We were excited to be returning to Yosemite!  It had been 30 years since we were last there and we were looking forward to introducing our son Kristian to it's stunning beauty.  We took many trips to Yosemite when we lived in California and had many great experiences in each of the 4 seasons.

     Our thoughts turned to the memory of our first trip to Yosemite in 1978, which turned into a real adventure. We drove up in our camper from Santa Barbara to do some cross country skiing.  We arrived at Glacier Point in the early afternoon on a sunny day and headed out on the trail.  The conditions were excellent and we were having such a good time that we didn't realize it was getting late.  The sun began to set and we realized that we didn't know how far we were from the end of the trail.  We decided to continue on and soon found ourselves skiing in the dark guided by the moonlight.  We eventually ended up at the top of the Badger Pass downhill ski run and managed to work our way down to the road.

     We drove down to the valley and were ready for some food and a good nights sleep.  Unfortunately, I got the truck stuck in the snow while backing into the campsite.  I jacked up the truck to put chains on and the jack broke, leaving the truck up in the air.  I finally resigned my self to the fact that I needed help and walked up to the village to find a tow truck.  Our luck changed when I found a AAA tow company and they came down and rigged some winches and pulleys to get the truck out.  Somehow Debi had lost a contact lens during all the commotion and then she miraculously found it in the snow just as the tow truck arrived. We got settled in and finally had some beans for dinner at midnight.

     We woke up the next morning, stepped out of the camper and saw for the first time the grandeur of the snow covered cliffs and waterfalls of Yosemite Valley.  We did some cross country skiing in the valley and then returned home, already planning our next trip to the spectacular park.

    We started our last trip to Yosemite with a beautiful drive down the east slope from Lake Tahoe.  Tioga Pass had just opened and the deep snow  along the road and on the high peaks was absolutely stunning.  We had many stops for photos and finally arrived in Yosemite Valley.  We started by strolling up the trail to Mirror Lake, where we enjoyed a snack and the spectacular view.  The 1 mile loop was wheelchair accessible.  We also went on the .5 mile paved trail to Lower Yosemite Falls, where we experienced the power of the water cascading down in the midst of the Spring runoff.  We finished our visit with dinner at the lodge.

     We were pleased that we were still able to experience the beauty of  Yosemite and we found accessibility to be good.  Our visit  rejuvenated our spirits and brought back many wonderful memories.  It meant  a lot to us that we had the opportunity to share the experience with our son.