RVing on the US West Coast..

A trip to US was in pipeline since a long time. I have even taken up projects of US clients hoping they would entail an onsite visit (just ended up working late nights). So when wife suggested a plan to meet relatives in Vegas, it was an instant yes. Along with Vegas, we added San Francisco and Los Angeles to the itinerary. I wanted to drive from LA to SF along Pacific Coast Highway. But the flight timings dictated that we fly to SF and fly back from LA, so we decided to drive from SF to Vegas and then Vegas to LA. Then we thought lets do this trip in a RV (motor-home). The RV was available for min 7 days so we add a few destinations on the way to make it a week long drive. So finally this is how the trip finally panned out.... 

San Francisco

We reached San Francisco on a Friday after a long long flight. Even though our bodies were badly cramped, the excitement of the vacation kept the spirits up. That whole day was spent in the hotel sleeping and getting used to the 12.5hours difference in time. In the evening, we walked around the Union Square. It was surprising that everything shut at 10pm. Next day we did some local sightseeing. First stop of the day was the Alcatraz island. This was one a maximum security prison which housed famous gangsters like Al Capone. 

The San Francisco skyline from the boat

The famous Golden Gate bridge

After reaching the island, one could walk around at one's leisure.

The walls which have seen it all and more..

The prison complex was on top of a hill. The slopes were rich in flora and fauna..

Totally forgot the bird's name..

On reaching the prison complex, we were given an audio guide and we followed the instructions around the complex. The stops were marked and at each stop there was a brief commentary.. the tour was engrossing and the narrative was well though of..

the really cramped prison cells..

the prison block..

On the other side of the block were good views of the city..

And a lot more seagulls..

mine mine mine...

and some really pretty Snowy Egrets..

there were also these relatives of penguins which lived near the coast..

and some beautiful flowers..

The views of the prison island as we took the boat back..

After reaching the pier, we walked further towards Fisherman's Wharf. First stop was Pier 39 to see the sea lions basking in the sun.

Then we walked around through the sea of people trying to find a place to eat.

Finding a very restaurant was a bit difficult. After leaving the vegetarians at a bakery, we went to try the famous SF clam chowder. It was served in a bowl made from hollowed out bread..

Then we walked further towards Ghirardelli square, home of the locally famous Ghirardelli chocolate factory.

the crowded square..

They claim that their chocolate fudge is world famous. There was certainly a very long line for it and we waited for almost an hour.

Inside the restaurant they had demonstrated the chocolate making process.

From Ghirardelli Square we came to the hotel. For that we took the iconic SF cable car.

Again we had to stand in an hour long line. The cable cars run on a cable running under the road. The operator pulled a level to attach the car to the moving cable. It was interesting how they turned these around. They were parked on a turn table and the operators pushed the turn table around by hand.

Finally our turn came and we climbed abroad. The car went straight uphill.

we climbed from sea level to this height in 5mins..

The cable car dropped us at the Union Square. By the time we reached the hotel, we were very very sleepy. It was early morning in India and we were like how one feels after staying awake the whole night. We had a quick dinner and went to sleep. 

Start of road trip

Next day first order of business was to pick up the RV. We had booked with campertravelusa.com who had inturn booked the vehicle with El Monte. The company had arranged a pickup for us. Assuming Americans would be punctual, we reached the pick up location early with all our luggages. Well our assumption was wrong. The pickup arrived after 2hours. It took another hour to reach the RV shop. There we filled the mandatory forms and took charge of the vehicle which was ready for us.

Vacation ready.. Yo..

It was our own tiny house on wheels, complete with cooking range, microwave, fridge and tv. But the size of the vehicle and maneuvering it took some getting used to. Also on accelerating, the fixtures and the things inside them started rattling. Fearing that i might break something i slowed down to speed of 50mph. In next few days as we got more used to the vehicle and the rattling, it became less noticable and we drove at higher speeds. First look at the US highways..

Our first stop was a department store where we filled up on our supplies. Good part about RVing in US is that they have facilities for these vehicles like a designated oversize vehicle parking. Otherwise parking a vehicle of this size would be a nightmare. Our stop for the first night was Marin RV Park at Marin. Not knowing the area, we stuck to staying at RV parks every night. Here we got the connections for electricity, water and sewage. We reached the RV park in good time. There was still a lot of time till sunset so after checking in, we decided to go to the nearby Muir woods redwood forests.

The monstrous redwood trees..

The national park was just about closing as the sun was setting.

hey where's the sky..

As we left the forests, it was almost dark. After a little bit of struggle in finding the the way back due to Google aunty insisting that we take routes which dint exist and then us finally using our sense of direction, we reached back. At night i tried to click star trails. I get recently changed my camera and when i tried to connect the remote, i realised that it i was not compatible with the new camera. The camera itself had a multiple exposure seeing but somehow it stopped clicking after 6-7 photos. So my result after sitting almost an hour on the road was that i got no star trails..

Napa Valley

Next day we left for the famous wine producing region of Napa Valley. The whole region has some 1000 wineries. Each winery has its own speciality wine and most offer a wine tasting for a fees. One can also do a tour of the winery and "experience" the wine making. If you have never seen a winery, visiting one should be enough. I had booked a wine tasting basics tour at the Robert Mondavi winery at 10am. Google Aunty showed that it was an hour away but we soon realised that our average speed was much slower that Google's. We took two hours and reached at 10.30. Immediately we got a lecture on punctuality from the guide. Then after "managing to accommodate us", he started the session but he rushed through it and finished an hour long session in half an hour.

It was interesting but felt incomplete. Then he took us to their store and left us with recommendations on what to buy. The winery..

Each vinery has its own unique architecture and location..

Next we headed towards the RV park we had booked at Calistoga. We checking in and walked to the main market for lunch. We ate at Sam's Social Club. After lunch we walked around to this Olive Oil shop which sold the locally made olive oils and offered oil tasting as well. Eating raw olive oils in different flavours wasn't as interesting as it sounded. But the balsamic vinegar was very tasty..

In the evening we booked a tour of the Castello Di Amorosa. The winery was in a castle which has been made from material imported from Europe. They claim it was from actual castles.

the distillery..

the castle had cellars where the wine was matured. entry to the cellar..

the highly acclaimed Il Barone Cabernet Sauvignon wine..

the cellars were full of casks of wine..

the highlight of the cellars tour were the dungeons which had medieval torture devices..

the tour ended in a big hall which was lined with casks of wine. here we tasked different wines from the casks.

After that we had a wine tasting in a room.We could try 5 of the regular and 3 select wines. 

the vineyards..

after the tour we returned to our RV Park and spent the night there.

Yosemite National Park

Next day we headed to Yosemite National Park. The landscape most of the way was in colours of autum..

the terrain was mostly flat and the road was single lane.

at many places we got really strong wind and saw many windmills taking advantage of this..

on the way we saw a fruit vendor selling locally grown peaches, strawberries and kiwis. they were so fresh and probably the best i have ever had..

the road was so narrow that everyone was driving in a single file. if the first car was driving slow (usually us), everyone patiently followed in a line.

After driving almost the whole day, we reached Yosemite by evening. The colour of the terrain indicated that we were getting close. We could see more and more greens appearing. Soon we entered forests and knew we were almost there..

Soon we reached the RV Park where we had booked for next 2 nights: Yosemite Lakes RV Park. This was an hour outside the national park. There was still a lot of time to sunset so we decided to go into the park. After entering the park, there was this view point..

The first waterfall..

We were heading to glacier point. At the entry they gave us a map of the park. But we took a wrong turn and instead of heading into the park, we reached the exit on the other side. Then we had to turn back and then retrace out steps. Initially the drive was along the river. Then we made the turn towards Glacier Point. As we climbed up, we reached the first view point: Tunnel View. It was a nice view of whole Yosemite Valley. One could see El Capitan on the left and Bridalveil Waterfall on the right..

As we climbed up, we saw snow on both sides of the road..

We stopped at a few view points on the way..

view of the vernal falls..

Finally we reached the Glacier Point. It was pretty crowded. Also it was almost sunset..

We had booked at the Yosemite Lakes RV Park for 2 nights. There were many RV parks inside the National Park as well but getting reservations at these was almost impossible. Also these dont have electricity/water connections. Another attempt at star trails..

Next morning was cloudy, which was good as treking in sun would have been double tiring. Considering the time we had, we could do only the one or max two treks so choosing from the many options was difficult. We drove around the park for some time, clicking photos of the points on the way.. 

The El Capitan..

At this time of year, the snow was melting and entire valley was flooded with with water. The path to Lower Yosemite Falls trek..

After crossing the entire Yosemite valley, we reached the trailhead for Vernal Falls. We parked there and went for the trek. 

The river at the beginning of the trek

The brochure said it was a medium level of difficulty but for us "althetic" people it was pretty strenuous.

The route was mostly paved with nice moss covered trees and one could hear the roaring of the river as we climbed up..

Trek to the Vernal falls bridge was a 1.6mi round trip. After an uphill walk we reached the Vernal Falls footbridge. This was basically a bridge over the river coming from the falls. The river was bellowing but the falls were not visible.

We continued further to see the actual falls. As we neared the fall, the climb got steep and the spray of water from the waterfall got strong. Soon it was as if we were walking in rain. The route also got narrower. Soon we were climbing stone steps with water pouring on us and along the steps. The waterfall itself was beautiful. Sadly we couldn't click any pictures due to the heavy downpour. No wonder they call it the Mist trail. After the trek, we came back to our RV. Here we realised the convenience of having one. We were totally drenched and normally would have had to stay that way till we reached our hotel at the end of the day. Or would have had to cut short the tour and go to the hotel. Here we reached back and changed, made lunch for ourselves, slept for an hour and were out for the next trek in 2 hours. Really convenient.. In the evening we went for a trek to the mirror lake. 

Walk through the tall forests..

The walk was along the river. Grade was easy. Got some good shots of the rapids in the river.

The lake itself turned out to be a big disappointment. It was merely a pond which mirrored the mountains in the background.

But still the walk was fun. When we reached the trailhead, it was almost dusk.

At night another attempt at star trails.

Drive till Death Valley

Next day we left Yosemite in morning. We had a long drive ahead of us. Plan was to stay somewhere at the entrance of the Death Valley, maybe Panamint Springs. But it was a 450miles long drive andwe were riding an elephant. Slowly we left the greenery of Yosemite and after following series of highways, soon reached the desert terrain. The ground was flat as far as eye could see and the the wind was strong which threatened to topple our vehicle if we drove fast. 

As the sun set..

The strong winds dint allow us to drive fast. It became dark and at around 10pm we were still an hour from Panamint Springs. Also we had read that the route to Panamint Springs was very scenic but nothing was visible in the dark. Google showed that there was a RV park a few kms ahead. It turned out to be just a big plot with electricity and water hook ups. But when we had our home with us, we dint need anything more. We had a nice beer and pizza dinner. Outside the sky was very clear and the stars seemed as if someone had sprinkled glitter in the sky.. 

More star trails..

Death Valley National Park

Next day we had to travel through the Death Valley National Park. In the morning as i peeked out the RV window, i saw something small moving in the bushes near the van. I took out the camera and tried to zoom in and this is what i found..

Soon we were back on the highway. Now we were discovering the desert landscape we had missed when driving through last night. 

Where ever Indians go, Karma follows..

..

Roads made to scale..

As we moved on the terrain kept changing. Sometimes the sand was grey, then brown..

Life is full of ups and downs..

Different colors this time..

Soon we entered the nation park..

We were greeted by colorful terrain..

Some pilot playing around the canyons..

The Panamint Springs town. it was just a collection of buildings with a fuel pump and few shops. we stopped for a quick refuel and some souvenir shopping..

After the town were sand dunes called Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes.

There was a warning sign cautioning people from entering the dunes as it was the hottest place on earth..

It was pretty hot. But in june/july it gets worse. Its so hot there that its normal for cars to breakdown. The car rental companies dont even provide service in Death Valley.. Next we stopped at the Harmony Borax Works. It ised to be a Borax mine.. Now its just a walk around the place with nothing much to see there. But walking in heat was starting to take its toll..

Beyond the mine were salt flats..

Parched after walking in the heat, we got back into the RV and headed towards Devil's Golf Course. From the main paved road, Google asked us to turn onto a dirt track. In a normal car it wont have been that bad but traversing a bumpy road in a RV was painful. We couldnt drive above 10mph and the drive seemed unending..

Finally we reached the oddly shaped dried salt spires.. they say you can hear the sound of salt crystals crackling as they expand and contract in the heat. We quickly got out, took photos and rushed back inside. It was middle of the day and heat was becoming unbearable. Its called Devil's Golf Course because they say only devil could play golf in this uneven place..

On the other side were salt basins..

we came back to the paved road and passed these colorful mountains..

Next stop was Badwater Basin, the salt flats. This place was one time underwater. But as the tectonic plates shifted, the water dried up and now its one of the hotest places on earth. Even now you can see marks of water on the mountains lining the valley.

The walk to the middle of the flat nearly roasted us.. we actually covered ourselves with wet towels to keep us cold. I cant imagine how people visit this place in peak summers..

After a few quick photos, we rushed back..

From Badwater we turned around and took the scenic route called Artist's Palette on the way back..

it was a small road with different colored mountains on the right side..

the whole route liked terrain from some other planet..

As we left the Artist's Palette the sun was starting to set. Next on the itinerary were some of the view points. But by that time the sun was pretty low and most of the view of the valley was burnt out. 

The view of the outwordly badlands from the Zabriskie Point..

Next was Dante's View. The view point was on top of a hill and the last few miles the road was narrow and steep. A small RV like ours managed to climb but a bigger vehicle would have gotten stuck. The view of the Badwater Basin from Dante's View..

From there onwards, we rode straight towards Vegas. We reached by 10pm..

It took some time to figure out how and where to park the RV. The hotel had a separate over-sized vehicle parking which was actually in another hotel. after the security to took us to the parking, we dropped the Rv there and checked in. at night we went for a walk along the Vegas strip..

and obviously the casinos..