Driving San Francisco to Las Vegas

[glc]

You can often find free "official" state maps in Interstate rest areas and tourist information centers. Only downside is you have to wait till you are there to get them! I also found a free map of Utah in the information center at one of the state parks.

You can also look for maps at each state's official tourism site. They will have them as downloadable PDF's and quite often will mail them out free.

[Mark Sedenquist]

I think the 7.30am departure would be better heatwise but would the 12 .30 be better for colours?

Best time for photography in the desert is early morning or late afternoon. When the sun is directly overhead, the colors tend to wash out (to the human eye) you can always adjust for this in your camera.

While staying overnight in Kingman we would like to visit a ghost town . The most recommended one seems to be Chloride.

Chloride is NOT a ghost town. It used to be a thriving artist's community 3-4 years ago, now it's much less interesting. The biggest draw to Chloride are these murals.... The road is a bit rough -- I wouldn't take a passenger car up there --

There really are no "ghost towns" within a day's drive of Kingman -- There are plenty of former mining camps and small towns, but they aren't photogenic and in the case of the abandoned mining camps -- without a local guide, you'd not be able to detect the local history or see the differences between one club of desert shrubs and the former location of tent village.

On the other hand, Oatman is just down Route 66 from Kingman and it does have both western and mining camp influences -- the local police force is th herd of burros that keep traffic slowed down...

Another question is which map is probably best for the whole trip?

The map I carry is this one. (This is the 2010 version being released in about a month...)

Mark

[Jantomo]

Thanks again everyone
Janet

[colonelhall]

We've just travelled that way, but in the opposite direction. We clocked up many miles, because we could not miss Monument Valley.
Here is a big tip: DON'T MISS HORSESHOE BEND!
It is three miles outside of Page and easy to miss the sign. You need to park the car and take a hike of about a mile. If you have a head for heights and a wide angle lens, you can take a fantastic shot of an amazing bend in the Colorado river. Check it out on flickr, which is a terrific site for researching pictures of any destination you care to imagine.
Try Arizona Inn for Page. We were very pleased with the facilities and location.
Canyon Ranch Motel in Springdale for Zion. Karen and Mark make you really welcome. Great location and facilities.
Cliff Dwellers Lodge near Lees Ferry/Marble Canyon serves excellent food.

[glc]

Whatever you do in Page, don't stay in the Super 8. Overpriced and not well maintained, and staff is not responsive to complaints.

[Jantomo]

Hi folks.
Gradually working through my notes and building up an itinerary - which might be abandoned once we start travelling as we're bound to get sidetracked . Anyway my latest question is about the route from 1)Bishop to Stovepipe Wells and 2)Stovepipe Wells to Las Vegas.
On 1) what stops are recommended and on 2) will we have access in a hire car to both Badwater and Dantes view, and what else is recommended to see while travelling to Las Vegas? Which routes are best. We have a day for each part of the journey and are staying overnight in Stovepipe Wells village
Thanks, Janet

[Mark Sedenquist]

Anyway my latest question is about the route from 1)Bishop to Stovepipe Wells and 2)Stovepipe Wells to Las Vegas.

There are several possible routes, but the most dramatic and most direct would be US-395 south to Lone Pine and then CA-138 to CA-190 throught the Darwin Mountains. Be sure to stop in for an ice tea or something stronger at the Panamint Springs bar and restaurant and marvel at the Redwood Burl in the middle of the desert. A short side trip from Bishop would take you to the Bristlecone Forest on CA-138 (read the last entries in the field report)

2) will we have access in a hire car to both Badwater and Dantes view, and what else is recommended to see while travelling to Las Vegas?

It's all paved roads, so rental cars are fine.

Mark

[Jantomo]

Thanks Mark. I was thinking ths was the route to take, but hearing from someone who drives it makes it even better. Can't wait for this trip now!!
Janet

[Jantomo]

Not long now - thanks for all your help everyone. Brilliant site, have recommended it to loads of folk.Just a few (probably minor) queries.
Day 1 -fly into San Francisco and are staying near the airport as we can pick up the hotel shuttle bus.
Days 2 and 3 - take the BART train into the city for much sightseeing, shopping and a cable car ride.
Day 4 - pick up the car from the Dollar office at the airport( booked via UK site -thanks FunkyFin) Is it reasonably easy to get out of the airport and on to Rte 101 to reach the San Mateo bridge? Novices at driving an automatic !!
Husband doesnt want a satnav!
Drive to Yosemite Bug for 2 nights following directions posted on the site. Now thinking of when we have booked in, either going to the valley floor to look at the visitor centre and book for the 2 hour tour the following morning , or going up to Glacier Point but are womdering if the second option would be too much ??
Day 5 - day in Yosemite finishing off with the Glacier Point drive if it wasn't done on Day4.
Day 6 - Tioga Road to Bishop, taking in Mono Lake, Whoa Nellies Deli and the June Lakes loop, and maybe doing a short walk at Tuolumne meadows. Overnight in Bishop.
Day 7- Spend a couple of hours in Bishop with a possible breakfast at Schats bakery.Driving on to Death Valley to stop overnight at Stovepipe Wells. Is therre anything on this stretch we should visit or look out for?
Day 8 - on to Furnace Creek, visiting Badwater and Zabriskie Point and Dante's View (are these relatively close to one another?) carrying on to Las Vegas for 2 nights.( bit unsure of directions to Circus Circus from where we hit the city)
Day 9 - Las Vegas.
Day 10 - travelling to Zion NP (staying in Springdale)
Day 11 - in Zion NP using shuttle buses and trails
Day 12 - driving to Bryce Canyon (Ruby's Inn)
Day 13 - Day in Bryce Canyon
Day 14 - Travel to Page , visiting Antelope Canyon on the way
Day 15 - Lake Powell morning trip, visit Page in afternoon.
Day 16 - This is the day we will be driving to the Grand Canyon. Would a detour to Monument valley be possible or would it be best to just spend the time taking in the sights from the GC entrance to Maswik Lodge Staying for 2 nights
Day 17 - Grand Canyon trails and shuttle bus.
Day 18 - Grand Canyon to Kingman, taking in Route 66 from Seligman. Anything we should look out for or stop for?
Day 19 - on to Las Vegas via Chloride (yes its a Saturday and we tourists have to see a gunfight!!) Then via the Hoover Dam to return the car in LV. Is it best to park at the Visitor Centre and look around or do a tour?
Days 20 and 21 in Las Vegas before fling back to UK.
I cant believe I started thinking about this trip last November , now there's only 3 weeks to go. WOW
Any advice on any of this route will be gratefully received
Thanks
Jantomo

[glc]

It looks very simple to get from the Dollar lot to the 101. I will assume that it's very well marked. Go South to CA-92 East, that will be the bridge.

You are going to have more issues getting used to driving on the right side of the road than getting used to an automatic transmission. Just put it in Drive, use the accelerator to go, the brake to stop, and forget about it! You can idle in Drive with your foot on the brake, you do not need to put it in Neutral.