California
The state we spent the most time in was California. Partly because our daughter goes to school there, partly because we spent Thanksgiving with family there, but mostly because it’s a gorgeous place to explore.
Lassen Volcanic National Park
The volcanic activity at Lassen was interesting and fun to see, if smelly, but we really loved Manzanita Lake where we camped. It was a beautiful place to paddleboard.
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite has a grandeur I have felt in few other places in my life. The scale of the rock mountains is humbling and awe-inspiring.
Death Valley National Park
Death Valley was a fantastic surprise to us. It’s the “hottest, driest, and lowest” national park, but the fall was a great time of year to be there. Otherworldly salt flats, dramatic canyon hikes, sand dunes to explore, and a night sky that was so full of stars, way down to the horizon, that it seemed like a different sky altogether.
The Coast
We spent Thanksgiving in San Diego with family, then headed up the coast to San Francisco. Earlier in the year, we road-tripped between Seattle and San Francisco when we took Lila to school, so on this trip, we explored the southern stretch of coast between San Diego and San Francisco. We camped right at the beach several nights and in a truly stunning campground in Big Sur at the top of cliffs looking out over the ocean.
