Sunday 5th July
Coming into the town last night we saw Independence Day fire works.
I'm not sure staying in a bed helped me sleep any better but it sure was nice! Breakfast is included, basic but fine. We are on our way by 7:30. It's about 4 hours to the national park of sequoia and we only stopped for petrol and groceries. At the gate the park is nothing to talk of. The landscape is dry and sparse. There are paddocks and paddocks of fruit trees oranges, olives and others. Their greenness Is strangely contrasted with the dry yellow ground. As we climb into the mountains forest emerges. It's beautiful and the trees are huge and amazing. Their bark is like amour and only the hottest fires kill them. They regularly survive them. We take the shuttle into the forest a way and climb a massive rock and an vista view. Then we walk through the trees and meadows. It's breath taking and peaceful. I can understand living here. We see a cabin made in a hollowed tree. They are so big. So old.
On the way in the shuttle we see a bear foraging beside the road.
Once we return from the shuttles we continue driving into the forest to kings canyon. At the entrance they told us the campgrounds are full but that ppl are probably leaving today. We stop at a campground and find a spot and pay then continue down into the canyon. We take a walk to a meadow. It's so beautiful with the mountains and trees as backdrop. We stop at a gorgeous lake on the way back. Ah! It's so pretty here. So nice. Back at camp we finish setting up and have dinner. There is entertainment via a rule upholding man and a man with a huge dog off its lead - against the rules. After reading the bear signs we put all our smelly things in the best boxes and head to bed.