I'm flying into Sacramento next Saturday morning and have the weekend to take some pictures before a work-related class that starts Monday morning in Sacramento. I've never been to California and would like to maximize the little time available to me. My general plan is to first head south to Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Parks via highway 99 and Visalia, circling through the parks and working north and west back to Fresno, then heading north on highway 41 to Yosemite.
My first problem is that I don't have any idea how to allocate time between the two parks, how long it takes to drive through the parks, etc. I don't mind moderate hikes (my appendix burst a couple of months ago, and I'm not back in shape yet), but I don't have enough time to do much.
I originally planned to spend all of my time in Yosemite, but I really want to see the giant Sequoia trees while I'm in the vicinity. Of course, I'm looking for a sunset location for Saturday and a sunrise location for Sunday.
What should I not miss while I'm here?
My last day of class, I'll probably drive out to San Francisco and see the Golden Gate Bridge and a few other things in that city.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Posted by Richard Wong on April 27, 2008 at 10:20 PM
You won't have time to spend anywhere by doing that. California is a big place, and the mountain roads take a while to navigate. I'd suggest either stay around Sacramento, there are lots of travel related subjects in town or on highway 49, or go to Lake Tahoe 2 hrs to the east, or San Francisco two hours to the west.
You could also juar hit Yosemite for the weekend, but Richard is on the money. Your agenda is overly optimistic for the time you have unless you want to see everything through the windshield (and even then, barely). I would pick one locale and concentrate on it. My favorite is Yosemite, which has a huge variety of things to shoot.
Posted by Lon Overacker on April 28, 2008 at 4:40 PM
Chad,
I would stick with your original plan. It's not a question of how long it takes to drive thru each of those parks - it's how long it takes just to GET to the park. I'm estimating it will be a good 4hr drive from the Sac airport to just Yosemite. You would spend closer to 6+ hours to get to Sequoia.
Depending on when your flight gets in, you'd be hard pressed to get but a few hours of shooting in Yosemite on Saturday. Personally, I think it would be worth the trip to Yosemite, especially since you've never been. Spring is coming out in Yosemite and the dogwoods are currently in bloom. The waterfalls will be flowing nicely.
If it were me, here's what I would do:
- Go to Yosemite! Take highway 140 out of Merced off 99. Yosemite is about 1hr from there.
- Make a reservation in either Mariposa or El Portal for Saturday night
- Depending on when you get there, drive the Valley loop and check out all the scenic pullouts. There's road construction now in the valley, but obvious how to get around.
- For sunset, go to Tunnel View. Take highway 41 from the Valley floor near Bridal Veil falls. Since you've never been, it's a must see. It does get crowded there with tour buses and photographers, but the park service recently cut down some trees and vegetation to improve the view from there so finding a good spot shouldn't be a problem.
- Sunrise Sunday.... Yosemite isn't really ideal for sunrises or pre-dawn photography since the walls are steep and the valley narrow. Too many spots to try and describe, but in general, the eastern end of the valley near Yosemite Village (Cook's meadow) the mornings can be nice. Some times fog/mist will cover the meadow and lots of opporunities are presented including nice light on Yosemite Falls around 9am? or so.
Another nice early morning location is Cathedral Beach - reflections of El Capitan and The Three Brothers.
One of my favorite early morning locations is right next to Bridal Veil falls - There's a long pullout for cars on both sides of the road. Hard to miss. Great place to shoot El Capitan with rising mist around the monolith and black oaks in the meadows.
- Short walks in the Valley include Mirror Lake, Happy Isles and of course short walks to Yosemite Falls and the area around Bridal Veil.
- Longer, more agressive hikes include the trail up to Yosemite Falls - although at this point in the season I'm sure it's not open all the way to the top. Also, the "Mist" trail which starts out of Happy Isles and makes a steady climb to Vernal Falls.
Too much other stuff to mention...
- On the backend of your trip if you're going to San Francisco and still want to see some giant redwoods, check out Muir Woods just north of SF. You can check out the GG Bridge and the woods all in an afternoon.
I just think Sequoia is too darn far for one and a half days. Also, highway 41 from Fresno to Yosemite is a long, long, winding road.
Hope this helps. Feel free to drop me an email if you have questions.
Lon
Posted by Nelcha Cross on April 28, 2008 at 5:03 PM
Hi Chad,
Well, as I live in Sacramento, I can only tell you that if you wish to go to Yosemite, "you can"
but you will only get about 3 hours sleep Sunday night...before your meeting.
I have done "many" kamikaze trips where I leave about 2 AM and arrive in the park
about an hour before sunrise so I can have quiet light time where I choose to be.
I photograph from sunrise,grab a quick sandwich at Degnan's Deli near the Village Store
for lunch, photograph a few more hours then have a Grand dinner in The Mountain Room,
then go get sunset somewhere, then do some grand "night photography"
before heading home by night.
So depends how well you function on 3 hours sleep?
I can also check out local places for you if you choose to say local.
What is the last day of your class? weekday or weekend?
There are many great places to get the GGB and/or skylines but
depends what time of day and that alot depends on day of the week and traffic.
Thank you so much for the responses! Excellent websites, by the way.
OK, I've trimmed my itinerary down to just Yosemite for the weekend. Even if it's just a short visit, there's no way I'd not see it while I'm that close.
My flight gets in at 9:30am Saturday, and I'm spending Saturday night in Oakhurst. Class doesn't start until Monday morning, so I can at least get in sunset Saturday, maybe some night shooting Saturday night, and sunrise Sunday morning with maybe some b&w sprinkled in.
For Monday and Tuesday nights, I'll probably look for something in or around Sacramento.
My class gets out at 3:00pm Wednesday, so that leaves plenty of time to get to SF. The Muir Woods looks awesome, so thanks for that idea, Lon! I fly out Thursday morning with no time for fun before the flight. Hopefully, I will have seen some incredible stuff and will be dying to get home and get some images on the computer. Thanks again, and I look forward to my visit.
Posted by Lon Overacker on April 29, 2008 at 12:53 AM
Chad,
If you can do it, I would really recommend cancelling your reservations in Oakhurst. Since there's really only time for Yosemite, you'll want to maximize the time and the drive to Oakhurst and following drive in to Yosemite will be a good 3 more additional hours of driving. It's not that the drive from Oakhurst to the valley is a bad drive, it's just a long one. Of course you will have the Mariposa Grove to see, but not sure how much of it is open at this point in the season.
Around Sacramento in the evening you may want to wander around the American River - I believe there are some parks and miles and miles of bike trails. spring along the river should be looking good. If interested, Old town sacramento is a popular spot. Do some Googling for those spots.
Have a great trip.
Lon
Posted by Richard Wong on April 29, 2008 at 1:38 AM
I agree w/ Lon, probably would be best to get reservations in Mariposa, El Portal or in the park even. Oakhurst is driving past Yosemite.
Muir Woods is overrated in my opinion though some would probably disagree w/ me there. It would be a good excuse to get up to Mt Tam though.
I also concur about Oakhurst. Too far. Try to get something in the valley first, then El Portal if that fails. Don't overlook Yosemite West, which is in the park and not too far from the valley. They have condos, etc. Might not be a bad second choice. Not sure how expensive though.
Thanks for much for all of the insight - the short trip was fairly enjoyable. I ended up staying at Yosemite West for my one night and was sooooooo glad I didn't stay any further away. The haze was really bad while I was in the park, and I'm afraid I didn't capture anything to write home about. Yosemite Valley is definitely one of the most special places I've ever visited, but I can't imagine what the crowds must be like in the summer. I stopped by Napa Valley on my way to the Golden Gate Bridge and wished I hadn't. The traffic was horrible getting out of there. Anyway, I thought I'd post one b&w from Yosemite to finish things off.
Discussion
9 repliesI'm flying into Sacramento next Saturday morning and have the weekend to take some pictures before a work-related class that starts Monday morning in Sacramento. I've never been to California and would like to maximize the little time available to me. My general plan is to first head south to Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Parks via highway 99 and Visalia, circling through the parks and working north and west back to Fresno, then heading north on highway 41 to Yosemite.
My first problem is that I don't have any idea how to allocate time between the two parks, how long it takes to drive through the parks, etc. I don't mind moderate hikes (my appendix burst a couple of months ago, and I'm not back in shape yet), but I don't have enough time to do much.
I originally planned to spend all of my time in Yosemite, but I really want to see the giant Sequoia trees while I'm in the vicinity. Of course, I'm looking for a sunset location for Saturday and a sunrise location for Sunday.
What should I not miss while I'm here?
My last day of class, I'll probably drive out to San Francisco and see the Golden Gate Bridge and a few other things in that city.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
I would stick with your original plan. It's not a question of how long it takes to drive thru each of those parks - it's how long it takes just to GET to the park. I'm estimating it will be a good 4hr drive from the Sac airport to just Yosemite. You would spend closer to 6+ hours to get to Sequoia.
Depending on when your flight gets in, you'd be hard pressed to get but a few hours of shooting in Yosemite on Saturday. Personally, I think it would be worth the trip to Yosemite, especially since you've never been. Spring is coming out in Yosemite and the dogwoods are currently in bloom. The waterfalls will be flowing nicely.
If it were me, here's what I would do:
- Go to Yosemite! Take highway 140 out of Merced off 99. Yosemite is about 1hr from there.
- Make a reservation in either Mariposa or El Portal for Saturday night
- Depending on when you get there, drive the Valley loop and check out all the scenic pullouts. There's road construction now in the valley, but obvious how to get around.
- For sunset, go to Tunnel View. Take highway 41 from the Valley floor near Bridal Veil falls. Since you've never been, it's a must see. It does get crowded there with tour buses and photographers, but the park service recently cut down some trees and vegetation to improve the view from there so finding a good spot shouldn't be a problem.
- Sunrise Sunday.... Yosemite isn't really ideal for sunrises or pre-dawn photography since the walls are steep and the valley narrow. Too many spots to try and describe, but in general, the eastern end of the valley near Yosemite Village (Cook's meadow) the mornings can be nice. Some times fog/mist will cover the meadow and lots of opporunities are presented including nice light on Yosemite Falls around 9am? or so.
Another nice early morning location is Cathedral Beach - reflections of El Capitan and The Three Brothers.
One of my favorite early morning locations is right next to Bridal Veil falls - There's a long pullout for cars on both sides of the road. Hard to miss. Great place to shoot El Capitan with rising mist around the monolith and black oaks in the meadows.
- Short walks in the Valley include Mirror Lake, Happy Isles and of course short walks to Yosemite Falls and the area around Bridal Veil.
- Longer, more agressive hikes include the trail up to Yosemite Falls - although at this point in the season I'm sure it's not open all the way to the top. Also, the "Mist" trail which starts out of Happy Isles and makes a steady climb to Vernal Falls.
Too much other stuff to mention...
- On the backend of your trip if you're going to San Francisco and still want to see some giant redwoods, check out Muir Woods just north of SF. You can check out the GG Bridge and the woods all in an afternoon.
I just think Sequoia is too darn far for one and a half days. Also, highway 41 from Fresno to Yosemite is a long, long, winding road.
Hope this helps. Feel free to drop me an email if you have questions.
Lon
Well, as I live in Sacramento, I can only tell you that if you wish to go to Yosemite, "you can"
but you will only get about 3 hours sleep Sunday night...before your meeting.
I have done "many" kamikaze trips where I leave about 2 AM and arrive in the park
about an hour before sunrise so I can have quiet light time where I choose to be.
I photograph from sunrise,grab a quick sandwich at Degnan's Deli near the Village Store
for lunch, photograph a few more hours then have a Grand dinner in The Mountain Room,
then go get sunset somewhere, then do some grand "night photography"
before heading home by night.
So depends how well you function on 3 hours sleep?
I can also check out local places for you if you choose to say local.
What is the last day of your class? weekday or weekend?
There are many great places to get the GGB and/or skylines but
depends what time of day and that alot depends on day of the week and traffic.
Please feel free to contact me anytime.....
in gratitude,
Nelcha
Thank you so much for the responses! Excellent websites, by the way.
OK, I've trimmed my itinerary down to just Yosemite for the weekend. Even if it's just a short visit, there's no way I'd not see it while I'm that close.
My flight gets in at 9:30am Saturday, and I'm spending Saturday night in Oakhurst. Class doesn't start until Monday morning, so I can at least get in sunset Saturday, maybe some night shooting Saturday night, and sunrise Sunday morning with maybe some b&w sprinkled in.
For Monday and Tuesday nights, I'll probably look for something in or around Sacramento.
My class gets out at 3:00pm Wednesday, so that leaves plenty of time to get to SF. The Muir Woods looks awesome, so thanks for that idea, Lon! I fly out Thursday morning with no time for fun before the flight. Hopefully, I will have seen some incredible stuff and will be dying to get home and get some images on the computer. Thanks again, and I look forward to my visit.
If you can do it, I would really recommend cancelling your reservations in Oakhurst. Since there's really only time for Yosemite, you'll want to maximize the time and the drive to Oakhurst and following drive in to Yosemite will be a good 3 more additional hours of driving. It's not that the drive from Oakhurst to the valley is a bad drive, it's just a long one. Of course you will have the Mariposa Grove to see, but not sure how much of it is open at this point in the season.
Around Sacramento in the evening you may want to wander around the American River - I believe there are some parks and miles and miles of bike trails. spring along the river should be looking good. If interested, Old town sacramento is a popular spot. Do some Googling for those spots.
Have a great trip.
Lon
Muir Woods is overrated in my opinion though some would probably disagree w/ me there. It would be a good excuse to get up to Mt Tam though.
Thanks for much for all of the insight - the short trip was fairly enjoyable. I ended up staying at Yosemite West for my one night and was sooooooo glad I didn't stay any further away. The haze was really bad while I was in the park, and I'm afraid I didn't capture anything to write home about. Yosemite Valley is definitely one of the most special places I've ever visited, but I can't imagine what the crowds must be like in the summer. I stopped by Napa Valley on my way to the Golden Gate Bridge and wished I hadn't. The traffic was horrible getting out of there. Anyway, I thought I'd post one b&w from Yosemite to finish things off.