From Monterey to Yosemite

Mariposa Grove
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We left Monterey in the morning of the 13th and headed to Carmel as we had not spent anytime there the previous day.  We were able to drive down to the beach and look back on Pebble Beach.  The view from the beach is really beautiful.  We then went into town for some freshly roasted mochas and a danish at a cute little coffee house.  Then we walked around town before taking the 101 up the coast and cutting inland to Yosemite. The only glitch was the Ghia popped out of first gear when we tried to drive her slowly thorugh the streets in Carmel, but since then she has been fine....

Wawona Hotel
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We arrived in Yosemite in late afternoon, checked in to the Wawona Hotel - adorable, old historic hotel.  Very New England like!  We stayed in the Moore Cottage, which was cute, cozy and rustic.  We did not have a bathroom, but had a shared one downstairs. Lars was going through TV withdrawal as there were no phones or TV in our rooms.  Other than our room smelling a bit from the previous smokers that stayed there the night before it was fine.  We had dinner at the hotel.

Moore Cottage
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We were enjoying our stay so much we decided to stay another night - camping at the Wawona Campground.  This was our first time camping together, so early on Wednesday morning we went over and were lucky to get a campsite, we set-up and then went to the Mariposa Grove for a hike.

The Mariposa Grove is home to the Giant Sequoia Trees.  We spent the entire day there before we went out for dinner and then went to our campsite and went to bed early.

On Thursday, June 15th we left the camp and went to Yosemite Village to see all the glaciers and waterfalls.  The view is absolutely spectacular!!  One day is not enough to even scratch the surface of what you can see and hike in the Valley.  If we come back we will be sure to stay in the Village area.  We also stopped by the Ahwahnee Hotel, which is really in a great spot intermingled with the boulders.... If you have not been to Yosemite or have not been in awhile - I recommend you go soon!  It is really such a natural beauty - cliche, but true.