Finally...Yosemite 2010

So I have been a terrible blogger this month. I missed a week of work to be home for Grandpa's funeral and just as I was finally feeling caught up with all the work last week, I was called in for a meeting on Friday and was told the company was taking a different direction they did not foresee when they hired me and now my position was being cut. Effective immediately. So now I'm once again looking for employment in Tampa. Not at all how I would like to be spending my time.

Anyways, now I actually have the time to blog about our trip to Yosemite. About 2 months later.

Matt loves to be outdoors. He's an Eagle Scout and has been camping and backpacking around the country for years. He spent 3 months during the summer in college working for a youth corp. that built trails for hikers in the 4 corners area of Colorado. He's spent WEEKS living out of a tent and eating camp food. He has all the equipment for wilderness survival: the subzero sleeping bag, the tent, the water filter, the camp stove and tons of other stuff. He's one of the most fastidious people I know normally, but when he gets out in the woods he's totally OK with dirt, sweat and not showering for days.

Matt, breathing in the fresh Yosemite air. Mmmmm, pine-scented.

I, on the other hand, am not really ANY of those things. But I adapt well. My family went to the beach for vacations. We did not sleep on sleeping bags on the floor or eat outdoors unless you count the patio at Sea N' Suds in Gulf Shores. The first time I ever went camping or slept outdoors was with Matt.

Me in Yosemite.

Matt has wanted to spend a vacation in the wilderness for years. So about this time last year he started planning and looking at different hiking options. At most National Parks, you have to apply for a back country permit before you are allowed to hike. You can't just show up with your backpack at the park and expect to park your tent wherever you please. In order to apply for these permit, you have to detail your entire trip including what trails you plan to take and how many days you will be camping. Matt worked for hours and hours on a schedule for each park and put in our applications for several different parks. Our trip was accepted at Yosemite National Park in CA. Martin and Maggie joined us and our team was set. We were California bound!

Day 1 to follow tomorrow.....