We flew back to San Diego and spent a few days with Kristina's family.
It was a lovely time to be there, with lots of springtime flowers like
these that Kristina and her Mom Patty are enjoying.
Kristina's sister Debby and brother-in-law Steve live near the beach in Encinitas. We took a walk on the beach with Steve (right), Bill and Patty.
We saw this young seal who had lost its mother. A marine mammal rescue organization had been called to come help it.
This lovely succulent garden was a block from the ocean.
After our walk we went back to Debby and Steve's house and enjoyed happy hour and the sunset from their deck.
Here's a shot of their kitchen (taken from the deck) where Debby was preparing dinner.
Debby is at the table with her daughter Megan.
It was fun to celebrate Megan’s birthday. She turned 20.
Here's a photo of Megan and her boyfriend Sean as she makes a birthday wish.
After a few days in San Diego we were over our jet lag and we headed to Death Valley (DV) National Park with Kristina's folks. We stayed in cabins at Furnace Creek.
Patty and Bill ate breakfast with us on the porch. We were fueling for a big day of exploration!
Our fist stop was the Salt Creek Boardwalk to look at the pupfish.
Pupfish have been endemic to DV for 10,000 years (there used to be lakes here). But with global climate change and the few remaining water sources drying up, these frisky fish are now severely threatened.
We made our first trip to DV in 2007 when we rode a double century bike ride here. We heard about Scotty’s Castle then, but we didn't have time to go to the castle. This time we made it a priority to visit.
The castle was originally named Death Valley Ranch (DVR). But the locals started calling it Scotty's Castle for the colorful Walter Scott, aka Death Valley Scotty, who claimed to own it.
The castle was actually owned by Alfred and Bessie Johnson who had it built starting in the 1920s. They were friends with Scotty. We found Scotty's Castle to be tastefully done with many creative adaptations for the desert. This photo was taken from the second floor overlooking the living room.
Al Johnson hired many skilled craftsmen to make the furniture and fixtures in the castle. Here's a close up the living room table.
There is beautiful metalwork throughout, with each room having different designs for lights.
Wooden shelves line the walls and are used to display things like Bessie's basket collection.
Custom dishes from Italy were procured for the castle that were monogrammed DVR and S&J, which stands for Johnson and Scott.
While touring the castle we heard a story that Scotty had a set of plates made with curled rims to avoid getting food spots on his signature red ties.
Kristina is standing outside the main gate, which is no longer in use.
The handles are quite ornate.
Near Scotty's Castle is the Ubehebe Crater, where 2,000 years ago molten magma mixed with an underground spring to create a huge volcanic explosion. The result was this 800 feet deep crater.
We went all the way around the crater rim. It was windy as we hiked, but we were rewarded with different views of the crater.
There are incredible contrasts in the rocks.
The soil was loose so we stayed back from the crater's edge.
Although the environment is harsh, we saw evidence of life's tenacity with the blooming of springtime wildflowers.
Just a few hundred years ago another volcanic explosion happened here, creating the Little Hebe crater.
Next we went to some of the sand dunes in Death Valley.
It was at least ten degrees warmer on the valley floor so we didn't hike too far, but Patty and Bill couldn't resist the lure of the dunes; You can see them in the distance.
One of the most lucrative minerals that was mined in Death Valley was borax. We visited the Borax Museum and saw the old equipment and vehicles used by the miners. This wagon was used to haul timber.
We enjoyed driving in Death Valley and seeing many different colored rock formations.
This is Artist’s Palette. The volcanic rocks here were affected by hydrothermal activity that concentrated minerals with vibrant colors like green and pink.
Dinner included nice company but the food in Death Valley was nothing special.
We said good-bye to Kristina's folks and headed to Mammoth for a week of skiing with Kristina's cousin Cynthia and her two sons Julian and Emilio.
When we first arrived there wasn't a lot of snow, but we still had fun skiing together.
In addition to downhill skiing, we also did some cross country skiing. Pete is in front of a warning sign about CO2 gas that pools in low lying areas. Notice how little snow there is!
We were lucky that a storm dumped 8-12 inches of light snow, turning Mammoth into a winter wonderland!
We went to the slopes early the next morning. Kristina and Cynthia are in line to take the chairlift so they can ski in the fresh powder.
Here you can see Cynthia floating through the new white stuff.
Mammoth Mountain's mascot is Wooly, a cartoon version of a prehistoric mammoth. We followed snowboarding Wooly down a run so Cynthia and Kristina could get a photo with him.
We learned that Mammoth doesn't get its name from this prehistoric animal. Instead during the gold rush a mine here was named Mammoth Mining, and the name stuck.
The mining boom went bust pretty quick, but people saw the beauty of the land and started coming to Mammoth in the summertime for recreation. The Mammoth Lakes Pack Outfit has existed for one hundred years, and today they provide horses and pack mules for hiking trips.
In 1942 Dave McCoy came to Mammoth. He started the Mammoth Mountain Ski Resort. We are happy that he was so passionate about evolving the sport of downhill skiing so we can enjoy it now! Here's a view from Mammoth's summit, which is just over 11,000 feet high.
The snow storm also helped us with cross-country skiing. Here we are along a trail with Lake Mary behind us. Further in the background (at the left edge of the photo) is the Crystal Crag with a dusting of the fresh snow.
We fueled our days on the slopes and trails with homemade Vietnamese-style banh mi sandwiches of pork tenderloin, pickled vegetables and cilantro on a crusty sourdough baguette.
Part of the reason we like to go on ski trips with Cynthia is because she appreciates good food. She brought up several cheeses, including Cowgirl Creamery's Red Hawk.
Cynthia's husband Humberto likes to cook, and one night he cooked us a Mexican feast.
One of his most creative dishes was a grilled mandarin and leek salsa - wow!
Humberto was psyched to find a leather jacket on sale.
Humberto gave us a travel ping pong set for Christmas, so we spent hours playing together. It was lots of fun!
We had brought back some decorations for Chinese New Year from Hong Kong, like this dragon (who has a ping pong ball in his mouth). Gung hey fat choi!
Our ski road trip will continue for another month. Next we'll go east to Salt Lake City.
Kristina's sister Debby and brother-in-law Steve live near the beach in Encinitas. We took a walk on the beach with Steve (right), Bill and Patty.
We saw this young seal who had lost its mother. A marine mammal rescue organization had been called to come help it.
This lovely succulent garden was a block from the ocean.
After our walk we went back to Debby and Steve's house and enjoyed happy hour and the sunset from their deck.
Here's a shot of their kitchen (taken from the deck) where Debby was preparing dinner.
Debby is at the table with her daughter Megan.
It was fun to celebrate Megan’s birthday. She turned 20.
Here's a photo of Megan and her boyfriend Sean as she makes a birthday wish.
After a few days in San Diego we were over our jet lag and we headed to Death Valley (DV) National Park with Kristina's folks. We stayed in cabins at Furnace Creek.
Patty and Bill ate breakfast with us on the porch. We were fueling for a big day of exploration!
Our fist stop was the Salt Creek Boardwalk to look at the pupfish.
Pupfish have been endemic to DV for 10,000 years (there used to be lakes here). But with global climate change and the few remaining water sources drying up, these frisky fish are now severely threatened.
We made our first trip to DV in 2007 when we rode a double century bike ride here. We heard about Scotty’s Castle then, but we didn't have time to go to the castle. This time we made it a priority to visit.
The castle was originally named Death Valley Ranch (DVR). But the locals started calling it Scotty's Castle for the colorful Walter Scott, aka Death Valley Scotty, who claimed to own it.
The castle was actually owned by Alfred and Bessie Johnson who had it built starting in the 1920s. They were friends with Scotty. We found Scotty's Castle to be tastefully done with many creative adaptations for the desert. This photo was taken from the second floor overlooking the living room.
Al Johnson hired many skilled craftsmen to make the furniture and fixtures in the castle. Here's a close up the living room table.
There is beautiful metalwork throughout, with each room having different designs for lights.
Wooden shelves line the walls and are used to display things like Bessie's basket collection.
Custom dishes from Italy were procured for the castle that were monogrammed DVR and S&J, which stands for Johnson and Scott.
While touring the castle we heard a story that Scotty had a set of plates made with curled rims to avoid getting food spots on his signature red ties.
Kristina is standing outside the main gate, which is no longer in use.
The handles are quite ornate.
Near Scotty's Castle is the Ubehebe Crater, where 2,000 years ago molten magma mixed with an underground spring to create a huge volcanic explosion. The result was this 800 feet deep crater.
We went all the way around the crater rim. It was windy as we hiked, but we were rewarded with different views of the crater.
There are incredible contrasts in the rocks.
The soil was loose so we stayed back from the crater's edge.
Although the environment is harsh, we saw evidence of life's tenacity with the blooming of springtime wildflowers.
Just a few hundred years ago another volcanic explosion happened here, creating the Little Hebe crater.
Next we went to some of the sand dunes in Death Valley.
It was at least ten degrees warmer on the valley floor so we didn't hike too far, but Patty and Bill couldn't resist the lure of the dunes; You can see them in the distance.
One of the most lucrative minerals that was mined in Death Valley was borax. We visited the Borax Museum and saw the old equipment and vehicles used by the miners. This wagon was used to haul timber.
We enjoyed driving in Death Valley and seeing many different colored rock formations.
This is Artist’s Palette. The volcanic rocks here were affected by hydrothermal activity that concentrated minerals with vibrant colors like green and pink.
Dinner included nice company but the food in Death Valley was nothing special.
We said good-bye to Kristina's folks and headed to Mammoth for a week of skiing with Kristina's cousin Cynthia and her two sons Julian and Emilio.
When we first arrived there wasn't a lot of snow, but we still had fun skiing together.
In addition to downhill skiing, we also did some cross country skiing. Pete is in front of a warning sign about CO2 gas that pools in low lying areas. Notice how little snow there is!
We were lucky that a storm dumped 8-12 inches of light snow, turning Mammoth into a winter wonderland!
We went to the slopes early the next morning. Kristina and Cynthia are in line to take the chairlift so they can ski in the fresh powder.
Here you can see Cynthia floating through the new white stuff.
Mammoth Mountain's mascot is Wooly, a cartoon version of a prehistoric mammoth. We followed snowboarding Wooly down a run so Cynthia and Kristina could get a photo with him.
We learned that Mammoth doesn't get its name from this prehistoric animal. Instead during the gold rush a mine here was named Mammoth Mining, and the name stuck.
The mining boom went bust pretty quick, but people saw the beauty of the land and started coming to Mammoth in the summertime for recreation. The Mammoth Lakes Pack Outfit has existed for one hundred years, and today they provide horses and pack mules for hiking trips.
In 1942 Dave McCoy came to Mammoth. He started the Mammoth Mountain Ski Resort. We are happy that he was so passionate about evolving the sport of downhill skiing so we can enjoy it now! Here's a view from Mammoth's summit, which is just over 11,000 feet high.
The snow storm also helped us with cross-country skiing. Here we are along a trail with Lake Mary behind us. Further in the background (at the left edge of the photo) is the Crystal Crag with a dusting of the fresh snow.
We fueled our days on the slopes and trails with homemade Vietnamese-style banh mi sandwiches of pork tenderloin, pickled vegetables and cilantro on a crusty sourdough baguette.
Part of the reason we like to go on ski trips with Cynthia is because she appreciates good food. She brought up several cheeses, including Cowgirl Creamery's Red Hawk.
Cynthia's husband Humberto likes to cook, and one night he cooked us a Mexican feast.
One of his most creative dishes was a grilled mandarin and leek salsa - wow!
Humberto was psyched to find a leather jacket on sale.
Humberto gave us a travel ping pong set for Christmas, so we spent hours playing together. It was lots of fun!
We had brought back some decorations for Chinese New Year from Hong Kong, like this dragon (who has a ping pong ball in his mouth). Gung hey fat choi!
Our ski road trip will continue for another month. Next we'll go east to Salt Lake City.
