Expert: Steve Summers - 1/11/2010

Question
Dear Steve,
I am planning a trip with a group of friends to visit some national parks in California, we want go in July, we are six families  traveling in RV's Class C, we all travel with two children aged 5 and 7 years. We think to start in Los Angeles, from there going to the Death Valley National Park, cross over to Sequoia National Park, then to Kings Canyon and then go to Yosemite, afterwards we want to go to Tahoe south area, then crossing to Sonoma and Napa valley area, closing  in orange county theme parks;
for this we have some questions:
a#   It is very ambitious to do all this in two weeks?
b)   If you think we had to cut something what would you cut?
c)    Which is the best way to cross Death Valley to Sequoia?
d)    In which camp grounds parks do you think are the best to book #names?), we would like those which are closest to rivers or lakes.
e)    where do you recommend going in to the south Tahoe area?
f)    with children what do you  recommend in the area of Sonoma and Napa?
g)    your general opinion of this tour?

Thank you in advanced

Sincerely

Mauricio H.


Answer
Hi Mauricio,

-This seems to me to be too ambitious for this two weeks, giving the distances involved. Each of the legs will take a full day of travel (except maybe Sequoia to Kings Canyon). That's 7 days of just driving. Frankly, we need a week in Yosemite or Tahoe when we go.

-I would cut out Death Valley for sure, and maybe Napa/Sonoma. Sequoia/Kings Canyon can also be cut out if you want to see the big trees in Yosemite. There is a grove of them on the way into the park. LA-Yosemite-Tahoe will be quite enough for two weeks. We spent two weeks last summer going from OC to SF to Tahoe, spending a day in Morgan Hill (as a stopping point), 3 days in SF, then spending 9 days in Tahoe and one in Mammoth Lakes.

-One of the problems with going to Death Valley and then to Sequoia is that you have to cross the Sierra Nevada. Even though there are roads, it is still slow and time-consuming (as well as gas-consuming). Death Valley in July is also too hot for me, as the heat gets lethal. It is also not good for the RV. You either have to turn on the AC in the living quarters by turning on the generator, or you just sweat. The only real wasy to get from one to the other is to go south to 178, then cross the Sierras at their southern boundary. It's just not worth all that driving to me.

-If you are going to Yosemite, you will want to stay in Yosemite Valley. That means you will want upper pines, lower pines, or north pines. Which means you will want to be on the National Park Service web site right at the stroke of 7:00 AM PST on February 15. That's when you make reservations for June 15-July 15. Do some research at http://www.recreation.gov/ to familiarize yourself with the site, so you can make your reservations quickly the morning of the 15th. All 3 valley campgrounds are close to the Merced River.

In Lake Tahoe, the best place to stay is either at Camp Richardson RV Park, or Tahoe Valley RV Park. Another good park is South Lake Tahoe RV park, run by the city of Lake Tahoe. Camp Richardson and SLT RV Park are right by the water, with great location. Tahoe Valley RV park is a little south of the lake, but you can take the shuttle to the lake or ride your bikes.

If you want to visit San Francisco on your return trip, I found Marin RV park to be quite handy. Not really beautiful, but it's right on SF Bay, and a 10 minute walk to the Larkspur Ferry. You can take the ferry into San Francisco, and get around the city using public Transit: BART, streetcar, bus, and cable car. Another option is San Francisco RV Resort in Pacifica. You can take the bus to the BART station, which takes you into SF.

In OC, there aren't many places to stay with an RV. However, there are several VERY nice ones: Anaheim RV Resort, which is a short walk to Disneyland. You can even see the fireworks from your campsite. Doheny State Beach, which is on the beach at Dana Point (no hookups). Bolsa Chica State Beach has hookups, but they are probably already booked, since July is booked on Jan 2.

-South Lake Tahoe has a lot to offer: We just enjoy the cool, clear, air, and riding bikes or taking the shuttle into town. There is a gondola which takes you to the top of Heavenly Ski area, where you can see the entire lake. There is also a miniature golf course, as well as several bike paths. For fun, we like to go to Harrah's casino on the Nevada border for the buffet and a REALLY nice view.

-Sonoma/Napa is not really my area of expertise, as that is one area of California I have not explored yet. It's great wine country, but I don't know of anything that's really kid-friendly there.

(On the way from SF to Tahoe last year, we took a tour of the Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield. That was a blast!)

-Overall, the tour is great, but a little too ambitious in an RV. Keep in mind that you have to drive VERY slowly in an RV in the mountains, pulling over often to let people pass you. I would definitely pick the two or 3 best destinations, and visit those.

Have fun!