Delhi to Yosemite – 1 April 2022
I loved our time at the Yosemite Lakes RV resort, and was definitely my favourite place so far on this trip. The campsite is set in amongst trees, a flowing river and mountains. The smells in the campsite from the mountain air and open fires were fantastic. We were just across from a river and regularly took Jax down for a swim. On the other side of the river was an area for tents, cabins and yurts. There were also several trails from the campsite around the mountainside.
The first morning at Yosemite RV I was taking Jax out for his morning pee when I met a woman walking her dog. She told me to be careful as there were skunks around. I replied that that we don’t have any where I live in Canada and learned that she was from Canada too! Turns out Laura and her husband Tyrell and daughter are from Quebec. Like us, they sold their house in September and have been working and travelling as well. We had lots to talk about but unfortunately, they were leaving that morning for Lake Tahoe. We swapped contact details so hopefully we will connect with them again somewhere.
The following day we drove to Yosemite National Park which was 20 mins from the resort. We purchased an annual pass at the gate, entitling us to free access at any national park – we didn’t even know that pass existed, such a bonus! What a magnificent park, Yosemite is. Massive sheer granite cliffs towering high all around us and so many waterfalls and lakes. To get to Yosemite village where several trails start, we drove over and down an extremely steep road – not my cup of tea especially as there was no barrier on the side. While I desperately wanted to enjoy the view, I ended up face down in the car at some of the worst bits. That old vertigo setting in.
The village was humming with tourists. The majority used the shuttle to get from place to place. We enjoyed a great walk through the forest to the Yosemite falls. As we had not had time to do a grocery shop before leaving Merced, I popped into the Yosemite grocery store to get some food for the week. The store was a combined gift and grocery store but reasonably well stocked. Unfortunately it cost a premium and we made a mental note not to get caught out next time we visit.
The week flew by quickly as there was a lot of Furever Clean dog wash work to get done. The container of dog washes were finally on their way from Australia and our dog wash building was now top priority as we finalize the designs and pricing. In between work, we would take short walks in the area and enjoy evenings doing Wordles, Quordles and Octordles. After that it was time for crossword puzzles. This was the first time we were able to sit outside and enjoy a proper campfire and we made the most of it. Derek would cook the food on the outside grill and life was good. We had Jax outside on a long leash and even Minnie Min was able to enjoy her new net catio.
It was very challenging work wise having zero cell coverage in the park. You think this wouldn’t matter that much but many of the apps we use send authentication codes to our phone, which of course we could not receive. I was able to talk to Lucy on Whatsapp but only because she was already one of my contacts. We were able to purchase internet but that was also spotty at times too.
On Thursday we returned to Yosemite National Park but found that the Tioga pass was closed so instead we went to Tuolumne Park and hiked down to see several giant Sequoia trees. Very impressive. Amazing that many of them were over 2700 years old. Several over 30ft in diameter and over 300ft tall.
By the time Saturday arrived we were totally out of groceries and decided to drive to Senora which was a hour and a bit away. The drive took us through the Stanislaus national forest and around some rather windy, steep roads. This time there were barriers around the edges of the road, thank goodness. In Senora, I took care of the grocery shopping while Derek went to look for RV hardware at Lowes. We also managed to fill up our propane tanks and get slightly cheaper gas than at the park.
As the weather was predicted to turn the following week we decided to make the most of it and on Sunday visited a small historic town called Groveland that we had passed through on the way to Senora. There was not too much to see, but we did take some photos of a small jailhouse from 1895 complete with a bunch of Tessler EV stations right outside it?? (what were they thinking.) We had hoped to do a walk in the area but the road was closed, so after some lunch at the Hungry Bear we returned home as Derek was eager to get on with installing the batteries.
Internet reception came to a grinding halt and I had to travel 15 mins up the road and sit in the parking lot of a lodge to secretly access their internet and cell reception. This became quite the pain so we decided to leave Yosemite lakes a little earlier than planned. There were two directions we could have gone in, but the one would take us through the Yosemite National park on that steep road and the other back the way we had come to Delhi. We opted to go back to Merced River RV instead.
The morning we left Merced we once again had issues with our hitch. It would just not connect even though Derek had the truck completely lined up with the pin. He eventually phoned the manufacturer who advised him to open up the hitch and check inside. He found the mechanism was a little crooked and was able to bang it in place with a hammer and after about an hour of trying to hook on, we were finally on our way again.
