Possible routes through Cali from South to North?

Hey all,

We, my husband, myself and our 3 yr old daughter, are departing on a roadtrip of the western U.S. from Austin, Tx in a couple weeks and I could use some advice in how to traverse California from south to north. We'll be traveling west through northern New Mexico and Arizona and will probably head for California from the Sedona/Prescott area.

Must do's, to visit family and friends, include Santa Barbara, Monterey, S.F./Marin County. In addition we want to do Death Valley NP, Yosemite, Big Sur, Highway 1 up the coast at least part of the way, Hearst Castle sounds fun.

We have a couple weeks at least but can add more time if needed (no jobs at the moment) and we are pulling a 16 ft trailer fully self contained.

So what else should we not miss in California and what is your recommendation on the best way to traverse the state east to west and south to north to hit all the highlights given where we need to be? It's kind of got me befuddled where to hug the coast and then pull away to head east and back. Will probably skip L.A. and all it has to offer so Santa Barbara is, so far, the southernmost point I have on the list. Would love suggestions of scenic drives that will make the driving time more enjoyable and interesting and things that would be appropriate for a family with a small child. Would love to camp on the seashore and our focus is on enjoying the outdoors and local flavors so can skip zoos and the like. All suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks.

I would do it in this order - Death Valley (either bypassing or going through Las Vegas), Yosemite, Marin County, SF, coast highway all the way to Santa Barbara. Note that the Tioga Pass will not be open yet, so you will have to go towards Bakersfield to get to Yosemite. You can add Sequoia and Kings Canyon along here.

I should clarify that we have a couple weeks for the California leg of the journey, not the total roadtrip, and that after California we'll be heading up through Oregon, Washington and then over to Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, etc....so it makes the most sense for us to do California south to north so we can then head on into Oregon.

Thanks!

Hello and welcome to the R.T.A forums !

Your trip would make a great loop but seeing as you heading North afterwards there is no straight forward way and the fact the Tioga pass [120] into Yosemite from the East of the Sierra's will be closed doesn't help things.

To get to those places you mentioned I would opt for Death valley to Santa Barbara and then up the coast to Monterey and then head inland to Sequoia and Yosemite and then back to SF and Marin co. heading North from there.

Sounds like a great trip. How long is your total trip? How can we help you plan it? We're here to help...and itching to hear all your plans.