This morning I’m taking it easy. The hike I want to do today is only half an hour driving away, so while the sun is coming up I pack my stuff and clean out the campsite. I drive to Sequoia national park, one of my favorites. It’s still early when I arrive and there are only a few cars in the parking place. I’m happy about that and enjoy my breakfast before I start the hike.
It’s very quiet and peaceful in the park and I love seeing the enormous trees again.
People often ask me what’s my favorite national park and I always find that hard to answer. Each park has their own features. This morning when I enjoy the peacefulness of Sequoia National Park, I think to myself that this might be my favorite. Not much later though on my way back to the parking lot, the crowds start coming in and I realize that there might not be one favorite park, but surely a favorite time to visit any park: early in the morning before all the people come in.
I get back to my car and drive further through the park. I see on the map that there is a lodge in the park, not too far from where I am and so I drive there. I sit down with my laptop to post on my blog and check my e-mail. I hadn’t checked my e-mail for a few days, so I thought it would be good to check up on how things are. Fortunately there aren’t many work e-mails, that’s definitely a benefit of traveling in July and August.
Even though there weren’t many emails I notice that it still brings down my mood a bit. I’m thankful that there is a lot of work, but it can also be stressful to think about how to get it all done when I’m back home. Fortunately driving among the giant trees quickly brings me back to the present moment and not much later I drive by a giant rock, called Moro Rock. There are stairs cut in the, what I think is granite, rock and you can climb all the way to the top. The climb is fun and the views are amazing. When I’m at the top, I’m feeling great again and enjoy being here.
After the climb at Moro Rock I continue driving through the park and then exit through the south entrance heading back in the direction of Los Angeles. On the map I found a campsite just two hours north of LA and that’s where I drive in the afternoon. It’s located at a long country road and there is nothing else in the area. The campsite is completely empty and very peaceful. I park my car and end the day with watching a movie. Tomorrow I plan to drive to LA to spend the weekend in the big city.
