasted peppers with olives in a honey lemon vinaigrette. Paella with mussels and shrimp. Chickpeas cooked with bacon, garlic, and spinach. Baguette, olives, sangria, salad and delectable arroz con leche. Delicious.

The best company

Charming Cooks
Saturday, post dinner club food coma, Greg, Chrissy, Charlie and I piled in the car and drove out to Yosemite. You could feel the beginnings of spring with melting snow and birds chirping, and we were happy to find the roads far less treacherous than we left them in early January.

Charlie on Generator Crack
We stopped at the Generator Crack, a 5.10c off width crack, for Charlie to do some climbing.

El Capitan
After a few bruises and a close puking call, Charlie conquered the crack and we headed out to Bridal Veil Falls for a short stroll.

Bridal Veil Falls
We spent the night at Yosemite View Lodge lounging in a hot tub by the Merced River, eating pizza at the hotel bar, and indulging in angel food cake and strawberries while relaxing in bed. All rested up we headed out early Sunday morning to begin our 10.5 mile cross country trek out to glacier point.

Determined to make it!
The route out to the cabin consisted of a gradual uphill climb followed by a few miles of flat terrain and a final series of downward slopes leading down to the cabin.

Snowy lunch at the half way point
The weather forecast threatened rain, but we gladly accepted the snow that accompanied our lunch break.

Almost there!
Right before we snapped this photo, a lump of snow broke free and cascaded down Half Dome, reminding us just how steep that climb to the top had been almost three years ago now.

The Nichols, Becca, and Half Dome

Becca at the point
Once we reached the hut we warmed up by the wood burning stove, sipped on some hot chocolate, and used the lovely composting toilet. The restroom became known as the "hamsters cage" as each toilet use called for one scoop of sawdust. After a little respite, we snow-shoed out to experience the breathtaking views of Glacier Point.

Panoramic view from the point
The view was unbelievable. In one glimpse we could take in Nevada, Vernal, and Yosemite Falls, Half Dome, North Dome, Little Yosemite, and the Ahwahnee Hotel. The air was still and the only audible sound was that of rushing waterfalls.

Adventurous Charlie and less adventurous Becca hanging onto the snow covered side rail

Glacier Point Hut

We spent the evening with 18 fellow skiers at the Glacier Point Hut. The hut is a crowded snack stand and visitor center during the summer filled with tour bus goers and hikers. In the winter it becomes a majestic hideaway for skiers like ourselves. Bernie, our host, spends Thursday through Monday at the hut greeting guests and making sure everyone is well fed. He graciously kept us munching through the evening and surprised us all with a few bottles of Cabernet and cake! We spent the evening by the fire mingling with fellow travelers and resting up for the next day's trip. Sleeping in pint sized bunk beds the group fell asleep amongst communal snores.

Nichols' and Becca ready to roll
After a hardy breakfast, we headed out ready to face a long day of skiing and driving back to San Francisco.

Last view of Glacier Point Hut
While Greg, Chrissy and I hit the trail, Charlie wisely hung back to take some photographs as the sun began to shine in the valley

Some of our new found friends with Half Dome

Breathtaking Panorama of the Valley
Having stayed back for about half an hour to capture these morning moments, Charlie speed skated to catch up to me. Although the Nichols beat us back to the trail head by about an hour, we still had plenty of time to make it back to SF before bedtime.

Clark Mountain Range
My favorite memory of our trip was skiing around a downhill corner on our way back and being greeted with this view of the Clark Mountain Range lit up in the sun. I felt honored to be amongst such beauty. The entire trip, although physical, was filled with many memorable gems.

Signing out on this 21 mile cross country ski adventure feeling grateful for our memories and awesome friends.

(click on images to enlarge)

Snow Shoeing in the Valley

Life has been busy ever since our Cherry Creek trip. I can remember one week since October where Charlie had a full two day weekend without work. In addition to being slammed at work, Charlie took on a side engineering project designing and manufacturing lab equipment for Chrissy’s work. Between his busy work schedule, my finals, and the holidays, we found little time to relax and enjoy each other’s company. Long due for some char-bec time, we booked a last minute New Year’s trip to Yosemite. We bundled up as many warm clothes as possible, (including this bright pink Benton family heirloom), and headed to the snow!

Originally we planned to tough out the weather and snow camp for a day before enjoying the luxuries of hotel life. Instead, we listened to our mothers' concerns and the weather reports, deciding to opt for a more plush vacation at the Wawona Hotel in Yosemite National Park.

Scenic Drive on Snowy Roads

Corolla packed up, chains ready to go, and layered up we headed out Thursday morning. Having seen it snow just once in my life, and only a sprinkle at that, I was ecstatic to see the glistening winter wonderland grow around us as we achieved higher elevation.

Snowy Corolla

After purchasing an annual pass to the park we drove though Yosemite Valley. Yosemite’s wonders were sparkling in blankets of snow.

(Thanks Greg and Chrissy for the softest blanket!)
El Capitan and Half Dome in the background

Pretty Creek

Bridal Veil Falls as seen from Hwy 120 (middle left) and up close (right)

Charlie by the falls

Becca by the falls

Laurel by the falls

El Capitan
Looking up at Yosemite Falls billowing down the snow capped granite; I knew I was in the most beautiful place on earth. After a few scenic stops, including a brief 0.4 mile snow/ice stroll to Bridal Veil Falls, we found our way to the Wawona Hotel.

Yosemite Falls!

Half Dome Looming in the fog

Wawona!

The Wawona Hotel’s history dates back to 1865 where it started as a 12’x16’ cabin for travelers. Now the hotel is a beautiful historic monument known for its Victorian charm. As we drove up to the Wawona, we were greeted with festive Christmas lights, a roaring fire place and Wawona’s own piano man. We spent the evening by the fire drinking our new favorite warm beverage, the 'Campfire', and listening to the piano man sing old songs and tell stories of Wawona’s past. To Charlie’s chagrin, we were called to our dinner table just as the tale of John Muir taking Teddy Roosevelt to Yosemite was about to be told.

Recipe for a “Campfire” Wawona Style
Combine Hot Chocolate with Peppermint Schnapps and Maker’s Mark. Top with generous amounts of whipped cream and a dusting of chili powder

Corolla ready to go

Friday morning, the last day of 2010, we headed out to Badger Pass for some cross country skiing. At 19 degrees Fahrenheit the air was crisp and the sky clear blue. The snow was so high even Stop signs were nearly impossible to read.

Scenic view along Badger Pass Road

Charlie on his skiis

Becca on Skiis

We skied at least 8 miles round trip stopping periodically to bask in the stunning scenery and for Charlie to play around on some smaller more difficult trails. We hope to return later this year to do a group ski trip out to the Glacier Pass Hut 10 miles down the trail.

http://www.yosemitepark.com/BadgerPass_CrossCountrySkiing_GlacierPointHut.aspx

After a delicious lunch of cheese, crackers, and chocolate, we headed back to the trail. We skied quickly to make it back by four and avoid late fees on our rentals. We returned with seven minutes to spare!

Corolla with New Year's Eve Snow

Legs sore and feeling a bit frozen, we blasted the heater while driving back to the Wawona, orange and pink sunset peaking out behind dark clouds as our back drop.

Charlie and Becca New Years Day in a Glass Ball

Most New Year’s Eves up to this point have revolved around bar hopping and friends. This New Years we were in for a different experience. After a lovely dinner in the dining room, bison burger for Charlie and vegetable lasagna for me, we spent the early evening hanging out with the Wawona folk listening to the piano man and drinking complementary hot cocoa and Campfires. At 9 o’clock, handfuls of poppers and tooters were handed out and exploded in celebration of New Years in New York. Everyone from the 5 year old boy to my left and the extended family in front of me spanning at least 3 generations, (grandma was wearing a LED scarf!), was thrilled! As we all sang in unison to Auld Lang Syne I couldn’t stop giggling about everyone’s excitement, and Charlie was just as delighted. Charlie titled this moment: Old People's New Year's

Santa Cozy on a Christmas Tree

The evening continued with a bottle of Champagne and then sneaking into the $80 per person dance party we opted out of. Women were dancing panty hose to the floor and the guitarist was playing with his teeth. We danced from the last ten minutes of 2010 through the first hour of 2011.

New Year's Day

Regrettably we did not set an alarm for New Year’s Day, waking up just in time to make it to our complimentary breakfast, pack up, and check out by 11am. We said goodbye to Wawona taking pictures by one of the many Christmas trees. As one of our fellow Wawonans took our picture a man we had befriended the night before told us that we were the cutest couple there and should never stop being so sweet to each other. Awww

Fog Rolling in

Driving New Year's day was at times a bit dicey. The road fluctuated between clean asphalt and snow covered, making it hard to determine when to take off the chains to avoid damage. Perhaps predictably, part of the chains broke. Charlie, using his shear strength and engineering skills, was able to rip off the broken chain with his bare hands and mend it with a climbing carabineer. Thank goodness for Charlie!

A sweet photo along the way

Hanging out by Bishop's Terrace

Determined to go snow shoeing before leaving the valley we found the perfect open meadow close to the Awhanee Hotel and across the road from Bishop’s Terrace, a rock climb Charlie had completed a few years ago with Steven and Thomas.

Charlie reminiscing about climbing here

Snow!

My mother bought us snow shoes for Christmas 2009, but we hadn’t yet tested them out. Although raining we pulled out the snow shoes and strapped them on. As we ventured out into the meadow the rain changed to snow! Huge snowflakes were falling from the sky; we were captured in the most delightful winter wonderland! It was meant to be because once those snow shoes came off the rain returned and we were on our way back home. Charlie was convinced this was magic!