Muir Woods

Monday's trip to Muir Woods proved to be a sucessful one! We arrived about 10:30 and while the parking lots were once again full we parked just a little bit down the street. Picture taking on the general trail proved a little difficult with the sunlight being so bright above the canopy. This was one of the few pictures that 'turned out' while we were on that part of the trail. The trees were magnificent, the reason sequioas get so big is because they can live for thousands years. Most of their water comes from the fog so on Monday (and again on Tuesday) they must have gotten alot of water.

While on the 'beginners' trail we noticed an alligator coming out of the swamp. Fortunately it wasn't hungry when we passed!

We ventured off the beaten path to a hiking trail and this tree swallowed CJ whole.

The holes in the trees are from fires that swept through the area many, many years ago. The bark of a redwood is very fire resistant, the fire must have gotten into this tree through an opening in the root structure. They have very shallow root systems. The inside the redwoods is dead so when a fire burns out that section the tree survives.

This is still fairly early in the hike as CJ still has his fleece jacket on. It was cold under the cover of the trees. We warmed up considerably as the hike went higher and higher. Off came the fleeces, out came the thoughts of shorts and lighter clothing!

We hiked for 3 hours up the mountain and then back down. The view from the top of the mountain was wonderful and the sun felt great.

This is Stinson Beach. The drive down the valley was another fun switchback road that made Steve wish he had his 'ultimate driving machine'. And had us wondering just how much the Saturn could take! At the beach we enjoyed the sun but not the wind it was, yet another cold, cold Pacific beach. On a dare CJ put his feet in the water and promptly ran back out!