While in Northern California, do take some time to visit areas outside of SF, as there is so much to see. SF itself is a rather small city, so much of it can be seen in a couple of days. Other areas outside of SF that merit visiting include the Wine Country(Napa/Sonoma). San Jose/SiliconValley, Monterey/Carmel, and Yosemite. As previous people mentioned, weather in SF in the summer will be cold/foggy (highs around 60). Wine Country, San Jose, and Yosemite will be pleasantly warm. Monterey and Carmel have simialr weather to SF.
Look at the following websites for more on what to see and do in Northern California.

http://www.winecountry.com/

www.sanjose.org

www.yosemitepark.com

www.monterey.com

One thing I would NOT do is plan to stay in an RV down near Visalia. It is often very hot, 105F or more is common in summer. People take RVs up into the Sierra mountains all the time. You want to be sure the RV, tires, etc are in good shape, and be sure to use the pullouts along the road to let others pass. Campsites (especially for weekends) at the popular parks tend to get pre-booked, but there are usually spaces available in outlying campgrounds or in the nearby national forest areas.

An example would be Hume Lake, which is between Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks. It's a forest service campground, (no reservations), on a mountain lake; across the lake is a large church camp. If you come in on a weekday, you would have a good chance of finding a campsite there or nearby, while the national parks would be more difficult. Try to keep the size of the RV to a minimum, the bigger they are, the more difficult it is to find a campsite in the really nice areas of the mountains.

You will find lots of RV information at www.rv.net/forum

Scroll down the page and you will find places to ask questions about "Campgrounds" and "Destinations" among many other topics.

By having the RV, you can cook a lot of your meals and save LOTS of money. Not having to pack and unpack every few days is another plus.

KOA's are not our best places to stay. They are usually just handy stopping places on your way somewhere. Try to camp IN the parks. You should try to get reservations.

busi_lis,

What part of north Michigan will your husband be visiting for his study? I lived in two towns in Michigan - Cheboygan, at the northern part of the Lower Peninisula, by the Mackinaw Bridge, and in Escanaba, which is in the Upper Peninsula of the state. If you have any specific questions regarding those areas, maybe I can help.

Thanks Curmudgeon and Connie for your hints on RVs. I really do need to get on and prebook somewhere, don't I? I hadn't thought about the heat in Visalia. KOA was the only campsites I knew about but I'll have a look on the website you mentioned. We really do have a blank sheet for the RV week. We not really great hikers but some gentle scenic walking, and a bit of horseback riding would be good.

All the info on Boston has been brilliant. We can't get rid of our rental car as I'd hoped (otherwise it would mean 2 one-way rentals at an extra $300+) but have decided to leave it parked at the airport during our 5-day stay, at only $16 a day which sounds better than trying to park in city, let alone drive there!

July 4th sounds like it's going to be a memorable occasion for us as a family -and Gail I think I might be quite happy to sit all day long on my blanket with a book after a few days walking around the city, so thanks for the info.

I see you mentioned Northern Michigan...I live there and can help you out if you are planning on stopping here. Caribou Maine is a LONG way up there!

more thoughts on an RV in northern CA:

Between national parks, national forests, and state parks, there are probably 100 different entities running public campgrounds in CA. There are huge variations in amenities at public sites, from full RV hookups and store, to no water and pit toilets. There are often size limits (length) on the RVs allowed.

Private campgrounds such as KOA have full hookups of water, sewer, and power, and often some facility such as a swimming pool, but are rarely in or adjacent to scenic locations. To me they are mostly a place to stop for the night on a long trip rather than a destination (Travel Inn for RVs).

I haven't seen a good online listing of the hundreds of CA campgrounds, but there are guidebooks; you might try finding and buying one from Amazon.

Heading north from SF might be a bit easier for an RV newbie; maybe as far up as Gold Beach Oregon, or Oregon Caves. The weather is pretty good in summer, and i think the range of private campgrounds would better.

I've just visited rv.net/forum - quite overwhelming at first but eventually I found my way to some valuable info and I've posted a query there. Curmudgeon's suggestions will also go into the deliberations - thanks. Incidentally, forgive my ignorance but will we see redwoods if we go north?

Thanks for the offers of help on North Michigan. That is strictly my husband's department and I've passed on the offers, but he's so swamped with other preparations at the moment, he may let it pass. (He's leaving in 6 days and I know he has some contacts already where he's staying near Marquette.)

Thanks too to SFE for email offer. Will drop you a line when I get my thoughts in order.

My experience has been that church dress is more formal on the east coast than west coast, but it depends somewhat upon denominational affiliation. I also believe those attending in small-town rural areas still tend to dress up more than in urban churches. In any case, I would hope you'd be welcome where ever you decide to attend, regardless of what you're wearing. Heaven knows He doesn't care!

If you are going to be in Rutland why don't you think about spending more time in the prettier area like Woodstock or Killington area. Rutland is a very crowded area and not pretty. When we go skiing we stay in a great place called Hawk Inn. They also have the most beautiful houses to rent. Unfortunately though these houses are erxpensive and I am not sure of your budget. I would though reconsider Rutland
Joan

Another vote for taking a few side trips out of SF. Even though you wont be driving between SF and LA, you can still see some incredible scenery just south of Monterey. The best way would be to spend a couple nights in Monterey and drive down the coast to Big Sur one of the days you are there.

Thanks for the suggestions re Petaluma (north) and Big Sur (south). I don't have a detailed road map, but it looks as if it would be difficult to make an easy (ie shortish) roundtrip to incorporate either of these.

I've been busy with MapQuest and found a round-trip from San Francisco via Sacramento, Nevada City, Sonora, Fresno, through Sequoia and then back to SF. It's about 700 miles - quite enough for 7 days. Any thoughts from those who know the area? Are there any detours/variations we should be making - or favourite sites. What about Lake Tahoe? My Lonely Planet guide book wasn't too complimentary about it. We are not watersport enthusiasts (except for a bit of swimming) so what else might we be missing?

Re Rutland, my husband will already have spent a week there with a contact of his. We'll be staying just outside the town and certainly intend to roam further afield where it's more picturesque.

Sacramento, Nevada City, Sonora, and Fresno are all either in the central valley or in the low foothills and are usually very hot in summer. The gold country towns along Hwy 49 can be interesting, but are more comfortable in fall or spring.

The lakes and campgrounds along that area tend to be somewhat dry and barren, mostly oriented to water-skiers. The elevation is a key, when it is 110F in Sacramento (near sea level), it will be 80F at Lake Tahoe (5000ft).

Lake Tahoe is a beautiful place, though it can get rather overrun with people (especially the south shore area). Somewhat similar terrain (mountains, rocks, forests) to what you would find in Sequoia park area, but with the big blue lake.

Get a map of California which shows a bit of the terrain, it will give you better perspective. All that flat space in the center of the state is great for agriculture (with water brought down from the mountains), but tends to be hot, dry, and dusty.

In the rough area of your description, I would move higher into the mountains, going up to the Lake Tahoe area via I80 highway, maybe dropping down via CA88 before heading over to Sequoia. Avoid CA49 with a motorhome; you can certainly get through on it, but it is very twisty and slow.

Redwoods in CA come in two types, the ones on the coast are taller, grow in spots from Santa Cruz up to the Oregon border. The sequoia redwoods are not quite as tall, but larger, and grow in the mountains in some areas in/around Yosemite and Sequoia parks.

An alternative route would be to go from SF to Sequoia area, spend two or three days there, then return via Monterey Bay, Santa Cruz, and Big Basin park (which has beautiful coast redwoods).

Some of these roads are quite challenging to the really big motorhomes; if you can keep to 25 foot size or below, it will help (smaller the better). If I were doing it, I would stick to the shortest possible, and buy a cheap small tent for the kids (rain in summer is very rare in CA).

We traveled by RV for years with our kids; what a treat! Plenty of room for everyone to have their "own space"; no need for restroom stops, restaurant on wheels, naps, television, games, etc. Make sure that you are renting from a reputable company and have info on repair shops along the way. Most of the RV parks have swimming pools,game rooms,laundry facilities, groceries. Good Sam is another RV park company. There are guide and RV books listing camping sites, road maps and other useful data. Be sure to "dump" when your tanks get full; a full tank can be smelly. Enjoy!!

What a treat of a trip! But what a bear of a planning job!

I know it's more of an "American" favorite, but just in case you ever ready any of Louisa Mae Alcott ("Little Women," etc...), a visit to her home in Concord (near Boston) would be a real treat. Concord was also the stomping grounds of Emerson, Thoreau and others.
You don't say the gender of your kids - the Alcott House tour wouldn't be too boring for them, I don't think (tho as I write this, I'm struck by thinking about the difference between the American version of "the old days" - i.e., the 1800s...and what qualifies as "old" in the UK....) I hope you have a wonderful trip!

Let me know if you will be visiting any of our city's museums here in Boston. I would gladly get you some passes for your family.

Just email me at [email protected]

For your Boston segment, may I suggest thh Childrens Museum. Its a great place for children. They get to touch all the exhibits and plenty to do. They may also like the Aquarium and IMAX theatre. (but it can be very crowded inthe summer) Your children will be fine in shorts in church, and there is no reason to get a car. Unless you'd like a day trip to the Northshore ie: Salem, Rockport. They are great cities to explore and beautiful beaches are plenty up that way. The children may enjoy a whale watch also. Good luck and have a great time.

After a frustrating few days with a sick computer, it's good to be back and find yet more helpful assistance.
Curmudgeon - your comments on temperature are appreciated. My fair-skinned daughter and I would melt at 110 degrees! I like your alternative itinerary, with Monterey and Big Basin. I wondered about doing it backwards but because we start out on a Friday I haven't yet found a CG in the Big Basin area which isn't fully booked. I think instead the first priority is to book somewhere not too far from SF for the Fri and possible Saturday nights, then head for Sequoia as you suggest, then head back to the coast on Weds/Thur. I'm working from an atlas because I haven't yet got hold of a detailed roadmap, so I'm not quite sure where I should be looking in order to get started in the right direction for Sequoia. How about somewhere on the Diablo Range? Then perhaps we could drive a long day over to Sequoia. Any thoughts? By the way our motorhome will be 22ft - more than enough for us to manoeuvre. I like the suggestion about the tent for the kids!

Arjay - Coincidentally I just found Little Women among some childhood books. If I get chance to read it with my kids (boy 10, girl 8) before we leave in 6 weeks, we'll definitely make a detour via Concord.

Your comment re whales reminds me... Anyone got any experience of swimming with dolphins? My daughter has been telling people here that she intends to do this (along with me!) on our trip. Where? How? And what does it cost?

Starting on a Friday near the bay area is a bit of a challenge for camping. The state parks like Big Basin pre-reserved the day they come available (I think it is 60 days in advance), though sometimes there are cancellations. There are a number of small private campgrounds in the area between Big Basin and Santa Cruz. Anywhere in the area between Half Moon Bay in the north, to Monterey/Big Sur in the south would be a reasonable option. Mt Madonna county park might work, I don' think it fills as fast as the state parks. The Diablo range area can still get pretty warm. Stick to the coast, coastal mountains, and Sierras if you can.

Try Sea World San Diego for dolphins. There may be some threads here if you search.

It might be time to start a new thread on specific topics, this one is getting pretty long.

A couple more thoughts... You might try Santa Cruz KOA. Other possibile nearby areas would be Scotts Valley, Felton, Boulder Creek, Half Moon Bay.

Morgan Hill, Prunedale, Gilroy might be fallbacks (a bit more hot and dry than the coast areas). There is a place called "Casa de Fruita" on the road east of Gilroy (towards Sequoia) that is pretty big and likely to have space.