...our first stop was in albuquerque. i enjoyed meeting rachel and ira. we intended to spend a full day at the balloon fiesta. but the 40 degree weather didn't remit even for the hordes of people that gathered, so only a few hours were spent wandering amongst the rainbow of balloons.

driving through arizona we made pit stops at the petrified forest, the ballinger meteor crater, and sedona (where i saw ben's old "store front"). then we traveled up to the grand canyon -- a first for us both --. since our mission was the west coast, we didn't stop for a hike.... so the next best thing was a helicopter ride over a portion of the canyon. our timing couldn't have been better -- we were over the canyon about one hour before the sun set! the day had been fairly gusty and i'll admit that some of the 'typical flight jerks' made my heart rate quicken and my knuckles whiten as i gripped the edge of my seat fearing my life was coming to an end. ben told me about the time you spent researching in the grand canyon... i'm beginning to notice a pattern in the type of environment you enjoy: beautiful well-renowned mountainous regions :) [Sedona, Grand Canyon, Swiss Alps...what will be next?]

we arrived in california the next day. stayed near san simeon with a view of the coast. i behaved just like a child when we walked on the beach.... i chased the waves --- the waves chased me ---i giggled, splashed, picked up sand dollars, and gazed in amazement at the phenomenon of the sand becoming liquid-like after increased pressure. as we drove up highway one, we detoured to the william hearst castle, stopped at the monterey bay aquarium, then ended staying up in the mountains near half moon bay with kate, mary, and lee. they were very pleasant to visit with... and ben and i got our first chance to truly r-e-l-a-x since the beginning of our vacation. we ventured to san francisco before heading off to our next destination --> yosemite national forest. we treked around san francisco doing none of the things that tourists would do. we spent a good deal of the afternoon walking across town to the Amsel Adam museum. ben was not too pleased with my suggestion to walk there... especially when we discovered a note on the window stating that the museum had moved and we would have to backtrack a couple of blocks. after much searching, i inquired of the museum's whereabouts and was informed that the new musuem site was not built yet. humph. we walked back to the fisherman's wharf and called it a day.

the next day we left for yosemite national forest. we consulted with a trail guide about a route suitable for a 5 day hike. it was obvious from the start of our conversation with him that he was utterly put-out by having to help us. we left with a permit and directions to the trail head. his instructions for where to park were incorrect... it was a tow away lot. the trail head was not nearly obvious enough... but ben and i heaved on our 40 lb packs and started at approx. 5pm. well. it would have been extremely considerate of the trail guide to consider the amount of weight we would be carrying for an extended hike as well as to inform us of the type of trail we were starting out on. in fact, any correct information would have been nice. we were gung-ho for the first hour of 15% incline and switchbacks. but the 2nd and 3rd hours proved to become unbearable. ben was slightly dehydrated, most likely due to the recent case of shingles, and i just wanted to get to the top so i could stop. we didn't make it to the lookout point. after the sun set, we layed the sleeping bags in the middle of the trail (which was so steep that i had to place stones by my side to keep me from sliding) and rested. the moon was full, so at approx. 2am we completed the hike (2hrs) to upper the yosemite falls lookout point. we camped then descended the next day, deciding that the previous days experience was equivalent to our original intent of 5 days of hiking. coming down was harder on my body (i've got "runner's legs", so going up was not a problem) but down.... a completely different story. i made it down suffering only minuscule re-tearing of an old achilles' injury. ben and i treated ourselves to a hotel room with a jacuzzi that night. :)

to wrap things up.... ben had work related problems --so we traveled to palm springs to calm the storm and visit with his client. we returned to missouri. i've already informed ben several times that i'll be ready to move in may once i graduate. ...