Last summer, we did a two-week road trip across California. We started in San Francisco and drove down the coast as far as San Diego, then through some national parks back up to San Francisco. It was quite an eventful trip and certainly didn't all go to plan (you can read more about why here) but there were definitely some stand out moments and stunning places that blew us away.
This trip actually taught us a lot about ourselves! Without a doubt, our favourite thing about California was the impressive nature and we felt most at home in the national parks and by the sea. We found the huge cities pretty overwhelming but we did have some great moments there too.
So without further ado, here are 6 must - see stops on a California road trip for people like us who love nature and the sea!
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite is amazing! We stayed here for 3 nights in a tent cabin and loved every moment! The scenery literally took our breath away - from towering mountains to stunning waterfalls (although they were mostly dry in August when we went) and vast meadows. We were blown away by the size of Yosemite and loved just driving through it and gazing out of the window at the scenery.
Our Yosemite must-see sights and activities:
Tunnel View
Yosemite Falls hike
Tuolumne Meadows
Half Dome (visible from Tunnel view)
El Capitan (also visible from Tunnel view)
The Yosemite village in general is also a highlight. It has such a great feel as there are hundreds of like-minded people in their hiking gear, all there for the same reason. There is a free shuttle-bus system that runs a loop in the village to take you between the different sights and trail starting points which is really easy to use. There're also a couple of convenience shops and restaurants where people gather in the evenings creating a buzz in the village.
We would really love to go back to Yosemite one day but would definitely aim to go earlier in the year when the waterfalls would be in full flow and the temperature a bit cooler - more suitable for hiking!
Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua tree is a lot smaller than Yosemite but equally impressive. The scenery is just so unlike anywhere we have ever been! We stayed there in our camper van for only one night due to the uncomfortable heat, but we loved exploring lots of places while we were there. The nice thing is that due to its smaller size, it didn't take long to drive between the different sights in Joshua Tree. We also got up early in the morning to catch the sunrise and golden light which was so worth doing.
Our Joshua Tree highlights:
Cholla Cactus Garden
Arch Rock trail
Skull Rock
Keys View viewpoint
Hidden Valley
Death Valley National Park
Yet another completely wacky and unique place we visited was Death Valley. Again, unlike anywhere we have ever been! The heat here (especially due to the time of year we went) was unreal - highs of 48 degrees while we were there which was almost unbearable! We could only be out of the car for minutes at a time and we were VERY grateful for the air conditioned visitor centre as our car air-con could hardly cope.
Nevertheless, we really enjoyed the experience of Death Valley and seeing such an unusual landscape.
Our favourite sights:
Badwater Basin
The Artist's Palette and the Artist's Drive
Zabriske Point
Dante's View
Death Valley is another place we would love to go back to at a different time of year when we can be out of the car for more than 5 minutes without overheating!
Big Sur
As part of our road trip, we drove down the Pacific Coast Highway from LA to San Diego. In some ways we were a little underwhelmed by this as a lot of the road is not directly next to the sea and at times there was so much sea-mist we couldn't actually see beyond the edge of the land.
However, we made sure to get to the famous Big Sur early in the morning and fortunately it was not misty at the time so we had a good view. For us, Big Sur was a refreshing, peaceful spot of nature in between the large cities found along the highway.
San Francisco - Golden Gate Bridge
We have a very love/hate relationship with San Francisco after our hire van got broken into here at the start of our trip. We ended up leaving the city quickly after this bad experience but did go back at the end of our second week and were glad we did. Although we're not very keen on the city as a whole, the Golden Gate Bridge is certainly very impressive! We really enjoyed hiring bikes on a sunny day and cycling over the bridge and up Hawk Hill. It's definitely a must-do activity if you visit San Francisco.
Pacifica
This is probably more of a personal one as it is a place we stopped after leaving San Francisco at the beginning of our trip and returned to for a surf towards the end. Pacifica is a smaller town, only about 15 minutes outside of San Francisco, with a more chilled vibe, a few cafes and an obvious surfing community. It felt like a breath of fresh air for us!
So, even though we had a mixed experience in California, we were still blown away by some of the impressive natural landscapes and even managed to find a little place where we felt at home in Pacifica. We hope this helps anyone who, like us, feels a lot more at home in nature to get the best out of a California road trip!
Comments