California road trip May 19th-26th: need suggestions

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cv92
cv92

Hello!

My girlfriend and I are planning to travel in California from May 19th to the 26th. We arrive in CA earlier and will be in San Jose till 18th night for work and then set out from San Jose 19th morning. We fly out from San Francisco on 26th late night(~11PM). We plan to rent a car from SF on the 18th evening so we can return it before we fly out on the 26th.

We are mostly interested in seeing national parks and being out in nature, are fit and like to hike but would also like a leisurely day in between. I particularly enjoy the mountains and the gf is interested in the Sequoia and redwood trees. Gf is an artist, so any suggestions along that lines would be nice. We don't plan to spend any time exploring the cities, maybe sometime in SF before we fly out.

Here is what we have planned so far:

May 19th
Start early to drive towards Big Sur, stop in Monterey to try to see tide pools at Point Pinos. Check out some state parks, currently we are thinking of Garrapata SP and Julia Pfeiffer SP.
For the night we'll stay in the Big Sur area, not yet decided where. Open to suggestions for places to visit and stay. We are open to camping but will not be able to carry camping gear with us on the flight. Is it cheaper to rent it or just buy camping stuff from Walmart and dump it before we leave?

May 20th
Spend more time in Big Sur, maybe go to a beach (any recommendations?)
Eventually we plan to drive towards Sequoia and ready Lindsay by evening where we have an Airbnb booked for the night.

May 21st
Head to Sequoia early morning. Go on some hikes and then drive to Grant Grove. Maybe go to Cedar Grove if time permits and the road is open.
Not sure where to stay for the night. Looked at lodging in the park (John Muir Lodge) where only the basic cabins are in our targeted price range and they have mixed reviews. Any opinions on this? We are also open to camping but not sure about the gear and if spots are still available. Are the campground reservations here as competitive as Yosemite? If nothing works out then we plan to drive towards Yosemite and stay in a budget hotel for the night.

May 22nd
Get to Yosemite Valley as early as possible. Stay in the valley for the night and go on hikes. Staying in the housekeeping camp for the night.

May 23rd
Head towards Lake Tahoe, hopefully through Highway 120 if the road is open and eventually get to Lee Vining or somewhere closer to Tahoe by the end of the day. Will probably spend the night in some motel.

May 24th
Get to Tahoe and stop at some hot springs one the way (any recommendations?). Spend the night in Tahoe. Accommodations not booked, any suggestions?

May 25th
Drive to Lassen NP and spend the day there if the road through the park is open. Suggestions for places to stay around here? Are the cabins in the park in good condition?
Not sure what to do if the road is closed. Would a trip to say Humboldt redwood park be feasible? or Mount Shasta? Any other suggestions?

May 26th
Leave from Lassen NP or wherever and try to get to SF by afternoon to return the car. Fly out at night.

Sorry for the long post. But any suggestions are welcome. Of all the places above everything before Lake Tahoe is pretty much fixed but we are open to skipping Tahoe and Lassen if there are better suggestions. Any help about the camping stuff would be great. Any other advice (does the plan seem too hectic?) is appreciated.

Thanks!

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Jingili
Jingili

Here is where it seems you're spending each night:

19-May - Big Sur area
20-May - Lindsay (Airbnb booked)
21-May - Sequoia NP or Oakhurst area
22-May - Yosemite NP (Housekeeping Camp)
23-May - Lee Vining or Bridgeport (via Tioga Pass)
24-May - Tahoe City area
25-May - Redding or Red Bluff (after Lassen Volcanic NP)
26-May - In transit from SFO

You're attempting to see five major sites in seven days, and personally I think it's too much: Big Sur, Sequoia NP, Yosemite NP, Lake Tahoe, and Lassen Volcanic NP. I think you should cut it to three, with two nights in each - probably Sequoia, Yosemite, and Lake Tahoe.

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hermosajoe
hermosajoe

Boy that's a lot of moving around.
Why Lindsay, it's in the valley by Visalia, yuk! Can you cancel, unless your a farmer run away.
Consider cutting out Sequoia and see the big trees in Yosemite or head up the road to Calaveras Big Trees State Park.

Your right on the edge of Tioga and Lassen opening the roads, not sure I would count on it. I would plan on them being closed it's too early.
Maybe:

2 nights - Monterey/Carmel or Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park if you can get a camp site.
2 N - Yosemite Valley, look today to reserve a lodge or camp site, it's very late. Could try El Portal or http://yosemitebug.com/
1 N - Calaveras SP, if you can't get a camp site get a motel in Angels Camp.
2 N - South Lake Tahoe, it has cheap lodging
After breakfast or lunch drive back to SF, could stop by a winery on the way back!

Gives you much more time to play and hike, see the area's. Don't try and rush it. It's all beautiful country with lots to do.

Not sure you guys have time for camping, 7 days is not much and the whole area is a busy place. It will be very hard to get a camp spot at that time of year and your late.

Not sure who you fly in on but if the airline allows a couple check in bags you could bring a large cooler and stuff it with camp gear, bags, sleep pads, tent.

Buying for 2 would cost around $300us at a big Box store.
You could try REI for rentals but they aren't cheap and don't think they rent sleeping bags, that is if you could get a camp site.
All the areas along your route you plan to stay should have reservations, IMO.

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cv92
cv92
In response to #1

Thank you very much for your suggestions!
Both of us are keen on Big Sur so we will probably drop all plans for Lassen NP and spend another day at Yosemite.
Any recommendations for hikes or other stuff to do in Tahoe?

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cv92
cv92
In response to #2

Thank you very much for your suggestions hermosajoe

Why Lindsay, it's in the valley by Visalia, yuk! Can you cancel, unless your a farmer run away.
My gf is from Iowa so she is basically a farmer haha(she's not). We can cancel, just found that to be the most convenient in terms of price and proximity to Sequoia. Do have any suggestions for cities to spend the night in? We plan to leave late evening from Big Sur so we just need a place for the night.

Consider cutting out Sequoia and see the big trees in Yosemite or head up the road to Calaveras Big Trees State Park.
Thanks for the heads up on Calaveras Big Trees SP, will go unless Tioga road opens early. Unfortunately the groves in Yosemite are closed for restoration until mid June. Do you still suggest skipping Sequoia?

2 N - Yosemite Valley, look today to reserve a lodge or camp site, it's very late. Could try El Portal or http://yosemitebug.com/
Thanks for this, considering this to add another day in Yosemite.

Not sure you guys have time for camping, 7 days is not much and the whole area is a busy place. It will be very hard to get a camp spot at that time of year and your late.

Not sure who you fly in on but if the airline allows a couple check in bags you could bring a large cooler and stuff it with camp gear, bags, sleep pads, tent.
We fly in on AA, can get checked bags for a fee but does not seem worth it to pay for it both ways. Now plan to camp only if we can find a friend in the SF region we can borrow camping gear from.

All the areas along your route you plan to stay should have reservations, IMO.
Sorry, do you mean motels are hard to get around the national park areas? Will book if that is the case. Recommendations for cities/towns on the way offering diverse food options would be very helpful.

Thanks again!!

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hermosajoe
hermosajoe

Based on all your must dos, especially the big tree's maybe you should go to Sequoia NP, it's kind of a pain to get to and out of the way, but it does have huge tree's.

If you can cancel Lindsay, good for you and get a place in Three Rivers, it's more in the mountains and has some atmosphere. Much more scenic as well.
Next morning drive through Sequoia on Hwy.198 to your lodge. It's a very slow curvy road, just take your time
It is an awesome park, also the drive down Hwy.180, if open, is fantastic. Ask at the visitor center or rangers for your hikes that fit you ability and desire, they'll have maps as well.

Don't think you'll know if Tioga Pass is open until you arrive so probably keep the last few days open.

For lodging the coast, Monterey/Carmel/Big Sur - Three Rivers- Sequoia NP and Yosemite you WILL WANT reservations, always try for in the park, the closer the better. SL Tahoe you should be fine, same with Lee Vining if Tioga Pass is open

1 N - Coast
1 N - Lindsay or 3 Rivers
1 N - John Muir Lodge
2 N - Yosemite
2 N - Open
If by chance Tioga pass opens Lee Vining, the first town on the other dies is pretty cool. http://www.leevining.com/

The drive on top of Yosemite, Hwy.120, is very scenic so take your time.
If Lee Vining is of no interest just head to South Lake Tahoe, awesome drive.

But 1 Night in Lee Vining, check out Mono Lake then the next morning drive to Tahoe for a night via Bodie Ghost would be a nice ending to your trip. Make sure the road to Bodie is open if interested.

If Tioga is closed just go to South Lake Tahoe via Hwy. 88, nice drive. Tahoe is beautiful but can get crowded, in mid May you should be fine. Drive the loop around the lake, very nice.

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nutraxfornerves
nutraxfornerves

Tioga Pass plowing update From the Park Service. Not much info now. A wet storm came through and washed out a lot of snow, followed by so late season cold storms that dumped snow. So, who knows? My best guess is a relatively early opening, by Mid May.

Nutrax
The plural of anecdote is not data.
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Jingili
Jingili

If Tioga is closed just go to South Lake Tahoe via Hwy. 88, nice drive. Tahoe is beautiful but can get crowded, in mid May you should be fine. Drive the loop around the lake, very nice.

If Tioga Pass is closed I would drop Lake Tahoe altogether (along with Lassen Volcanic NP), and split your time between the Big Sur coast, some wineries, Sequoia NP, and mostly Yosemite NP (the waterfalls in May were outstanding).

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