Hi to my few readers out there! Welcome back to my blog. To new readers who happen to stumble on my blog, welcome welcome! And thanks! :D

To my family and friends who have no choice but to read my blog (because I told them to do so haha!) hello and thank you!

Here’s another one for y’all. So let’s begin this…

Remember from my last post Joshua Tree National Park + Camping + Travel Tips, I told you about one of my lifetime goals? That is to complete at least all the National Parks in USA. Well, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are off the list now! (but I'll come back for sure, there's a lot more to see) Thanks to Memorial long weekend! :)

We were expecting a very cold weather both in Kings Canyon and Sequoia, and I am talking about a freaking 39F… but then when we got there, OMG!!! it was scorching hot!!! I was like reaaaally??? (I even brought my puffer jacket, who’s ready??? HAHA)

Anyway, the weather didn’t stop us from enjoying this adventure-packed trip. This trip wasn’t perfect by all means but is definitely one of the trips I would love doing again. 

Our trip started on Saturday morning, 27th of May. Surprisingly, we were all very punctual hahaha so we kind of started good. We hit the road just a little past 6AM. I drove from our apartment all the way to Kings Canyon. (Ok fine, I’m kidding. They won’t allow me to drive, irks! :P) 

First Stop: General Grant Tree

Doc and I were doing the 'sun' dance, because we thought we can never get enough sun :| #sarcasm

Fun Fact: General Grant tree was named after the US 18th President, Ulysses S. Grant. And on April 28, 1926, President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed it the "Nation's Christmas Tree”. Thanks wikipedia! :) (put this link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Grant_(tree)

I like how we didn't plan what to wear, but we were all in team MAROON hahaha! :P

The girl commented, "Wow, she's strong!". I guess my legs didn't fail me :)

It was an easy, family-friendly hike. It was serene and tranquil. Definitely a good place to breathe, day-dream and just enjoy the peace and quiet with the nature.

Climb every mountain!!!

What's up doc?

Look what Michael's doing haha

Next Stop: Hume Lake

Ok, we were trying to dance here :|

Hume Lake is a reservoir within the Fresno County. This is one of the most popular and most visited part of Sequoia National Forest because of the recreational activities that the place offers. Tourists usually go there for camping, biking, fishing, canoeing, snowmobiling, and many more, depending on the season.

Hop on to the Next: Grizzly Falls

I was jokingly saying that we should change into our swimsuits and bathe under the Grizzly falls knowing that the water is going to be cold with all the winter snow melting down. And honestly, there wasn’t any way that anyone can actually swim/bathe under the falls (at least prolly not during the time we were there). There’s a reason why it’s called Grizzly. :P

The 80-foot tall falls is impossible to miss with its refreshing mist and roaring water. We were still far, but we can already hear the falls and somehow see the mist coming from it.

Can you tell how crazy the water was?

Water blurred the photos, but you can tell how much we enjoyed this haha

From the picnic area, we head up to the base of the falls. We were greeted by splashing water, and boy didn’t I say it’s going to be cold? It was SUPER cold haha It was fun though. We went back down soaking through and through (how ‘bow da?:P) (I told them we should change into swimsuits, dang!!! haha). We stayed under the sun be warm. We hung our wet clothes on the branches of the trees. And while waiting, we just relaxed and watched the roaring river located just across.

The river was almost just all white because of the roaring rapids

Last Stop for the (Satur)day: Zumwalt Meadows

Then we explored the woods on the way to Zumwalt meadow. There was this mini bridge connecting each side of the river. Nik is scared of any bridges and the thought of it falling down plus the height from where it was suspended. And of course, just like what any other good friends would do, we all hopped our way to the other side, so the bridge would move. Poor Nik, she cried hehe (Sorry nik love you!) She blamed Michael for that :P

I think this was after Nik cried a little bit haha :P

Few more miles of walking before we reached the first spot. There was a lake surrounded by Pine-covered peaks. It was beautiful. Like a painting, surreal! Unreal! 

We got there just right before sunset. It was starting to get colder. But we didn’t stop there. There was another path leading to the ‘actual’ meadow; however, the wooden pathway was submerged to the lake water for about less than a foot deep. We know the water was going to be freezing cold, but what the heck, let’s do this for adventure’s sake. So our brave hearts decided to take off our shoes and socks and do the sanest thing to do, walk barefooted on a freezing cold water. HA!

Frozen feet!

So, that being said, we, literally, tested the water first to gauge how cold it will be. ***I think we can do it*** It was roughly 30 feet long. Then we started walking, and I’m not gonna lie, it wasn’t easy. Boy, the water was very cold. And I’m not talking about just cold. It was bitter and piercing. I regretted walking in it after few steps but there’s no way I’m giving up. Though, in my mind, I was like, “What am I doing?” I almost cried, and i’m not even half kidding. Nik decided to back out. Then we called her and she tried again. We all made it, and we were glad we pushed it through ahaha. We were welcomed by, to put it in words, calm and tranquility. We stayed there for a while, to warm our frozen feet. We explored another pathways thinking that it may lead to where we parked (because it’s scary to walk in the water again). No luck. So we have to go back at it again. The second time was not as bad. whew! Thank God! :D

Hola, chica! :)) Nice one nik :P

This summarizes our first day :) Please watch out for my next post, part II of this trip :)

’Til then, xoxo

Lloyd

Epilogue:

So, as we were enjoying the road trip on the way to our hotel, as we were singing and laughing and all that good stuff... as soon as our phones had signal... (BTW... There's no phone or data coverage in Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks), Doc had a missed call registered in her phone. And it was a call from Motel 6, which is where we supposedly would spend the night in. So, you prolly have guessed what happened. Yes, they cancelled our reservation because they weren't able to reach us. To be fair, there's fault on our side as well because we forgot to confirm our reservations haha (Lesson learned :P)

So we spent the night, while struggling for data signal, searching for a hotel nearby. I did say it was Memorial weekend right? Everything was booked!!! Holy Guacamole! Still lucky enough, we were able to book a room in Holiday Inn Express in Bakersfield which is a little bit far, but what can we do... Don't make the same mistake as we did :P

[Photo and Video: Kristine Doctor]