San Francisco to Yosemite - Travel day no. 1

After a fairly leisurely start we headed out over the Bay Bridge through Oaklands (home of the Golden State Warriors, newly crowned NBL champions) and along the Castro Valley which was originally well known for its numerous poultry farms. Now it has been developed into housing estates known as 'bedroom communities' because the people who live there commute into SF city for work, recreation and entertainment. As we drove out I was amazed at the constant flow of traffic going towards SF. Even on a Sunday morning all 4 lanes were jam packed.

Mid morning we stopped for a short comfort break at the 'Flying J' truck stop where we were advised to stock up on supplies as Yosemite is quite remote. The variety of lollies, snacks and drinks, etc was absolutely overwhelming. There were some familiar brands on display but for the most part the names were new to us. There was even one whole aisle devoted to different types of dried meats - jerk/jerky. Unreal!!!

The influence of American TV and film on us was evident as we drove on, as many of the names on the road signs were familiar to us, such as Modesto, Sacramento, Fresno, etc.

The second part of the morning was spent driving through the Central Valley also known as the Flatlands. It is an agriculture area - the food bowl of the U.S. In fact 50% of all America's fruit and vegetables are grown in California. We passed acres and acres of almond and pistachio trees, cherries, apples, plums, corn, etc..... After nearly two and a half hours on the road we left the highway and headed towards the Sierra Nevada mountain range. 

We stopped for lunch at Vista Ranch. We sat in the shade and ate soups, rolls, salads and fruit, all of which were grown and prepared on the ranch. It was absolutely delicious. The grounds of the ranch are beautifully maintained and the vegetable plots full of plants laden with fruit and vegetables. It really was a very enjoyable way to spend an hour.

After another hour and a half on the road, we arrived at our home for the next two nights Tenaya Lodge. Now given a couple of things that Laurel (our tour director) had said, we were expecting nice but nothing too luxurious. Boy oh boy were we wrong. If this is what Americans call 'remote' and 'nice' they are exceptionally hard to please because this place is unbelievable. It is the most beautiful resort set just inside the south gate of Yosemite National Park. The lobby is jaw dropping. It is certainly the most quintessentially American place we have been to so far. It is like a lodge but on the grandest scale. The chandeliers and the fireplace are enormous and the walls are adorned with moose, deer and caribou heads. The exposed wooden beams and stone walls add to the charming lodge feel. Tomorrow we make our way into the valley floor of the park. We are really looking forward to it!