On Fri, May 17, 2013 at 10:11 AM, Jostein wrote: > I am in the process of planning a 3 weeks' roadtrip through Sierra Nevada in > October/November. We are two Norwegian Pentaxians travelling together. > The plans are not very firm yet, but we're coming through San Francisco. We > plan to go via Sonora to Yosemite, through the Sierra to Mono Lake, and go > South along hwy 395 and the into Death Valley. From there our plans are still > open. We have been recommended to go further East to Valley of Fire and on to > Zion, and then go East, around to the South side Grand Canyon before turning > back to California. Suddenly we found ourselves doing in excess of 3000 > kilometers in three weeks... Is that at all realistic? Your thoughts would be > much appreciated. > > Also, I'd love it if you have suggestions for places to stop by along the > way. :-)
Sounds awesome! I'm across the bay (roughly) from San Francisco. There are quite a few other NorCal PDMLers around, so I'm sure we could put together a little meetup if you two are interested. I did a roadtrip around southern Utah a few weeks ago, which is where the places Doug mentioned are located. If you're going that way, I suggest skipping Kodachrome Basin (it's pretty boring, IMO) and visiting Hovenweep National Monument on the other side of the state. If you have any interest in the history of the local natives, Hovenweep and other spots offer glimpses into the past that I found fascinating. Bryce Canyon National Park is pretty amazing, and if you're going anywhere near Arches National Park, you MUST see it. I spent a day and a half in Arches, hiking around, getting a bad sunburn and wishing I had a 77mm polarizer for my 16-50 (why must they be so expensive!!). I wish I could go back right now! Monument Valley (northern Arizona, in the Navajo reservation) is spectacular, too. Be sure to drive down into the valley while you're there. The dirt road is rough, but completely worth it. My little rented Nissan Versa survived the trip, so whatever you get should be fine (unless it's raining, in which case take one of the tour buses). Goblin Valley State Park (Utah) is a fun spot to visit if you're in the area. Very alien-looking landscape, but beautiful. My Utah trip was 1,300 miles (2,100 km) in five days, so 3,000 kilometers in three weeks will be easy. The highways in the southwestern states are usually very fast, so the longer drives just seem to fly by. I love Yosemite and the Sierra Nevadas, and you can't go wrong with the locations you've mentioned. If you go to the Grand Canyon, I highly recommend hiking to the bottom and spending the night down there. If the weather is clear, just sleep under the stars (bring a sleeping bag). It's a great experience. Some travel tips: * Watch for speed traps!! The speed limit on a lot of highways I drove in Utah is 70-80mph, but it drops quickly when you pass through a town. Some are as slow as 30mph, and the police know where to wait to pick off speeders. If your car has cruise control, use that to make the slow speeds bearable, and to make sure you don't go over the limit while in town. Seriously, I saw so many people get pulled over in one week, I am STILL watching my speed like a hawk. * Try to visit the bigger National Parks during the week. Weekend crowds get pretty nuts. * Bring polarizers for your lenses and just leave them on. Similarly, try not to change lenses too often. The places you're going are very dusty, and it gets EVERYWHERE. * If you're getting a cell phone for the trip, Verizon seems to have the best coverage in most places; AT&T is second best. A smartphone/tablet with internet access is a huge help for navigation and finding cheap lodging. There's not a lot of free wi-fi around. * Watch for deer if driving around sunrise or sunset. One evening, I almost hit half a dozen of them, with even more hanging out along the sides of the road. They're very active around those times, and will cause a lot of damage to your car (and you) if you hit one. * Never leave food in your car overnight when in parks or forested areas. Black bears know how to rip open car doors to get to food. Take everything into your motel room at night. That's all I can think of at the moment, but if you have any questions, feel free to ask away. I'm not an expert, but I know a thing or three. :) John -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
