April Trip Along the California Coast?
Hello, friends,
I hope you will pardon this not-quite-strictly-RV-related request!
Although I live towards the east coast, I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to visit the Big Sur area of California as a wildland firefighter early in my career (and that’s been YEARS ago!). I thought it was a beautiful area, although of course much different than my Blue Ridge mountain homeland. Additionally, I have always wanted to see the “big trees” along the Northern California coast, specifically Redwood National Park and some of the similar parks in that general area.
Years later now, I find myself with some time off coming up in mid-April, and my wife and I are toying with the idea of flying into Monterey, renting a car and driving up the coast along Highway 1, visiting some of the redwood parks, and then flying back home out of Crescent City. These destinations are very tentative, but will combine both areas that I’d like to see. We have a week or so to make the trip, but this will be a once-in-a-lifetime trip for us and so we’d like to take in as much as we can. We like scenery, history, and natural beauty, but that’s not to say we wouldn’t like to see the Golden Gate bridge, Bixby bridge, or any other sites that are tourist attractions (but not tourist traps!).
I know a lot of folks on this board are either from this general area or visit often, so would you mind giving me some advice, please? What kind of weather can we expect in mid-April; is this a decent time of year to visit if we don’t plan to get in the ocean? I would expect there would be at least some flowers blooming and trees leafed out by then, given that the coastline would moderate the weather? What points of interest would you recommend as “must see” places, keeping in mind our interests listed above? We have not yet decided whether we will be camping or staying in motels or lodges, but what are your favorite places to stay (campgrounds, cabins, motels)? We are considering staying mostly in state park cabins or something similar, if these are to be found along our route. Neither of us care for the bed-and-breakfast environment. Any particular airport or car rental company you might recommend?
We haven’t had time to do any extensive planning or research yet, as this opportunity just now fell into place, but I’m hoping some of you would be kind enough to get me started with ideas and suggestions!
Many thanks,
Regan
I hope you will pardon this not-quite-strictly-RV-related request!
Although I live towards the east coast, I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to visit the Big Sur area of California as a wildland firefighter early in my career (and that’s been YEARS ago!). I thought it was a beautiful area, although of course much different than my Blue Ridge mountain homeland. Additionally, I have always wanted to see the “big trees” along the Northern California coast, specifically Redwood National Park and some of the similar parks in that general area.
Years later now, I find myself with some time off coming up in mid-April, and my wife and I are toying with the idea of flying into Monterey, renting a car and driving up the coast along Highway 1, visiting some of the redwood parks, and then flying back home out of Crescent City. These destinations are very tentative, but will combine both areas that I’d like to see. We have a week or so to make the trip, but this will be a once-in-a-lifetime trip for us and so we’d like to take in as much as we can. We like scenery, history, and natural beauty, but that’s not to say we wouldn’t like to see the Golden Gate bridge, Bixby bridge, or any other sites that are tourist attractions (but not tourist traps!).
I know a lot of folks on this board are either from this general area or visit often, so would you mind giving me some advice, please? What kind of weather can we expect in mid-April; is this a decent time of year to visit if we don’t plan to get in the ocean? I would expect there would be at least some flowers blooming and trees leafed out by then, given that the coastline would moderate the weather? What points of interest would you recommend as “must see” places, keeping in mind our interests listed above? We have not yet decided whether we will be camping or staying in motels or lodges, but what are your favorite places to stay (campgrounds, cabins, motels)? We are considering staying mostly in state park cabins or something similar, if these are to be found along our route. Neither of us care for the bed-and-breakfast environment. Any particular airport or car rental company you might recommend?
We haven’t had time to do any extensive planning or research yet, as this opportunity just now fell into place, but I’m hoping some of you would be kind enough to get me started with ideas and suggestions!
Many thanks,
Regan
