Montecito Sequoia Lodge
The end of Day 6 and beginning of Day 7 mark the biggest mistake I made on this trip. Weeks before leaving home, I decided ...
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Montana 1 Scenic Drive: Anaconda, Big Smokestack
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Finlen Hotel & Butte’s Neon at Night
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Sunset in Butte, Montana – at the Big M
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Lima, Montana: Old Buildings & Tesla Chargers
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Pleasant Valley Creek Bridge: Old US 91 in Idaho
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Exploring Downtown Idaho Falls & The Falls
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Virginia, Idaho’s Beautiful Farmland
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LL Bean, Freeport, Maine
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Bangor, Maine
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Return to the USA: The North End of Interstate 95
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Woodstock, New Brunswick
California Guide
The Golden State's limitless supply of vacation fun
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7Feb
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18Apr
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Santa Monica, California
Once back in Los Angeles, I still had a few hours before my flight departed. So, I grabbed dinner at ... -
Old Ridge Route over Tejon Pass into Los Angeles
Between Yosemite and Los Angeles, there’s not a lot of excitement. Hwy. 41 takes you to Hwy. 99, which eventually ... -
Yosemite’s Bridal Veil Fall
After returning my rental bike and getting back in the car, it was too late to do much more exploring. ... -
Yosemite 1-Hour Bicycle Tour
After dealing with the buses, RV’s, and campers that clog Yosemite Valley’s main arteries, I gave up on the car, ... -
The Drive Into Yosemite Valley
Once you reach the end of Tioga Pass Road, hang a left, and head towards the heart of the park, ... -
Tioga Pass Road, Yosemite National Park
The trip over Tioga Pass Road is a lot less nerve-racking at night. During the previous night’s journey through this ... -
Bodie, CA – Ghost Town
Bodie may very well be the best historic example of a wild west gold mining boomtown, and the very best ... -
Mono Lake, California
Day 6 probably should have been devoted completely to Yosemite, but I didn’t have that kind of time, and there ... -
Tioga Pass Road at Sunset
Here are more great pictures of the moon, lining up perfectly with the road. At this point, highway 120 (known ... -
Driving from San Francisco to Yosemite
From the Golden Gate Bridge, you can choose either to continue northward to the Richmond- San Rafael Bridge (I-580), or ... -
Walking Across the Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge looks good, from whatever angle you view it. You’ll find this viewpoint at the side of ... -
Lombard Street, San Francisco
You’ll pass Lombard Street, the “Crookedest Street In The World”, on the Powell-Hyde Cable Car route, but it’s certainly worth ... -
San Francisco Powell & Hyde Cable Cars, Fisherman’s Wharf
After arriving in San Francisco, I found my hotel (for once, I actually made reservations) and settled in for a ... -
Santa Cruz, California: Pier & Boardwalk
From Monterey, Hwy. 1 carries you quickly northward, as a four lane (or greater) freeway over much of the route. ... -
Pacific Coast Highway: A Side Trip Up Nacimiento Road
Between Cambria and Monterey, there’s only one road that cuts across the Big Sur mountains, over to US 101: Nacimiento ... -
Big Sur, along the Pacific Coast Highway
Continue north from Morro Bay, and all of a sudden, you’re in the mountains of Big Sur. The first pull-off ... -
San Luis Obispo’s Bubble Gum Alley, and the PCH Northbound
San Luis Obispo provides a great opportunity to get out of the car, and stretch your legs for a bit. ... -
El Camino Real to Pismo Beach
You’ll see signs marking the Historic El Camino Real route as you travel up the California coast. Most are hard ... -
LA96C – Former Cold War Nike Missile Site, on Mulholland Drive
Mulholland Drive takes you out of Hollywood and along the crest of the Santa Monica Mountains. But if you’re expecting ... -
Los Angeles: Hollywood Hills, and the Hollywood Sign
There’s no place else in the world quite like LA. It has its own charm, its own style. But most ... -
Joshua Tree National Park
With the sun quickly setting, my time at Joshua Tree was limited. I thought Keys View sounded promising for a ... -
Roy’s Motel & Cafe, on Old Route 66
Just a couple of miles past the Amboy Crater, you’ll come across a true relic of Route 66’s heyday: Roy’s ... -
Pisgah and Amboy Craters, on Old Route 66
After you leave Barstow on Interstate 40, you have several opportunities to exit the freeway, and onto a very old ... -
Fossil Falls, along US 395
Here’s an interesting natural attraction that you could easily miss. Fossil Falls is just a short drive off the highway, ... -
Lone Pine, California: Sierra Nevada & Alabama Hills
The drive from Death Valley to Lone Pine takes you from the lowest point in the western hemisphere to the ... -
Father Crowley Point, Death Valley
After you’ve cut across the Panamint valley (a smaller, but similarly desolate version of Death Valley), you will once again ... -
Aguereberry Point, overlooking Death Valley
Continue driving on Aguereberrry Point Road, and you’ll pass from a wide open high-desert landscape to a narrow canyon. Tight ... -
Aguereberry Mining Camp & Eureka Mine
As you head west on highway 190, you’ll climb your way out of Death Valley. Just eight miles after leaving ... -
Ubehebe & Little Hebe Craters
The other big attraction at the northern end of Death Valley is the giant Ubehebe Crater. This huge, steep sided ... -
Scotty’s Castle, Death Valley
Continue north through the park and you’ll pass the ranger station at Grapevine, followed by the intersection with Rte. 267, ... -
Titus Canyon, Death Valley
Devote your second full day in Death Valley to the northern half of the park. If you’re driving in from ... -
Stovepipe Wells Sand Dunes, Death Valley
I grew tired of walking up and down the sides of sand dunes, and eventually decided that the highest dune ... -
West Side Road, Death Valley
After leaving Badwater, I had to make a choice: either head south, connect with the West Side Road, and circle ... -
Badwater Basin – Death Valley National Park
Slow down as you approach the deepest place in the western hemisphere: Badwater. Here, the salt flats of Death Valley ... -
Natural Bridge Trail, Death Valley
If you’re in the mood for another short hike, you can take a dirt road up to the trailhead for ... -
Devil’s Golf Course, Death Valley
Next on your trip southward toward Badwater is what must be one of the most unusual scenes in Death Valley. ... -
Golden Canyon Trail – Death Valley National Park
As you head south, the next point of interest is Golden Canyon. You’ll find a fairly easy trail which will ... -
Harmony Borax Works Interpretive Site
As you continue to head south, the next attraction you’ll pass is the Harmony Borax Works. The park has arranged ... -
Keane Wonder Mine – Death Valley National Park
After crossing Daylight Pass, you’ll quickly drop down into Death Valley. When you reach the information kiosk, pay your admission ... -
Shasta Lake, Dunsmuir, & Mount Shasta
After leaving Lassen Volcanic Park, and finally making my way to Interstate 5, my very long driving day was at ... -
Lassen Volcanic National Park
I only made it a few miles into Lassen Volcanic National Park, but it was enough to convince me that ... -
North Through California – Route 89
All along, I knew that Day 6 would be one of the least exciting days of my trip. It was ... -
72 Mile Loop Around Lake Tahoe
It’s no wonder that Lake Tahoe is a vacation paradise. Everything you could want is here: mountains, snow, skiing, sparkling ... -
Sacramento – California State Capitol
If you’re interested in checking off one more state capitol building from your list, here’s some good news. On the ... -
The Presidio, Fort Point, and a Walk Across the Golden Gate Bridge
There are plenty of great places to view the Golden Gate Bridge, and if you’re determined to see the iconic ... -
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
After having lunch in the Haight district, it wasn’t far to drive over to Golden Gate Park, another attraction on ... -
Twin Peaks, Sutro Tower, & Haight/Ashbury
San Francisco is a city built on hills, and one of the most prominent hills in the city is Twin ... -
Coit Tower & Crooked Lombard Street
I’ve visited San Francisco twice before in my life. The first time I was a kid, and my family took ... -
The Best Place To View The Golden Gate Bridge
I had planned my arrival in San Francisco just right. The sun had just set, the sky was still slightly ... -
Point Reyes National Seashore & Tomales Bay
South of Bodega, Highway 1 takes you inland for a little while, before returning to the coast along Tomales Bay, ... -
Fort Ross State Park, California Coast
There are several good parks and noteworthy towns worth visiting along the Pacific Coast, north of San Francisco. Since I ... -
Point Arena Lighthouse
It had been a full 24 hours since I had seen a lighthouse. That’s a long time, for anyone who’s ... -
Mendocino, California
Tell people you’re traveling the northern coast of California, and someone is sure to say, “You’ve gotta visit Mendocino”. They’ll ... -
Shoreline Highway (California 1): Fort Bragg
There’s a pretty good chance that, if you’re making a trip up or down the California Coast, you’ll spend some ...