| Just returned from our trip. We did go see Mt. St. Helen or rather the observatory across from it. It was cold and cloudy that day, they had had 8 ft of snow the week before. But the clouds parted while we were up there and although it wasn't sunny, it was breathtaking. We really enjoyed the day as we were with friends that we hadn't seen since 1986. We then went into Portland for dinner on the river. Spent the next day with our friends at the big falls on the Columbia River. Beautiful day! Then we drove over to Lincoln City, OR and stayed on the coast. We drove the next day down to Gold Beach and had dinner a wonderful meal at Spinners. It was about the only place in town to eat but what a surprise. The drive along the coast was awesome. Had the top down on the convertible when possible. Stopped at the Oregon dunes and did the tourist ride over them. What a blast. Amazing that you go from mountain cliffs to sand dunes all in an hour. The next day we drove down through the Redwood forest and did a short trail hike in the Lady Bird Johnson Grove. We decided not to drive right along the Calf. coast since the drive the day before took much longer than planned. We also figured out that if you wanted to get off and get back on I-5, you couldn't. Once you were committed you had to go the whole way. The trip from Gold Beach to Santa Rosa was a very long drive. Certainly different topography. Traffic picked up the closer you got to Santa Rosa. The next day we drove from Santa Rosa to Yosemite via Oakland. OMG, the traffic was awful. And the road where you split to go towards Richmond wasn't clearly marked. Actually there were two signs, both said Richmond. We took the one to the right that did go over the Bay and through Oakland. I guess it was the right one I could never live in that type of traffic. On the way to Yoseite, the interstate was backed up going towards Oakland for about 50 miles. When we stopped at Tracey, the waitress said it was like that every work day as people commute from out that far to Oakland to work. Our route to Yosemite was very nerve racking. We had switchback curves and climbed the mountain range for about 60 miles. What MapQuest tells you will take (and the Yosemite book that I got as well)31/2 - 4 hours took us 6 hours. Once in the park though, it was well worth it. We did stay at the Ahwanahee. Yes, it is an old building so don't expect perfection. The room was clean, up to date in that it had a small fridge, ironing board, hair dryer, soft towels, TV and phone. The heater was loud and the water took a while to get hot but other than that, it was what we expected it would be. BTW, all the rooms do have baths now. The cost is high so you pay for the historic part. The food in the restaurant was okay but I have had better for less. We did take the Valley tour and it was great. The ranger was great and they gave us blankets to keep warm. Temps were in the 50's mostly with clear mornings and rain in the afternoons. They said it had been in the 90's the week of the 17th of May. The waterfalls were amazing - in full flow this time of year. The main reason we went now. We took the south route out of the park. Much easier on the nerves and DH who drove all the way. We made it back into Oakland in about 5 hours this time but the mileage is longer this way. So all in all, it was a good trip. Tiring in a good way. We did need an extra day to do the PCH part and maybe another day in Yosemite to do some of the outer sites. DH really didn't want to do the 4 hour or 8 hour tour after driving the day before. The roads weren't packed but I can imagine what they are during the summer. Glad we went now rather than later. | 
