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Bishop is a great little place, and you being from Brussels will love the bakery there. It is a decade ago now, that I was there, but I was thrilled to be able to pick up Dutch/German bakery products. Don't miss it!
Lifey
Bishop
Bishop is a great little place, and you being from Brussels will love the bakery there. It is a decade ago now, that I was there, but I was thrilled to be able to pick up Dutch/German bakery products. Don't miss it!
Lifey
Hmm, this might save us a day so we can spend more time on an epic location like Yosemite or Zion. I am trying to convince my gf to remove 1 day of Las Vegas so we got extra time between San Fran & Vegas.Driving to death valley isn't too bad in a day, but if you want to limit y
our driving days bishop is a good choice.
The more posts i read in your forum, the bigger my dillema's seem to get :P.
Anyway, maybe i am posting my questions a bit quick, but what would you suggest:
1) 2 days Yosemite or 2 days Zion?
2) Yosemite over Tioga to Death Valley in one day = 7h drive? Where would you suggest to stay? Furnace Creek? Any cheaper options where you can see all Death Valley has to offer in 1 evening/morning? I would consider leaving the next day to Zion, but i am not sure if you enjoy Death Valley the way you should that way. Or is the car drive itself already overwhelming?
For a Belgian, that is a bit hard to fully understand. Driving here is with 0 scenery, extreme traffic & no nature :P. This gives me the feeling a day of 8h driving is a lost day, but i might get this completely wrong.
3) If we would go Zion after Death Valley, spend 2 or 3 nights at Zion, is there a way back to Las Vegas that is doable in 1/2 day where you dont do the exact same route as you came?
4) Any historic ghost towns on the path between SF & LV that would not cause a big detour?
Huge thanks with your amazing input & website!
Last edited by DasDimi; 02-17-2013 at 04:02 PM. Reason: Did something wrong with the Quoting :o
:D, it might be nice to get some good European Food after 2 weeks in the States ;-). Just another dillema :POriginally Posted by Lifemagician
Most of us here .... live for a day of driving!
There are several choices of places to spend a fun night between Yosemite and and Death Valley. Bishop is the place I usually recommend and if you have the budget for it, I'd recommend staying at the Joseph Inn (more about it) and the bakery that Lifey mentioned is Erik Shat's Bakkery. For a real road trip treat, you might consider a detour for the Pie-in-the-Sky cafe! But you can also find nice accommodation at Mammoth Lakes and June Lakes.Suffer a day driving???? That's what most of us here at RoadTripAmerica.com consider heaven!Would u suggest to stay there, or go straight to Death Valley and suffer a day full of driving?
Mark
Bryce is worth it.
Bodie ghost town is north of Mono Lake but it's quite a time consuming detour and part of the road into Bodie is unpaved which would most likely be in breach of your rental contract.
Going with the idea of staying in Bishop would mean that you can spend some of that morning in Yosemite and have time to stop and take in the views over Tioga Pass. So the day you travel from SF, if you leave at a reasonable time, could leave you a half day to explore Yosmite, the whole of the following day and a good part of the day as you make your way to Bishop. That would be the best way to maximise your time in Yosemite. If you travelled from Bishop to Death Valley it would give you time to explore parts of Death valley and then you could head straight to Zion, arriving on the 27th. That would give you a similar amount of time to what you have in Yosemite before heading back to Vegas. With the time you have it will be a case of heading back down I15, but I would continue to try and persuade your girlfriend to shorten the Vegas stay and head to Bryce canyon for a night, it's another amazing park but doesn't take quite so long to explore. You could head direct to Bryce from Death Valley and spend the night there, visit the viewpoints the following morning and head back to Zion after lunch. The drive is wonderful as you make your way through Red rock state park on the edge of the Dixie National Forest, along Checkaboard Mesa and through the Mt Carmel tunnel into Zion.
About an hour out of Bishop, part of Inyo National Forest, are the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. These are the world's oldest living trees. There is one there, Methuselah, that is reputed to have been alive when Jesus Christ was born. The forest is incredible. The forest roads and visitor center isn't open until April or even May in most years, and closes in October or November, weather permitting. But it's well worth the time, the effort, and the trip up a gravel road.
Donna
Last edited by DonnaR57; 02-17-2013 at 05:04 PM. Reason: added link to Forest
A huge difference.
I could not agree more.Suffer a day driving???? That's what most of us here at RoadTripAmerica.com consider heaven!
You are in for a real treat. In Europe one drives from point A to point B, hoping the get the bit in between over as quickly as possible. (Hence the ourageous speeds on the autobahns.) But in North America it is totally different.Or is the car drive itself already overwhelming?
For a Belgian, that is a bit hard to fully understand. Driving here is with 0 scenery, extreme traffic & no nature :P.
A roadtrip, is exactly what it says. It is enjoying the road, the attractions and the scenery in between point A and point B. It is stopping when something catches your eye. It is following an interesting sign you may see along the way, taking you off your original route. Of course, all of this is best done getting off the high speed freeways as often as possible; enjoying the local roads. Many, myself included, regard the road as their destination, and are not particularly focused on where the drive takes us.
This article might give you a better understanding of what I am trying to say.
Lifey
The Bishop suggestions looks like a perfect idea, as it will give us the possiblity to get half a day extra in Yosemite and all the time we need to enjoy the Tioga Pass! Thanks.
In my eyes, i seem to have two options now:
planning.jpg
I think it its pretty obvious you all will suggest option 1, but do you think option 2 is managable? This way i can consider them both & see what fits our wishes to the maximum.
I assume heading straight from Bishop to Zion is not a good idea, as we would miss to much of Death Valley?
I am looking forward to be enjoying driving to the fullest for one of the first times in my life :). As Lifey stated correctly we only drive to get from A to B, and preferably as fast as possible. This roadtrip is probably gonna be a real eye-opener for the both of us!
Thank you all for the inputs!
Dimi
Option 3 ?
You're right, I would go with option one, but option 2 could be acheived, however if you want to see both Bryce and Zion and be in Vegas on the 29th , I would still head direct to Bryce from Furnace creek which would allow you to check out the viewpoints and witness a sunset [with an early start] and get away at a reasonable time the next morning for Zion. So "Option 3" would be Death valley to Bryce, Bryce to Zion and Zion to Bryce. You could arrive in Zion a little after midday if you left Bryce by 10 am, and you wouldn't have to leave until 3 or 4pm the following day, if you didn't mind getting into Vegas early evening.
It would pretty much just be a drive through, but what a drive ! There are some nice stops to be had though, and there is something special about a night in the desert. If you were to stay in Furnace Creek you could drive to Badwater Basin which is the lowest point in the USA and detour onto Artists drive on the way back.I assume heading straight from Bishop to Zion is not a good idea, as we would miss to much of Death Valley?
You better believe it !! The journey is incredible.This roadtrip is probably gonna be a real eye-opener for the both of us!
It's getting in shape!
OK, we went for option 1, so we will be in Vegas on the 30th.
This gives us time to go Yosemite -> Bishop -> DV -> Bryce -> Zion (2 nights) -> Las Vegas.
I can't thank you enough for all the help in getting my route together!
About Death Valley: I assume Furnace Creek is by far the best option to spend our night? Any alternative options that work as good? The resort is sold out, so it would be the Ranch. I guess i better book quick =).
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