I told friends and colleagues that Rita, my Mom and I were taking a trip to California. Their immediate response was where are you flying in? When I told them we were taking the train, they looked at me like “they still exist”? Yes they do. We took the Amtrak from Union Station in Washington, D.C. all the way to Sacramento, CA.

We arrived to Sacramento at 10 pm and hopped in the rental car to head to our first destination, Yosemite National Park. After miles of windy roads we made it to the KOA cabin in Mariposa, CA (a small town outside of Yosemite). We woke up fairly early and headed into Yosemite. I have to say this was my favorite part of the trip and I highly recommend you to see this place at least once in your life. We were able to see Bridalveil Falls, Lower Yosemite Falls, Curry Village, Half Dome, El Cap and Vernal Falls.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK

BRIDALVEIL FALLS

YOSEMITE POST OFFICE

Check out the people to the left of where the falls splits.

What is wrong with this water station???

Must’ve been something in the water!

Our hike up to the top of Vernal Falls. A whole lot of steps!

VERNAL FALLS

The Yosemite Ahwahnee Lodge

MY BEST ANSEL ADAMS IMPRESSION

MOM TURNED INTO QUITE THE PHOTOGRAPHER!

SAN FRANCISCO

Our next point of interest was San Fran. We were here for the 4th of July. We only had 2 days here but were able to enjoy Pier 39, Lombard Street, Streetcar ride, and plenty of sourdough bread. Unfortunately, we were only able to see Alcatraz from the pier as tickets were sold out. After San Fran we headed down the Pacific Coast Highway through Big Sur, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara and finally LA to get back on the train.