Aussie Travelers Looking to Do the West Coast in our 1st RV

[sophiephoebe]

Hello all,

So my friend and I are seeking advice on our plans to travel in an RV up and down the West Coast of the US.

Particularly things like:
mileage we would be looking at
locations we must visit
camping ground advice
general RV advice

It would all be so greatly appreciated. Coming from Western Australia, we've done plenty of road trips, but never in an RV - so we do have our reservations - however are super excited nonetheless.

Thank you greatly in advance.


Sophie & Phoebe

[porscheracer]

Perth, eh? You should ring up my cousin David - a petroleum engineer on assignment there.

I think you'll like the Western US - but I can't be of much help. Just saying "Welcome."
_________________
Norm & Janet
'08 Winnebago View 24H / '09 Escape XLT AWD toad
'05 Winnebago Vectra 36RD / '03 Dakota QC 4x4 toad, or a 24' trailer with another car;
Probably somewhere in NA - or maybe on another continent.

[firegal]

Hi,
1 mile is equal to 1.6 kilometers. The western part of the US is just beautiful. What do you want to see is more the question? There are the mountains, sea, desert, and other landscapes to see. There are historical areas, natural formations, wildlife areas, and beautiful waterfalls also to name a few. Any ideas of what you would like to see?

Happy Planning.
_________________
1987 Itasca 32RQ Sunflyer
2005 Chrysler Crossfire
1998 Ford Bronco

[georgeh]

If by coast you mean the 3 western states, the Northern CA redwoods, entire OR and WA coast (Highway 101), Mt Rainier National Park, Mt St Helens and whatever cities might interest you.

An indication of how much time you plan on spending will help others to make suggestions.
_________________
George, Juanita and Mandie the Shar-Pei
01 F350 Dually, PSD, Superchip, K&N, Walker BTM, T-flow combo
(2) Honda 2000i
05 Carriage, Carri-Lite 32' 5er

[elh3946]

If you were to drive I-5 all the way from San Diego, CA to Bellingham, WA, that would be a distance of around 1353 miles.

There are lots of things to see and do in California, Oregon, and Washington, so as another poster said, what kinds of things are you interested in doing and seeing?

Here are some areas to visit just off the top of my head, and is by no stretch of the imagination, an exhaustive list:

Joshua Tree National Park
Death Valley, depending on which part of the year you're making your trip...if you come during Austrialia's winter, that would be summer here, and not a good time to visit DV!
Sequoia National Park
Kings Canyon National Park
Yosemite National Park
Lassen Volcanic National Park
Crater Lake National Park
Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument
Mount Rainer National Park
North Cascades National Park
Olympic National Park

With the exception of the latter, all these NPs are inland...if you want to go up the coast, then you have things such as Point Reyes National Seashore, Redwood National Park, and Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area...plus lots, lots more.
_________________
LindaH
2007 Excel Classic 30RKE
2007 Dodge Ram 3500, Cummins diesel
On the road fulltiming...see where we are now:
http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=1167

[Desertthorn]

Couple questions:
What time of year?
How long do you have time wise?
What are your interests: Sightseeing? Mother Nature? History? Geology? Big cities? Small towns? We have it all and depending upon the time frame you have would really help us direct you.
If you're coming in our winter time, I would focus on California as our mountain passes could be an issue. Summer, I would focus on Washington and Oregon.
If you have it all, time and great weather, I would start in Southern Calif and would check out Palm Springs, Joshua Tree, Death Valley is a must and since you're in the area, Las Vegas. I would swing back west and park the RV someplace near SF and take the train in. (I don't drive big rigs in big towns) but SF is a must. Then I would do the Redwoods and travel up Highway 1 in Oregon to Portland. Once in Washington State, I would certainly see Mt St Helens, and then do the Highway 101 loop through the Olympics.
Campgrounds and RV parks are everywhere so that shouldn't be an issue. I would just wing it. Get yourself a good Western Campground guide that lists them all and when you're ready to call it a day, call around for a park or parking lot.
Have a great time and keep us informed.
_________________
http://lynnehammonds.blogspot.com/

[anniepoo]

On the way through this part of California, you can either be on the east side of the state or the west side.

If yer on the east side, Sacramento has lots of nice stuff in the
Capitol/Old Sacramento area, including one of the worlds best railroad museums and many other fine museums.

If yer going to come by on the west side, PM me. I live in the SF Bay Area.
San Francisco is one of the premier tourist destinations in the US.
_________________
working fulltimer, 21 ft 1977 Jamboree.
No:fridge, generator, hot water
yes:good times, laughter, friends
"Oh, Sam, I can't sleep without wheels beneath me" (Barbara Stanwyck, in 'Union Pacific')

[Kirk]

Let me suggest that you use a good campground guide to get a feel for what is available by way of camping. I suggest that you use the Trailer Life Campground Guide, http://www.trailerlifedirectory.com/.

California has very few places where you can just park and then spend the night, as is true for most of your planned trip. But there are many commercial RV parks and public parks that have camping sites. The state parks in each of the three western states have a good selection of camping sites, as do most of the national parks and many county parks.

How long you plan to visit has to play a major role in where you choose to go and what you will visit. In addition to the locations listed are also such attractions as the Hearst Castle, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Winchester Mansion, Disneyland, the Queen Mary, the San Fransisco Chinatown and fish markets, the Columbia River Gorge, Pinnacles National Monument, and virtually hundreds of other things that people flock to visit. It would be very easy to spend many months on such a trip.
_________________
Good travelin !................Kirk
URL: www.adventure.1tree.net
Sent via Starband, Manual Flyer dish.

[sophiephoebe]

Wow, all these replies are amazing! We honestly can't thank you all enough. It is always really hard trying to plan a trip when you are on the other side of the world and are not really too sure what to expect.

We are really looking at heading to some smaller towns just so we can get off the beaten track a little. Of course, your typical sites such as the national parks and landscapes are high on the agenda too. We are also really keen to go see some gigs (bands/music performances/festivals/etc- just in case gig is an Aussie slang). Over here in Perth, we don't get to see a lot of the large touring bands, so that is high on the list of things to see and do.

We are starting in LA for Coachella (mid-April) and will then head up the West Coast (looking to take a month), and then come back down to LA on a different route (also taking a month). If the RV thing works out really well for us, we will probably look to go longer.

Thank you all so much!

[anniepoo]

>I would swing back west and park the RV someplace near SF and take the train in. (I don't drive big rigs in big towns) but SF is a must.

Yes, I can give you instructions for places you can come and stay on the SF peninsula near the city. You can't realistically take a rig into the city, but there is great public transport to and from.
_________________
working fulltimer, 21 ft 1977 Jamboree.
No:fridge, generator, hot water
yes:good times, laughter, friends
"Oh, Sam, I can't sleep without wheels beneath me" (Barbara Stanwyck, in 'Union Pacific')

[Adrienne]

Ahem. If you read the Women RVers blog for September 22, you'll see how to drive your RV into San Francisco, where to park safely, where to catch the bus, and when you can enjoy many free activities.
_________________
Best--

Adrienne Kristine
Forum Administrator
http://www.RVTravel.com
http://www.FreeCampgrounds.com
http://twitter.com/AdrienneAXK

[anniepoo]

Hmm.... last time I was at Ocean Beach I got told by police to move on.

I'd only just pulled in and was warned I couldn't stay there. I was actually on the south side of GG park on Lincoln Way. Maybe that; maybe the age of my rig, dunno.
_________________
working fulltimer, 21 ft 1977 Jamboree.
No:fridge, generator, hot water
yes:good times, laughter, friends
"Oh, Sam, I can't sleep without wheels beneath me" (Barbara Stanwyck, in 'Union Pacific')

[Adrienne]

You were on Lincoln Way. You need to park in the parking lot right next to the beach south of the Cliff House. That's part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and is under the jurisdiction of the National Park rangers, not the city police. There has been a class C living there for months in that lot (about a mile south of where Lincoln Way meets the Great Highway).

Park in the lot at the foot of Balboa where it meets the Great Highway and you'll be a block from the 38 Geary (and 31 and 5) Muni turnaround.
_________________
Best--

Adrienne Kristine
Forum Administrator
http://www.RVTravel.com
http://www.FreeCampgrounds.com
http://twitter.com/AdrienneAXK

[barbnor2]

I would recommend driving the 101 in Oregon. It is beautiful. Make sure you make reservations. We didn't have any and had a hard time finding places to stay with openings.

As you are driving the 101, you will be on the shoreline of the ocean one minute and a couple of miles later, you are high on a cliff looking down on the huge rocks with the water spray going high into the air. I have always lived on the East Coast - MD, VA and SC, and all the beaches are on flat land. I never experienced the ocean like I did in Oregon. The 101 is a must for traveling the coast of Oregon.

[Sydny]

Welcome Aussies!

How exciting you have planned a trip to our west coast! There are a number of terrific places to visit, but I want to tell you about a place to stay where you can relax, and enjoy the atmosphere.

This is a truly remarkable RV resort hidden away from the hustle and bustle of the noises, yet close to the shopping areas called the Bakersfield RV Resort in Bakersfield, CA.

Before anybody can dissuade you from driving into the desert to find this place, let me tell you a little bit about it:

1) The landscaping is beautiful;
2) The RV sites are large with planted foliage and a picnic table at each site;
3) The office is inside a beautiful, architecturally-designed building which also holds a delicious restaurant where one may eat-in or order, and have it personally delivered to your front door ;
4) The pool is clean and lovely, and big enough to swim laps, if desired;
5) The most amazing thing about this resort are its BATHROOMS! These are directly off the pool area and are designed in a Romanesque fashion. The showers are separate, and the rooms are marble and polished gold everything!

I was so amazed when I first walked in there, I actually thought I was entering the most luxurious hotel in the world!

The resort is clean to the point of being spotless, the employees exude the "happy" and very helpful attitude, and amazingly, they remember your name!

I don't have a monetary interest in the Bakersfield RV Resort, but after traveling over 7000 miles this summer, I can truthfully say this was an awesome experience. If you wanted to know the worst place to stay in California, I can also relay that information, but I would rather think about how wonderful I felt at the Bakersfield RV Resort!

SydnyG
sydnygATgmail.com