January 31 – February 2, April 18 – May 2

With my hip replacement scheduled for the middle of February, we decided to get in one last road trip before I would have to begin another three months of convalescence.  Taking advantage of a winter promotion in Yosemite where if one purchased two nights of lodging, they got the third night free, and having done this a couple of years earlier, found it a great time to visit the park as attendance is low, making the experience so much more enjoyable without having to deal with the normally large crowds of people there. 

Joining us would be my sister Bev along with Kim and Marty, the best set of in-laws a couple could hope for.  Bev arrived in Los Angeles Saturday January 28 and after visiting some of her favorite haunts near our house, we set out for Yosemite Tuesday the 31^st, stopping for lunch at a Jack in the Box in Delano, before clearing Oakhurst on Highway 41 and starting the climb up to the park entrance.  Not long after we hit snow on both sides of the road and would continue to encounter it the rest of our journey. 

California experienced historic amounts of rain in the first part of the year, filling its reservoirs and leaving record levels of snowpack in the Sierra Nevada’s, 221 percent of average at Philips Station.  A storm had occurred the week before our visit and closed Yosemite, so we were lucky to catch a lull and could get to the park without having to put on chains, although there was still considerable snow on the roads. 

With limited ability to hike, due to the snowy conditions and having a three-year-old with us, we spent our couple of days visiting Camp Curry, the Visitor’s Center and Yosemite Falls.  For meals we relied on the Base Camp Eatery at the Lodge, a good happy hour at the Mountain Room Lounge and a final dinner at the Mountain Room, a location that has always delivered a nice dining experience.  A highlight of the journey to Yosemite and then on to Oakland with Jessica and Kris was celebrating Gemma’s third birthday twice, one in our rooms at the Lodge in Yosemite and then following it up in the backyard at the house in Oakland.  I’m not sure Gemma will remember those events but am sure the rest of us will.  

I had my hip replaced on February 27^th and as with my knee, my surgeon, Dr. Adam Sassoon of UCLA Orthopedics did a great job.  Recovery from hip replacement if far less difficult than the knee and after the first week or so, pain diminishes to the point where one can cut back on the medicine used to reduce it.  The biggest difference is the amount of physical therapy required.  I won’t get into it here but getting the knee to acceptable levels of flex (you must be able to bend it 120 degrees) and have the back of the joint lay flat requires quite painful manipulation.  But if you don’t follow through, scar tissue develops, and you can permanently lose mobility.

We’d been planning a trip to North Carolina for April and as my recovery progressed, Dr. Sassoon cleared me to travel for our trip starting April 18 through May 2^nd, just seven weeks after my surgery.  We flew into Raleigh to begin the trip and made our way to Sir Walter Cottage, the Airbnb we’d booked for the stay.  It’s a nice two-bedroom house with a comfortable layout, perfect to accommodate Joanna and I as well as Jessica, Kris and Gemma who would be stopping by for two nights before continuing on to Barcelona. 

We picked up our rental car at the airport and encountered an issue we’ve run into before, not very often but more than should occur with this kind of transaction.  We were assigned a newish Ford Escape and when we reached it to open the door, we were assaulted by the distinct odor of cigarette smoke, despite the prominent sticker on the window citing the heavy fine that would occur should one do so in this vehicle.

Knowing we’d have the car for almost two weeks, and not wanting to put up with the smell for that length of time, we walked back to the kiosk and were assigned another car, this one an older Honda Accord with Sport trim, a nice vehicle we thought to drive for a couple of weeks.  But on the drive to the Airbnb and beyond, it was apparent that it was experiencing some type of issue with its drive train, emitting an annoying whine at different speeds.  We would take that car back to the rental agency the next day when we went to pick up the kids and this time got a winner, a Nissan Altima with less than 6,000 miles on it.  I’ve rented this model car before and knew we would be happy with it, and we were. 

That first night in town, after checking into the Airbnb, we weren’t motivated to go out and find a upscale meal so instead headed to a Cook Out nearby to get our first fix of a burger or hot dog southern style.  No seating was available at this location and so we managed to consume this potentially messy meal in the car without any mishaps, a good start to the trip. 

The next day we killed time, Joanna going to meet with her mom and hitting the market for supplies and checking out the neighborhoods near the Airbnb and the facility where Joanna’s Mom now lives.  Soon enough it was the bewitching hour, and we made our way to the airport, exchanged the car, and in the wink of an eye were loading the kids and little Gemma into the rental. 

We weren’t sure if hunger would be an issue for our passengers and they quickly apprised us that it was and so after a brief search by Jessica of options, we made our way to Wye Hill Brewing, in a neighborhood overlooking Raleigh’s downtown.  As we pulled up to the location and proceeded to park, a memory came to me of having been here before.  And we will follow up with that memory and our meal at Wye Hill in our next post.    

Links

California Snowpack: https://water.ca.gov/News/News-Releases/2023/April-23/Snow-Survey-April-2023

Sir Walter Cottage: https://www.airbnb.com/trips/v1/3b3c5105-a7af-4aca-8742-cab96f4cb9e8/ro/RESERVATION2_CHECKIN/HMJCQYJCBH

Wye Hill: https://wyehill.com/