Fred & Hank Mark America

FHMA Day 55: Falling for Yosemite

QUICK FACTS

• Where We Started: Visalia, Calif.
• Where We Ended: Sonora, Calif.
• Miles Driven: 229 (12,588 total).
• New States: None.
• States So Far: 19 (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California)

THE DAY'S HIGHLIGHTS

We continued our march north through California's national parks on Wednesday, spending the day at Yosemite National Park. We encountered perfect weather and a relatively uncrowded park, which made for a more enjoyable visit than 2003. Although two of the park's major roads are still closed for the season, this limited visit still afforded us amazing views from all over this unique park.

We entered Yosemite from the south, and immediately headed to the Mariposa Grove, the park's largest grove of sequoias. The grove was similar to what we saw at Seqouia & Kings Canyon National Park on Tuesday, featuring a number of giant sequoias, although its biggest tree -- the Washington Tree -- ranks only 17th in cubic volume, at 35,901. The grove also features the Grizzly Giant, ranked 25th in the world, at 34,005. Here's a list of the world's 48 biggest sequoias. All are located in the state of California.

Part of the Mariposa Grove at Yosemite. If you look just to the right of the low-hanging branch near the top of the tree on the left, you can see the moon making an early appearance. (Photo by Jim)

A giant sequoia casts a giant shadow over the Mariposa Grove. (Photo by Jim)

From Mariposa, we headed north toward Yosemite Valley, the heart of the park. Unfortunately, the beautiful Glacier Point Road is still closed from the winter, so we missed out on some of the best views of the Half Dome and El Capitan, the park's two most famous sites. Tioga Pass, the road that winds through the less-crowded eastern part of the park, is also still closed.

The bottom line on Yosemite is simple, though. Even with the road closures, as long as you can get into Yosemite Valley, its totally worth it.

 
The Yosemite Valley, with Bridalveil Fall on the right, Half Dome in the back center and El Capitan on the left. (Photo by Jim)


Jim's full dome, in front of Yosemite's Half Dome, in the far distance.

We then drove down into the valley to see Bridalveil Fall -- yes, the name is singular -- which you can reach on a very short hike. It was a beautiful, clear day, but you never would have known it as you approached the fall, thanks to the driving mist generated by the all hitting the rocks 620 feet below. It felt like you were in the middle of a downpour.

 
Bridalveil Fall, as seen from its foot. (Photo by Jim)

 
A rainbow appears at the base of Bridalveil Fall. (Photo by Jim)

One of Joan's goals for the trip was to get a photo of some of the insane people who like to climb El Capitan and Half Dome. We spotted a few, thanks to some other tourists with binoculars, but they were so small that you could barely make them out in photos. So we were on our way out of the park when Joan spotted one descending from a rock alongside the road.

A climber and his shadow descend a rock at Yosemite National Park.

Here are a few other photos from our day at Yosemite:

A couple aims for the perfect picture at an overlook at Yosemite National Park.

A chilled-out rodent of some kind hangs out on a rock at Yosemite. (I think it's a squirrel, but not 100 percent positive. And he wasn't talking,) Where were Fred and Hank while this picture was being taken, you ask? Once Joan saw this scene, she gave me both dogs and I went off in a different direction. Hunting dogs, my ass.

The Merced River in Yosemite Valley. (Photo by Jim)

All in all, it was a terrific day. Once you get outside Yosemite Valley, there aren't a lot of specific landmarks to see, like at Yellowstone. But the terrain is consistently beautiful, and there are a ton of recreational and backcountry options. While we both still prefer Badlands National Park, Death Valley National Park and White Sands National Monument to Yosemite, it is high on our list of U.S. national parks.

ROAD SCRAPS

• Many of you have commented on the photo of Fred sulking in the corner after his fight with Hank last weekend. It was quite a scene to witness, but since we only showed you one photo, here are the rest, along with our best interpretation of what's happening.

After the brawl, Hank moves in to apologize.

 
Fred is having none of it.

 
"Talk to the paw," Fred says.

 
Fred moves into full-sulk mode.

 
After a minute or so, Fred decides to accept Hank's apology.

• Ken Sands and Nate Kettlewell both commented that we might be biting off more than we can chew by trying to hit Crater Lake National Park and the Columbia River Gorge on the same day. That may well be, but a few things to keep in mind: We tend to move really quickly through the places we see, since we know there's so much left to see. In national parks, the dogs limit our hiking options. Also, many of the parks we're hitting right now are only partially open. In addition to the road closures at Yosemite, we decided Wednesday that we're going to skip Lassen Volcanic National Park because it's mostly closed. I also just discovered that much of Crater Lake's rim road is still closed from the winter. So it's not going to take as long for us to move as it would other people. Despite the concern we were trying to do too much Wednesday, we easily could have made it to Lake Tahoe on Wednesday night. We were just both too lazy to push it, so we settled into Sonora early. All that said, the itinerary we post really is broad and more meant to give you an idea where we're headed than anything else.
  
• As you can all tell from the photos, Joan is clearly not a big eater. She always prattles on about how hungry she is, and then arrives at a restaurant and orders a soup and salad. So imagine my surprise the past few days. First, at a rest stop Tuesday in Madera, Calif., she cleared the shelves of the convenience store like Bonnie and Clyde cleaning out a bank. She bought a Three Musketeers bar, a bag of Funyuns and a pack of licorice, and dusted off all three before I could get back into the left lane of the highway. Then, at breakfast at Denny's on Wednesday, she went nuts, ordering pancakes, scrambled eggs, an English muffin and pancake hush puppies that you dipped into syrup. I watched incredulously, and thought, "This must be what it's like to watch me eat." For the first time on this trip -- and maybe ever -- the perplexed server was forced to put the bulk of the food on Joan's side of the table. And Joan almost finished everything. The only exception was the scrambled eggs. The little she left behind, she fed to the dogs. A free travel tip from the FHMA warriors: Never feed eggs to dogs before a three-hour trip in an enclosed car. Let's just say the windows were down A LOT at Yosemite.
• Sign of the Day: "Welcome to Selma, Raisin Capital of the World." Now, we see lots of claims on signs that cannot be justified -- who knew so many places made "The World's Best Coffee"? -- but this one seems to be pretty close to accurate. Ninety percent of United States raisins are produced within eight miles of Selma. I guess saying "the world" might be a stretch, but that's a small quibble. Funny story, though: Selma used to call itself the "Home of the Peach," when that was its major crop in the 1950s and 1960s, but once the raisin moved in and asserted its dominant, the city booted the peach, officially adopting the phrase "Raisin Capital of the World" in 1963.
• Some odd combinations we spotted on the road to Yosemite: In Madera, we saw a combo Chevron and haircut shop. In Coarsegold, Calif., we saw an even odder combination: a Chevron and a church in the same building. I know I've taken the lord's name in vain while watching the price of filling up my tank, but this seems a bit much.
  
• Another interesting pass-through, after our trip to Yosemite: Chinese Camp, Calif. It's the kind of town name that begs an explanation. Apparently, when the first Chinese laborers reached California in 1849, they were driven out of nearby Camp Salvado and settled here. At one point, an estimated 5,000 Chinese lived in the town. Now, its population is 146, and 0.68 percent of that population is Asian.
  

MUSIC REPORT

• Random iPod shuffle song of the day: "The Promised Land," by one Bruce Springsteen, whose name has come up here and there in this blog. This is one of my favorite songs from the terrific "Darkness on the Edge of Town," along with "Badlands," "Prove It All Night" and "Factory." In terms of albums, I'd put "Darkness" behind "Born to Run" and "The River," but it's still wonderful. In the no-one-asked-but-I'll-tell-you-anyway category, here are my favorite Springsteen songs: "Jungleland," "Trapped," "Born to Run," "Wreck on the Highway," "The Ties That Bind," "Drive All Night," "Girls in Their Summer Clothes," "Atlantic City," "My Hometown," "Brilliant Disguise," "Lonesome Day," "Secret Garden" and "Countin' on a Miracle."
• I'm going to ditch the most-played albums, since we decided to do something different for the remainder of the trip. We decided to start playing every song on my iPod -- all 8.932 of them -- from A to Z. We probably won't make it through everything before we get home, but we did this to find some new music -- I've downloaded a lot of music I have not yet listened to -- and re-surface some classics I have not heard in many years. So, every day, I'll list the first and last songs we heard, the best songs of the day, newly discovered songs and guilty pleasures:
  
  • First song: "A-Tisket A-Tasket," by Chick Webb.
  • Last song: "Ain't That a Shame," by Fats Domino.
  • Best Songs: "Achilles Last Stand," by Led Zeppelin; "After the Gold Rush," by Neil Young; and "Ain't Talkin' Bout Love," by Van Halen.
  • Pleasant Surprises: "Above," by the Blue Man Group; "Absolutely Sweet Marie," by Bob Dylan; "Across the Borderline," by Ry Cooder; "Adukbe," by Baka Beyond.
  • Guilty Pleasures: "Against All Odds," by Phil Collins.

MEAL REPORT

• Breakfast: Denny's, Visalia, Calif.: Yes, after all the abuse we took over Denny's, we went back there for breakfast on Wednesday, and as I reported earlier, Joan was creating sparks with her silverware. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I didn't eat my share too, but it's not news when I eat a lot. This was a performance on par with DeNiro in "Raging Bull." I had a ham, egg and cheese sandwich and a side of toast, helped Joan with the pancake bites she ordered and mostly stared in fascination across the table at what I was witnessing. Jim Nutrition Rating: 1 star (out of 5). Restaurant Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5, on the fast-food scale). I'm sorry, I am not as down on Denny's as everyone else. It's perfectly serviceable. And we weren't even shit-faced. But, Rebecca, I would agree with you: Comparing it to Shoney's was not accurate.
• Dinner: Pine Tree Restaurant & Lodge, Sonora, Calif.: We ate at the restaurant in the Best Western, since we were tired and there weren't a lot of other options in Sonora. And like the Best Western restaurant we ate at in Chinle, Ariz., it was pretty good. We both got the cream of tomato soup and thought it was excellent. I had a French dip for dinner, and it was merely fine. Joan had a Greek salad, and deemed it quite good. Jim Nutrition Rating: 1.5 stars (out of 5). Restaurant Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5). We were looking at a 4-plus after the soup, but my French dip resulted in the dip to the rating. But the service was great, and the people lovely.

HOTEL REPORT

• Best Western Sonora Oaks, Sonora, Calif.:  We got a nice big room with a comfortable bed and a door to the outside (the latter of which is only a plus on a trip like this). The hotel was a little loud for my taste, as there was some tomfoolery going on outside until about 1am, which led to a brief Fred barkfest. But, overall, a very solid hotel. Hotel rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5, on the budget hotel scale). They even make dog-poop bags available.

COMMENTS OF THE DAY

From Mark Fitzhenry, who weighed in on the In-N-Out Burger vs. Five Guys debate going on here:

• I'll weigh in on Five Guys vs. In-N-Out. When I moved to California in 2007 I ate at INO once a week for 14 months. And every time, I said, "Good but not as good as everyone says." When Five Guys opened in Carson near the soccer complex, I had my first burger from the chain in 14 years and it tasted the same as the ones I had when I was an obnoxious newbie at The Post. Five Guys, hands down.

From Alicia Cypress, who takes the opposing viewpoint:

• sorry - gotta stick with my fellow Californians and choose In-N-Out. The deciding factor is most definitely the grease (or should i say lack of grease at the california chain). besides, you can't order a milk shake at Five Guys! (and yes, while i realize that cancels out the grease argument, you don't have to order it.)

Right now, the vote is Five Guys 3, In-N-Out 2 (I'm counting a previous vote for In-N-Out from Amy Kovac)... Any other opinions?

UPCOMING PLAN (subject to change)

• Thursday: Lake Tahoe and off to Lava Beds National Monument.
• Friday: Lava Beds and Crater Lake National Park.
• Saturday: The Columbia River Gorge and Portland.

JOAN PIC OF THE DAY

Two tourists in front of Bridalveil Fall, at the Tunnel View Overlook at Yosemite National Park.

BONUS BEAGLE PHOTOS

Hank in front of a giant sequoia at Yosemite National Park. The dogs -- after a boring Tuesday -- got a lot of run time at Yosemite, as there are a lot of short walks and paved paths they were allowed on.

Fred in front of the burned out trunk of a sequoia at Yosemite. Despite the damage to the tree in the background, the tree is still alive and growing. Final score: Sequoia 1, Fire 0.

FHMA Day 54: Branching Out

QUICK FACTS

• Where We Started: Pleasanton, Calif.
• Where We Ended: Visalia, Calif.
• Miles Driven: 502 (12,359 total).
• New States: None.
• States So Far: 19 (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California)

THE DAY'S HIGHLIGHTS

Our original plan had us going straight from the Bay Area to Yosemite National Park on Tuesday, but thanks to Joan, we made a late change of plans. After I bemoaned for about the 100th time having to skip Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park because of our tire problems last week, Joan finally looked at me and asked, "What's stopping us? Let's go." I thought about it, agreed, and after lunch, we got in the car and headed back south to see the park that we also had to skip in 2003 because of scheduling issues. 

This change of plans added a day to our journey, and while we didn't have time to all of Sequoia & kings Canyon before dark, it was definitely worth the detour, as we saw the two largest trees in the world -- the General Sherman Tree and the General Grant Tree -- and experienced Brigadoon-like fog in the forest.

Because we were out late Monday night, and also coming off a busy weekend, we got a late start on the day. So we didn't reach Sequoia & Kings Canyon until late afternoon. We ascended about 5,000 feet through the Sequoia National Forest to get into the park, and once there, made a beeline for the General Grant Tree, one of the many giant sequoias in the park. Named after Ulysses S. Grant, the tree is the world's second-largest, at 46,608 cubic feet. Its trunk is the widest in the world, at 40 feet in diameter at ground level. The tree is 1,700 years old, 268 feet tall and weighs 1,254 tons. In addition to being named after a president, this tree has also gotten presidential attention twice. In 1926, President Coolidge named the General Grant Tree "the nation's Christmas tree." and in 1956, President Eisenhower declared the tree a national shrine. 

The General Grant Tree. The guy who named the trees in the park was a Civil War veteran who served under Sherman. That explains why the big trees are named after Grant and Sherman, and probably why he named the bigger one after Sherman, even though Sherman worked for Grant. By the way, about five people could fit in that gap in the trunk.

From there, we headed into the Sequoia section of the national park, and toward the General Sherman Tree, the granddaddy of them all, at 52,508 cubic feet. You can only get to the tree by parking and taking a half-mile hike that's all downhill on the front end, and all uphill on the back end. There were no dogs allowed on the trail, but since we'd ascended quite a bit to get to the park, the temperature had dropped to 35 degrees, so leaving them in the car was OK. There were no other cars in the trail parking lot, so we probably could easily have walked the dogs to the tree, but we decided not to for two reasons: 1) they surely would have chosen the General Sherman tree to mark, and 2) the Sherman tree is located in a bear zone. But since bears can't pick locks, we felt OK leaving the beagles in the car.

The General Sherman Tree is 1,365 tons and is 33 feet is diameter at its base. While the top of the tree is dead, the rest of it is still growing. It is believed to be between 2,300 and 2,700 years old. 

The General Sherman Tree.

To provide some perspective, Jim stands in front of the General Sherman Tree. If you look closely, you can see the big giant tree behind Jim's big giant head.

The General Sherman Tree stands in the Giant Forest, where five of the 10 largest trees in the world (in terms of volume) reside. It was a gorgeous area, made even more striking by the late-afternoon fog that had set in.

(Photo by Jim)

As the sun set, we huffed it back to the parking lot, and set off to find ourselves a hotel in Visalia. We had to skip driving down the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway because of time, but in the end, saw what we really wanted to see at Sequoia & Kings Canyon, all thanks to Joan's prodding.

Unfortunately, it was a boring day for the dogs, spent mostly in the car while we drove, ate or hiked. But we did get them out of the car to pose in front of the Giant Forest.

They're not even trying to fake looking happy, are they? 

Here are some other Sequoia & Kings Canyon photos:

Jim walks through the hollowed-out trunk of a deceased giant sequoia.

A fallen branch against a large rock in the Giant Forest. (Photo by Jim)

ROAD SCRAPS

• While stopping for a drink right off California 99 in Madera, Calif., we noticed this across the street:

I found this pretty interesting, so poked around to see what this was all about. Turns out there's a whole organization called Truckstop Ministries Inc. On its mission statement page, this organization says its goal is to eventually have a 24/7 ministry at every truck stop in the country. This one was closed at the time the photograph was taken, so I guess they aren't having much success here. Reading through its tenets, it's clear the ministry doesn't have a lot of tolerance for alternative lifestyles, and looking at its Web site, it's clear it has even less tolerance for functional Web design. But I certainly found it interesting. And, no, I have no idea how you get into the chapel either. Maybe you prop yourself up on the bar in the back and vault in? Maybe you hop from the truck cab right into the chapel? (Editor's note from Joan: As the person who took the photo, I can attest to an accessible entrance in the front of the trailer).

• Sign of the Day: Tommy T's Comedy Steakhouse, in Pleasanton, Calif. I will say this: I have actually heard of some of the comics playing here, so I'll give this place its due on that front. But the name cracked me up. My own personal moral code forbids me from mixing steak and comedy.
  
• Shameless flackery: I wrote a column for journalism.org on the best practices for using web traffic analytics, and it got a nice bump from a Romenesko link.
  

MUSIC REPORT

• Random iPod shuffle song of the day: "The Last in Line," by Dio. Oh yeah, it's about time we saw a little metal here. This song is from the band fronted by one-time Black Sabbath lead singer Ronnie James Dio. It starts nice and mellow, but being this is Dio, you know that won't last. And it doesn't. This isn't as good as Dio's best song, "Rainbow in the Dark," but it's a good, solid hard rocker. While I admit I don't listen to much metal anymore, hearing songs like this definitely brings me back, and I will always admit to a certain fondness for the Scorpions and Judas Priest. And, without heavy metal, we wouldn't have album covers like these.
• Most-Played Albums: On our way to Sequoia National Park, the two albums we played in their entirety were "Atom Heart Mother," by Pink Floyd, and "Rocket to Russia," by The Ramones. And that is the only time those two albums will ever be mentioned in the same sentence. "Atom Heart Mother" shows Floyd on the path from the pure psychedelia of "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn" to the more accessible sound of "Dark Side of the Moon." The title track -- a side-long space-agey tune-- is an odd piece that's a bit hit-or-miss, but it's never boring. "Rocket to Russia" is The Ramones' third album. and along with their debut album, one of their best. Featuring classics like "Rockaway Beach," "We're a Happy Family," "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" and "Teenage Lobotomy," this album -- like every Ramones album -- places a low priority on lyrics, though "Teenage Lobotomy" might have the best rhyme in rock history: "Now I guess I'll have to tell 'em that I've got no cerebellum."
• One other Ramones-related note. About halfway through "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker," Joan looked at me and asked, "What are they saying?" Now, this is a common question from newcomers to The Ramones, since everything is kind of mumbled. But, before I could respond, she tried to answer her own question: "Sheena is a pawnbroker?" I stopped laughing about six hours later. And their other big hit is actually called "I Wanna Be Serenaded."

MEAL REPORT

• Lunch: In-N-Out Burger, Pleasanton, Calif.: Since our time in California is winding down, I convinced Joan that it was a good time for one last In-N-Out Burger stop. Joan then pointed out each of the 15 In-N-Out Burgers we saw the rest of the day. She falls for this act every time. Jim Nutrition Rating: 0 stars (out of 5). Yes, I picked a fine way -- a double-double and fries -- to celebrate losing two pounds. Restaurant Rating: 4 stars (out of 5, on the fast-food scale). While I maintain that Five Guys is now the better chain, this burger was the best I've had at In-N-Out in some time. Joan was not as happy.  She's firmly in the Five Guys camp in this epic burger battle. Anyone else have an opinion on this besides Joan, me and Amy Kovac?
• Dinner: Denny's, Visalia, Calif.: This was my first stop at Denny's on the trip, and Joan's first ever. I told her it was sort of like Shoney's, a chain I totally sold her in when we were in the South. Turns out that's not really true -- Denny's is more Silver Diner than Shoney's, as there is no all-you-could-eat salad bar at Denny's. But we had wonderful service, and my grilled turkey sandwich and chicken soup were good. Joan opted for a bizarre salad that included chicken, Craisins, bacon and maple syrup-glazed walnuts that left her more perplexed than satisfied. It reminded me of my father's advice on ordering at places like Denny's: "Just because there are 100 things on the menu, it doesn't mean they make them all well." His philosophy was to keep it simple and order the things you knew they made 100 times a day. Joan violated this rule. Then again, so did my father. Once. That was at a Long Island diner, when he chose to order something called chicken hibachi. As soon as the cook dug through his archives to find the recipe, the meal arrived, and after one bite, he knew he'd made a mistake. When asked shortly thereafter how his meal was, he looked up and muttered, "Not much chicken. A lot of hibachi." Jim Nutrition Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5). Restaurant Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5). The food was worth a 3, the service was worth a 5. Since food counts for more than service in our book, that comes out to a 3.5.

HOTEL REPORT

• La Quinta Inn & Suites, Visalia, Calif.:  Our good run of budget hotels continued in Visalia -- the one-time home of Kevin Costner and the New York Mets' Single-A affiliate. We stayed at a brand-new La Quinta Inn that was clean and comfortable. Most importantly, it had guest laundry because -- believe it or not -- Joan had not done laundry in seven days. I'd managed to keep her off the wash for a week now, but eventually, the withdrawal became too much for her. It didn't hurt that we were also out of clean clothes. So she's now completing her fourth load since we arrived last night at 10pm. Hotel rating: 4 stars (out of 5). A few dings: One of the two dryers in the laundry room isn't working, which -- as you can surely imagine -- makes Joan a tad ornery. Also, the fan in the bathroom -- which automatically goes on with the light -- was so loud that when Joan went in there to set up the dog's water bowl, I thought she'd started a leaf blower. Joan wanted to dock the hotel another half-star after seeing a man emerge from the pool in a postage-stamp sized Speedo, but I informed her you couldn't blame the hotel for that, even if it that image will be seared in Joan's mind for years.

COMMENT OF THE DAY

From Janet H., who speculates on the meaning of the Fred-Hank fight photo:

• I burst out laughing at the picture of poor Fred in the corner. My alternative take on it would be that maybe he was punishing himself for being a 'bad dog.'

We're pretty sure Hank was the instigator here. While there's no questioning that Hank's a sweet dog, he does tend to adopt a bit of an attitude about food. Our guess is he tried to dip into Fred's food, and Fred -- you know, also being a beagle -- was having none of it, and lashed out. Then, Fred felt bad that he'd gone after Hank and decided to give himself a time out. So, Janet may be right that Fred is punishing himself in this photo, but we still believe Hank probably got the ball rolling by making a pass at Fred's food. 

UPCOMING PLAN (subject to change)

• Wednesday: Yosemite National Park, and on to Lake Tahoe.
• Thursday: Lassen Volcanic National Park and Lava Beds National Monument.
• Friday: Crater Lake National Park and the Columbia River Gorge.

BONUS BEAGLE PHOTO

Hank gets a rare moment out of the car at Sequoia National Park. Tuesday was not the funnest day for the beagles, as they weren't allowed on the trails at Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park.

FHMA Days 52 & 53: Bagging It

QUICK FACTS

• Where We Started: Pleasanton, Calif.
• Where We Ended: Pleasanton, Calif.
• Miles Driven: 107 (11,857 total).
• New States: None.
• States So Far: 19 (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California)

THE DAY'S HIGHLIGHTS

The FHMA quartet spent the past two days in the Bay Area catching up with family and friends, so there wasn't much sightseeing to speak if, unless you count going over the Dumbarton Bridge about 10 times. So we're combining Sunday and Monday into one entry, as we get ready to hit the road again today.

Good news on the dog front: Fred's paw is improving steadily, and Saturday's beagle brawl seems to have been forgotten, as the dogs have resumed socializing with each other. The humans are also doing well, as we both got a lot of sleep the past two nights. And the car is back to its normal self, and even now has this wacky thing in the trunk called a jack. I hear they can come in handy at times.

Because everyone and everything is now either rested and/or repaired, that doesn't leave me with a hell of a lot to write about.

But there is one thing I've had on the back burner for a while, and that's an answer to the questions some of you have asked about how we packed for this trip and how we handle the almost daily move from one hotel to another. First off, here's a photo of everything we normally bring into a hotel room.

Fred and Hank model the FHMA tour's luggage display at the Best Western Pleasanton Inn. The huge Diet Pepsi on the bedside table is also a requirement at all stops.

What you may notice from the photo is that there are no huge bags. One of the major learnings from the 2003 trip was to travel light. On that trip, we had a huge suitcase that we had to lug out of the trunk and into the hotel room every night. This time, Joan had the excellent idea to use that huge suitcase as a staging area instead. So, while we still have the huge suitcase, Joan now pulls the clothes we'll need for the next day out of it, and puts them in a small bag she brings into the hotel room. This saves my back and makes us much nimbler.

This army-of-small-bags approach has worked extremely well for us. The only exception has been when we've checked into nice hotels and the bellman wheels the cart loaded with these small bags through the lobby. Undoubtedly, the other guests are wondering what contest we won to be able to stay there.

So what is in all these bags? You can see the scale and the two atlases (I have two because one has all the info from our 2003 trip), so I won't cover those here. Here's a quick summary of everything else:

• Blue carry bag (back right): This is the bag where Joan throws our clothes for the next day, and also carries important accessories like our power strip, Joan's hair dryer and our toiletries.
• Black computer bag (middle right): This is where I keep my Mac and all the power cords for the many electronic accessories we've brought along, per our post earlier this month about trip technology. I also keep some books and assorted professional files in there as well.
• Orange and black bag (back center): This is Joan's computer bag, which also includes all of her power cords and her backup cameras.
• Light blue bag (behind the scale): This holds books and magazines in case I have time for some leisure reading. Needless to say, I have not cracked that bag much, and often don't bother bringing it in the hotel room at all.
• Black knapsack (the 2003 atlas is on top of it): This is the dogs' bag. It has their food, treats, toys, drugs, etc. This is the bag Hank sniffs around all day long in the hotel room, waiting for it to magically open itself.
• Laundry bag (back left): This one is relatively self-explanatory. It's also the bag that, when being wheeled into the Four Seasons on a luggage cart, seems to generate the most stares from other guests. And why not? With that bag, we're just a bottle of Old Spice away from the perfect sailor-in-port image.
• Small black bag (under newer atlas): This is Joan's "purse," holding basic daily necessities like tissues. Although apparently not frequently used for this purpose, it can also hold money for tolls and water for dogs.
• Big black bag (front left): This is where we keep all our travel books for trip research. Inside the bag, the books are organized in a flat filing cabinet. I keep this bag behind the driver's seat in the car, and I can just take the whole bag out of the car and put it back in without having to pack and unpack the books at every stop.

It should be noted that we've managed to go down a bag since the start of the trip, as I used to bring in a second bag with even more books and magazines. It became clear early in the trip that I wasn't keeping up with my magazine reading, so I started tossing them when they got stale (which, in the Web world, means after about a day). Also, once I had all my fantasy baseball drafts, I was able to rid myself of all the preseason baseball magazines I had brought. The end result: One less bag.

What normally doesn't make it into the hotel room but eats up room in the car?

• The big suitcase I mentioned earlier.
• The backup toiletry case, which carries refills of basic supplies.
• The dog beds and pillows, since the dogs prefer being in the hotel room bed anyway.
• All the emergency car supplies (i.e. flares, jumper cables, motor oil, etc). Yes, and a jack.
• A small bag of non-perishable food in case of emergency or major hunger. This includes Saltines, almonds, water, etc.
• Two soft cooler bags, where we can store extra dog food.

All in all, we've settled into a good rhythm in terms of unloading luggage into the hotel room, getting the hotel room organized and then repacking the car.

FHMA PROGRAMMING NOTE

Fred & Hank Mark America picked up two excellent endorsements on Monday. Washingtonpost.com's great political blogger, Chris Cillizza, gave FHMA a shout-out in the "Click It" section of The Fix. 

"Click It!: Ever wonder what it would be like to drop everything and spend a month or two driving around and across America with your wife and two beagles? Us too. Well, former Post.com big shot -- and Fix friend -- Jim Brady is doing just that, spending his 50th straight day on the road Sunday with his wife (Joan) and his dogs (Fred and Hank). Brady is writing a daily blog of the journey that reads a part travelogue, part restaurant/hotel guide and part soul-uplifting narrative of the essential goodness of people in this country. Do yourself a favor and check it out."

Then, Dan Woog, a prominent blogger in Joan's hometown of Westport, Conn., also sent some traffic our way with a nice writeup on FHMA (hat tip to reader and friend Mark Potts, another Westport native who sent Dan the link). Dan does refer to the beagles as "Frank and Hank," but that's a small price to pay for making Joan famous in her hometown.

"If John Steinbeck were writing Travels With Charley today — not 50 years ago — he’d have a Honda Acura, not a camper; 2 dogs, not 1. And instead of waiting a couple of years to publish his observations, he’d blog them daily.

The result would be “Frank and Hank Mark America,” an addictive daily chronicle of Jim and Joan Brady’s cross-country journey with their beagles (Fred and Hank). Jim is the former editor of Washingtonpost.com; Joan is a very talented photographer and foster care activist who serves as a perfect complement to her husband."

We're always glad when FHMA can get some blog love, so thanks to Chris and Dan (and Mark).

ROAD SCRAPS

• Joan's began her Monday with an appearance in Castro Valley, Calif., before the third-grade class of an old college friend, Polly Altrocchi Clark. Dusting off some rusty PowerPoint skills on Sunday night, Joan put together a slide show of photos of the dogs at national monuments, parks and other educational sites. She reported that the kids were adorable, and that they had lots of questions and comments. In an attempt to make this as educational as possible, Joan discussed the consequences of bad judgment, i.e. bringing no water for the dogs (or money) on a long walk to Disneyland, bringing no tire jack on a cross-country car trip, etc. She also discussed the importance of helping people in need -- a recent theme of ours, obviously. The kids chimed in with lots of their own examples. Unfortunately, three of the kids in the class were allergic to dogs, so Fred and Hank couldn't join us in the classroom. But after Joan finished the slide show, Fred and Hank met the kids outside -- with the poor trio of allergic kids mournfully standing off to the side. Polly's attempt to let only one child play with the dogs at once proved fruitless, and quickly, the pack mentality won out and the kids swarmed the dogs. Fred -- who seems to feel safest when lying down on his side -- dropped to the ground so that the kids could pet him. Hank sat patiently and happily accepted the kids' adulation.
• Because we had competing appointments on Monday, we rented a car from Avis, and split up for most of the day. Now, as I just mentioned earlier, Joan has come under heavy fire -- most notably from my parents -- about her adventure back in Anaheim, where she wandered down Harbor Boulevard in hot weather without bringing water or money, all in order to get a picture of the dogs in front of what turned out not to be the main entrance at Disneyland. As my mother good-naturedly asked, "How much room can a $20 bill take up?" Well, Joan had a similar adventure on Monday. As she was crossing the Dumbarton Bridge, she realized she had no money. Figuring that the toll-booth collector probably would find that unacceptable, she decided to use the extra-pathetic approach she usually saves for cops who have pulled her over. Joan told him that she had some change. He asked how much. With the line of cars undoubtedly piling up behind her, Joan counted out exactly $1.99. Since that wasn't the $4 she needed, the toll-booth collector told her she had two options: turn around and go back from whence she came, or mail in $29 at a later date. Joan's response was to make small talk, and although she won't admit it, she knew this meant the toll-booth line would keep getting longer and longer. In toll-booth standoffs like these, the power of the deadbeat in the car increases every moment they're blocking a lane. Finally, the toll guy pulled $2 from an unknown location, declared the negotiation over and sent Joan on her way. Epilogue: When Joan reached her destination, she found $3 in her wallet.
• We had dinner on Monday night with our friends Bill and Jennifer Youstra, but before we headed out, we met at their home in Portola Valley to have a drink. While Joan was begging her way out of tolls, I was trying to make it there from San Francisco, and running into significant problems, both because of traffic and human error. When I arrived, the hunt had begun for a missing Hank. The dogs had been exploring the Youstras' beautiful home since their arrival, but only Fred had returned to hang out with the humans in the kitchen. A full search soon commenced, with Bill, Jennifer, Joan, me and two of the Youstras' children fanning out. After 10 minutes, still no Hank. A mild panic was starting to set in, but only a mild one, since the Youstras' backyard is fenced in. Finally, I spotted a door ajar in a back room. I went out and called Hank's name, but heard nothing, and after a minute or two, went back inside. Joan then came in, and while we were standing there discussing where to look next, Hank wandered up to the door. Apparently, he'd gotten out, the door had closed behind him and he'd spent a while trying to figure out how to get back into the house. While Hank was probably freaked out, we were never really worried. Young Hank seems well aware of how lucky he is; he ain't going anywhere. This marked the second time on the trip that one of the beagles had locked themselves in or out of a facility. While we were visiting our friends Caroline Little and Dan Burton in Santa Fe, N.M., a nosy Fred managed to get into a back bathroom, only to have the door close behind him. After we realized we hadn't seen Fred for a while, we started looking for him. After turning up nothing, we heard a pathetic bark from a far room, and found him trapped in the bathroom.
• The dogs actually got a fair amount of exercise the past few days, as we brought them to the homes of friends and family, giving them some coveted off-leash time. The one place we couldn't let them off leash was when we went to visit Joan's cousins, aunt and uncle at a Little League baseball game in Oakland on Sunday. They were generally well-behaved at the game, but soon after it ended, a full tray of chocolate-chip cookies was laid out for the players, about 10 feet away. This event led to the day's best workout for Joan and me. If you've ever tried to hold back a beagle who is 10 feet away from food it desperately wants, you'll know what I mean. Suddenly, 32 pounds feels like 320. So after we each did our requisite 100 beagle pulls, we decided that qualified as our exercise for the day. Bonus fun for the beagles: Joan's cousins, Rebecca and Zach, each took a dog for a run through the outfield. Soon, the dogs were back in the car, visions of chocolate-chip cookies taunting them all the way back to the hotel.

MUSIC REPORT

• The music report will return tomorrow.
  

MEAL REPORT (SUNDAY)

• Lunch: Gyros Gyros, Palo Alto, Calif.: Because I was trying to get caught up on the blog Sunday morning, Joan ran out and grabbed some take-out. I went with the gyro and some hummus and pita bread. Joan had a falafel and some baklava, which she thought was fine but nothing to write home about. Jim Nutrition Rating: 2.5 stars (out of 5). The hummus and pita was not helpful to the cause, but the gyro itself wasn't bad. Restaurant Rating: 3 stars (out of 5, on the fast-food scale). Not a memorable place, but perfectly fine.
• Dinner: Mark & Lena Wohlfarth's, Oakland, Calif.: We had dinner at the home of one of my college friends, Mark Wohlfarth, and it was wonderful to have a delicious home-cooked meal. His wife, Lena, made veal chops, a potato and zucchini salad, garden salad and asparagus. For dessert, we had chocolate lava cake. Mmmm. The irony of the trip: We don't rate meals at friends' homes, since people already get stressed out about having the restaurants they choose rated in this blog. But every home-cooked meal we've had has been amazing. Jim Nutrition Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5). In addition to being delicious, the meal -- besides the cake -- was quite healthy.

MEAL REPORT (MONDAY)

• Lunch: Red Robin, Pleasanton, Calif.: After Joan spoke at her class, we had a quick lunch before I headed down to Silicon Valley. So we met at a Red Robin, where I got a bacon burger and fries, and helped Joan with her onion rings. It was all excellent, and will undoubtedly be a key factor in the heart attack I have in 2013. Joan had only a cup of chili as a main course so she could rationalize the onion rings. Jim Nutrition Rating: 0 stars (out of 5). There is absolutely nothing I can point to here that would even merit a half-star. It was ugly. Restaurant Rating: 4 stars (out of 5, on the fast-food scale). Red Robin really does make excellent burgers, and this one was no exception.
• Dinner: Left Bank Brasserie, Menlo Park, Calif.: After we recovered a wandering Hank, we went out for dinner with the Youstras. We walked into this place right before closing time, and could see the kitchen staff looking out, all but begging the host to not seat us, but alas, he did. We were slightly worried the kitchen staffers would exact revenge for us keeping them there longer -- and, the truth is, we'd never know if they did -- but the food was very good. I got French onion soup to start, and the chilled seafood platter for the main course, and both were very good. Joan had a Nicoise salad with Ahi tuna that was also good. Jim Nutrition Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5). The soup wasn't a healthy choice, but you can't do much better than chilled seafood as a main course. Restaurant Rating: 4 stars (out of 5).
• Weigh-In Update: No, I have not forgotten the fact I promised to weigh in twice a week. Frankly, I was a little worried to get back on the scale. So imagine my surprise when I got on the scale on Tuesday morning to see that I was at 248 pounds. Yes, peanut gallery, that would be two less than the last time I weighed myself, and leaves me exactly where I started this trip. Hey, I'm stunned too, but what possible reason would I -- after openly discussing how much I weigh and how crappy I'm eating -- lie about this? How, you ask incredulously, could this be? I really think it's because we're not snacking in the car, we're getting a decent amount of exercise in our travels and I'm not drinking much beer at all. I deserve no pats on the back for merely maintaining my weight, but I am surprised to be able to say I have.

HOTEL REPORT

• Best Western Pleasanton Inn, Pleasanton, Calif.: This hotel, while certainly not as nice as the Garden Court Hotel in Palo Alto, is a totally serviceable hotel that was in the middle of where we had social and professional commitments over the past few days. It also recently was remodeled. Hotel rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5). It was only dinged because the room smelled smoky. That's not the hotel's fault, mind you, but since Joan hates the smell of smoke (unless it's coming from a washer or dryer), it did impact the visit.

COMMENT OF THE DAY

From Mark Wohlfarth, who hosted us for dinner on Sunday night:

• The map is very cool. I can't wait to follow it as it heads North. It was great seeing you guys and meeting Hank... and yes, the cats have recovered form their adventures yesterday. Have a blast the rest of the way.

The cat incident that Mark is referring to: The Wohlfarths have three cats. We have two dogs. So we all decided that keeping these two groups apart was an excellent idea. Unfortunately, one of the cats didn't agree, and ran out into the yard. Fred and Hank, doing what comes naturally, treed the cat. The cat finally decided to keep going up, and hopped onto the roof before being let back in an upstairs window by one of Mark and Lena's daughters. We can't take these dogs anywhere. Sigh.

By the way, while at the Wohlfarth's, I was invited by their lovely daughters to come out and jump on the trampoline they have in their yard. So I did, and will forever be thankful there is no photographic or video evidence of this event. You don't know what fear is until you see the look on the eyes of a 4-year-old girl when she sees a 250-pound person -- oh, wait, make that 248 -- bouncing toward her on a trampoline.

UPCOMING PLAN (subject to change)

• Tuesday: Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park.
• Wednesday: Yosemite National Park, and on to Lake Tahoe.
• Thursday: Up into Oregon, and toward Crater Lake.

BONUS BEAGLE PHOTO

We've got nothing new, so we're pulling an old photo of Fred and a yawning Hank at Joshua Tree National Park.

FHMA Day 51: Fred Goes to the Paw House

QUICK FACTS

• Where We Started:  Palo Alto, Calif.
• Where We Ended: Palo Alto, Calif.
• Miles Driven: 76 (11,750 total).
• New States: None.
• States So Far: 19 (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California)

THE DAY'S HIGHLIGHTS

After a few busy days on the road, we began our weekend in the Bay Area by sleeping in. We had no plans until dinner, so after stumbling out of bed, we decided to get Fred's paw checked out and then wander around downtown Palo Alto.

The day began with the first real fight of the trip, one filled with fury and followed by much sulking before the eventual reconciliation. Luckily, it wasn't between Joan and me, but Fred and Hank. The dogs get fed twice a day, once in the morning and once in the early evening. Joan has pre-packaged bags of food ready, so all she has to do is open the Ziploc bag the food is in and the dogs do the rest. Usually, they are respectful of each other's food. But, on this day, something went awry and suddenly there was growling and biting. After we broke up the fight, Fred sulked.

Fred sulks in the corner of our room at the Garden Court Hotel, as Hank looks to make amends. We don't know how the fight started, so have no idea what's going on here.

Eventually, the dogs started "talking" to each other once again, and all was well. I have no idea how dogs communicate, but watching this little tiff was hilarious.

Soon, it was off to get Fred's paw looked at. Although he'd done some three-legged hopping and tender walking when we were in Death Valley, he seemed largely recovered, so we weren't panicking. We found a vet a mile away, and decided we should walk there for two reasons: 1) so we could get some exercise, and 2) so we would wear out the dogs, since we planned to leave them in the hotel room to have a canine-free lunch. So we walked a mile, and finally found the address we were looking for. Only  problem: It wasn't the address where the vet was currently located. Damn you, Google! We soon found out the new location was on the same street... a mere four miles away. So, with only 20 minutes before our wedged-in appointment, we came up with a brilliant plan: I would leave Joan and the boys at the old location, make a hasty one-mile walk back to the hotel, get the car and pick them up and head to the vet's new location. There was no way we were going to make our 1pm appointment, and the vet was clear that, after 1:30pm, our window to get Fred in was closed. So I busted my tail back to the hotel, sped back to pick up Joan and the dogs, and blew down Old Camino Real to the vet. We made it by about 1:15pm, and the vet was nice enough to take us. I decided to wait in the car, since we didn't want to bring Hank into the vet, and frankly, I was tired. But Joan filled me in on what was an interesting visit to the vet.

The vet was an older gentleman with the coldest, unblinking blue eyes Joan had ever seen. But Fred seemed non-plussed, and was quite calm as this guy checked his paw. The diagnosis: an infection, probably from a burr or someting else that had penetrated his paw at one of the national parks we went to last week. The prescription:  Soaking the paw, and an antibiotic for one week. Prognosis: Full recovery. Honestly, we were not expecting anything serious, but it was good to hear that Fred could now be upgraded from questionable to probable.

During this exam, Joan chatted with the good doctor, and it came up that we were thinking of going to Alaska on this trip. He asked if we had a medical certificate for the dogs. Joan brought the rabies certificates and immunization records for both dogs on the trip, but was never able to discern whether that's what the vet was talking about, as he just kept talking as if Joan wasn't there. He mused we might have trouble getting the dogs into Canada. Joan told him we'd taken Fred across the Canadian border a number of times on the 2003 trip, and they didn't ask us for any paperwork. Once again, he continued talking as if Joan had not spoken, and suggested that we would also probably have trouble getting into Alaska. When Joan asked why, he finally stopped to listen, and then responded, "Well... It's Alaska!" Joan then pointed out, just in case he'd missed it, that Alaska had been a U.S. state for quite some time, and inquired why the rules would be different there. He said nothing, handed Joan a prescription and ushered her to the door. If this had been anything more serious than a gimpy paw, we probably would have gone to another vet.

The rest of the afternoon was filled with errands so minor they're not even worth mentioning here. But suffice it to say we were happy to finally have the world back in order: four good tires, two healthy humans and two healthy dogs.

 

ROAD SCRAPS

• During our walk down Palo Alto's main drag, University Avenue, Fred suddenly reared up and backed off, as if he was scared of something. We couldn't figure out what it was, until I saw what store we were in front of: The Loving Hut, a vegan cafe. Fred is an inveterate meat eater, so this may have been his form of protest. As a result, we did not bring him in for an avocado BLT, raw celery foot fettucine or the tofu ice cream. Shockingly, I also chose to bypass The Loving Hut.
• At lunch, we were sitting next to a table full of high-school kids at the sushi place we went to. Now, I don't remember high school real well, but when you went to lunch with your high school friends, was sushi usually on the list of options? Anyway, one of the young men at this table, in an effort to impress his lady friends, began a long monologue about sushi and some sushi best practices. He implored the girls to use the soy sauce, because "sushi is very dry, and if you don't dip it in the soy sauce, it dehydrates you." Not knowing any better, they immediately complied. Now, I don't know much about sushi, but it seems to be that dipping sushi into something as salty as soy sauce would hardly be a defense against dehydration, but maybe I'm missing something. I guess it would have been too simple to suggest to the girls that they get some water with their sushi. Ah, to be young again.

MUSIC REPORT

• Random iPod shuffle song of the day: "Shine," by Django Reinhardt. From the Ken Burns Jazz compliation I have, this is one of the better-known songs from the Belgian guitarist credited with creating the genre of Gypsy jazz. I don't know Reinhardt well, but one of this blog's readers does. Web genius Adrian Holovaty, who I once worked with at washingtonpost.com, is a huge Reinhardt fan, so much so that when he served as one of the lead developers for a Web application framework while working at lawrence.com, he managed to get that new framework named Django. Reinhardt died at the young age of 43, but is still a major influence among classical guitarists. By the way, Adrian isn't just a Django fan and Web god, he's also an accomplished guitarist himself. Check out some of his guitar-related YouTube clips.
• Most-Played Albums: We weren't in the car very much on Friday, but during our drive home from dinner, I violated one of my night-driving rules by playing Pink Floyd. While we'd been at dinner, some music was playing at the restaurant that reminded me of "Echoes," a side-long tune from "Meddle," so I decided I had to hear it. It's exactly the kind of tune you shouldn't listen to while driving late at night, but since we only had 40 minutes in the car and were both wide awake, I figured it was OK. And we did make it to the hotel safely. But not before Joan commented on how weird another song from that album -- "One of These Days" -- sounded. I told her to wait a few seconds, at which point the only words of the song are uttered: "One of these days, I'm going to cut you into little pieces." Not surprisingly, this did not change her opinion of the song's oddness.

MEAL REPORT

• Lunch: Miyake, Palo Alto, Calif.: We got this recommendation from the hotel, and it was the first blemish on the Garden Court. The place was cute, and had a funny Silicon Valley theme -- they had Google rolls, HP rolls, etc. And my sushi was fine; I had New York rolls and the Palo Alto rolls. But Joan's fried tofu was not great, and her salmon rolls were downright nasty. I know, because, after I said my rolls were fine, she made me taste one. Tasted like motor oil. Our edamame and miso soup were also tasteless. Jim Nutrition Rating: 5 stars (out of 5). Figures, right? I finally eat a perfect meal, and it sucks. Restaurant Rating: 2 stars (out of 5). Joan wouldn't even feed her leftover rolls to the dogs. When they asked whether we wanted to box up Joan's leftover rolls, she wanted to say, "Yes, and please ship that box someplace far, far away where it can't hurt anyone."
• Dinner: Blue Agave Club, Pleasanton, Calif.: We went to Pleasanton to have dinner with Polly Clark, Joan's friend from college, and her husband, Kevin. We ate at the Blue Agave on the 2003 trip, and enjoyed it, and had the same excellent experience on Saturday. I had the seafood echiladas and way too many chips and salsa, and Joan enjoyed her grilled shrimp with spinach, corn and rice. Jim Nutrition Rating: 2 stars (out of 5). The enchiladas had seafood, and that's about all the good I can come up with. But I averaged a 3.5 for the day, right? Restaurant Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5).

HOTEL REPORT

• Garden Court Hotel, Palo Alto, Calif.: Other than a bad lunch recommendation, the hotel continued to be a great choice. Hotel rating: 5 stars (out of 5).

COMMENT OF THE DAY

From Joan Burnett:

• In all honesty, I have to say I have much admiration for you guys and your relationship. If this stuff had happened in my "house".... d-i-v-o-r-c-e. Not that it was anyone's fault (um... except maybe that whole jack thing), but we'd be at each other's throats by now! LOL! Hope the rest of your travels are less eventful but just as fascinating for you and your devoted readers.

Thanks. We're both pretty easy-going about most things, Joan more so than me, so we rarely get snippy with each other. When we do, it's almost always because of fatigue and usually blows over quickly. As I wrote earlier, the dvision of labor also plays a key role, since we don't get into battles over the little stuff. And the fact she's willing to let me use her as a foil is the sign of a strong person.

UPCOMING PLAN (subject to change)

• Monday: Joan will speak to Polly's class of third graders in Castro Valley, Calif., and Jim has some non-trip-related appointments in San Francisco.
• Tuesday: Off to Yosemite National Park, and hopefully, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park.
• Wednesday: Up into Oregon, and toward Crater Lake.

BONUS BEAGLE PHOTO

I decided to snap some random photos while driving (and without looking at the subjects), and netted one good one, as Hank tries to figure out what I'm doing and Fred sniffs the camera in Death Valley. (Photo by Jim)

Updated FHMA Trip Map

I finally updated the trip map to get it up to date. Here's our path so far... Click on the image to see a larger map...

FHMA Day 50: Donuts & Other Treats

QUICK FACTS

•  Where We Started:  Lone Pine, Calif.
• Where We Ended: Palo Alto, Calif.
• Miles Driven: 463 (11,674 total).
• New States: None.
• States So Far: 19 (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California)

THE DAY'S HIGHLIGHTS

You know what they say about best-laid plans. Our original idea for Friday had us going to Manzanar National Historic Site, an old World War II Japanese internment camp, and then on to Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park. But once we made our late-night entry into Lone Pine on Thursday with a donut on the car and an injured paw on a beagle, we decided the day needed to be dedicated to rehab.

Our first priorities were to find a vet and a tire. Joan asked at the hotel about a vet, and was told one came to Lone Pine only on Thursdays. Since Fred was inconsiderate enough to need a vet on a Friday, that wasn't going to work. So we decided we'd take Fred to a vet in whatever town we found a tire. The problem is that the P245/50R17 tires for our Acura are not easy to find. In 2003, we got a flat tire in Yellowstone National Park, and had to drive all the way to Boise, Idaho -- almost 400 miles -- on the donut to find a replacement. So I knew finding the tire wouldn't be easy. Predictably, calls to tire stores in Lone Pine, Independence, Ridgecrest and California City failed to turn up the tire I needed. One tire store in Bakersfield had the tire, but the guy there told me that he wasn't allowed to change just one tire on an all-wheel drive car, but needed to change all four. I looked at my drivers license, confirmed I wasn't born yesterday, and passed on that "opportunity." I was desperate, but not that desperate.

I tried Superior Acura in Bakersfield -- 172 miles away -- but they had no appointments available until next Tuesday. But after several more calls failed, I decided to try the pathetic approach. I called Superior Acura back, and told them that, if they had the proper tire, I'd be glad to buy it and get it put on myself. That way I wouldn't need an appointment. My hope was to shame or guilt them into squeezing me in. They didn't quite sign up for that on the phone, but did agree to sell me the tire. Once we had that appointment locked up, Joan located a vet not too far from the dealership to get Fred a tuneup as well.

The next challenge was repacking the car, since a huge flat tire was now in the trunk, not a small spare. It took about 15 minutes, but I finally wedged most of the stuff back into the trunk, though some bags had to tossed into the back seat, making the ride a little cramped for the beagles.

Hank waits patiently for Jim to repack the car at the Best Western Frontier in Lone Pine, Calif.

So, finally, on a donut that's only supposed to be used for 50 miles -- and already had 40 on it from our drive home the night before -- we set off on a 172-mile ride to Bakersfield.

This was not a fun ride. I believe it's been established that I drive fast. But since you're not supposed to go faster than 50 miles per hour on a donut, I was forced to settle comfortably into the right lane and crawl. Now, I won't lie, I didn't go 50 the whole way, but I did try to keep it under 60. But sitting there, watching 18-wheelers, minivans and senior citizens whiz by wasn't fun.

About halfway through the drive, as we were puttering through Cantil, Calif., we saw a man jumping up and down on the side of the road, trying frantically to get someone to stop. Now, you don't see this too often anyway, but the fact this was happening a mere 18 hours after we'd gotten help from benevolent strangers sure seemed like a sign to us. So we stopped to see if he needed help, and indeed, he did. Turns out Martin had been driving down California 14, towing a motorcycle trailer with his truck when one of the wheels on the trailer just shredded. He'd wobbled his way far enough to reach a paved pulloff area, and had walked out to the road to try and flag someone down. He'd been there 10-15 minutes, and hadn't been able to get anyone to stop. Now, this was a busy road, where at least 10 cars were passing per minute. So he'd seen between 100 and 150 cars, and not one had been willing to stop. Martin did not look like a scary guy, so we could only assume the reason people didn't stop was they were too busy or didn't see that he was attached to a car, since he'd pulled it off the road a decent distance. Either way, we saw him, both knew that this was our opportunity to pay it forward, and pulled off.

So we stopped our slightly injured vehicle to get Martin help for his critically injured one. We called AAA for him, gave them Martin's location and chatted with him for a few minutes before taking off. He was just as appreciative as we were when Bill and Jessica stopped for us on Thursday night. There's something to be said for karma.

The rest of the ride to Bakersfield was uneventful, and we arrived at Superior Acura sporting our extra-pathetic looks. And it worked, thanks to the lovely Nicole Fuentes, who not only got someone to put the tire on the car, but found us a jack and got the car washed. With her husband and baby son waiting, she stayed late to get this done for us. The bad news: the rim was bent, so we had to pony up some serious dough to get a new one. All in all, it was a successful visit, and for the second time in as many days, we were appreciative that someone went so far our of their way to help us. The dealership even let Fred and Hank hang out inside in the waiting area.

Hank and Fred put their best paws forward behavior-wise at Superior Acura in Bakersfield, Calif.

The fact we needed a new rim not only cost us money, but time, and a a result, we weren't able to make it to the vet in Bakersfield to check on Fred's paw. The good news is that the paw seemed much improved over the day. There was some chewing, and an occasional limp, but for the most part, the day of relative rest seemed to serve Fred well.

Once the car was done and we were back at full power (and with a jack, no less), I immediately returned to my full A.J. Foyt persona, and we made it to Palo Alto in less than four hours, hoping we'd seen our last flat of the trip.

ROAD SCRAPS

• When it comes to bathroom breaks, I'm usually the problem. That's largely because I drink way too much soda -- in fact, I'm hardly ever without one in the car, and usually have backups. But on Friday, it was Joan who was in urgent mode. We didn't want to stop much on the ride from Lone Pine to Bakersfield, since the tire was already way past its allotted miles, and the fewer surface streets and turns we needed to deal with, the better. But we were both ready for a stop by the time we encountered a hopping Martin on the side of the road. After that 20-minute stop, it was Joan was hopping. But there isn't anywhere to stop alongside that stretch of the highway, and it was nearly 30 minutes before we finally reached Mojave. Joan had been steadily shutting down her systems along the way. First, I was told I was not allowed to make her laugh. Then, she said she would no longer be able to speak. Then, violating her own rule about not speaking, she told me I was told I was no longer allowed to speak. By the time we pulled into Mojave, she was down largely to grunting and pointing. We saw an AM/PM convenience store, and before I could even pull into a parking space, she declared, "I'm getting out." She did, and -- for the second time in two days -- I saw her run, though this was that legs-crossed, I-really-have-to-go run. She was back 30 seconds later. "There are two people on line. Find someplace else. And step on it." So, while trying to be easy on the tire and Joan's bladder, I tried to find a place as quickly as possible. Finally, we saw a scummy travel plaza with shady clientele out front, and Joan directed me to it, and once again, raced out of the car before it came to a complete stop. She soon returned, with a relieved smile, and confirmed that the exterior scumminess of the place was indeed matched by its interior, but that nothing she was going to stop her by that time.

MUSIC REPORT

• Random iPod shuffle song of the day: "Your Smiling Face," by James Taylor. I won't lie: I am not a big James Taylor fan. It's all a little too soft for my taste, though I do think "Fire and Rain" is an excellent song. But this random play was just funny because we'd just had two days that challenged our ability to keep smiles on our faces. And, for the most part, despite some stress, we did. 
• Most-Played Albums: Because I had to drive slowly, anything loud and raucous was out, since I tend to drive faster when the music is driving as well. So I decided I wanted some mellow, atmospheric music to keep me grounded. So, from Lone Pine to Bakersfield, I listened to "The Thin Blue Line" and "The Fog of War," both by Philip Glass, and the "The Thin Red Line," by Hans Zimmer. All three are movie soundtracks. One trivia note about Zimmer, one of my favorite film score composers: Before he got into scoring movies, he was a member of The Buggles, the band whose song, "Video Killed the Radio Star," was the first video ever played on MTV.

MEAL REPORT

• Lunch: McDonald's, Mojave, Calif.: While we were desperately searching for a bathroom for Joan in Mojave, we also decided to get lunch. Seeing how tight our day already was, I decided I needed a rolling lunch -- i.e. eating while driving -- so we stopped at the Golden Arches. I got the Chicken McNuggets and fries, and Joan tried Chicken Selects for the first time and was highly impressed. Jim Nutrition Rating: 1 star (out of 5). Restaurant Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5, on the fast-food scale). Joan voted for a 5 on the power of her Chicken Selects, but I'll bring it down a bit since the McNuggets weren't particularly good.
• Dinner: Il Fornaio, Palo Alto, Calif.: After our power drive from Bakersfield, we met our friends Len and Janice Downie for dinner. Len, the former executive editor of The Washington Post, was out here doing some work at Stanford, and we were lucky enough to overlap with them in Palo Alto. This restaurant, right next to our hotel, marked the first time we've had Italian in some time, and we took full advantage. I had the seafood pasta, and Joan had the squash ravioli, and we were both happy. I liked the tuna tartare appetizer more than Joan did. Jim Nutrition Rating: 3 stars (out of 5). The pasta wasn't great for me, but at least the seafood was healthy. Restaurant Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5).

HOTEL REPORT

• Garden Court Hotel, Palo Alto, Calif.: This wonderful boutique hotel in downtown Palo Alto was just what we needed after a few long days. It's a small, quiet hotel within walking distance of a ton of shops and restaurants. They were also fine with us leaving the beagles in the room while we went out for meals, and even left a special mat in front of our room for the dogs. The room was big, the bed comfortable and the shower powerful. And the hotel gets an extra fist-bump for not charging extra for the high-speed Internet connection, as most expensive hotels do. Hotel rating: 5 stars (out of 5). We liked it so much, we decided to stay a second night.

COMMENT OF THE DAY

From Mark Potts, who hits the softball I pitched way out of the park:

• With all due respect and affection, somehow I'm not surprised that a guy who doesn't know what an axle is would drive a luxury car without a jack into the desert in Death Valley. I'm just sayin'...

Sometimes, there is really no point in trying to mount a defense. This is one of those times.

UPCOMING PLAN (subject to change)

• Sunday: Catching with friends and family in the Bay Area.
• Monday: Joan will speak to a class in Pleasanton, Calif., and Jim has some non-trip-related appointments in San Francisco.
• Tuesday: Off to Yosemite National Park, and hopefully, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park.

BONUS BEAGLE PHOTO

A bored Fred waits while Jim tries to work his re-packing magic in Lone Pine, Calif.