Tide Pools, Sea Anemone, and Sunsets Around Kirk Creek Campground, Big Sur
We are done wandering in eastern and central California. It's time to go to the coast. It's time to head to Big Sur and Highway 1.
Category Road Tripping
Read MoreTide Pools, Sea Anemone, and Sunsets Around Kirk Creek Campground, Big Sur
Painted Desert, Petroglyphs, And An Ancient Rainforest In Petrified Forest National Park
When we pull off I-40 for Petrified Forest National Park, I expect to be looking at rocks. Yet, it takes us a while to get to the rocks. We are so distracted by the breathtaking views! The Painted Desert is result of the Chinle Formation. It is a mineral deposit from river beds over 200 million years ago, during the Late Triassic Period.
Jack Sisemore Traveland RV Museum
A lot of our route is flexible, given the winter weather. But the Jack Sisemore Traveland RV Museum has been on our list of stops ever since we discovered that they also have an 1970 Avion truck camper on display—the same year as ours! Unlike ours, it has been maintained in its original condition. This includes the original and rather strange three jack point formation and period interior.
Little Missouri Falls
Seven miles down a moderately managed dirt road in the Ouachita National Forest is the Little Missouri Falls. The drive is pretty doable for any car in the proper conditions—there is a creek crossing that could cause trouble after a heavy rain—but the reason to drive this road is the swimming hole at the end.
Insider Dealings At Crystal Springs Campground
Cars cruise past our campsite, methodically crunching the gravel. It initially seemed odd to have a parade of vehicles regularly circle through the group camping area. Now we know better.
Sutro Heights And Baths
Sutro is a name that permeates San Francisco. Roads and civic works were named in commemoration of this mining engineer turned Mayor. But of all of these commemorative locations, there is a set that was our favorite place to take visitors when we lived in San Francisco and continues to be one of my go-to stops whenever I'm in town: Sutro Heights And Sutro Baths.
Mount Tamalpais
While we were on the other side of the bay, another box on my "to do" list was to hike Mount Tamalpais. The mountain towers over the bay with breathtaking panoramic views. Tamalpais towers 2,576 ft from sea level. It's summit is part of Mount Tamalpais State Park.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Bay Model
We had a list of places we wanted to visit before leaving San Francisco. And then we left San Francisco. We tend overestimate how much time we really have. So, we have a list of unvisited points of interest. Top of the list is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Bay Model. Two years later, here we are.
50s Train Diner
Part of a tourist trap, it may be, but how often can you enjoy a burger and slice of strawberry rhubarb pie on a vintage 1950s train? The lunch counter is classic and the burgers, unlike most stops of late, are actually good! The pie connoisseur may be disappointed by the thick crust and exceptionally sweet pie but, hey, you can't win every time.
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
As if to underscore that these missile bases were truly in the middle of nowhere, a herd of cows and calves graze by the parking lot of the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site Delta-09. Not much has changed here from the 1960s when the silos were still in operation.