North Coast - California
 

My husband and I are trying to decide on a destination for our summer vacation (July or August, 9 days). We are in our early 30s, no kids, and this will be a budget vacation since we just bought a house and are pretty broke. We have decided on a camping vacation to keep costs down. We would like to do a little hiking, take photographs, hang out by the campfire, take in the natural beauty, explore some little towns.

We are thinking of spending a week exploring the north coast of California since my husband has never been there and I haven't been there since I was a small child.

We are in the SF Bay Area, and are definitely looking for a vacation where we don't have to do any marathon drives - we had thought about going to Utah or Yellowstone, but the long drives seem so daunting right now that we decided against that.

So any ideas would be greatly appreciated. I definitely want to visit the Redwood NP.

I visited Point Reyes several years ago and stayed in their hostel. It's not private (has separate rooms for men and women), but is adequate. I believe they also have backcountry camping. The area is absolutely beautiful and I would go back in a heartbeat. Great hikes and views! I'm not sure, but it's probably within 1 1/2 hours from SF.

Just returned from a quickie trip up north in October, so here are a few tidbits for your consideration:

Go north into Oregon and do the Oregon coast as well. Cape Perpetua is awesome and the Bandon beach is beautiful and unique. In between there are the sand dunes. Somewhere along that stretch is the Devil's Churn - short hike to the Churn area, then hike the beach to the south of the Churn and curve around back to the parking lot. Be sure to do this beach walk at low tide!

In California, by all means, do the National Redwood Park. Plenty of hiking and marvellous redwood groves. For inexpensive lodging, try the youth hostel. It's the only lodging within the park itself. Otherwise, there are plenty of camping sites in the park.

South of that, try Salt Point Park and Fort Ross.

gualalalisa: your turn! :)

Thanks Lisa. I have been to Point Reyes quite a few times and I agree - it's a beautiful place. We can do Point Reyes as a day trip though because it is so close, so I am thinking something further up the coast. Since we have a little over a week, I want to take advantage of the extra time.

easytraveler - I was thinking of going up into Oregon. Neither of us has been there either. What do you think of the drive times from the Bay Area up to Oregon. I don't want to spend too much time in the car, but I definitely want to get out of the Bay Area and see some stuff - trying to balance relaxation with the desire to see some things we've never seen before. It's the age-old vacation challenge. Also, since we will be camping, I don't want to have to set up and break camp more than a few times during the trip.

Fort Ross is a great idea. That's definitely on my list of places I want to see. I have pictures of myself there as a small child, but no actual memories of it.

Hi J, Growing up, all our family vacations were camping in No. California. Check out Paul M. Dimmick State Park, Richardson Grove, and VanDamm State Beach. Further afield you might check out Mt. Lassen. The first 3 are State Parks and Lassen is a National Park.

Hi J_Correa

.Back when me and my wife were in our 30’s we did a lot of these types of trips. If I remember from your other post your near San Jose. I would save highway one for another trip. It would be easy to spend a week from Pt Reyes to Ft Bragg. Doing the Oregon coast and the Redwoods would be a stretch and you will have a long drive one way or another. You could leave the Bay area and make a long run up 5 to Eugene this would be an all day drive, then spend the night in a motel. The next morning head for the coast on hwy 126 and work your way back south down the coast. Just south of Florence is Honeyman St. Park camp there for a couple of nights and explore the coast. Then head south to Bullards Bar State park just north of Bandon. This area is really cool. It is about 100 miles from there to the best park for redwoods, Jed Smith State Park out of Crescent City on 199. After a few days here head back down 101 to Humboldt Redwoods State park there are several campgrounds down there (I like Richardson Grove). From there it a 4 or 5 hour drive back to the bay area. If you want I can get more specific as I have spent a lot of time camping on the Oregon and N. California coast and live near Eureka. I’ll keep checking this thread. Oh some advice… Jed Smith is VERY popular you need to make reservations now you can always cancel.

Have Fun
GP

We love camping at MacKerricher State Park near Ft. Bragg. You can read more about it at this website:
www.parks.ca.gov

Also, this is where you would make reservations for camping there.

Great - thanks for all the suggestions.

I really like GP's suggestion of making the long drive up to Oregon the first day of the vacation and then slowly making our way back south. That way, the big drive is at the beginning when we are fresh and excited to be going on vacation.

I've got some old family pictures from the 1920s that say Bullard's Bar on the back - I wonder if that's the same area? Hmmm...

I've always wanted to go to Jed Smith SP, but it is so far up there, we've never made it. This might be a really good opportunity to see it.

I am making a list of all the suggestions. Keep them coming!

J:

I'm having real difficulty posting. Will respond later or tomorrow! :)

Going to the Southern OR coast is an excellent suggestion. We've done the entire coast from Brookings to Astoria many times. Lots when all the kids were younger. Geesh, I remember doing that drive with three kids under five a few times, it's gorgeous.

I have never been to Mendocino. It's the next place we want to see in CA. Maybe this summer. The Agate Cove Inn keeps sending me postcards. The area looks beautiful. I would put Mendocino on your list, J! ***kim*** :)

In a word: Mendocino.

Yes, Mendocino and The Agate Cove Inn are wonderful but expensive. The view of the sunset from their front porch was worth a million dollars though.

If you like gardens, the Mendocino Gardens on the road to Fort Bragg are well worth a stop and there are loads of state parks dotted around the area. And if you must (and everybody, including us, does) you can drive through a tree in Leggatt!

Which room did you stay in at the Agate Cove? And is the Albion River Inn good for dinner? Isn't Cafe Bejoulais (sp) supposed to be very good for dinner in that area? ***kim*** :)

jimjim, where do you stay in Mendocino? Downtown or by the ocean? I'm guessing you're a downtown kind of guy from your other posts. ***kim*** :)

You might be interested in my report of our camping trip last summer.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34540668

I strongly recommend the Lost Coast area.

Hi, J!

Trying again this morning!

You can certainly do the suggested drive from the South Bay to Eugene, Oregon, in one day. It's an excellent plan.

There's a hostel in Eugene called the Hummingbird. Looked to be a good hostel. More than this I don't know (Picked up a friend there).

Out here in the "wild" West, I prefer being as close to nature as possible. Camping is one option, but I've just discovered the youth hostels. It's so much easier - a small bag of toiletries and a change of clothing is all that is needed. Next morning, we take off early and this eliminate the hassle of having to set up and break camp. The time saved is worth the few dollars more than the camping fees.

Some of the youth hostels are the only lodgings available in the state/national parks.

Do hike the easy trails at Cape Perpetua, awesome scenery.

Have fun!

Drive times--Santa Rosa to Eureka about4 1/2 hrs on to Bandon another 3 1/2
Stayed in Bandon at "Star' hostel--last I heard it was still open.
Just over Cal border at Brookings is Harris Beach State Park and Boardman State Park , both on the beach. I have heard some of the State Parks in Oregon have "Yurts" .
these are for 2-4 people and 4-6 people. Sort of a tent top with wood floor.
Humbug Mtn.State Park near Port Orford has great hiking trails
IMO most of Mendicino area is very expensive even in the "off season'
Ft. Bragg which is onl;y 10 miles north is a little less. MacKerricker State Park is 3-4 miles noth of Ft. Bragg and is the only state park that i know where day use is free.(The man that donated the land to the sate insisted on this)
As noted You must get reservations for Calif and Oregon Parks--July and Åugust are the busiest months. Also these months can be cold, foggy and windy so take warm clothes..

If you are driving along the Oregon coast, try the See Vue Motel in Yachats. It's rustic and there aren't too many places along the entire coast quite like it. The views are wonderful. They have a website. The interiors are a lot more comfy than the exterior shots will lead you to believe!

I've read about the yurts - sounds like a lot of fun. And we will definitely take windbreakers and sweatshirts. Be both grew up on the central coast and are quite familiar with foggy summers :) When we moved to San Jose, it took us some time to get used to seeing the sun all the time - LOL.

J, if you do go into Oregon, there is a quaint little town called Florence that is worth exploring. There's also the Sea Lion Caves in that are fun to explore. You take an elevator down to the caves to see the sea lions. Lots of fun!

The many lighthouses along the coast are also beautiful and very fun to photograph. ***kim*** ((l))

Hi Kim, we stayed in the Moonstone cottage - a peak of the ocean but a nice room with a walk through some lovely gardens to the main house for breakfast. Bathroom a little tired.

We ate at The Moose Cafe and at the main hotel. Both were fine but we actually liked the cheapest the best - I think it was the Mendocino Bakery - really interesting cooking and a fine selction of beers. Hope that was helpful, Adam C

If time is a problem the suggestion to go north on I-5 to Eugene and across to Florence is good. I-5 is a fast but scenic drive - not the usual boring interstate - and then south on 101.

All the suggestions for the Oregon Coast are right on. I grew up on that coast:-B

Lucky you, ed! Thanks, adam, your info was helpful. We really need to see Mendocino this summer. I've also heard it's a pretty nice wine country to explore! ***kim*** :)

Has anybody been to Grizzly Creek Redwoods SP? It is 20 miles southeast of Eureka. I was doing some searching on the CA state parks site and came across it. Looks like it could be one of those hidden gems.

Hi J_Correa

I have camped at Grizzly Creek Redwoods. It is not that great compared to other parks in the area. The camps are all very close to highway 36 and except for Sundays there is a lot of logging trucks moving by at 6 am. A better camp is called Swimmers Delight on 36 about 4 miles west of Grizzly Creek. This is a Humboldt County Park but it fills up each week end. There are some really nice redwood groves on 36. I got married in one out there. In fact in about an hour I am going out there wander the redwoods and recharge.
If you do not have alot of time stick to the groves on 101, 36 is a narrow windy road.

Have Fun
GP

GP - Thanks for the warning about the highway and the noise from the logging trucks.

Salt Point is a gret place to camp. You'll be right on the ocean.
I don't know the particulars but the Lost Coast is also supposed to be a great place to camp. I'd do a search here as I remember other folks talking about it.