Finally, here is the report of our first trip to Yosemite. It was the 4th of July weekend and we've been planning our trip to Yosemite National Park. Being kept informed of the huge crowds visiting the park that weekend, we thought we would take a day off and reach the park before the crowds could come in. So the idea was to fly to San Jose and drive from there to the park. We left San Diego and flew to San Jose on thursday night to Vasu's place. She had prepared yummy food and we had a fun night playing and laughing all night.
Day 1, 30th June: After a fun night, we woke up late and vasu had made pancakes for breakfast. After breakfast, VJ and Murugesh dropped us for some girly shopping and they left to get a rental car. We spent some quality time shopping clothes, shoes and our favorite things :) I noticed San Jose and around are highly populated by Indian communities and saw lots of Indian restaurants and shops. We were very excited to try some authentic Indian food which we crave for in San Diego. For lunch, we went to a place called Peacock serving lunch buffet and they had lots of options for vegetarians. Loved the hyderabadi dum biriyani :P
Post lunch, we started driving to Yosemite. It was a 4 hours drive and we entered through the Groveland-Big Oak flat entrance. We reached at around 6 pm and had 2.5 hrs to sunset. It was a 75 mile drive to Tuolumne meadows on 120 E. I would say this part of Yosemite is less crowded when compared to the Yosemite valley. It was a very scenic drive towards the tioga pass green everywhere, granite mountains, lakes and pristine mountain streams. There were campsites in the meadows and a perfect place to get away from the crowds and enjoy nature at its best. We stopped at the Olmsted point, Tenaya lake, Lambert dome and the Toulumne meadows for some stunning views. We liked the back view of the half dome from the Olmsted point better than the other popular views. Tenaya lake was another beautiful stop we made and clicked lots of pictures. We drove towards the meadows and spotted lots of deers on our way. The sunset was beautiful with pink skies :) We drove to Mariposa where we stayed for the night.
Day 2, July 1: We started early to the Yosemite valley to beat the crowds. It was an hour drive and very scenic. Our first stop was at the Yosemite falls. We took a short hike and went very near to the falls and got drenched completely. It was a great experience and the falls was visible from various points in the park. We stopped at the Yosemite lodge food court for lunch.
Post lunch, we took the park shuttle and visited the curry village to shop some souvenirs. We then headed to the mirror lake and took a short hike to see the reflection of the half dome on the lake. I felt the tenaya lake was more beautiful than the mirror lake. On our way back, we stopped at the tunnel view and took some pictures. We then drove to the Glacier point. Our first stop was at the Washburn point which had stunning views of the Vernal falls and Nevada falls. The Glacier point was similar and had a slightly different angle with the yosemite falls and the valley in addition to it. This is where we spotted a brown bear in the wild and were so excited! That made our day :) Yosemite has to be one of the most scenic places anywhere. There are spectacular views almost anywhere in the Valley at any time of day. We headed back to Mariposa for our night stay.
Day 3, July 2: We started off early to the Mariposa grove to see the Grizzly giant and the tunnel tree. We had to park our cars at the Wawona store and take the park shuttle. The park shuttle took us to the grove in 20 minutes. They had trail maps for the grove and we decided to take the 1.6 mile trail in the Lower grove that covered both the grizzly giant and the tunnel tree. Both trees are sure to impress. Giant Sequoias are the largest species of trees in the world by volume. I would say the Grizzly giant wasn't as big as the General Sherman tree in the Sequoia National Park! The trail to upper grove looked strenuous and steep and we skipped it. We returned to the Wawona hotel and had a late lunch. The ambience was nice. But it was scorching hot and the temperature was 105 F. Looked like we lost all our energy and thought we would head back home instead of driving back in to the valley. So headed back to Cupertino and reached late in the evening. We stopped by the fruit and nut farms on the way and the drive was scenic as well. We visited my cousin for dinner and had a good time.
On the whole, Yosemite National park was beautiful, breathtaking, absolutely amazing. Literally. The views of the park were unbelievable, every step of the way. Everywhere we would look, it was another beautiful sight. We're glad we made the trip!
Day 4, July 3: After 3 days of driving and fun, we got good sleep today and took our time to start our day. We drove to the Livermore Shiva -Vishnu temple and got darshan. It was a beautiful place and my first time to a Hindu temple in the US.
For lunch, we drove to Anjappar's at Milpitas and I tasted crab for the first time. We had amazing food and was food high for quite some time. I realized how much I craved for spicy Indian food.
We drove back home, refreshed and drove to the Half moon bay beach for our photo shoot :P
Vasu and I bought a dress together and wanted some nice pictures and our hubbys were sweet enough to patiently take nice pictures of us. Thanks to VJ and Murugesh :) On our way back home, we stopped at Saravana Bhavan and bought some yummy traditional sweets. Being the 4th of July, we wanted to see some fireworks.
Vasu had prepared tandoori chicken for me and Murugesh had bought some Kothu parotta from Muniyandi Vilas.
We took all the food to our friend Ramya's place. She had prepared some yummy Bisibela bath, curd rice and chaas.
We had a hearty dinner and had lots to catch up. We came back home tired and crashed to bed as we had to catch our flight early morning the next day. So that was how we spent our long wekkend…Definitely an unforgettable one!
Day 1, 30th June: After a fun night, we woke up late and vasu had made pancakes for breakfast. After breakfast, VJ and Murugesh dropped us for some girly shopping and they left to get a rental car. We spent some quality time shopping clothes, shoes and our favorite things :) I noticed San Jose and around are highly populated by Indian communities and saw lots of Indian restaurants and shops. We were very excited to try some authentic Indian food which we crave for in San Diego. For lunch, we went to a place called Peacock serving lunch buffet and they had lots of options for vegetarians. Loved the hyderabadi dum biriyani :P
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| Vasu's pancakes for bkfast |
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| Small waterfalls on our way to Toulumne meadows |
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| The Tenaya lake |
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| Toulumne meadows |
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| Yosemite falls |
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| Yosemite valley |
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| Lunch at Yosemite Lodge |
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| Deer at the curry village |
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| The tunnel view |
Post lunch, we took the park shuttle and visited the curry village to shop some souvenirs. We then headed to the mirror lake and took a short hike to see the reflection of the half dome on the lake. I felt the tenaya lake was more beautiful than the mirror lake. On our way back, we stopped at the tunnel view and took some pictures. We then drove to the Glacier point. Our first stop was at the Washburn point which had stunning views of the Vernal falls and Nevada falls. The Glacier point was similar and had a slightly different angle with the yosemite falls and the valley in addition to it. This is where we spotted a brown bear in the wild and were so excited! That made our day :) Yosemite has to be one of the most scenic places anywhere. There are spectacular views almost anywhere in the Valley at any time of day. We headed back to Mariposa for our night stay.
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| View of Half dome from Glacier point |
Day 3, July 2: We started off early to the Mariposa grove to see the Grizzly giant and the tunnel tree. We had to park our cars at the Wawona store and take the park shuttle. The park shuttle took us to the grove in 20 minutes. They had trail maps for the grove and we decided to take the 1.6 mile trail in the Lower grove that covered both the grizzly giant and the tunnel tree. Both trees are sure to impress. Giant Sequoias are the largest species of trees in the world by volume. I would say the Grizzly giant wasn't as big as the General Sherman tree in the Sequoia National Park! The trail to upper grove looked strenuous and steep and we skipped it. We returned to the Wawona hotel and had a late lunch. The ambience was nice. But it was scorching hot and the temperature was 105 F. Looked like we lost all our energy and thought we would head back home instead of driving back in to the valley. So headed back to Cupertino and reached late in the evening. We stopped by the fruit and nut farms on the way and the drive was scenic as well. We visited my cousin for dinner and had a good time.
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| The tunnel tree |
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| The giant Sequoias |
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| The Grizzly Giant tree |
On the whole, Yosemite National park was beautiful, breathtaking, absolutely amazing. Literally. The views of the park were unbelievable, every step of the way. Everywhere we would look, it was another beautiful sight. We're glad we made the trip!
Day 4, July 3: After 3 days of driving and fun, we got good sleep today and took our time to start our day. We drove to the Livermore Shiva -Vishnu temple and got darshan. It was a beautiful place and my first time to a Hindu temple in the US.
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| Livermore temple |
For lunch, we drove to Anjappar's at Milpitas and I tasted crab for the first time. We had amazing food and was food high for quite some time. I realized how much I craved for spicy Indian food.
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| Tasting Crab at Anjappars |
We drove back home, refreshed and drove to the Half moon bay beach for our photo shoot :P
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| At the half moon bay beach |
Vasu and I bought a dress together and wanted some nice pictures and our hubbys were sweet enough to patiently take nice pictures of us. Thanks to VJ and Murugesh :) On our way back home, we stopped at Saravana Bhavan and bought some yummy traditional sweets. Being the 4th of July, we wanted to see some fireworks.
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| 4th of July fireworks |
Vasu had prepared tandoori chicken for me and Murugesh had bought some Kothu parotta from Muniyandi Vilas.
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| Vasu's Tandoori chicken |
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| Yummy food at Ramya's place |
We had a hearty dinner and had lots to catch up. We came back home tired and crashed to bed as we had to catch our flight early morning the next day. So that was how we spent our long wekkend…Definitely an unforgettable one!
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