So in late November, December and early January I will be visiting the states for the first time and will be towing my wife along with me for 42 days. I'm not old at 28, so I'm looking for a pretty active experience while I'm there, I don't want to hike for a week or anything, but I don't want to spend my entire time shopping and eating.
I'm starting in Cali and need some advice and what might be good things to do or good destinations or places to visit. I know all the usuals like Grand Canyon, Vegas, San Fran, LA etc.. but are places like Santa Barbara, San Diego etc worth a visit? What is Yosemite like at that time of year? Lake Tahoe? What are the best things to do in LA? How long is to long in Vegas? My wife has been to LA before and didn't particularly like it but I know there must be loads to do... baseline bum I have seen you talk about California before and you seem to be a ing encyclopaedia. Any tips mate?
I want to make the pilgrimage to SA just for 1 or 2 nights to catch a Spurs game at home.. what else is there to do in or around SA? Is it best to fly there from Cali? We then want to go to New Orleans, Miami then Orlando etc and snake our way up the coast to New York for 10-12 days etc..
Basically, I guess I'm just asking how many nights I may need in various cities to get the most out of it, is there any places that I should definitely avoid, is there any hidden gems that I should definitely get to, what places you just maybe need a day in, what is it like driving through states etc or is it best to bus/train/fly (prefer not to fly everywhere)?
I want to catch NBA games as well along the way, obviously there is no schedule yet but the best place to get tickets at short notice would be where? I will book some, but I hope to buy some late in the piece so I can get some good prices
I know there are a lot of Spurs fans who have done the voyage many times RuffnReadyOzStyle alamo50 I would be interested in hearing your thoughts too along with everyone else.. I'm asking everyone I know because I'm not going to be able to get back to the USA for at least 4-5 years after this, so I wanna do it right..and I'm sure there is lots of knowledge here that can be shared.
Any help is much appreciated!
Last edited by MI21; 03-20-2014 at 08:08 PM.
I would recommend going to Disneyland while in California.
Santa Fe, Taos, and Los Alamos are all pretty neat places to visit in their own ways, but if you are going to rent a car, then by all means fly to San Antonio, takes too long to drive although the vistas along the way are pretty fantastic such as the Grand Canyon.
Best tip I can offer is don't go to SA
I don't know if there is a bad time to visit Yosemite, tbh. I've been during the summer, and it was ing amazing. One of my favorite things to do in California is take Pacific Coast Highway and cruise it. It takes you from southern California all the way into Washington, and the views are unbelievable.
As for Vegas, in my personal opinion I think 3 nights is the sweet spot. By the fourth day I was ready to get the out of there. I could only fathom so much booze, blow, and buffet.
The giant Redwood trees in Sequoia National Park in California is pretty fantastic too.
I agree about Yosemite National Park, pretty fantastic.
I would rather visit Lake Tahoe than Vegas, but that is just me, gambling bores me to tears.
If you smoke weed be sure to go to Colorado, maybe the Great Divide, also Estes Park is unique too.
Last edited by xmas1997; 03-20-2014 at 09:49 PM.
Winter isn't the best time for Yosemite since the best hiking in the high country and at the Glacier Point area will be off limits most likely due to the roads being snowed over. However, the Yosemite Valley is still an awesome place. A basic winter visit could be 2-3 nights, with a hike up to Nevada Fall on one of the days. Beautiful area and not too bad a ball-buster, being about 7 miles roundtrip with maybe 2000 feet of elevation gain. If the road to Mariposa Grove is open you might consider making it 3 nights, as the hike through Mariposa Grove to see the Giant Sequoias there is pretty amazing, and a very easy 7 mile roundtrip if the snow isn't too deep. Then again, you guys are in shape so if you have ever cross country skied, you could do a cross country ski trip from from Badger Pass to Glacier Point, spend the night at the Glacier Point Ski Hut, and then ski back to the Badger Pass ski area. I'd aim for no earlier than mid December, as in a low snow year the ski area might not be open until then (though in a historically low snow year like this one was for California, it might not open until mid January). The view at Glacier Point really is really incredible; I think it's the best view in the lower 48 of the US that can be driven to, including the Grand Canyon. Plus they have groomed ski tracks to it in the winter after the ski resort opens. You can also snow-shoe, but I find snow-shoeing to be very slow I don't know about making that distance in short winter days. Also get tire chains, which you will not be likely to need but will be required to carry to drive into the park. If you're comfortable with winter camping in snow I can offer some more suggestions.
But if the Giant Sequoias are really important to see, Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon National Park all over Mariposa Grove in Yosemite. The Giant Forest is unreal to drive through, as the Giant Sequoias are everywhere. Not sure about which roads are open, though I think the main one is open year-round.
In San Francisco make sure to drive up to Muir Woods, not too far across the Golden Gate. They have Coastal Redwoods which are cousins to the Giant Sequoias; the Coastal Redwoods are the tallest trees in the world, while the Giant Sequoias are the most massive. Dungenness Crab and cioppino are not to be missed in San Francisco if you love seafood. Unfortunately my favorite restaurant in SF closed a few years ago, so I don't have any great recommendations.
For San Diego, I thought the world famous zoo was crap. If you're into aviation they have the best air and space museum I have ever seen; even better than the national one at the Smithsonian. And you could visit the aircraft carrier and see why David Robinson got that exemption to not have to serve 5 years after graduating the Naval Academy.
For the LA area my favorite thing to do is to hike Mount San Jacinto near Palm Springs, about 100 miles East of LA. The peak is 10,800 feet or so while the Coac a Valley is only 500 feet elevation, so the views from the summit are airplane-like if you hike it on a clear day. If you do it before mid December you have a reasonable shot of it being snow-free. Big Bear Lake probably has the best skiiing in the LA area. Joshua Tree (also near Palm Springs) has great rock climbing, whether you're talking technical with belays or easy class 2/3 scrambling.
The two best views of downtown LA are at the top of the short hike from the Griffith Observatory and from the parking lot at Dodger Stadium. That view near Griffith Observatory is awesome because you're on the ridge separating the valley from Los Angeles, and in each direction you see huge cities.
I have never driven the Angeles Crest Highway in the winter, but if it's open, it's the best drive in the LA area. Mount Wilson has a great view down onto LA on a REALLY clear day, but those are very few and far between in my experience (no hike required; you can drive to it). Since the water will be way too cold to swim or surf in, the best beach is Zuma Beach near Malibu. It's got a nice view from on top of a rock that is an easy walk up. If you were going in summer I'd recommend Huntington Beach for its large waves, but you probably get better in Australia anyways.
Santa Barbara isn't my cup of tea, but the GF will probably love it if she's into wine.
For the best skiing you might take highway 395 up from LA to Mammoth. It's just outside Yosemite, but the road into the park will be closed and there is no getting across the Sierra Nevada in the winter by car; you have to drive around it. Or you could catch it coming in from Las Vegas. Make sure to take a drive through Death Valley on the way if so.
Don't know about Tahoe. Not a fan of Las Vegas. Spend no more than 2 nights in San Antonio. It's a cool place to live since it has dirt cheap cost of living, no state tax, lots of Mexican es and Mexican food, but no way does it deserve taking time away from areas like San Francisco, LA, Yosemite, San Diego, New Orleans, etc. Better place to live than to visit definitely.
Last edited by baseline bum; 03-20-2014 at 09:24 PM.
Don't drop the soap
Also, don't stay at the Ahwahnee in your Yosemite time. It's like a one-star hotel at a five-star price. Yosemite Lodge at the Falls isn't cheap either, but is a LOT cheaper than the Ahwahnee for a room. Make the short walk to Lower Yosemite Falls about 8-9AM to see the ice crashing down from the falls as the Sun first hits it if you're there in mid-late December or January.
The drive between LA and SA ing sucks. I-10 is particularly boring, especially through southern New Mexico. At least on I-40 you can hit the Grand Canyon and Meteor Crater, but it's still not worth doing instead of just taking the 3 hour flight.
so I take it you're really into hiking and stargazing?
It's pretty cool .
Forgot to mention one other thing. Mid-December until early February are ing allergy in San Antonio and Austin, because of the cedar pollen. Ask Ruffy how much he liked that .
You and your wife are going to get fat(ter?) tbh.
You ever hike out in Yosemite?
I like taking real long walks, always have, I like looking up at stars and , but I don't think I've ever gone beyond that. I like a bit of it but not enough to go full Rambo/Jeremiah Johnson. I guess we're all wired differently though.
For the OP, Vegas is alright, I always thought I'd hate it but actually like it out there. It's excessive and ridiculous, but even when going with friends, I like watching the bizarre nature of humanity. Not much into gambling or even drinking, but I like cities where you can walk around real late.
Forgot to mention Snow Creek and Upper Yosemite Falls are also two good winter day-hiking options, since the hikes are up a south-facing slope that gets a lot of sun. They're both closer to about 3000 feet of elevation gain though, so they're significantly harder than the Nevada Fall hike I was talking about earlier.
Yeah. Hiked up to the top of one of the mountains out there. It's an extinct volcano that's now a lake. I'm sure you know which one I'm talking about. Nearly my pants when some wiseguy bear decided to hang out in some meadow right off of our trail. The weekend we were out there a meteor shower occurred, it was a ing sight to see.
I concur, especially about spending no more than two days here.
The only extinct volcano I can think of that's within a dayhike of the road is Mount Gibbs, which has a small lake to its south at Mono Pass and then some larger lakes a mile or so farther south. There is no trail whatsoever to its summit though. But that lake is about 10,700 (camped there a couple of years ago) at the base of Gibbs, which is about 12,700 feet at the summit (great class 2 scramble up from the south if you choose your route carefully, but a nightmare to come down that face with all the small metamorphic rock that just slides out under your feet). Ireland Lake is up pretty high not too far from Mount Lyell and Mount Maclure, but I don't think those are volcanoes. Mount Dana might have been a volcano too (it's just north of Mount Gibbs), but the lake nearby is Ellery Lake that's right off the Dana Plateau about 10,000 feet (summit of Dana is 13,000). Not sure which mountain you're talking about.
Last edited by baseline bum; 03-20-2014 at 10:51 PM.
should participate in knockout
As soon as the Spurs game's over leave SA immediately. You might ask why right now but your question will be answered long before the game is over. There's so many wonderful and unique places in this country that you don't need to waste valuable time in that hole. See Austin instead. Miami is great (biased), but I wouldn't spend more than a couple days here if you wanna hit all EC spots. From Miami you should go to Charleston, SC--one of the most underrated cities in the country. Then go to DC to catch the monuments and holocaust museum (gotta do it once, I guess). If you have the time drive 40 miles to Baltimore (mah home city) and check out the Inner Harbor...beautiful, and it smells like one giant delicious crabcake. After that I'd go to New York and spend 2-3 days there. Love it or hate it NYC is one of the most amazing cities in the world. Skip Philly, nothing to see but ty drivers and a plethora of vagrants. Hit up Boston after that.
You forgot to recommend the WMD in Baltimore tbhAs soon as the Spurs game's over leave SA immediately. You might ask why right now but your question will be answered long before the game is over. There's so many wonderful and unique places in this country that you don't need to waste valuable time in that hole. See Austin instead. Miami is great (biased), but I wouldn't spend more than a couple days here if you wanna hit all EC spots. From Miami you should go to Charleston, SC--one of the most underrated cities in the country. Then go to DC to catch the monuments and holocaust museum (gotta do it once, I guess). If you have the time drive 40 miles to baltimore (mah home city
Don't sweat the black bears in Yosemite though. They're mostly harmless and no one has been killed by one since the 1880s. Now Yellowstone or Glacier NP is a whole different story with the grizzlies, as quite a few people have been killed by them the last 5 years or so due to beetle populations ravaging the whitebark pines, whose nuts form most of their diet.
Crabcakes and Heroin, that's what Maryland does!!!
Any good places to eat near Hamsterdam?
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