Visitors and Trips to San Francisco

There's been some interesting visitors who have stopped by,

One couple shared that they met on Mt Whitney 50 years ago,

They were checking out the hiking in this area.

Another guy went to a campground up the road and had it all to himself

That's because the campground was closed and he didn't realize it.

A biker from San Francisco with long dred locks rolled in on his Harley,

He was hoping to find a campsite,

But it was Saturday afternoon, might not be so easy,

He said he was fortunate in getting one last year.

May have to camp in a dispersed area I told him,

He wondered about bears, how to protect his food,

The side boxes on his bike looked better than a bear canister.

His food would be ok.

An older gentleman had a small kitten hanging on to his shoulders,

Picked it up after the mother was hit by a car, 6 weeks ago,

He's ferocious he told me, then laughed,

The kitten was adorable and we took it to show Kathy,

It was repulsed by her for some reason,

Maybe the smell of window cleaner on her hands,

Very sensitive and smart kitty.

I've taken 2 trips to San Francisco so far,

The first trip by myself, left early on a Sunday morning,

It was a good time to travel, no real traffic issues,

And I got there in time to see the grandkids play soccer.

The second trip was at a less opportune time,

Kathy and I went after we closed the booth on a Sunday,

We knew traffic was going to be bad, hit some on I-80 West of Sacramento,

Then saw on Google maps that it would be clogged heading to the Bay Bridge,

So we opted for the Golden Gate Bridge which was smooth sailing,

But 19th Street wasn't.

Got in to my son's about 9:20, over 4 hours of tiring driving.

The return trip on Tuesday ended up being worse,

We thought we were leaving early enough,

Headed over the Golden Gate, then chose to stay off I-80,

But traffic got bad on Rte 4 before we got to Antioch,

A brief encounter with an enraged driver left us a bit shaken

Thought  Rte 12 heading to Lodi would be calmer,

Only to be tied up in traffic due to a tractor trailer getting stuck exiting, blocking both lanes.

We didn't get to Placerville until after 6 hours of tiring driving.

A stop at the Public House there calmed our nerves.

Our stay in SF with the grandkids was eventful too,

Fit in a couple public bus rides,

Went to the California Academy of Science and the San Francisco Zoo,

Thanks to their amazing nanny who shepherded us and managed 3 kids, with stroller and food at just the right time when the kids needed it.

Going to the zoo was easy, she insisted,

As the bus dropped them off right at the gate. We met them there before our eventful drive back.

I haven't got my fishing license yet,

But bought equipment on Amazon (hate to admit),

I broke the telescoping rod soon after rigging up the line on it,

Got a replacement but also ordered a 2-piece rod that should not break as easily.

Saw a bunch of rainbows that were caught at Wright's Lake Saturday night.

Looked like both dinner and breakfast for a few fortunate fishermen.