Posts: 268
Threads: 13
Joined: Jan 2022
You adventurous people have any ideas? My brain is mush.
We have 3 days and 2 nights so going to DeVa wont be possible. And the snow its making my decisions hard.
I need something to do within 5h drive of the Bay Area.
Whats in Reno? Is there anything close to Reno? Black Rock desert looks too far away. And flat.
Lassen is snowed with roads closed.
I dont know what the snow/roads situation is in Desolation. Might be an option if roads are open.
Anything on the east of the sierra nevada will require too much driving.
Tioga pass is either closed or about to be.
SeKi is still a mess of road closures.
Big sur is also a mess of road closures.
Just came back from the sonoma coast.
Help me. I want to explore something but I keep thinking about DeVa.
Posts: 833
Threads: 29
Joined: Sep 2020
Yosemite valley? Late fall is pretty quiet there, but Thanksgiving may make it a zoo. I don't have a lot of experience on the west side of the Sierra but outside of the Bay Area.
Posts: 317
Threads: 7
Joined: Sep 2020
What's in Reno? Californians, ha!
Black Rock Desert isn't a great idea as we've been getting precipitation in Northern Nevada which makes the playa a mud pit. Usually this time of the year my options are: Death Valley, California coast (from Stinson to Ft. Bragg), or cold & dark BLM camping in Northern Nevada.
None of which sound like a fit for you .... how about San Francisco? I spent last Thanksgiving there visiting family and had a blast, ha!
Posts: 561
Threads: 23
Joined: Jul 2021
Anza Borrego is pretty cool. Lots of NA art to find.
Could loop in J-Tree backcountry or some of the Mojave.
Black Mountain Wilderness can fun for a couple days too.
Check out my travel blog: www.pocketsfullofdust.com
Posts: 480
Threads: 70
Joined: Sep 2020
Anza & Jtree are way more than 5 hours drive though. But I agree they are fun options right now,
How about Pinnacles NP ? definitely within the 5 hour radius, tons of fun hikes of all lengths & difficulties.
Posts: 218
Threads: 17
Joined: Sep 2020
Ditto on Pinnacles.
A little bit beyond 5 hours (6 hours from Hayward, which I selected arbitrarily) is Lava Beds National Monument, way up against the Oregon Border. Really quiet, quite beautiful in a way different from most of CA. Over 800 caves, about 2 dozen of which are developed with trails. Lots of stuff to see outside of the caves in the surrounding landscape.
The Scott Mountains (a subrange of the Trinity Alps) just west of I-5 from Weed are really cool too with lots of space and quiet trails.
Check me out on YouTube @ BetterGeology! https://www.youtube.com/c/BetterGeology
And my out-of-date website dvexplore.blogspot.com
Posts: 268
Threads: 13
Joined: Jan 2022
Yeah I suspect Yosemite valley is going to be a zoo.
Anza borrego is as far as DeVa. Black Mountain also.
Pinnacles we go all the time.
Lava beds is also too far ( was there in May, what a wonderful place).
I need to check the Trinities, they have been a mess of closures the prior years.
I think I need to move to Nevada....
Posts: 146
Threads: 32
Joined: Sep 2020
2023-11-21, 07:03 PM
(This post was last modified: 2023-11-21, 07:05 PM by Bluegreen kayak.)
Red Rock Canyon State Park, 20 miles north of the town of Mojave, has camping, trails, and beautiful rock scenery. Might be a little over your 5 hour limit.
Posts: 12
Threads: 1
Joined: Jun 2023
Sonora? Gold country. Some nice hikes, caves etc.
Posts: 26
Threads: 1
Joined: Sep 2020
Also from the Bay Area, we’re camping at Figueroa mountain this week. Very close to some good restaurants and wineries if you’re into that.
