Californiacation
An afternoon kayaking on Success Lake, a cool California evening, a warm fire, and s’mores with Dad and Dawn; Life is good!
Hello YOFO readers, welcome back to another WOFO with guest authors Kady and Nate. Last time you heard from us, we were in South Dakota doing some awesome hikes and pioneering the s’mores game onto a whole new level. This year, we only changed one thing...CALIFORNIA BABY!!! It was our first time in California and it was a blast.
We weren’t sure if we were even going to make it to the west coast as the day we left, there was a snow storm raging across the northeast. To get ahead of it we decided to arrive early for our flight and stay the night at the airport, something we will NEVER do again. We finally boarded the plane and received a jolly message from the captain telling us we were going to be sitting on the tarmac for another hour waiting for the runway to be de-iced. One hour became three and finally we took off. We landed in L.A. very tired, hungry and exhausted. So what did we do next? Dad and Dawn took us to the closest In-N-Out Burger. Thus began the delicious foods we would be partaking in over the next week.
Unfortunately, none of us felt like paying the current green fees of $525 each, so we settled for a photo-op in a golf cart!
After our animal style fries, we drove north along the coast past Malibu, Santa Barbara, and eventually into Monterey. The drive was absolutely beautiful and was a warm welcome to California, especially considering the nor’easter we left behind. We stopped at a delicious Italian restaurant in Monterey for dinner. That was the best seafood we had ever eaten! It was quite the treat.
Little did the unsuspecting couple know, but that big wave behind them came crashing up over their heads.
Who knew jellyfish could be so exciting!
The following day, we visited Point Lobos State Reserve and walked along the rocks, tide pools, and took in some magnificent views of the Pacific coastline. Sadly, no whales were spotted, but while posing for a picture on the rocks, we got splashed by a giant wave and got pretty wet. Yes, it was caught on film.
Nate at the end of the rainbow.
After a quick stop to change into dry clothes, we headed over to the Monterey Bay Aquarium and it was awesome! The jellyfish exhibit was one of our favorites and we took some great pictures. We also got to see a scuba diver feed a bunch of fish in one of the tanks. After the aquarium and a quick fish ‘n’ chips meal, we drove over to Elkhorn Slough at Moss Landing where Dad and Dawn put us in the “boats” and we kayaked among seals and otters!! Some of the otters let us get within 5 feet of them and they are so cute. We deemed them the dogs of the ocean.To cap off an already great day, we drove to Santa Cruz and met up with Kady’s cousin Adina and her boyfriend Trevor for some Indian food. Santa Cruz was so cool. It was very hipster and bougie, as Dad and Dawn described it. We stopped for ice cream and discovered a magical topping that Nate and I are now going to do every time we eat ice cream: spread marshmallow fluff on your flavor of choice and torch it to make it “toasted marshmallow.” Try it and you too can enjoy bougie-hipster ice cream!
The Salt Flats at Badwater Basin, the lowest point in the United States.
The next few days were spent at Death Valley National Park. We began our visit wandering around several miles among some giant sand dunes and enjoyed some pretty cool viewpoints - a common feature in this park. Of course, it is not a true WOFO unless there is a hike involved. Hence, went on a really cool hike about 8 miles in length that included one of the most epic lunch views Nate and I have seen. Apparently “PBnJ with a view” is pretty common for the full-time YOFOers.
PBnJ always tastes better with a view!
Thankfully, the weather held on for most of the trip and we only ran into rain showers a few times; we were privileged to experience a brief shower in Death Valley which is a quite rare event. We walked on a huge salt flat called Badwater Basin. It was very windy and very cool! It also happens to be the lowest point of elevation in the U.S. at 282 feet below sea level.
Wandering among the Death Valley Sand Dunes. Did someone say “polar vortex?” Not in Death Valley! Bwah ha ha!
The last few days of our trip were back at Success Lake and included meeting the best ranger EVER, Ranger Juanita, who is such a fun and energetic gal. She is the ranger that directs (as in, attempts to herd those two cats) Dad and Dawn’s volunteer efforts for the last few months. She served us an authentic Mexican dinner, to include some kick ass Margaritas. We look forward to seeing her and her husband Lou again. We also got to take a short hike among some Sequoia trees near Porterville. Wow, they are huuuuuuge (insert Trump’s voice). Next time we go to California we will definitely be seeing the King’s Canyon and Sequoia National Park, where Dad says the trees are 3 times the size of the ones we saw.
A small Sequoia tree. But wow - ain’t momma nature grand?!
Our last day in California was spent at Universal Studios in Los Angeles. It was awesome to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, as we are huge fans of the series. The whole park was so cool and really brought to life some of Universal’s most classic TV shows and movies. One of the highlights of the park was going on the studio tour. We saw the sets of some of the best movies ever: Back to the Future, Jaws, Big Fat Liar, How the Grinch Stole Christmas and more. It was so cool to see the sets and props from so many great movies.
Recognize this courthouse and clock tower? It was in the film Back to the Future.
Our visit to Universal Studios in LA was a fun way to end a great WOFO.
Overall, it was a fantastic trip. This was Kady’s third, and Nate’s second WOFO. Dad and Dawn never disappoint on WOFO’s, they are amazing guides, and this one was the best yet. Who knows, maybe we’ll return for another guest blog when YOFOAdventures is summering in Alaska!
—Kady and Nate