Vacation / Travel

#753
#753
Grudenator said:
Got engaged in March and am scouting areas for our honeymoon next fall. What does everyone recommend as some top spots. Hawaii is definitely high on our list right now. No Mexico, been there and it was okay but not spectacular. Bahamas is nice but would rather go somewhere we both haven’t been. We’ve been to..
Bahamas
St Thomas
San Juan
Cancun
Turks and Caicos
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Canary islands or the Azorres.
 
#754
#754
Hey..VRex, Norcalvol or anybody else that knows the Yosemite area. I am trying to plan a late May or early June trip to Cali sometime in the future. Seeing as how getting tent camping spots in Yosemite is pure luck, and I don't like to gamble on trips I plan years ahead, where would the best chance to snag a good, reasonably priced spot somewhere within 40-50 miles on the east side for 2-3 days?
 
#755
#755
Ulysees E. McGill said:
Hey..VRex, Norcalvol or anybody else that knows the Yosemite area. I am trying to plan a late May or early June trip to Cali sometime in the future. Seeing as how getting tent camping spots in Yosemite is pure luck, and I don't like to gamble on trips I plan years ahead, where would the best chance to snag a good, reasonably priced spot somewhere within 40-50 miles on the east side for 2-3 days?
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I cannot help with the East side. I have only camped in the valley, on the west side and south. Decent number of campgrounds near the south entrance in Mariposa and Madera counties.

Summerdale is near the South entrance between Fish Camp and Wawona. Soquel is farther south and more isolated, very nice spot. It is close to Bass Lake which is a nice spot to swim when hot. A lot of campgrounds in the Sierra National Forest, but snow could be a factor.

Sorry I can't help you with the east side.
 
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#756
#756
NorCalVol67 said:
I cannot help with the East side. I have only camped in the valley, on the west side and south. Decent number of campgrounds near the south entrance in Mariposa and Madera counties.

Summerdale is near the South entrance between Fish Camp and Wawona. Soquel is farther south and more isolated, very nice spot. It is close to Bass Lake which is a nice spot to swim when hot. A lot of campgrounds in the Sierra National Forest, but snow could be a factor.

Sorry I can't help you with the east side.
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Thanks NC..I brain farted, I actually meant west side..I'm getting old 🤪
 
#758
#758
NorCalVol67 said:
I cannot help with the East side. I have only camped in the valley, on the west side and south. Decent number of campgrounds near the south entrance in Mariposa and Madera counties.

Summerdale is near the South entrance between Fish Camp and Wawona. Soquel is farther south and more isolated, very nice spot. It is close to Bass Lake which is a nice spot to swim when hot. A lot of campgrounds in the Sierra National Forest, but snow could be a factor.

Sorry I can't help you with the east side.
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I will look those up. I don't want to take a chance on dealing with snow that is for sure. What I'm pre-planning/pricing is 9-10 day loop from Vegas. I can fly to Vegas cheap out of Knoxville. I want to hit DVNP YNP S/KCNPs and JTNP on this trip.
 
#761
#761
NorCalVol67 said:
I know hiking can be tough on you, but if you have not done Taft point and the Fissures on Glacier Point Road, try that one. The views are amazing and the trail is pretty flat.
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Thanks for the great tip. It looks like the second week of June is a reasonably good bet for Tioga pass and Glacier point to be open by according the chart I saw on the Yosemite website.

PS..I actually have never been to Cali yet. That is the reason I'm going to pack as much bucket list into one trip as I can.
 
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#762
#762
Ulysees E. McGill said:
Hey..VRex, Norcalvol or anybody else that knows the Yosemite area. I am trying to plan a late May or early June trip to Cali sometime in the future. Seeing as how getting tent camping spots in Yosemite is pure luck, and I don't like to gamble on trips I plan years ahead, where would the best chance to snag a good, reasonably priced spot somewhere within 40-50 miles on the east side for 2-3 days?
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The only time I visited Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks was way back in 1976, when the earth was still young. I actually would suggest trying to put together an itinerary that would feature the quiet, east side of the Sierra almost as much as the more obvious destinations in Yosemite and Sequoia.

U.S. 395 is your main arterial highway on the east side, and you can access the Whitney Portal Road from, I believe, Lone Pine. As you are aware, Mt. Whitney is the highest peak in the lower 48. It will strain the neck to see just how tall and craggy it is. The Alabama Hills, a distinctive location at which many westerns were filmed, is also located in this general area. The oldest bristlecone pines on earth, including the Methuselah Tree (ca. 4,800 years old), are located high in the White Mountains, which is a short day trip from U.S. 395. The bristlecone pines also provide an amazing visual contrast to the immense, stately giant sequoias found on the west slope of the Sierra.

The cathedral-like ambiance of sequoia groves, as well as the enormity and antiquity of those giants, has an amazing ability to silently put the significance of human life into perspective. Obviously, Glacier Point and Yosemite Valley are must-see destinations in Muir’s favorite place on earth.

And, yes, you can access the Tioga Pass Road from U.S. 395, near Lee Vining. It is important to note that “There is nearly a 200 mile stretch of mountains in the southern portion of the Sierra Nevada Mountains where no east-west roads cross the range between Highway 120 Tioga Pass at Yosemite National Park and Highway 178 Walker Pass by Lake Isabella northeast of Bakersfield where the highway crosses near the southern end of the range” (Carson Pass Highway 88 over the Sierra Nevada to Monterey - Loyalty Traveler).
 
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#763
#763
Volosaurus rex said:
The only time I visited Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks was way back in 1976, when the earth was still young. I actually would suggest trying to put together an itinerary that would feature the quiet, east side of the Sierra almost as much as the more obvious destinations in Yosemite and Sequoia.

U.S. 395 is your main arterial highway on the east side, and you can access the Whitney Portal Road from, I believe, Lone Pine. As you are aware, Mt. Whitney is the highest peak in the lower 48. It will strain the neck to see just how tall and craggy it is. The Alabama Hills, a distinctive location at which many westerns were filmed, is also located in this general area. The oldest bristlecone pines on earth, including the Methuselah Tree (ca. 4,800 years old), are located high in the White Mountains, which is a short day trip from U.S. 395. The bristlecone pines also provide an amazing visual contrast to the immense, stately giant sequoias found on the west slope of the Sierra.

The cathedral-like ambiance of sequoia groves, as well as the enormity and antiquity of those giants, has an amazing ability to silently put the significance of human life into perspective. Obviously, Glacier Point and Yosemite Valley are must-see destinations in Muir’s favorite place on earth.
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Thanks Rex..I want to spend at least 2-3 days exploring the eastern slope. I will probably go straight out from Vegas to JTNP and then LA to visit my brother for a day, then head up to S/KCNPs for a couple of days, and then YNP for 3 days, and then over Tioga Pass and down by all those places you mentioned, then hit the DVNP highlights and back to Vegas...I may have to stretch it out to 12 days 😁
 
#764
#764
Ulysees E. McGill said:
Thanks for the great tip. It looks like the second week of June is a reasonably good bet for Tioga pass and Glacier point to be open by according the chart I saw on the Yosemite website.

PS..I actually have never been to Cali yet. That is the reason I'm going to pack as much bucket list into one trip as I cab
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Awesome, it is a great state. But I am a biased.
 
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#765
#765
Ulysees E. McGill said:
Thanks Rex..I want to spend at least 2-3 days exploring the eastern slope. I will probably go straight out from Vegas to JTNP and then LA to visit my brother for a day, then head up to S/KCNPs for a couple of days, and then YNP for 3 days, and then over Tioga Pass and down by all those places you mentioned, then hit the DVNP highlights and back to Vegas...I may have to stretch it out to 12 days 😁
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Yes, lengthier trips are always better. You barely begin to truly decompress after only one week. Those of us who “suffer” from the spiritual form of Rocky Mountain fever know that it is incurable, but it responds well to prolonged, regular exposure to the high country.

Incidentally, you know how much of a fall foliage aficionado I am. The eastern Sierra put on a fine show in their own right, and the odds of encountering the kind of iffy weather in late September or early October there are probably lower than in the Northern Rockies.
 
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#766
#766
Volosaurus rex said:
Yes, lengthier trips are always better. You barely begin to truly decompress after only one week. Those of us who “suffer” from the spiritual form of Rocky Mountain fever know that it is incurable, but it responds well to prolonged, regular exposure to the high country.

Incidentally, you know how much of a fall foliage aficionado I am. The eastern Sierra put on a fine show in their own right, and the odds of encountering the kind of iffy weather in late September or early October there are probably lower than in the Northern Rockies.
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I agree it would be beautiful in the fall, but I really want to see the Yosemite waterfalls at full flow, especially Yosemite falls, it is pretty much always dried up in the fall. I will probably do Yosemite again in a northern California/southern Oregon loop someday. I would try to do that one in the fall for sure.
 
#767
#767
Ulysees E. McGill said:
I agree it would be beautiful in the fall, but I really want to see the Yosemite waterfalls at full flow, especially Yosemite falls, it is pretty much always dried up in the fall. I will probably do Yosemite again in a northern California/southern Oregon loop someday. I would try to do that one in the fall for sure.
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Speaking of Oregon, have you ever been to the Wallowa Mountains? Located along the Idaho border, they were the old stomping grounds of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce. See 7 Wonders of Oregon: The Wallowas | Oregon's Beautiful Secret.
 
#768
#768
Volosaurus rex said:
Speaking of Oregon, have you ever been to the Wallowa Mountains? Located along the Idaho border, they were the old stomping grounds of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce. See 7 Wonders of Oregon: The Wallowas | Oregon's Beautiful Secret.
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Not yet...I hope to someday. Nevada, California, Wahington and Oregon on the west coast, and Massachusetts,New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine on the east coast are the last if the contiguous states I have not visited yet. I really hope to get to travel to, and explore these places before I leave this earth.
 
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#769
#769
golfballs said:
Ive never been anywhere in the northwest but have been meaning to soon. Need to visit Seattle before it turns into Detroit
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Loved Seattle. Went there and Vancouver BC 2 years ago, Vancouver is great as well.


Also just got back from Portland last week. Explored the city for a few days then drove the coast from Tillamook to Astoria one day, drove up to Mount St Helens and hiked around another, and drove up the Columbia River Gorge to Mount Hood and Timberline Lodge on another. Beautiful country.
 
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#770
#770
Ulysees E. McGill said:
Hey..VRex, Norcalvol or anybody else that knows the Yosemite area. I am trying to plan a late May or early June trip to Cali sometime in the future. Seeing as how getting tent camping spots in Yosemite is pure luck, and I don't like to gamble on trips I plan years ahead, where would the best chance to snag a good, reasonably priced spot somewhere within 40-50 miles on the east side for 2-3 days?
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Tuolumne meadows looked pretty nice on my last trip through.
 
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#771
#771
UT_Dutchman said:
Tuolumne meadows looked pretty nice on my last trip through.
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Thanks for the reply. I would love to camp there, but at the time of the year we are wanting to go, the TM campground could very well not even be open yet. I think nearly all the Tioga pass rd campgrounds are at 7-8000 feet. They could be available, but I want to make sure and have a spot reserved long before I get there. We will have to find a campground outside, but close by Yosemite to base at.
 
#772
#772
xJesusx56 said:
Loved Seattle. Went there and Vancouver BC 2 years ago, Vancouver is great as well.


Also just got back from Portland last week. Explored the city for a few days then drove the coast from Tillamook to Astoria one day, drove up to Mount St Helens and hiked around another, and drove up the Columbia River Gorge to Mount Hood and Timberline Lodge on another. Beautiful country.
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Wow...that sounds like you had an amazing trip.
 
#773
#773
Ulysees E. McGill said:
Thanks for the reply. I would love to camp there, but at the time of the year we are wanting to go, the TM campground could very well not even be open yet. I think nearly all the Tioga pass rd campgrounds are at 7-8000 feet. They could be available, but I want to make sure and have a spot reserved long before I get there. We will have to find a campground outside, but close by Yosemite to base at.
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The Summerdale, Dry Gulch, and Indian Flat campgrounds look like good options. The first is near the south entrance and the last 2 are near the West entrance. I wish we had spent more time in Yosemite the last time we were there.
 
#774
#774
Ulysees E. McGill said:
Thanks for the reply. I would love to camp there, but at the time of the year we are wanting to go, the TM campground could very well not even be open yet. I think nearly all the Tioga pass rd campgrounds are at 7-8000 feet. They could be available, but I want to make sure and have a spot reserved long before I get there. We will have to find a campground outside, but close by Yosemite to base at.
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If you're anywhere near Tioga Pass, consider the 20 Lakes Loop Trail starting at Saddlebag Lake. The Trailhead is above 10,000 feet. This is one of our favorite hikes in the Sierras. It's less than a 5 mile hike and fairly flat. The scenery is absolutely fantastic. If you've been infected by the fly fishing bug, be sure to take a rod with you. If the weather is warm enough, there is a campground at Saddlebag Lake.
 
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