capecod73

Trip idea for the summer is brewing...looking for thoughts and suggestions...

Family of four including 13 and 14 year old boys. We have flexibility in dates but i would like to keep the trip to 10 days, in either July or August. Boys are used to road trips, we are East Coast based and last year did AZ/UT national parks with a focus in Moab and had the best time.

Definites ln the list are:Yosemite, San Fran (alcatraz) and Crater Lake In Oregon. Other than that I am wide open. I would like to see Redwoods, Winchester House, and whatever else is a must see in San Fran (this is my first trip there so I am clueless). Part of me would like to start in San Diego and make our way up the coast. Would that make sense? Where are logical stops along the way? We like to drive a few hours, spend 1-3 mights, and move on. Museums, theme parks, outdoor parks, outdoor scenery, animals, parls, hikes - these are all things we enjoy.

So, please fire away with itinerary ideas/thoughts. Thanks in Advance!

janisj

Winchester house isn't a must on most peoples' lists, YRMV.

>>Part of me would like to start in San Diego and make our way up the coast. Would that make sense?

tomfuller

This is a loop that you could do in your 10 day limit -
Fly to Sacramento (SMF). Rent a car and head north on I-5 to Medford OR and take Rt. 62 and spend the night at the Prospect Inn or Crater Lake Lodge if you are lucky enough to get room(s).
See Crater Lake in the morning and then exit from the north entrance and go west on Rt. 138 down the Umpqua to Roseburg.
Take Rt. 42 from south of Roseburg to 425 into Bandon.
Spend a night in Bandon and see the Pacific Ocean. There are great golf courses there if that interests you.
Take US 101 south into California to get to the Redwood NP.
The kids might want to see the "Trees of Mystery" with a gondola ride up to the top of the hill.
After seeing some Coast Redwoods spend the night at the little town of Klamath.
Pick one more town between Klamath and San Francisco to spend a night.
I would choose a night at or near Yosemite over an expensive night in San Francisco YMMV.
Return the car to Sacramento and fly home.
With 2 or 3 more days, you could include Monterey and Big Sur.

janisj

Fine if what you mainly want is a road trip - and there is nothing wrong with that. Tom's plan has you in the car about 13 hours the first three days from SMF to Crater Lake to Bandon to Klamath. With stops you are talking about 6 hours each day just in transit. That is a lot of car time in relation to 'being anywhere' time, especially for the kids in the back seat.

marvelousmouse

Given that you have 2 teenagers, I'd skip Crater Lake. There's a lot more for them to do elsewhere. Maybe consider Lake Tahoe.

Given your interests, I'd focus on San Francisco, Sacramento, Lake Tahoe, and Yosemite. Gold country (cavern tours and history) would be a good possibility.

So maybe: 2 nights SF, 3 nights Yosemite, 2 nights Tahoe, 2 nights Sacramento/Gold country. Relatively short drives, but plenty of stuff to see in between and at each location. If Lake Tahoe doesn't appeal, I'd swap it out for the redwoods, but I think two teen boys would enjoy Tahoe more. Also, I think that the redwoods would be more like 3 nights minimum. It's beautiful but spread out.

Sacramento is more like a half day (train museum and old town) but gold country is easily 1.5-2 days. Forestiere Underground Gardens (Fresno), Columbia Stae Historic Park, California Cavern are on my "must see list right under Yosemite.

Favorite hike/swim (but bring a float tube to float through the cave as the water is cold):

http://alltrails.com/trail/us/califo...laveras-county

You definitely don't have time for a coast drive. I'd only do southern CA If you want beach time and if Disney is on the list. 10 days is pretty perfect for either the south or the north- but definitely not both!

capecod73

These posts are incredibly helpful - a lot to digest but now I have actual towns/things to do to research. I'll work on Yosemite reservations first and foremost. We could stretch the trip to two weeks but honestly that depends on overall cost as I start putting the pieces together.

I'll be back with more questions soon - thank you all so much!

Gardyloo

If Yosemite is a top priority, earlier in the summer is better than late. In dry years (no way to know now which this will be) some of the waterfalls dry up by late summer, and the waterfalls are one of the big draws, so earlier is safer.

In the interests of time I'd drop both Crater Lake and Lake Tahoe, and substitute the Monterey Bay/Peninsula in their place. From Monterey you can take short drives to see the beautiful Big Sur coast and Point Lobos State Park - great wildlife and scenery - and between Monterey and San Francisco there are a couple of state parks featuring coast redwoods, ideal for day hikes. (Google Henry Cowell and Big Basin redwoods.) There's also a very cool old-fashioned boardwalk amusement park in Santa Cruz.

On one of the Yosemite days, take a few extra hours to travel via Calif. Hwy 49 through the gold rush country. The town of Columbia has been made into a state historic park, full of very cool buildings, museums etc. - terrific for kids the age of yours.

StuDudley

Here are some ideas for things to do & see in the San Francisco area.

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...mendations.cfm

Stu Dudley

capecod73

Can we talk about Redwoods lol?

Is there a real difference between seeing them in the NP vs Muir or Henry Cowell?

Also flying into San Fran vs Sacramento - assuming prices are equal is there a better city to fly into?

janisj

>>Also flying into San Fran vs Sacramento - assuming prices are equal is there a better city to fly into?where you finally decide to tour. In 'general' SFO would be better simply because there are so many more flights so more likely to get a good schedule.

But Sacramento makes most sense for driving straight to Yosemite, San Jose makes most sense if one is driving straight down the coast. Oakland can also make a lot of sense. All four airports work for your plans -- just depends on schedules/fares.

>>Is there a real difference between seeing them in the NP vs Muir or Henry Cowell?

tomfuller

The reason I suggested SMF is that it is next to I-5 and the rental car MAY be enough cheaper to off set any extra airfare.
If you can't go to Crater Lake, head straight to Yosemite from the airport and visit San Francisco and Muir Woods last.
If you could stay at the Crater Lake Lodge, the way to do it from Sacramento is to visit the city of Sacramento all day and then take the Amtrak Coast Starlight north to Klamath Falls OR.
The train leaves SAC about midnight and arrives in KFS before 9AM. Get a breakfast on the train before you get to Klamath Falls. Rent a car in K-Falls and go to see Crater Lake.
You can return to Sacramento on the Coast Starlight leaving KFS at 10PM and getting back to SAC about 6:30AM.
Hiking down (and back up) the Cleetwood Trail in Crater Lake NP to ride the boat out to Wizard Island would be great.
If Yosemite is the greatest scenery in California, then Crater Lake has to be the best in Oregon.

jamie99

Redwood National Park is a very long drive from San Francisco (no San Fran please, abbreviate it as SF), Henry Cowell SP is just fine, Muir Woods gets crowded early and has limited parking.
Hope you can get your lodging in Yosemite.

janisj

>>The reason I suggested SMF is that it is next to I-5 and the rental car MAY be enough cheaper to off set any extra airfare.

happytrailstoyou

I think you should go with the part of you that wants to start in San Diego (where there is much to entertain your boys) and only go as far as San Francisco.

Include Highway 1 from Cambria (Hearst Castle) through Big Sur to Monterey (great aquarium) on your itinerary.

HTtY

Is there a real difference between seeing them in the NP vs Muir or Henry Cowell? Yes, because there are several groves in the northern part of California and some of them go on for miles and miles. The expansiveness is very impressive.

capecod73

I appreciate all the thoughtful replies. It sounds like we can see the Redwoods in Henry Cowell instead of heading north. My younger son specifically asked that we see "those gigantic trees" on the trip, so I would like to ensure we get that part right!

Crater Lake is on my must see list but I can always put it on the next trip and head north from there - we have yet to visit either Washington State or Oregon so maybe that's a separate trip.

I love adding in the historical aspect of highway 49 especially since Yosemite is a definite part of this trip. I knew nothing of that area and it falls right in line with something the boys would love.

Rental car prices are a non-issue - I have a family connection in the rental industry so I can usually rent very inexpensively. I did see that parking in SF (why not San Fran? Have I offended without meaning to?) overnight at hotels is costly so I'd appreciate advice on that issue.

Playing with Yosemite reservations now as most have you have educated me that that's the biggest curveball in this whole trip. I'll be back with more questions soon

sf7307

FWIW, I checked accommodations for summer in Yosemite last week, and there was still availability in July for non-heated tent cabins, and in August for both tent cabins and for Yosemite Lodge.

I think a lot depends on how great your kids are in the car, and whether they're awed by gorgeous natural scenery, like the CA coast, or prefer to pick their way around cities and towns. You could easily spend 10 days just from San Francisco to Big Sur and Yosemite. Or San Francisco, Lake Tahoe and the Redwoods. Or San Francisco to San Diego without the other out-of-the-way destinations. California is a big state!

Gardyloo

If you're unlucky with Yosemite you can always stay in Mariposa and just commute in. It's roughly an hour from Mariposa to Yosemite Village, and if you plan to include Hwy 49 in your travels, Mariposa is more or less at the southern end of the best bits, and lodging and food will be much cheaper than inside the park. You should be prepared for big crowds at Yosemite, by the way. Big.

janisj

>>If you're unlucky with Yosemite you can always stay in Mariposa and just commute in.>If everything is full, book at Yosemite View Lodge in El Portal and then keep trying for a cancellation in Yosemite Valley. Don't stay farther out than El Portal because they may say 'near Yosemite' but are really an hour or 2 drive'.