Best places to visit in Northern California in summer and early fall
Over the last few weeks, I’ve camped or visited with several fellow travelers who rave about the current conditions for traveling throughout northern California. Late-season snows, abundant rains and recent warm weather have made the state verdant, wrapped in bright green hues. Streams run strong, waterfalls tumble, and wildflowers pop out along many trails, all portending wonderful travel outings in the coming months.
From those friendly discussions, here are recommendations from my fellow traveling pals regarding the best destinations and times to visit some of these sparkling targets. With these suggestions, we’re trying to factor in the time of year, predicted temperatures, seasonal traveler impacts, and sightseeing appeal. Here are suggestions, month by month.
May: Target the mid-Sierra, where snows have receded, and crowds have not yet reached summer levels. Check out gems like Twain Harte and Pinecrest Lake up Highway 108, Murphys and Calaveras Big Trees State Park on Highway 4, or the Crystal Basin area in the El Dorado National Forest, off Highway 50.
Pinecrest Lake has long been a favorite, offering a 3-mile hike around the lake and a side trail up Boulder Creek Canyon, where you’ll find a brisk stream and select waterfalls just off the lake. Murphys is a favorite historic Gold Rush town, and just above Calaveras, Big Trees would likely be a national park in any other state, with huge sequoias towering over 250 feet.
To find the Crystal Basin area, take Highway 50 East, turn left on Ice House Road, pass Ice House Lake to Union Valley Reservoir, and find a variety of lovely campgrounds with fishing, hiking, and camping galore. If you are camping in the area, take your food in, for the Ice House Resort offers limited options for food or lodging in this wild country.
June: We recommend visiting Yosemite in early to mid-June, before the summer crowds get almost overwhelming. We also highly suggest visiting the Hetch Hetchy Valley and the Tuolumne Meadows portion of the park. Hetch Hetchy is the inspiring valley that John Muir fought so hard to preserve, losing that battle when O’Shaughnessy Dam was constructed in the late 1920s to impound a water supply for the city of San Francisco.
Hetch Hetchy remains a stunning valley despite the reservoir, and a hike up the trail on the north side of the lake offers amazing vistas and waterfalls like Tueeulala and Wapama Falls, almost the rival of Yosemite Falls. Best of all, Hetch Hetchy, about 20 miles off the main road, gets only about 5% of Yosemite’s visitors, so you will often have that lakeside hike to yourselves.
July: Target Lassen National Park, featuring Lassen Peak, which blew its top in a volcanic eruption in 1915 and 1916, flattening trees for miles to the northeast and throwing huge boulders three miles. Visit the Bumpass Hell area, a hissing, steaming hydrothermal area featuring fumaroles and bubbling mud pots to almost rival Yellowstone. Reserve a campsite in scenic Manzanita Lake Campground on the park’s northwest corner and consider the hike to the top of Lassen volcanic peak. Best, the park is only 200 miles from San Joaquin County.
August: Redwoods State and National Parks are a fantastic destination, just six hours north up the coast, remaining relatively calm and enticing even during the hottest month of the year. Just off Highway 101, state parks and the national park preserve the remnants of the once-two million acres of old-growth redwood; today, only 5 percent remain. Tour the Avenue of the Giants, an awe-inspiring 30-mile tour of the Coast Redwood forest, the tallest trees in the world. Stop at the Thomas Kuchel Visitor Center south of Orick for the history of the preserves and insight into the majestic flora and fauna of the area. Nearby are Ferndale, Scotia, and the Samoa Cookhouse (stop for lunch at this former cookhouse of the Hammond Lumber Mill).
September: For an early fall visit, save the closer California north coast, from Bodega Bay to Mendocino. From Stockton, the coast is easy to reach (about three hours) and offers some of the most stunning waterfront vistas in the United States!
This piece of California offers impressive vistas, spectacular food, great camping options, and wonderful places to stop for the night. Bodega (the town is different from Bodega Bay) is just off Hwy 116 and offers the old school where the 1963 Hitchcock classic 'The Birds' was filmed.
Six miles north is Bodega Bay, home to various fine restaurants and several nearby beautiful campgrounds. Stop at the Tides Restaurant for great food, and check out many state parks for tenting or trailering options. A favorite is Wright's Beach State Park, right on the ocean!
Just north, cross the languid Russian River and the cute town of Jenner, where the Russian spills into the Pacific. Stop at River's End Restaurant for great food and stunning views. Beyond Jenner, find Ft. Ross, the old Russian outpost from the early 1800s, then pass through a host of cute coastal towns like Sea Ranch (stop at the Sea Ranch Lodge for breakfast or lunch), Gualala, and Point Arena (check out the Point Arena lighthouse, for riveting coastal views). Further north, one passes through Manchester, Elk, and Albion to reach Mendocino. Mendocino is the quintessential California seaside town, with trendy shops and several restaurants. This is a definite trip worthy of two or three days.
Contact Tim, tviall@msn.com. Happy travels in Nor Cal!
Information
California road trips, visitcalifornia.com; California’s North Coast, northcoastca.com; Crystal Basin and El Dorado National Forest, fs.usda.gov/Eldorado; Lassen Volcanic National Park, NPS/gov/lavo; Pinecrest Lake area, and Yosemite, visittuolumne.com.
This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Best places to visit in Northern California in summer and early fall
