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Day 25: Fri Aug 15, 1997

When I first got up I went outside to look at the mountain. It was not yet illuminated by the rising sun, so I went back in. Sharleen woke up and I got her up and out to watch the mountains light up. We ate some of the continental breakfast while we watched the sunlight creep down from the highest peaks, pink at first.  Afterward we unpacked the backpacks in the room at Lone Pine and repacked everything, loaded the car, and headed south. We stopped at the visitor center and chatted with the ranger that had said to stop by after Whitney.

As we drove on we passed the dry lake bed of Owens Lake, just a bit of water was seen. Sharleen drove on through the Mojave Desert while I typed on the computer, so I missed most of whatever scenery there was. When we got close to San Bernadino I navigated us to the AAA office and we got a good map of the area. We also checked the phonebook for places to eat. I found a place very close to where we intended to stay, it was Indian, and we went off hoping to find a lunch buffet. The motel was on the way, we checked in and put some stuff in the room, it wasn't ready yet, we said we'd be back. We went off to the restaurant, it did have a buffet, and we ate a bit much.

Hulda Crooks

Helen Hayes, Hulda Crooks, Sharleen Sterner.

Then we rushed off to meet Helen Hayes at Loma Linda market, got there one minute before the appointed time and we went off to see Hulda Crooks. Helen drove us to the nursing home, it was a very nice place. She talked to the lady at the desk, a friend of hers, and Hulda was called and said to come up. We went to the second floor, Helen knocked on her door and asked if we could visit. Hulda said to come in. She was very pleasant to visit. When she couldn't recall something she said she was over a hundred and didn't remember everything. Helen is a good friend of hers and visits her often. Sometime into the visit Hulda reminded Helen that she hadn't told her our names, so we did that. She also signed our copy of her book we had picked up at Whitney Portal store, we added the date and her age. Hulda showed us the cane given to her by the Japanese after she climbed Mt. Fuji. She enjoyed the visit and as we said goodbye we said we'd try to visit again in 2 years, she said ok.

Hulda Crooks autographing the copy of her book we got at Whitney Portal Store. She is using the pen we were given at RSI.

Hulda Crooks with the cane given to her by the Japanese after she climbed Mt. Fuji. She is the oldest women to have climbed that mountain.

Helen then drove us to Hulda Crooks Park which is right there in Loma Linda. We walked around a bit and I took some pictures.

Hulda Crooks City Park in Loma Linda, California.

Metal tablet on the back of the park sign.

We then went back to our car at the market, trying to talk Helen into letting us take her out to eat. She went back to the motel, Sharleen riding with her, and they checked out the Indian restaurant but found it closed until later. After Helen went home, 60 miles away, we went looking for a 1-hour photo place. Finally turned in 6 rolls at Walmart, went back to the motel, and called my cousin Paul to arrange a visit. Back to Walmart for the pictures, tried to find Paul's place on the way back to the motel, didn't quite, so we called and then went to visit him. He was waiting on a corner near his house when we got there. We took the computer to show, later his wife Jan came home. We got back to the motel fairly late after an interesting day, viewing Whitney in the morning and visiting Hulda Crooks in the afternoon.

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