With trees as tall as skyscrapers and an understory of primeval ferns, a hike in Hendy Woods State Park just outside of Boonville, California will leave you with a sore neck from staring up for so long. Hiking in Hendy Woods State Park On the soggy day that we visited, we had the entire park to ourselves. We elected to do a loop hike in the Big Hendy area - a great choice as it…
On a recent drive up the California coast, I discovered Santa Barbara — an upscale paradise with its red-tile rooftops, thriving local food and wine scene, compact downtown and bounty of outdoor activities. Located about two hours north of Los Angeles, where the Santa Ynez Mountains meet the Pacific Ocean, Santa Barbara describes itself as the “American Riviera.” A 1925 earthquake leveled much of the city and buildings were re-built in the Spanish-Revival style, resulting…
You'll have no problem finding fun things to do in Mendocino, California. Anybody I have bumped into since visiting Mendocino exclaims "I love that place." That's how I feel about it too. For a small village with a population of just 849, Mendocino and the surrounding area offers an incredibly diverse range of things to do in a spectacular setting. And getting there is part of the fun. Getting to Mendocino Chances are you'll be…
If you're looking for a beautiful coastal hike that delivers superlative views along with big time drama complete with crumbling cliffs and pounding seas then head for the Stornetta Lands, just north of Point Arena and south of Mendocino. Hailed by the New York Times as the #1 spot to visit in 2014, they are part of the California Coastal National Monument System - and the first onshore unit. You only need a few hours to…
I'm being interrogated in US Customs with the typical questions directed my way - where are you going and what will you be doing? I say to the gentleman that John and I are off to Mendocino. He asks if it's in South America. No, I reply, north of San Francisco and three to four hours up the coast depending on traffic I say. Mendocino and the nearby towns and state parks are truly lovely.…
Joshua Tree National Park is a hiker's paradise, especially in early March when the temperatures are moderate and the desert flowers are beginning to bloom.While visiting Palm Springs, my daughter and I made a day trip to the park. We only had a few hours so we chose the Ryan Mountain hike for the fantastic 360 degree views you get from the summit. The hike is steep in places but not difficult. Over 1.5 miles…
The pretty town of historic Mariposa, California with a population of just 18,000 sits at the junction of Highways 49 and 140, not more than a 40 minute drive away from the west entrance of Yosemite National Park - though you need to add a few hours to the drive if you hit a big snow storm like I did. Although Mariposa is well situated to visit both Mariposa Grove and the Yosemite Valley, it deserves some…
My expectations were low as I headed off on a hike to Escondido Falls in Malibu. After all, I was in southern California - a place at least in my mind associated with lots of people and very little in the way of wilderness. Fortunately I was wrong. It seems that some of the canyons accessible from the Pacific Coast Highway offer some pretty decent hiking. I took a few hours and hiked to Escondido…
Yosemite National Park is unbelievably popular - especially between June and September when half the visitors for the year show up. Visiting Yosemite in winter is no less beautiful - just different and obviously not everything is open. But it's very peaceful and incredibly picturesque especially when dusted with snow. And there is plenty to do should you care to do it. I have wanted to visit Yosemite for years now - and on the…
A trip to see the giant sequoias of Yosemite National Park is bucketlist worthy. While I have seen some big trees in my time - Cathedral Grove on the way to Tofino on Vancouver Island, Muir Woods near San Francisco and true virgin forest in northwestern Ontario where few people have ever trod, the giant sequoias in Yosemite are nothing short of mind-blowing. Spend a few hours wandering through Mariposa Grove and you'll feel like…
© 2019 Hike Bike Travel | All Rights Reserved
EXCLUSIVE MEMBER OF MEDIAVINE TRAVEL
My store contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I will earn a commission at no extra cost to you. These commissions help reduce the ever-increasing costs of keeping this site active. Thanks for reading!
