California Road Trips Guide - 2021 - 30

ROAD TRIPS 2021
Carrizo Plain
National Monument
DISTANCE: 475 MILES * DAYS: 4-5
Bounty & Beauty
TRAVEL THROUGH THE FERTILE CENTRAL VALLEY
EN ROUTE TO THREE AMAZING PARKS
S
tart with a Southernstyle
breakfast at
Aunt Mary's Cafe in
Oakland, then take Highway 24
through the East Bay's grassy
hills and descend into the
Central Valley's vast plains.
Resist the urge to speed
through the flatlands-if you
do, you'll miss out on prime
salad-bowl country. Start with
a bucket of peaches at The
Fruit Bowl in Stockton. Then
produce-shop your way down
Highway 99. In Modesto, you
can pick your own berries or
stone fruit at VanderHelm
Farms. In Merced, grab a bottle
of wine at Vista Ranch.
As you cruise into Fresno,
pull over at Simonian Farms,
a 1901 family-run fruit stand,
to sample the French burnt
peanuts and dried nectarines.
Spend a few hours in Fresno's
Tower District, a hip neighborhood
with vintage boutiques,
brewpubs, and restaurants.
Next, travel east on Highway
180 to Kings Canyon National
Park to get your first look at
giant sequoia trees in Grant
Grove. A short loop trail
30 | VISITCALIFORNIA.COM
connects the 2,000-year-old
General Grant Tree with dozens
of leviathans.
Drive south on the Generals
Highway to Sequoia National
Park to see more amazing trees
in Giant Forest. Stare in awe at
the General Sherman-the largest
living thing by volume-then
walk the two-mile Congress
Trail, which shows off dozens
more sequoias. End the day
with a climb up Moro Rock's 370
granite steps to take in the vista
of the Great Western Divide.
Next, zigzag through 130
curves to exit the park and drive
west to Exeter. Walk along
Pine Street and surrounding
blocks to see 27 colorful
murals celebrating the area's
agricultural heritage. Then
zoom south to Bakersfield and
check in at the swanky Padre
Hotel, famous for its cowboy
sophistication.
Next, head west to " California's
Serengeti, " Carrizo Plain
National Monument. This vast
region contains California's
single largest native grasslands,
where tule elk and pronghorn
roam, and rare birds abound.
OAKLAND TO CARRIZO PLAIN
OAKLAND
The Fruit Bowl
Aunt
Mary's
Cafe
VanderHelm
Farms
Simonian
Farms
FRESNO
Sequoia
& Kings
Canyon
National
Parks
Pacific
Ocean
Padre Hotel
CARRIZO PLAIN
WORTH A DETOUR
Diablo vista: Near Walnut Creek, the
Summit Museum on 3,849-foot Mount Diablo
provides an astounding
360-degree view from its
stone observation deck.
Cheesy goodness:
Visalia's Quesadilla
Gorilla serves world-class
Mexican comfort food.
AREA OF DETAIL
San
Francisco
ancis
Los
Angeles
San
Diego
Spring wildflowers draw a
crowd, but there are amazing
sights year-round. Walk the
boardwalk trail at ephemeral
Soda Lake, and you might spot
an array of wintering raptors. Or
stretch your legs on the Caliente
Ridge Trail, a 7-mile ridgeline
path with panoramic views.
GARY KAVANAGH/GETTY IMAGES
http://www.VISITCALIFORNIA.COM
California Road Trips Guide - 2021

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