Day Three - Bishop to Fremont

Finally!  San Francisco is just across the Bay!

Barb and I took a bit more leisurely start to the morning.  We slept in (just a little) and got started around 10am this morning.  It was a beautiful day out, so BlackJack went topless!  Mid 70's all the way into Yosemite National Park!  On the way up from Bishop, we pulled into a rest area and lo and behold…another MINI!!  The first one we've seen on our journey thus far!!  We pulled right alongside to introduce ourselves!  The driver was on the phone, smiled politely, but didn't seem too interested in us.  So I pulled up to get a quick photo with Smokey Bear, who happened to be standing nearby.  I got out of the car and walked back to the ice blue Clubman to say hello.  It turned out to be a nice man and his daughter from Durango…they had just recently purchased their MINI from Sandia MINI in Albuquerque!  He had been talking with his insurance agent due to an unfortunate mishap in a parking lot ( a bit of a scratch and gash on the bumper), but was willing to talk to me now that he was off the phone.  Turns out they were just on vacation exploring the area.  They had no idea about MTTS, so I happily (if not giddily) filled them in!  They seemed truly interested and promised to look it up, though they may not be able to participate this time.  Maybe next time…

So we continued on our way…entering Yosemite Park from the east at Tioga Road.  I've been to Yosemite before, but not this area.  It was just stunningly beautiful.  I think Yosemite is my favorite National Park…so much to see and do, and just the sheer beauty of God's creation surrounds you at every curve!  We didn't have a lot of time to spend there, but did make it into the Valley where we could see the falls, the Half Dome, and El Capitan.  There were even a few climbers on the face of El Capitan…I think I'll stick to the twisties for my Extreme Excitement!

On our way out of the Park, we thought we'd take in one more view…that of the Giant Sequoias at Tuolumne Grove.  What we didn't know was that it was a mile long hike into the grove from the parking lot.  We weren't really prepared for a 2-3 hour hike in 96 degrees, so we decided to forego the trees this time.  But as we walked back to the car, there was another MINI!  Parked right behind us!  Surely they must be here for MTTS!!!  No, they said.  They were visiting their grandkids and on their way back home to Atlanta.  They were driving their second MINI, a Countryman, which they raved about, though!  And they too, said they would look up about MTTS to learn more.  <sigh>  So not a single fellow MTTS'er was to be had on our journey here.  We came across a few more on the drive to Fremont, but nary a wave was to be had.

So tomorrow begins our "official" journey!  The MTTS Garage Party is tomorrow night!  But first, we'll join some fellow MTTS'ers in parading down Lombard Street, the crookedest street in the world!  I can only imagine how cool that will be!!  But I'll only have to imagine it for another 14 hours, then I'll know!  Motor On…!!

Day Two - Kanab to Bishop

The internet connection tonight is absolutely slower than molasses!!  Not sure how this will go, especially for loading photos, but we'll give it a try.  (Editor’s note:  I decided to finish today’s post in Word, and will copy and paste when I get a good connection.  So frustrating!!)

Today was another adventure!  Almost 600 miles of adventure!!  We headed straight to Bryce Canyon this morning.  It was incredible!  Such a beautiful place!  I thought at first we would just drive through, maybe get a few pics, and be on our way.  But before we knew it, we had spent 3 hours exploring!  The weather was perfect, in the 70's/80's.  We had the top down on BlackJack from the time we left Kanab, and at one point the temperature dropped to 66 degrees!  It was actually a bit chilly!  So from yesterday's 112 to today's 66 (and back up to 104 on our way to Bishop), we're seeing some serious temperature swings.  

It was about 11:30am when we finally drove out of Bryce Canyon and headed for Bishop, CA, our pit stop for the night.  There was a little confusion about which route to take, as there was no direct route, and everything was showing another 7 hours or more of driving.  We finally stopped and got a couple of maps, and confirmed the shortest route with “Tom Tom”, and continued on our way.  It was a good choice, as it put us on the Extraterrestrial Highway (Route 375)!  We stopped smack dab in the middle of nowhere, but curiously close to the infamous Area 51, at a little place called “Little Ale-Inn Restaurant, Bar, and Motel”.  While we were browsing the gift store, a sonic boom rattled the entire place!  I told Barb it was a UFO crash…!  (I think she believed me!)  We could also see a very large wild fire burning in the nearby mountains.  There were two huge plumes of smoke mushrooming and drifting off to the north.  I tried finding more info on the internet, but couldn’t seem to find anything.  It sure looked big…much bigger than a prescribed burn. 

Finally, we made it to Bishop, home of the Bishop Mule Days, held every Memorial Day weekend.  Tomorrow, we head to Fremont via Yosemite National Park.  Then the big MTTS kickoff party starts on Saturday!  Stay tuned…!

And off we go…!!!

This is my first attempt at "blogging", so bare with me as I find my way through all this..!

I'm hoping to document the fun and excitement of MINI Takes the States, 2014.  For those of you unfamiliar with MINI Takes the States (MTTS), I'll try to explain what I know about it…lol!  Every two years, MINI USA hosts a cross country road rally.  The event is typically 2 weeks long, with a stop in a different city each night.  MINI owners/drivers can join in and drop out wherever they want.  They can do all or part of the rally for the same registration costs.  It is not a "race", but rather a fellowship, of sorts, where like-minded, fun loving, light hearted MINI drivers gather together from Point A to Point B to Point C, etc, stopping along the way for all kinds of fun things.  Two years ago, it went from New York to Los Angeles, and I was lucky enough to participate from Albuquerque to Scottsdale to L.A..  It was so amazingly fun, I made up my mind right then to do the entire trip the next time (which is now!)

So here we are…me, my copilot (for the first half of the trip), and BlackJack (my MINI).  We left my Bosque Farm this morning around 8:30, and headed out on a more scenic than direct route to San Francisco, the starting point for MTTS 2014.  It has already been an adventure even on this first day!  We stopped in Tuba City, Arizona to see some fossilized dinosaur tracks, crossed the Colorado River over Navajo Dam (enduring the 112 degree heat!), took an unexpected detour near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, and arrived at our first night's stop in Kanab, Utah, a quaint little tourist town, gateway to Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon.  Let the fun begin!!