The Bunster Adventures

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2009-04-25T17:46:00.001-07:00

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Reno

2009-03-29T16:11:00.000-07:00

So we took this weekend to travel to Reno since we heard from the local Quinconians that it was well worth the trip. It was just a short drive down and over to Western Nevada. Thankfully it was all interstate driving which we aren't exposed to much. Upon arrival, we took our time shopping through some of our favorite stores which have gone unvisited since moving to the mountains. It had a similar Las Vegas feel, but the surrounding mountains had much more character. The city is filled with unique restaurants and boutique shopping.

We headed further south to Lake Washoe State Park to camp for the evening. Sure enough, we still haven't learned our lesson about camping in cold weather and spent the night shivering. There wasn't much to the park except an amazing view of the Sierra Nevadas. What a refreshing awakening after a sleepless night. We took advantage of being near the casinos to satisfy Sebastian's craving for a breakfast buffet. We hit Atlantis and promptly attacked the never ending supply of omlettes, mini waffles, bacon and every other breakfast food lacking nutrition.

We rolled out of our table and took a brief tour of downtown Reno. The city has spent a lot of money in refurbishing its river district. They did a great job on all the parks and other public spaces put it. Our only regret is not being able to spend an evening to experience the nightlife...we just couldn't deal with another icy overnight stay.

Tahoeshoeing

2009-03-16T18:22:00.000-07:00

This week's adventure may have been the most amazing yet. The day started with a gorgeous sunrise in the mountains, we've learned to expect nothing less. After we picked up some goodies from a local bakery, we headed to Lake Tahoe. We got some insider tips from a park ranger who sent us on some trails in the state park. 3.2 miles is otherwise a walk in the park, but strap on a pair of snowshoes, 3 feet of snow and some good ol' wind from the lake and you've got yourself a great workout! Lunch has never tasted better! We rested on some rocks at the lake shore and tried to soak in our surroundings...the super white snow on the mountains....the Caribbean colored water...the crashing of the waves on the rocks. We both described it as surreal, it felt like we were living in a movie or fantasy land.

Exploring our backyard

2009-03-09T18:40:00.000-07:00

In typical Bunster fashion, we decided to embark on a leisurely hike that runs parallel to a local river. At the end of the "one mile" hike we thought we were getting into, we navigated away from the main trail (aparently) and found ourselves atop a mountain. It was a beautiful weekend for hikes, and we completed a shorter one on Saturday. This area is filled with small rivers and we were amazed at how loud they are as they crash on the boulders on the river. We were surprised to find some hiking that doesn't have the 2 feet of snow that we still have at the cabin. The days are getting longer, and the blue skies are a great backdrop for the snow covered peaks. There is a chill in the air lately, that feels more appropriate with so much snow on the ground! This week we find ourselves planning a trip to Lake Tahoe which should include show chains, show shoeing, and good coffee!

Quaint Quincy

2009-02-25T17:24:00.000-08:00

We've made it to our next assignment! A few feet of snow welcomed us to our little mountain cabin, so we of course had to make a snowman. The town of Quincy, CA is a town of 5,000 with two stoplights, and the biggest news of last year was the oppening of a Subway sandwhich shop. It's a small village tucked into the mountains, and was founded as a gold town. We are conviently close to Lake Tahoe and Reno which we hope to visit on a future weekend. The vistas are gorgeous with snow capped peaks and dense forest, just what you would expect at 4,000 feet. On our wish list of things to do include hiking, hot springs, snowshoeing and kayaking in the spring on one of the many surrounding lakes. We'll be here for 3 months until moving north to the pacific northwest.

Clovis, a way of life

2009-02-08T16:14:00.000-08:00

We thought we would produce some pictures of our backyard before we left. Clear days are few and far between here in the valley. We can maybe see the mountains once a week, but when we can, what a sight! The snow caps shine brightly in the sun. The mountains are a couple of hundred miles away and rise to an altitude of roughly 8000, with peaks upwards of 12,000 feet. We've enjoyed our time here, but we are eagerly awaiting our next chapter which should hopefully land us somewhere in the Sierra Nevada's. They tried to get us to stay longer, but the need to explore is too great. The threat of summer temperatures in the triple digits is enough to get us out! So we're moving next to a place where the 10 day forecast includes a few inches of snow. I guess we aren't sending our winter coats to storage just yet! Clovis is a cute and friendly town. When the fog and smog rolls in, you can't see the mountains and we might as well be anywhere else in the country. We also don't like having to watch the news to see whether we can burn wood or not.

What an 'Extreme' week

2009-01-15T17:13:00.000-08:00

Ty Pennington and his small army of 5,000 workers and countless semi-trucks were in Fresno this week to build a new house for a lucky family. They shut down most of the neighboring streets and fans were bussed in from the nearby civic center parking garage. The start of construction was delayed earlier in the week due to a cold and wet morning. However, we hope all went well as today is the day when the family returns and sees the transformation. We don't know anything about the story, since the show will air in March. Our guess is the mom lost her kids to a dinosaur that stomped around the city. We unfortunately could not see nor hear Ty, we think he was hooked up to a coffee IV at the local starbucks. We did get to catch a glimpse of Michael, shown in the picture below. It was a sight to see so many people working in such a small area. They truly must have some good neighbors because people were walking through yards all week. The noisy generators must keep some of them awake as well because they were loud! They apparently didn't mind because some across the street put up lawn chairs on their roof.

Trip to the coast!

2009-01-06T16:19:00.000-08:00

Two months after leaving Florida, we finally made it back to the coast. However, this one is a little colder, but worth the sacrifice of our fingertips. We camped in a state park in Big Sur, a little bit south of Monterey. It was incredible to see how the land stops suddenly, and gives way to giant cliffs of rock and sand as it meets the Pacific. The sound of the waves crashing against the earth were thunderous, even at a distance of several hundred feet! We could only tolerate watching the surfers for a couple of minutes before having to head back to camp and make some hot cocoa. The wildlife was out in full force, as we awoke both mornings to a pack of deer outside our tent, and large groups of otters right below us in the top picture. We also hit up Monterey, and check out the famous aquarium and Cannery Row, which has turned into shopping/dining/nightlife area. The sun was out all day, and literally a warm welcome to below freezing temperatures. The sun disappears two hours from the coast, and we returned back to our dreary skies and cloudy weather. Yes, that is our tent and humongous fire we created from two sticks in the picture below.

A Clovis Christmas

2008-12-28T16:34:00.000-08:00

Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas! This is actually a 10 foot tree, but objects in the background may appear smaller. We thank everybody for all the wonderful Christmas cards. You can't see them but our little mantle is filled with cards from friends and family. They really made is feel missed and loved. We strolled through Old Town Clovis and found a couple of antique ornaments to adorn our tree with, as well as a star tree topper! Christmas came and went with a quiet breakfast, some presents and lots of quality time at home. Although we did miss everyone dearly, we spent time remembering all those we care for. We're excited about the prospects on where we might spend next Christmas! Lord only knows where that'll be. Hopefully we can convince some friends to fly out and spend it with us :)

Walks to remember...

2008-12-14T15:35:00.000-08:00

On a cool, windy Saturday morning we decided to try a hike a little closer to home. We found Millerton State Park recreational lake to be perfect. It was not as challenging as say, hiking up a thousand feet to a mountain peak, but it was refreshing. It was only a few miles round trip around the south side of the lake. We packed a lunch and had a little picnic overlooking the lake. It looked like they had some good campsites so we may return shortly before the really cold weather sets in. It is supposed to snow these next few days at an elevation of 1500 feet (we're at 350). We hope to bring you some cool snow pictures from the national parks in the coming month.

To celebrate the Christmas season, we took a stroll down Christmas Tree Lane in Fresno. Apparently, the city closes down this one street to allow people to walk down the couple of miles to soak in the thousands upon thousands of lights strung up on the trees, houses and just about everything else. As the story goes, a child was killed in 1920 and in an act of mourning, the house decorated the large tree by the street. In the following years, neighbors followed suit and have been doing it since. It was pretty amazing to see so many lights hanging from large trees. The atmosphere was complete with carolers, garage bands and children playing musical instruments. People took this opportunity to dress their dogs in christmas outfits and parade them about. Some dogs were larger than most children we saw!

Lunch at 8,000 feet

2008-11-30T15:10:00.000-08:00

We chose a random hike to do in Sequoia National Park and ended up with this view at the top. We had a great panoramic of valleys, rocks, trees, fog and snow cap mountains, all within our 360 degree vista. The whole hike smelled like walking inside a christmas tree farm. The air was so crisp and refreshing. Snow littered many parts of the hike, but the temperatures cooperated with our day of exploring. We are fortunate to have these opportunities to spend in our new backyard. We hit sunset on the 8,000 foot descent back through the fog line. I couldn't help to think how blessed we are to have eyes built to appreciate His creation. No other animal on the planet could look at these sights and see beauty.

A woodchuck's dream

2008-11-30T13:57:00.000-08:00

It's neither the tallest, nor the widest, nor even the oldest, but General Sherman is the largest tree on the planet...by volume. The base of the trunk is 35 feet in diameter and stands 275 ft. tall. Interestingly enough, the top of the tree is dead, but it keeps growing in girth every year. The new wood is equivalent to a good size tree of any other species. The giant redwoods were sporadically located throughout the forest, among other envious trees.

Arrival

2008-11-25T11:08:00.000-08:00

So it only took us three days after getting settled in to get the itch to go do stuff. Not having internet, microwave, washer, dryer, measuring cups along with other items dubbed as 'necessities' to the modern American helped push us along. So upon seeing that the park entrance to Yosemite was a mere 52 miles, we packed up our camping gear headed for the hills! Or to be more accurate, we headed for the massive granite sheer mountain cliffs.

Seeing that the temperature for Yosemite Valley would only go down to 40, we thought for sure we'd be safe. Little did we know that forecast was off by fifteen degrees, in the wrong direction. Yosemite Valley is a tiny strip of land surrounded by these huge cliffs. There is no gradual climb to anything. It's 8,000 ft cliff, half a mile of valley, 8,000 ft cliff. If looking straight ahead in the valley, all you can see is shades of grey from these giant rocks, no sky. We hoped a strong fire would help us survive the night. Alas, wood is not dry enough in the valley in winter to be burned, mostly because the sun can only shine directly on the valley floor for an hour or two before the mountain peaks shade it. Even though, we had a great time. The drive to and from was beautiful with views of deep valleys covered in trees. We saw numerous deer and squirrels so large they appeared like small dogs.

One thing that caught our eye was how trees could still manage to grow straight out of the rock face. Even on the peaks, where no soil could be found, sprouted trees that grew to full size. Just on the other side of the southern ridge was a redwood grove. No where else except in this little area, giant sequoia trees were blossoming. Truly an amazing park.

A Grand Experience

2008-11-18T11:08:00.000-08:00

The Grand Canyon, for lack of a better term, was simply awesome. It was awesome in the truest sense of the word, meaning it inspired an overwhelming feeling of wonder or amazement. To be honest, it looked faked. We felt as if we were standing inside a postcard. The sunrise and sunset were hands down one of the most beautiful moments we've experienced. We had the pleasure of camping out on the south rim and gazed upon the twilight with eager eyes. To continue with cheesy metaphors, it looked as if someone splashed a bucket of colors across the night sky.

The next day, with our awesomeness meter in at full, we were struck again by something incredible, this time man made. We unfortunately were not able to get good pictures of it, but the Hoover Dam burned an image of extreme engineering in our heads. It stands 730 ft high by 1250 ft in length. It holds 3.33 million cubic yards of concrete and produces an asto

nishing 2.08 gigawatts of electricity. The Hoover Dam was just warming us up for another man made miracle, as we spent the night in Las Vegas (woohoo!). We have never seen a more diverse mix of people from all over the globe and all walks of life. The themed hotels, unique attractions and the delicious food surpassed our expectations. Our walk along the strip was capped by the dancing fountains at the Bellagio. These last two days were certainly filled with excitement as we experienced $8 camping at the Grand Canyon, followed the next night by a stay in a 5 star hotel.

P.S. Internet access was hard to come by in the Southwest...

Florida to California, Day 5...

2008-11-12T16:06:00.001-08:00

West Texas. The 428 miles down 1-20 from Dallas to Pecos was filled with grey skies, huge windmills, endless flatlands, metal scrap yards, dead grass, red clay and hundreds of thirsty birds (or oil drills for all you non-texans). The unchanging landscape was a bit tiring after a while, but thankfully the speed limit is higher than the rest of the country, to allow for an expedited escape I suppose. The windmill farms were a site to behold. These goliath energy producing machines make for an amazing view as they tower over the surrounding brushland, spinning their 85 ft. blades in perfect unison. It seems harmonious spinning is the common denominator in this region, as the constant whirling of the oil drills is mesmerizing. The landscape is lacking in color and variety. The little bit of rock outcroppings worth seeing are marred by the stench of oil refineries and the countless metal graveyards filled with ancient oil equipment as well as cars, trucks and tractors from years gone by.

Florida to California, Day 3...

2008-11-11T06:35:00.001-08:00

The Desoto Disaster. Question: What do you get when you mix two people who still think they're in Florida, who don't feel the need to check a weather forecast with a surprise cold front in the forests of Mississippi? Answer: two really cold campers. We were in trouble while setting up the tent at three in the afternoon and the temperature was already at 50. Naturally, all of our cold weather gear was packed nicely in our truck with no means of reaching it. Our sleeping bags and tent were not made to handle this kind of weather, nor were we expecting it too. So sure enough, we noticed it when the temperature dipped into the twenties, how refreshing! To make matters worse, the moon was almost full. At midnight, we thought daybreak had come and it was time to go...how discouraging! We made the best of it, constructing a fire and making some mac & cheese over it. It was a lot of fun despite the elements. We have learned our lesson and will now check the weather report anytime we camp, whew. One good thing about the cold is that the animals are smarter than us, and were snuggled in their dens and not out sniffing around our tent! We're in Dallas today, and hope to be back on the road tomorrow. The adventure continues...

Florida to California, Day 1...

2008-11-09T05:41:00.000-08:00

Just under 600 miles and 11 hours of driving we made it to our first stop, Apalachicola, FL. Our journey started Friday, November 7th upon disembarking the cruise in Miami. The crazy thing was this morning we were 20 miles off the coast of Cuba on a cruise ship and now we're in Florida's panhandle. The car is packed tight, but still handles considerably well. We spent the 2nd day here relaxing on the beach. Our next stop will hopefully be the Desoto National Forest. We had originally wanted to stay in New Orleans, but alas, no rooms were available in any of the hotels we liked. So we opted to camp out. We're going to put our new camping items to the test tonight!

Cruisin'

2008-11-09T05:02:00.000-08:00

The newlyweds set sail! The cruise was amazing and just what we needed. After seeing 9 months of planning evaporate in one action packed day, we needed the few days to get our heads back on straight. First stop was Key West. Having only a couple of hours at our disposal, we walked around Mallory Square and checked out the southern most point of the United States. Key West has, to say it lightly, some interesting folk. Although to their credit, the homeless don't beg but craft jewelry and hats, painted tiles, and even play instruments for your dollar.

Next stop was Cozumel, Mexico. The beaches were simply unreal. We saw no less than 6 shades of blue in the water. The sand was soft and the breeze refreshing. A rented jeep took us around the whole island. Once we got away from the tourist areas, we were exposed to the real Cozumel. Needless to say, it did not look like what we saw on the brochures. The local town is dirty, having animals from stray dogs to burros (mules) walking around. The entire economy is 100% reliant on tourist income. As soon as you set foot on the island, the begging begins. It was a little uncomfortable seeing as how these people are struggling on dollars a day, meanwhile we have all you can eat buffets on board. On a brighter note, we heard the snorkeling, scuba and fishing we great. If we ever go back we'll surely do one of those. The reefs are huge and home to hundreds of species of coral and fish.

Wedding a success!

2008-11-08T11:02:00.000-08:00

We'd like to again sincerely thank all our wonderful friends and family who made this day possible. It was everything we could have hoped for and so much more. We hope all who attended enjoyed themselves. We were blessed to have so many special people join us on a day we will never forget. Your continued love and support will carry us through as we begin our journey west to California.

New beginnings...

2008-10-16T16:07:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome to our blog! The purpose of this blog is to keep our close friends and family up to date on all of our anticipated experiences. We will be married on November 1st and look forward to an amazing life together. We hope you check in from time to time and share with us the great things life has to offer. Please feel free to comment and keep in touch!