Portland to Yosemite to San Francisco

Hi All,
I'm planning to travel from Portland to Yosemite to San Francisco this August over the course of 8 days. I was wondering if this time frame seemed plausible if I wanted to explore the Oregon coast and Redwood National Park, cut into Yosemite, and then fly out of San Francisco. I have a reservation to climb Half Dome on the 6th day of the trip. If anyone has done this trip before, do you think this it is achievable to enjoy all of these things without feeling too rushed? I'm also very interested in suggestions for the best way to travel from Redwoods to Yosemite. Thank you! I'm thankful for any help or suggestions!

-Julie

Welcome to RTA!

Plausible, but only you are going to decide if it's going to be "too rushed". If you took I-5 down to the 101 and over to Redwoods, you're looking at one day drive there. Another day to see the Redwoods National Park and perhaps one of the other redwood parks (Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park is one). They're not huge parks, but it will depend on how much time you want to take hiking.

From there, you have a choice. Many choices, actually. One that I would recommend is taking the 101 south from Redwoods, then the 299 east over to Redding. That is a gorgeous drive. Take I-5 south, then the 99 to Manteca to catch the 120 into Yosemite. If you need to get there "in a hurry", that' the way I'd go.

Another thought would be to take the 101 south (as above), but just south of Willits, catch the 20 east then the 16 all the way into Woodland. There, catch 5 south-the 99-the 120 (as above).

There are many other ways to go. Do you have a map? You *need* a map. A paper map, not the kind you see on a 5” screen (GPS or your phone) or a 15” screen (your computer). If you are planning a multi-state trip, a USA map, regional map, or a road atlas of the US will do for starters. Take a pencil, some sticky notes, or other way to mark up the map: what do you want to see? What looks interesting? You may see other things on the map that look interesting to you, that I've missed.


Donna

Check out Humboldt Redwoods State Park with it magnificent Avenue of Giants and the nearby drive through tree.

Another point of interest there is Mendicino - the westerly most point of the 48 States - and its black beach. There is a very scenic road from the Avenue of Giants to Mendicino, high up overlooking the ocean.

Lifey

Your trip is perfectly doable, it's just a case of working out how much time you want to spend at the Redwoods and Yosemite and see what time you have spare, if any. Another option to get from the Redwoods to Yosemite would be to head to Lake Tahoe and stop over and then head south to Lee Vining/Mono Lake and drive into Yosemite from the east over Tioga Pass. The drive on Tioga is spectacular and a big part of the Yosemite experience and if it's something you want to include, going via Tahoe wouldn't take more time then entering the park from the west and driving the road back and forth.