Las Vegas - San francisco in 3 days 2 nights

[Tommetje]

All,

I am from Holland and we are planning to drive from Las Vegas to San Francisco.

We will drive from Las Vegas at 05-28 and we need to be in San Francisco at 05-30 in the evening / late afternoon.

We would like to see the Death Valley, the seqouia trees and yosemite park.

Is it possible to see some highlights in 3 days and 2 nights.

In which places could we stay the best underway?

Thanks for your advice.

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

You have 2 options really and much will depend on the status of the Tioga Pass. [CA120] The pass is high up and crosses the Sierra Nevada and typically opens sometime between mid May and June due to winter snow accumulation. With a less than average snowpack this year there will be a good chance of it being open. Therefor option one would take you across Death Valley on 190 to 395 where you can head north towards Mono Lake and Tioga Pass into Yosemite. A good overnight stop would be in the Bishop area and then a night in Yosemite, or close by. This will not take you to Sequoia NP, but you have the Mariposa grove of giant Sequoias near the southern entrance to Yosemite and is probably best suited to your time, plus the drive over Tioga is spectacular.

Option 2 would be to drive through Death Valley, again on 190 and head around the southern end of the mountains and stopping around Lake Isabella/Bakersfield/Porterville area. Next day you could drive through Sequoia NP on 198 to Oakhurst for the night or into Yosemite. This would only leave you a short time in Yosemite though. Alternativley you could take a direct route to Yosemite and bypass Sequoia, visiting the trees in Mariposa Grove as above.

Given the choice with your time frame I would opt for the Tioga pass if it is open, which no one can know for sure at this time, if it will be or not.