Getaway

There are a lot of places to get away to....

....and from.

I packed a light bag, grabbed the credit card and before 9 a.m., Simone and I were headed north on 90 out of Santa Barbara in the Toyota Sequoia.

Having lived within hours of the Sequoia National Park for most of my life, I had the thought to make that the first stop on our little getaway; it being the namesake of my truck and all. For the first couple hours, we just drove without talking to each other; it was a beautiful day and the sun shone warmly. Once inside the confines of the park, I left the road to find my own way around.

Those big trees are something to see!

We had stopped at a little store on the way and picked up some items for a picnic - a French loaf, cheese and wine. Once we found a suitable spot, we stopped and unpacked the buffet. Like the wine, Simone's smile has a certain intoxicating effect on me as well.

Termites from all over the world must love this place. They probably send back postcards to the termites at home telling of all the great wood to gnaw on. I prefer cheese myself.

Leaving the park, we came to a wooden suspension bridge. It was a long way up, but quite scenic.

We found some hills so I reasoned this was a good chance to try out the traction on the Toyota. Four Wheel Drive is a good thing!

The hills grew steeper, but it didn't faze our truck. It kept right on climbing to the top of the world.

Once we got to the top, what a view it commanded! We could almost see the Pacific Ocean. But not quite. Simone remarked with a slight yawn that she was getting tired. I nodded.

The natural rock formations were huge, but fairly smooth going. The wine tipped over and spilled in the back floorboard. We broke the rest of the bread up into crumbs and threw them to a flock of white and yellow birds we saw by the side of the road.

By late afternoon, we were both tired and ready to return. One last view of the cavern and we started back. I knew there would be hell to pay when I got back to my wife. Sigh.