San Francisco, Yosemite and Big Basin in 1966

In April the Anatomy meetings in San Francisco meant that my father had a book to promote at the meeting.

Displaying the Atlas that my father edited

He was the American editor of an Atlas of Anatomy. He and my mother flew out to San Francisco, and the girls and I drove up to meet them. We stayed in the hotel with them, and toured the city.

Daughter, Dad and Mom on city tour

We visited the Cemetery/Gardens of Mission Dolores located at Mision San Francisco de Asis.

Mission Dolores cemetery/gardens

Restored gardens have historic, traditional, and native trees, shrubs, flowers, and plants of the 1791 period. The website says: "Mission Dolores is the final resting place of some 5,000 Ohlone, Miwok, and other First Californians who built Mission Dolores and were its earliest members and founders. Other notables include the first Mexican governor, Luis Antonio Arguello, the first commandant of the Presidio, Lieutenant Moraga, and victims of the Committee of Vigilance, Cora, Casey, and Sullivan. Cemetery markers date from 1830 to about 1898.

Mission of San Francisco de Asis

Popularly known as Mission Dolores, it is one of the oldest intact building in the City of San Francisco and the only intact Mission Chapel in the chain of 21 established under the direction of Father Serra. The rough-hewn redwood roof timbers are still lashed together with rawhide. The alter is one of the most ornate mission alters. There is a small museum. The photo is taken from behind the towers of the Basilica in the cemetery garden.

San Francisco

Steep street

Cliff_House

Cliff House (the original) was built in 1863. The building in this c. 1966 photo is the 1909 building which was the third one.

from Twin Peaks

We rode the cable car of course

Cable car

From a Cable car toward Fisherman's Wharf in 1966

Great Dane in car

Golden Gate Bridge

We spent some time in Chinatown

Chinatown

Statue of Dr Sun Yat Sen

Chinese phone booth

Walleen and her two boys, me and my two girls

We visited Golden Gate Park with my mom and dad. The park is one of AAA's starred attractions in San Francisco. The park was created by John McLaren, a Scotsman, out of waste land. He arrived in San Francisco in the 1870s, and by 1890 he had established grass, trees and numerous plants in an environment most thought too barren for lush foliage.

The Conservatory of Flowers is a glass and redwood replica of London's Kew Gardens conservatory, and was built between 1876 and 1883. When open, it houses huge palm trees under its soaring dome, plus exotic orchids, water lilies and microclimates from around the world. The conservatory was badly damaged in a fierce wind storm that blew in off the Pacific

Conservatory

Francis Scptt Key Memorial and Dolphin fountain

This picture of the fountain outside the aquarium shows the Francis Scott Key Memorial. It is a part of the California Academy of Sciences complex which includes Morrison Planetarium. Admission to the Planetarium is separate from the Aquarium and Natural History Museum

We spent considerable time in the Japanese Tea Garden which is part of Golden Gate Park. The Japanese Tea Garden was originally built as part of the 1894 Midwinter Fair by an Australian. There are paths, ponds and a teahouse and it features native Japanese and Chinese plants.

Bridge in Japanese Tea Garden- me helping daughter down

In the garden, I climbed on this bridge to get a better view of the garden. I'm in the middle of the bridge wearing a grey green suit. I'm helping my youngest down - she's in a red coat. Her sister in the dark coat is in front of her.

Zoomed

The lady in white behind me, and other lady in pink behind me, and the people climbing the steep steps are not part of our family group and neither is the man helping my older daughter down.

We had a picnic among the big trees in Big Basin,

Picnic

Big Basin- me my kids and my mom

Stellar Jay

Me and the two girls in a tree

Animal Tree

Mother of the Forest

Dad and a redwood slice- Oldest coastal redwood with authentic age data - 2,200 years old in 1934

Coastal Redwoods

My parents and I went to a

San Jose swap meet

Swap meet in font of Model A Ford (1930?)

and we visited the Lick Observatory on Mount Hamilton where my college friend JoAnn was living,

View from Lick Observatory

Big Dome of observatory

JoAnn's family and Bob and my girls

At Easter (April 11th) The girls and I went to Yosemite again with my parents. (This visit might have been before the one I did with Bob and the kids)

Rocks and Oldest Rocks sign

We stayed in a cabin.

Entering our cabin in Yosemite Easter Sunday

In the picture (taken by my mom) we see me and my two kids and my dad who is carrying a box of supplies. We probably had breakfast and lunch supplies for the time we were there.

The website explains that: Cabins are wood structures that are furnished with beds, a desk or dresser, electric wall heaters, electric lights and outlets, but no telephones or televisions. All cabins have outdoor decks or patios for relaxing in the beauty of Yosemite. Daily maid service, linens and blankets are provided. Bedding configurations include:

one double bed, or
one double bed and one single bed, or
two double beds
My parents would have had one double bed and I guess I shared the other one with my two kids

The whole persona of the park is the amazing scenery. Most of the time one is trying to get to a vantage point so one can take a picture that will capture in some small way the amazing waterfalls and rock formations.

My dad by a snow bank

First morning view of the falls

Bottom of Yosemite falls - my dad with children

Yosemite Falls

We did a lot of hiking and looking back on it now, I realize that my girls were only 2.5 and 4.5 at the time and I had no qualms about whether they could keep up. They did at least as well as my dad.

62 year old and 2 year old resting

Ribbon falls

Glacier Point across Ahwahnee Meadow

Bridge at Happy Isles - me, my mom and the kids

El Capitan

El Capitan

Royal Arches & North Dome

Falls

Bridal Veil Falls

Cathedral Spires

Falls

Walking down a path

Bridge

My mom wanted to get a good picture of the reflection in Mirror Lake. So we got up early because the 'mirror' didn't work if there was any wind and we wanted to have the lake be absolutely still.

Mirror Lake - me and daughter

Boys were throwing rocks in Mirror Lake - spoiling the reflections. Mom yelled at them and made them stop

There was a little boy with his dad throwing rocks into the lake making ripples. My mom soon set them straight, and we did get our picture.

Mirror Lake

Moss

One of the original buildings in the valley

Me sticking my head out the window before I go through the tunnel

My view from inside the tree

front of VW coming through the tree

Photos of me driving the VW through the Wawona Tree This tree was in the Mariposa Grove of Yosemite National Park. Most people think this tree is in Sequoia National Park. So the people there in Sequoia get lots of questions about it. So in their FAQ, they say

The tunnel through Yosemite’s famous Wawona Tree was cut in 1881 as a tourist attraction. It was the second standing sequoia to be tunneled (the first, a dead tree, still stands in the Tuolumne Grove in Yosemite). The Wawona Tree stood for 88 summers before it fell during the severe winter of 1968-69. Factors leading to its failure include heavy snow, wet soil, and, of course, the weakening effect of the tunnel. When it fell, the Wawona Tree was approximately 2,100 years old, 234 feet high (71.3 meters), and 26 feet in diameter at the base (7.9 meters). The famous tunnel was 7 feet wide, 9 feet high and 26 feet long at the base (2.1 meters by 2.7 meters by 7.9 meters).

Clothespin tree

Me and children in tree

Fallen Giant

My mother sniffing incense cedar

VW by a big puddle

Children, jays and nuns

El Capitan & Valley view

Leaving Yosemite Valley- reflection in the VW Bus mirror