welcome to the jungle

Los Angeles, CA – A warm to hot bright sunny morning in the city of angels

So the last few days have had their ups and downs, so to speak. After posting last Friday, I drove to Sequoia NP from Fresno. Looking at the map, it seemed as though the easiest way to get to Sequoia NP was to enter Kings Canyon NP (which is directly north to Sequoia) and then drive south through the parks.

Sometimes maps can be deceiving though.

(4/20/07) As I climb up the mountain to Kings, the weather starts getting colder and the fog thicker. Near the top I had to drive about 15 mph, not being able to see more than 10 yards ahead of me. At the Kings visitor center, I find that the road leading to Sequoia has a chain rule in effect, as it reaches elevations of 8,500 feet or so. I spent some time considering my next move, I had chains for the car but was considering leaving the way I came and driving to Sequoia via a different route. Walking back to my car, the park ranger called to me to let me know that the chain requirement had just been lifted. Taking that as a clear sign, I head down the General’s Road, which is made of drastic changes in elevation via switchbacks. Heavy fog, icy roads, and snow all on unfamiliar switchback roads made for white knuckle driving. It took me an hour and a half to get to my campground in Sequoia: Potwisha.

Potwisha is at 2,100 feet, so its climate is much warmer. It was raining lightly, but the campsite I picked had this gigantic tree overhead, which left the site bone dry. This allowed me to set up the tent and even dry it out a little. Watching the tent dry out, my neighbor from the next campsite over came over to introduce himself. Jim, and his wife Linda, are from Texas and taking a trip similar to mine. Jim’s company had sold and his wife was laid off from her job. We were heading in opposite directions as they were heading to Yosemite, and I to LA. Those two were good peoples, they invited me over to their campfire and fed me PBRs.

(4/21/07) The next day was a beautiful sunny day, ~ 70 degrees or so. I spent hours making coffee and breakfast and drying out the remainder of my soggy gear. I took a hike down to the nearby river and gathered some firewood. Afterwards I listened to the Red Sox victory over the Yankees. Good times. Good times. After that I took a drive, back the way I had come to see the giant sequoias. Up at 7,000 feet, it was about 40 degrees with an inch or two of snow on the ground. The trees were awesome, hard to fathom that some of them are over 2,000 years old. General Sherman, a principal attraction, is estimated to be between 2,300 to 2,700 years old. It’s the biggest tree in the world. There are taller trees, and there are wider trees, but no tree in the world can match the volume of General Sherman. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Sherman_%28tree%29

Then I drove my car through a giant sequoia.

I returned to Potwisha for dinner and wine by the campfire with Jim and Linda. The highlight of the night was the numerous bear visits. Fortunately for me, my campsite was in the center of the grounds. The folks at the perimeter campsites were on condition orange as bears were sniffing around for food persistently. One of the sites would see a bear and start hootin’ and a hollerin’. They’d bang pots and pans, honk their horns, and generally make a ruckus. At times, small parties of concerned campers would patrol the grounds. This went on for hours. After a couple glasses of wine, Jim, Linda, and I were laughing pretty hard at all the commotion. Although, that’s probably because the bears never paid us a visit.

Jim even let me wear his hat.

(4/22/07) The next morning it was raining pretty hard when I awoke. The tent was holding up pretty well under heavy fire, the tree no longer able to hold off the deluge. I packed up everything as quickly as possible and headed out. Halfway to Bakersfield, my head started reminding me of all the wine I had drank the night before. Ugh. Wet, stinky, tired, and a wino headache to boot. I made a quick stop in Bakersfield to get some lunch and scrub up a bit at a Barnes & Nobles. I pulled into LA at about 4pm and drove to Diane’s friend Marisa’s house. It was drizzly.

Marisa gave me a very warm welcome to her home. She put a beer in my hand and let me kvetch a bit about my soggy morning. After an overdue shower, we went to a local bar to watch the Red Sox beat the Yankees for the third time in a row, the highlight being back-to-back-to-back-to-back homeruns for the Sox. Four homeruns on ten pitches. Matsuzaka was banged up quite a bit, but still managed to get the W, so my prediction was only partly correct.

We then made our way to the Bigfoot Lounge. This was a treat for me, as there is also a Bigfoot Lounge in SF that Diane, Zack, and I have frequented. The same folks own both establishments, so it seemed immediately familiar, if not larger. I was having a good time in LA.

Marisa is one cool cat. Nuff’ said.

(4/23/07) Monday morning greeted me with clear skies and warm sunshine. I got breakfast at a local cafe, LA Bread, which really hit the spot. I then strolled over to the Los Feliz Golf Course. This is the spot where Ron Livingston and Jon Favreau played golf in the movie Swingers. I had suspected it when I first drove past the day before, and then Marisa confirmed it for me. How cool.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swingers_%281996_film%29

Then I hopped in the white wonder and headed for Hollywood Blvd. It was clear that the area is a big ol’ tourist trap, but a cool tourist trap. I checked out all the stars on the walk of fame and hung out with Elvis. I also spotted Spiderman, Darth Vader, the Hellraiser dude, Marylin Monroe, and Freddie Kruger.

Then I bought a ticket to see the first of several historic movie palaces I have on my list. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movie_palace) Grauman’s Chinese Theatre was built in 1927, at the same time that movie palaces all over the country were coming into vogue, including the Castro and Paramount theatres in the Bay Area. The theater is gorgeous, the interior is composed of dark reds and gold, with a Chinese aesthetic. Lush isn't quite the right word, but its close. I was super impressed, and the auditorium itself takes your breath away, you can tell that a lot of thinking went into its design to maximize the film viewing experience. There are little touches everywhere to ensure that the room is as dark as possible. I watched the Rodriguez/Tarantino double-feature Grindhouse. I refuse to give away a single detail. Just go see it. (A) Especially you, Diane and Zack, seriously. I only have one complaint regarding the Mann Theater: they don’t serve Cherry Coke. This is a serious oversight in my estimation. Therefore, the Mann Theatre gets an A, rather than an A+.

Afterwards, dinner and relaxin’ at Marisa’s.

(4/24/07) Now this morning, I’m having coffee and getting ready to go to the beach. Today is the hottest of the week, so I’m gonna soak it up. Might go to a Dodger's game. Tonight Derek Lowe, a member of the '04 Red Sox, is pitching against the Giants.

I miss you all. More soon.

Andy

ps - (To see all the pictures: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AcMnLVq3aN34Q)