California Coast Trip

How many of you dreamed to see California? Check if the photos of palm trees give away the reality or if the sunsests are just as magnificent as everyone says? I can reassure you that they are probably even better than you can imagine! Check out more on my CALI dreamin post!

Last post I wrote about (3 weeks roadtrippin through USA) finished on discribing #DeathValley which is already in California. You can check my previous roadtrip post here. We decided to focus on California because of the numerous things hidden in this state (National Parks and cities you probably might know at least from movies or gossips!). Heading from Death Valley we ended up in Seqouia National Forest. A park full of the world’s largest trees meaning if you ever wanted to feel small in your life, then this is the perfect opportunity. The park is also the only place in the world where those giant creatures grow naturally. You’ll definitely want to check out the „General Sherman” which is 84 m tall (and it’s not even the biggest in Seqouia, the biggest one named „Hyperion” meassures 115 m!) believe me, I couldn’t find a possible way to fit it in my camera. You can check out my video by clicking here, to see the comparison between my height and the trees height. Apart from the main attraction which is the General Sherman, while driving a car you’ll spot tunnels made out of lying seqouias or maybe guests such as bears.

Heading from the Seqouia park to…

Yosemite National Park - functioning as a National Park since 1864 full of beautiful mountain views, forests, waterfalls, wildings seqouias and most famous for it’s rock formation „El Capitan”. The rock is about 2300 m tall and it’s notorious among rock climbers. If you go to Yosemitee you’ll definitely be able to spot some crazy rock climbers, but perhaps none as crazy as Alex honnold who climbed the peak without any support ropes! Another beautiful place worth seeing is the Mirror Lake, though if you’re visiting California in the summer season don’t get your hopes up. Most probably it dried (that’s totally what happened while we were hiking to it). If you are visiting California during other seasons and you don’t know what Mirror Lake im talking about I’m encouriging to check out some photos on google or instagram!

Bodie California Ghost Town - maybe it’s not a must on your list but it’s definitely a cool place to see. A city that in the late XIX century was discovered as a mining city full of gold. Due to many factors the last mine was closed in 1942 and the population of the city was slowy decreasing until no one was left in the city. It’s a real California ghost town that gives you shivers when you walk on the territory. You can still see abandoned houses with furniture inside, old letters or archives, old cars, churches, the mine and a cemetery. If you have some spare time I reccomend checking it out, if not let’s head on to…

Tahoe Lake - you can either aproach it from California or Nevada. It’s the second deepest lake in USA with breathtaking views. If you have a drone and manage to do pictures from up high, don’t miss the opportunity. The blue of the water is unbelievable. You can have a chill out day on one of the small beaches in Tahoe, or rent a paddling boat and take a small tour through the lake. Seeing Tahoe from up above is also a great experience. After a rest day in Tahoe City, it’s time to head to the first California big city which is???

San Francisco - what’s the first thing you see when you’re approaching SF? The iconic Golden (Red) Gate in fog. What a coincidence ;) It’s also the first stop in San Francisco, best from top of the mountain in order to see the big suspension bridge in all it’s glory. San Francisco is definitely a city to stay in at least for one full day (believe me even a day is not enough!). Our first encounter with the city was during the night where, to be perfectly honest, we started to be super sceptical about it’s beauty. Roads full of luxurious shops with homeless people around every corner! That was quite an unpleasant view. To our surprise during the day, they were nowhere to be seen. Some of my favourite places to visit in San Francisco are Alamo Square Park, where you can chill and watch the famous Painted Ladies, walk through Fisherman’s Wharf and the Piers (Pier 39!) you’ll have the opportunity to see some sea Lions!!! and the Crooked Road. For those who aren’t on a budget and time, it’s a good idea to go for a tour to Alcatraz (around 50$) or take a tour on a San Francisco tram. There are many more things to visit in SF (as well as in LA) so later on I might do a small post about the cities.

Driving through the coast towns - you might want to stop in some towns/viewpoints on the Cali coast line. We managed to do a quick stop in iconic Santa Cruz (probably most famous for it’s beach amusment park and some movies), Santa Monica (end of Route 66 and a full on beach day!) and Malibu (but it was so expensive to leave our car anywhere that the only stop was in Starbucks ;)). The coast line is very often foggy and the weather isn’t very encouriging to step out of the car. But on your way from San Francisco to Los Angeles there will be quite a few hidden gems (beautiful cliffs, mountain views or sea elephants lying on a random beach). Check some out by clicking here.

Last but not least, Los Angeles - known for Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Walk of Fame and Venice Beach. Where to start?

Probably I would say from walking through the heart of Los Angeles with the famous Walk of Fame. Find some of your favourite stars and take a picture with them. Then start heading towards Beverly Hills and visit Rodeo Drive. Believe me, if you’re budget travelling, go there and watch your eyes bleed in shock >.<. The amount of luxurious shops are quite an attraction. And that being said, this is one of those few places where you can admire such luxury.

Spend some time going to one of the Movie Studios (we picked Paramount Studios which gave us an awesome tour around the film plan!), you might be in luck and spot some famous actors. It’s a great experience, and once you learn how some things are filmed, you’ll never look at a film the same way as before.

Take an evening stroll through Venice Beach, and the colours you’ll see or people you’ll spot are one of a kind. The atmosphere is hard to describe but once you visit this magical place, you’ll understand the appeal.

Last spot which is a must: the Hollywood sign. It’s probably the most iconic place in California, which has already been changed a couple of times to „Hollyweed” or „Holywood” (the latter was done before the Pope’s arrival) by the local comedians ;). Nearby the sign there is a great viewpoint where you can take an awesome picture of LA from up above!

There is a lot to see in USA. 1 state can fit so many gems that your head might explode while planning a trip to USA. You don’t know what to see, where to go or what to sacrifice due to a lack of time or even where to start!. Sometimes it’s good to just „wing it”, get lost in a city, or do something that was totally unplanned. I don’t think there are places that will dissapoint you, but everything depends of course from your taste.

Share your thoughts and comments below. Feel free to ask questions about places via my e-mail or instagram!