doin' socal

Okay, so the trip didn't get off to a great start with that nightmarish drive through L.A. But it's been smoother sailing since then. The conference was okay but the info presented was way over my head, with the depth and detail of experienced users. Since I've only dabbled with the software and we don't even have the base model set up where I work, I couldn't contribute much or take much away, except for the reinforcement of the obvious fact that my lovely employer needs to quit playing games and cough up the resources so I/we can actually do something productive. I'll continue my quixotic ongoing quest to bring them into the light when I get back. But I'd do as well banging my head into a brick wall repeatedly as trying to drive home basic engineering ideas and foresight to 157 levels of management and a bunch of non-engineers. Big companies suck. Anyway, enough work talk.

Last Sunday's trip to Sequoia was good, to say the least. I had intended to hit both Sequoia and Kings Canyon, but I had vastly underestimated the beauty and uniqueness of Sequoia and so it took up the whole day -- almost literally, as I was rushing to get off my last trail and out of the rapidly darkening and chilling forest with maybe a half-hour to spare before sunset. The trees there are like nothing else, much bigger at the base and much, much taller than anything else I'd ever seen. An opening walk through a forest for a couple of miles was well worth it; I'm glad I didn't get lazy like everyone else and just drive into the overlook rock and park. What a bunch of lazies. But hey, the trail was plenty quiet and undisturbed as a result so I can't complain. The overlook was great, as they all are, and was complete with an arduous climb (400 steps) to the top and frightening heights. It even had a "wall" on parts that was maybe knee-high and really served more as a tripping hazard than a protective barrier, and of course that and the fact that the trail was barely wide enough for two-way traffic greatly added to one's feeling of security when creeping close to the edge. Although I managed to hit more trails than I expected, a lot was left unexplored. So Sequoia and Kings Canyon are on the list of places needing an extended return visit.

One thing about Sequoia though...it required a lot more driving than I expected. It's about 3.5 hours north of Brian's, about twice as far as I expected (California is bigger than it looks on maps) and surprisingly close to Yosemite and San Fran, so I was gone all day and didn't get back until well after midnight. It also takes a good couple of hours to drive through the park. The main road is unbelievably steep and windy -- rangers near the south entrance warned that the 17-mile climb usually takes 50-60 minutes and they weren't kidding -- such that the Pig Trail would not even register as mountainous in comparison. I'm a little surprised my tiny, crappy Chevy Cobalt was able to climb it with little obvious trouble. I probably spent as much time driving as walking that day.

But before I move on, it's necessary that I rant about idiots trying to drive motor homes or tow campers on such roads. What the bleep is wrong with those people? Doesn't it occur to folks that some roads just aren't made for large vehicles? A few times I had to almost run my right tires off the road to avoid colliding with another clown trying to drag his monstrosity of a trailer along the park's narrow, shoulderless main road. Presumably people would think ahead about this sort of thing if they're going to visit a park. But hey, it's not like we didn't already know there is an abundance of very stupid people in the world. The NPS needs to clamp down and ban those things from the parks altogether, or at least not let them go past the first campground in either direction. Hey, ever wonder why they're called CAMPgrounds? Anyway...

The conference week was cool even if the sessions were not as informative or interesting as I'd hoped. The host vendor provided all meals, including nice dinners at Laguna Beach, Medieval Times, and a Persian restaurant with belly dancing for entertainment. Much to my surprise, the dancing was actually quite cool and not nearly as risque as I'd earlier believed. Medieval Times was neat, though it would have been many times more awesome had I been a lot younger and not noticed that the show/tournament was obviously staged. There's one in Kissimmee, Florida, and if it was around back in the day when we used to visit and yet I never went there then some folks in my life have some explaining to do. But, thankfully for them, I think the chain is relatively new. The beach place was nice, though it drove home the fact that in California the setting sun is always accompanied by a meteoric drop in temperature. It was hot when we showed up for dinner but we were cold and struggling to keep from shivering by the time we left. (Some guys gave up early and retreated off the patio to some flame pits nearby.) I encountered this on the trails at Sequoia as well but chalked it up to the forest canopy keeping the temp down. Every western state I've been to so far suffers from this phenomenon, yet I haven't learned to prepare for it.

I managed to make it down to San Diego today, after more than two hours in traffic. The San Diego Maritime Museum is excellent and rivals the Smithsonian for depth on its topic. My friend and I spent the afternoon there and still didn't see a lot of it, and we didn't even make it onto one of the five ships before it closed. I'm sure I could spend at least another full day going through the exhibits on the ships. We also didn't visit the Midway (decommissioned aircraft carrier with planes and realistic mock-ups and stuff), which was the one floating museum in the harbor I really wanted to see. But we'll catch that some other time, and now I'm convinced the Maritime Museum is as good. San Diego seems like a nice place but so far it hasn't lived up to the hype as the gem of SoCal. It's worlds better than useless L.A., but that's not saying anything. Maybe I'll know more tomorrow, after a day at the zoo and possibilities like an Amtrak ride there and back, a Padres beatdown of the Red Sux, a Midway visit, hours in traffic jams, and maybe even some ocean cave spelunking by kayak. To be continued...?

UPDATE: Just got back from the model railroad museum and zoo in San Diego. The museum was very cool, with several realistic models of local train routes. As much as I enjoyed it today, I wish I could have gone about 20 years ago. I might still be into model train stuff as much now as I was then if I had seen such an amazing collection of stuff. The zoo was also great, of course, but it actually wasn't quite on the level that I expected. A lot of the animals were hiding in their mini-caves or weren't visible at all when we passed by, probably due to the heat. (Come to think of it, they were being more sociable during the evening hours.) And after paying $15 for what can only be called one of the most horrible lunches I've ever eaten (basically a three-week-old burger and rock-hard fries that must have been dug up from the stone age), I felt quite sick for a while and wasn't really up to par for most of the day. The facilities there are sparse too, as there was nowhere near enough to avoid constant lines -- which, by the way, sucks that much more when you're sick. There were some good exhibits, such as the koalas, pandas, polar bears, hippo, and a lot more. We also witnessed some amusing animal kingdom brawls, such as a mother hen chasing another duck one all over the pond for several minutes, apparently intent on not only scaring it away but driving home a lesson as well. Note to self to never stick my hand in the water close to a mother hen and her chicks. The crowds were heavy but surprisingly didn't cause much trouble for us. So, all in all, it was a day well spent. But it could have been a lot better had I not partaken of the exceedingly crappy food inside the gates, so I'm still a bit frustrated about that. Such a reputable institution should not be trying to kill its guests. Next time I shall employ some common sense beforehand and bring my own food.