Before leaving, we went to the north side of the park - Tuolumne Meadows. This was before Memorial day weekend and we were lucky we got as far as we did with the snow. The stores were closed and by the time we realized it, it was noon, the kids were starving and we had no where to go. The guy at the general store in the meadows area sold us one of last Fall's bags of chips (with an apology). Like I cared - it was food. But, the message is - be prepared!

The Tuolumne Meadows area of the park is a beautiful area for a picnic. There are almost too many areas to just pull off the road on your way to this area from the valley, but Olmstead Point and Tenaya Lake are "Must Do's". Olmstead Point offers a spectacular view of Half Dome (as you face south), and Tenaya Lake offers crystal clear water and reflections of the nearby mountains.

We drove out of the park and north bound for Sacramento.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK

Yosemite NP (www.nps.gov/yose) is actually quite close to Sequoia and Kings Canyon NPs. We were scheduled to spend the night in the Awahnee Hotel (http://www.yosemitepark.com/Accommodations_TheAhwahnee.aspx). This incredible lodge is one of the original NP lodges that like the Old Faithful lodge in Yellowstone is created to look like it is made of the landscaping - large stone and logs. Our room had an up close view of Half Dome (http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/halfdome.htm).

A CALIFORNIA WHIRLWIND TOUR

This trip would cover much of California in under 12 days starting in Death Valley (after a launch point of Las Vegas) and departing from San Francisco and driving most everything in between. Our route is on the attached map.

We traveled from Las Vegas to Death Valley NP, the Alabama Hills, Sequoia NP, Kings Canyon NP, Yosemite NP, Sacramento and the Pony Express Trail, Redwood NP, and then San Francisco.