California (and the area) peeps, help me with my vacation :)

NFRs2000NYC

Member
So the wife and I are flying into LAX on April 7th-14th for a little r&r. We're looking to mostly spend our time in nature, hiking, mostly in the national parks. Wanted to take her to Sequoia, kings canyon, yosemite, maybe death valley and possibly joshua tree. I havent been to the first 3 since I was a kid, and have never been to the last two period. I will be Jeepless sadly, as our 1 week time frame didn't allow me to drive mine out from NJ, so I rented an audi Q3 from Silvercar. How is the weather in that area in early april? I heard the wildflower blooms just start happening, but some roads are still closed. Also would love to soak in some hot springs along the way, but preferably not those "hot puddles" with 100 people in them. Any advice on the area for this time of year?
 

NFRs2000NYC

Member
The hot springs usually have old people with naked hairy balls hanging out. If that’s your thing they are fun. If it’s not, it’s a little weird.


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Lol, yea that’s not my thing. Thought maybe they would be similar to those in Colorado or Wyoming but seems like I’ll be confined to the hot tubs of my airbnbs. How bad is the snow in Yosemite at that time of year?
 

OverlanderJL

Resident Smartass
Lol, yea that’s not my thing. Thought maybe they would be similar to those in Colorado or Wyoming but seems like I’ll be confined to the hot tubs of my airbnbs. How bad is the snow in Yosemite at that time of year?

They got a lot this year. Another storm coming in this week. I might take that off the list or call the park the week before you come out.


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wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
As mentioned, the Sierra's got a record amount of snow this year. Should make for a spectacular visit. I would for sure call the ranger station ahead of time to verify road conditions.

Regarding hot springs, what Adam said. There are good ones out there but they're hard to find and nobody will tell you where they're at. The ones you can find are hippy hangouts and kind of nasty.
 

NFRs2000NYC

Member
As mentioned, the Sierra's got a record amount of snow this year. Should make for a spectacular visit. I would for sure call the ranger station ahead of time to verify road conditions.

Regarding hot springs, what Adam said. There are good ones out there but they're hard to find and nobody will tell you where they're at. The ones you can find are hippy hangouts and kind of nasty.

Thanks as always for the candor. Do you think the Joshua tree NP is worth the detour or is it just full of hippies on peyote and isn’t worth a stop? Also, I can count on your honest opinion here lol, do you think a rental Audi Q5 can make it to the racetrack in Death Valley or am I gonna kill it?
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Thanks as always for the candor. Do you think the Joshua tree NP is worth the detour or is it just full of hippies on peyote and isn’t worth a stop? Also, I can count on your honest opinion here lol, do you think a rental Audi Q5 can make it to the racetrack in Death Valley or am I gonna kill it?

Personally, I think Joshua Tree is overrated for what it is. Sure, it's pretty but there are places I can think of that are just as pretty if not more so and without the crowds or the dumpy areas surrounding it. Death Valley is a must and I would HIGHLY recommend it especially over Joshua Tree. Depending on how you route your trip, you can make your way out to the Owens Valley. Super beautiful there especially with the Sierra's being so white capped right now. This will also take you out to Lone Pine and out there, you can visit the Alabama Hills which look a lot like Joshua Tree. Tons of movies have been filmed out there as well and it's well worth the visit. I should note, this is all Q5 friendly too.

Regarding the Racetrack, yes, you can make it there in the Q5. Just take your time and enjoy the scenery along the way. Make a stop over at Teakettle Junction and take some pics. More than likely, there will still be some wildflowers in bloom too.
 

NFRs2000NYC

Member
Personally, I think Joshua Tree is overrated for what it is. Sure, it's pretty but there are places I can think of that are just as pretty if not more so and without the crowds or the dumpy areas surrounding it. Death Valley is a must and I would HIGHLY recommend it especially over Joshua Tree. Depending on how you route your trip, you can make your way out to the Owens Valley. Super beautiful there especially with the Sierra's being so white capped right now. This will also take you out to Lone Pine and out there, you can visit the Alabama Hills which look a lot like Joshua Tree. Tons of movies have been filmed out there as well and it's well worth the visit. I should note, this is all Q5 friendly too.

Regarding the Racetrack, yes, you can make it there in the Q5. Just take your time and enjoy the scenery along the way. Make a stop over at Teakettle Junction and take some pics. More than likely, there will still be some wildflowers in bloom too.

Thanks dude, appreciate it as always. Just check your PMs from time to time, in case I need to send out an SOS signal haha
 

OverlanderJL

Resident Smartass
Thought you’d be a good person to ask....any awesome “must eat” spots along my path? Not really looking for fine dining, but love good unique dives and street food.

Steaks and Beer in Tecopa. Best food I’ve had in a very long time. The chef there used to work in Vegas and was in fine dining. He got tired of it and moved to this tiny town. It’s a total dive with two tables and outdoor seating but I would pay $200 plus to eat there easy. I think it ended up being like $60 a person for a four or five course meal.


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wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Steaks and Beer in Tecopa. Best food I’ve had in a very long time. The chef there used to work in Vegas and was in fine dining. He got tired of it and moved to this tiny town. It’s a total dive with two tables and outdoor seating but I would pay $200 plus to eat there easy. I think it ended up being like $60 a person for a four or five course meal.


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Oh hell yeah!! I totally second that!! [emoji1303]


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BillArnett

New member
Personally, I think Joshua Tree is overrated for what it is. Sure, it's pretty but there are places I can think of that are just as pretty if not more so and without the crowds or the dumpy areas surrounding it. Death Valley is a must and I would HIGHLY recommend it especially over Joshua Tree. Depending on how you route your trip, you can make your way out to the Owens Valley. Super beautiful there especially with the Sierra's being so white capped right now. This will also take you out to Lone Pine and out there, you can visit the Alabama Hills which look a lot like Joshua Tree. Tons of movies have been filmed out there as well and it's well worth the visit. I should note, this is all Q5 friendly too.

Regarding the Racetrack, yes, you can make it there in the Q5. Just take your time and enjoy the scenery along the way. Make a stop over at Teakettle Junction and take some pics. More than likely, there will still be some wildflowers in bloom too.

I was just in Joshua Tree last week. I generally agree with Eddie’s assessment. BUT there is an amazing bloom of wildflowers at the southern end of the park. Alas, it will probably be all gone by the time you’re here but it might be worth a call to the ranger just in case.
 

Hoffer

New member
I would bypass the racetrack. That would be 3hrs at 5-10 mph. There are only 2 speeds on that road 10 mph and 60 mph. All washboard.

Hit Death Valley then onto Hwy 395. It is very nice up to Carson City. You can see Alabama Hills,Mount Whitney and much more. Go up to Carson City and Virginia city if you like gold mining towns and ghosts and cut over from there and see Lake Tahoe. On the the way back to see Yosemite and Sequoia
 

NFRs2000NYC

Member
Tahoe will still be under a heap of snow no? If I do make it up that far, then I'd definitely want to meet up with Eddie and Cindy (if they are in town that is) for a burger and a beer. :thumb: As for the racetrack and 60mph, As Jeremy Clarkson says, you know what the fastest car in the world is? A rental car lol
 

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Hoffer

New member
Tahoe will still be under a heap of snow no? If I do make it up that far, then I'd definitely want to meet up with Eddie and Cindy (if they are in town that is) for a burger and a beer. :thumb: As for the racetrack and 60mph, As Jeremy Clarkson says, you know what the fastest car in the world is? A rental car lol


That was an easy 60 mph in my Raptor. Rental car would make it maybe 3 minutes at 60mph and most likely end in total destruction or multiple flat tires.

I forgot to add there is the Bodie ghost town on 395 too. You can do LA to Carson City via Death Valley in an easy 2-3 days.

LA to Death Valley 1 day sight seeing
You can do Death valley to Carson City in 6 hours so there's plenty of time to see stuff if you take longer
 

NFRs2000NYC

Member
That was an easy 60 mph in my Raptor. Rental car would make it maybe 3 minutes at 60mph and most likely end in total destruction or multiple flat tires.

I forgot to add there is the Bodie ghost town on 395 too. You can do LA to Carson City via Death Valley in an easy 2-3 days.

LA to Death Valley 1 day sight seeing
You can do Death valley to Carson City in 6 hours so there's plenty of time to see stuff if you take longer

So if I'm hearing you correctly, make sure I get the full insurance lol :cheesy::cheesy: Thanks for taking the time. I'll plan out my route and post it up, and maybe you guys can recommend some other things along the way. Thanks again everyone.
 

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