American Roadtrip April 09

Hi,

I'm planning a road trip starting in San Francisco and heading down
the Californian coast to Pismo Beach and then off to Williams, AZ
towards the Grand Canyon, then to Las Vegas then back to San
Francisco. What sort of weather can i expect on this trip? I'm
trying to plan what I’m going to need to pack. I will be going from
10th April till 20th April 09.

Hope someone can give me an idea.

Regards,
Anthony

"tommy" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm planning a road trip starting in San Francisco and heading down
the Californian coast to Pismo Beach and then off to Williams, AZ
towards the Grand Canyon, then to Las Vegas then back to San
Francisco. What sort of weather can i expect on this trip? I'm
trying to plan what I’m going to need to pack. I will be going from
10th April till 20th April 09.

Hope someone can give me an idea.

Regards,
Anthony

Not sure about the weather but thats an awfully long journey for only 10
days!! your not gonna see half the things you could and should be seeing!
Doing the Highway 1 from San Fran to LA could be 10 days alone and youd
still not get to see it all and enjoy it all.

Pismo beach, and the clam festival?
dont forget to take a Right at Albequerque


--
_ _
"tommy" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm planning a road trip starting in San Francisco and heading down
the Californian coast to Pismo Beach and then off to Williams, AZ
towards the Grand Canyon, then to Las Vegas then back to San
Francisco. What sort of weather can i expect on this trip? I'm
trying to plan what I’m going to need to pack. I will be going from
10th April till 20th April 09.

Hope someone can give me an idea.

Regards,
Anthony

On Jan 24, 2:20*am, tommy wrote:
Hi,

I'm planning a road trip starting in San Francisco and heading down
the Californian coast to Pismo Beach and then off to Williams, AZ
towards the Grand Canyon, then to Las Vegas then *back to San
Francisco. *What sort of weather can i expect on this trip? *I'm
trying to plan what I’m going to need to pack. *I will be going from
10th April till 20th April 09.

Hope someone can give me an idea.

Regards,
Anthony

the weather should be good. Higher elevations can be colder. No snow
though.

"tommy" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm planning a road trip starting in San Francisco and heading down
the Californian coast to Pismo Beach and then off to Williams, AZ
towards the Grand Canyon, then to Las Vegas then back to San
Francisco. What sort of weather can i expect on this trip? I'm
trying to plan what I’m going to need to pack. I will be going from
10th April till 20th April 09.

Hope someone can give me an idea.

Regards,
Anthony

************
Weather should be okay in your Calif leg. March is usually when the last of
the winter storms come through. And this year being as dry as it has been
to date, my guess is that March too will be on the dry side. It will be on
the cool side, so bring sweaters/jackets/windbreakers.

But I share the concern others have expressed on the 10 days for such a
lengthy trip. Do be aware that this is a big country, unlike - say - the
countries in Europe. Here's an idea - share with us your planned itinerary
day by day in terms of location and have folks here comment on feasibility.
Two quick examples - going from Pismo Beach, CA to Williams, AZ is more like
a two day drive unless you are willing to drive around 12 - 15 hours or so
in one day. Las Vegas to San Francisco is something like 10 hours on the
road. There are straight driving times, stopping only for gas....no
dawdling, no sight seeing.

On Sat, 24 Jan 2009 09:03:09 -0800 (PST), PeterL
wrote:

On Jan 24, 2:20*am, tommy wrote:
Hi,

I'm planning a road trip starting in San Francisco and heading down
the Californian coast to Pismo Beach and then off to Williams, AZ
towards the Grand Canyon, then to Las Vegas then *back to San
Francisco. *What sort of weather can i expect on this trip? *I'm
trying to plan what I’m going to need to pack. *I will be going from
10th April till 20th April 09.

Hope someone can give me an idea.

the weather should be good. Higher elevations can be colder. No snow
though.

The Grand Canyon IS higher elevations. The weather at the
beginning of April in northern Arizona (including Williams and
Flagstaff) is quite variable. While odds are that it will be
clear, sunny and cool, there is a less than negligible chance
there will be a heavy snowstorm.

It is also quite possible that the weather may be dreadful along
the California coast. Periodic storms come down from the Gulf of
Alaska and bring several days of cold, wind and rain. I would say
there's about a one in four chance you could hit this. I strongly
suggest you not try to drive the Monterey-Morro Bay part of Hwy 1
in such weather. The storms end about mid-May, after which there
will be virually no rain at all until autumn.

I once ran into a major snowstorm up around Newhall going over
I-5 and the Grapevine in California the last week in March.

The advice could be more specific if the exact route were given;
in California and Arizona the weather can be highly altitude
dependent and also depend on location. For instnce, the weather
along the coast can be totally different from the weather forty
mile or so inland in the Great Central Valley (where there can be
fog that has to be experienced to believed).

--
************* DAVE HATUNEN ) *************
* Tucson Arizona, out where the cacti grow *
* My typos & mispellings are intentional copyright traps *

Hi,

Thanks to everyone who has posted here! I know my plan is somewhat
ambitious - living in a country where the coast is only 2 hours drive
in any direction. the idea of driving for 9 hours and seeing nothing
on the way except desert and mountain ranges is still 'something'. I
do, however, take on board what everyone has said. My itinerary is
this:

10/04/2009 Arrive San Francisco afternoon 2pm
11/04/2009 S/F City
12/04/2009 S/F to Pismo Beach (4 - 6 hours)
13/04/2009 Drive to Williams, AZ (9 - 10 hours)
14/04/2009 GCNP
15/04/2009 Drive to Las Vegas (3 - 4 hours)
16/04/2009 Las Vegas
17/04/2009 Leave Las Vegas Tecopa (2 -3 hours)
18/04/2009 Leave for San Francisco
19/04/2009 San/Fran
20/04/2009 leave San Francisco 4:30pm

As the 'big' drive is the Pismo to Williams, AZ stretch, would people
suggest missing this S/F to Pismo Beach and do a S/F to Tecopa or
similar area instead. I know that the Californian coast is great, but
perhaps this could wait until another road trip!

I really want to see the Grand Canyon and really to drive through some
magnificent scenery. I look forward to any suggestions on this
itinerary.

Regards,
Anthony

Check out http://www.milebymile.com for highway itineraries and photos
of thousands of North American highways. Even along highways where you
think there is nothing, you'll find lots of interesting stuff. My site
has the most detailed road trip planning information in North America.

I'd also recommend www.roadlodging.com (B&B's) and roadcamping.com.
You can search for B&B's and campgrounds by highway. With the
recession, people should be able to get some good deals on B&B's.

Do see the Grand Canyon. Its a wonder of the world. Get there in the
early morning and watch the sun rise and move among the canyons and
rock formations. Carlsbad Caverns are worth seeing if you can go a
little further. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlsba..._National_Park

Death Valley watching the sun rise at Zabriskie Point is wondrous too.
http://www.milebymile.com/main/Unite...nic_Byway.html

Thanks,
James Love
CEO, Mile By Mile

On Jan 24, 12:30*pm, tommy wrote:
Hi,

Thanks to everyone who has posted here! *I know my plan is somewhat
ambitious *- living in a country where the coast is only 2 hours drive
in any direction. the idea of driving for 9 hours and seeing nothing
on the way except desert and mountain ranges is still 'something'. *I
do, however, take on board what everyone has said. *My itinerary is
this:

10/04/2009 * * *Arrive San Francisco afternoon 2pm
11/04/2009 * * *S/F City
12/04/2009 * * *S/F to Pismo Beach (4 - 6 hours)
13/04/2009 * * *Drive to Williams, AZ (9 - 10 hours)
14/04/2009 * * *GCNP
15/04/2009 * * *Drive to Las Vegas (3 - 4 hours)
16/04/2009 * * *Las Vegas
17/04/2009 * * *Leave Las Vegas Tecopa (2 -3 hours)
18/04/2009 * * *Leave for San Francisco
19/04/2009 * * *San/Fran
20/04/2009 * * *leave San Francisco 4:30pm

As the 'big' drive is the Pismo to Williams, AZ stretch, would people
suggest missing this S/F to Pismo Beach and do a S/F to Tecopa or
similar area instead. *I know that the Californian coast is great, but
perhaps this could wait until another road trip!

I really want to see the Grand Canyon and really to drive through some
magnificent scenery. *I look forward to any suggestions on this
itinerary.

Regards,
Anthony

"tommy" wrote in message
...

Hi,

Thanks to everyone who has posted here! I know my plan is somewhat
ambitious - living in a country where the coast is only 2 hours drive
in any direction. the idea of driving for 9 hours and seeing nothing
on the way except desert and mountain ranges is still 'something'. I
do, however, take on board what everyone has said. My itinerary is
this:

10/04/2009 Arrive San Francisco afternoon 2pm
11/04/2009 S/F City
12/04/2009 S/F to Pismo Beach (4 - 6 hours)
13/04/2009 Drive to Williams, AZ (9 - 10 hours)
14/04/2009 GCNP
15/04/2009 Drive to Las Vegas (3 - 4 hours)
16/04/2009 Las Vegas
17/04/2009 Leave Las Vegas Tecopa (2 -3 hours)
18/04/2009 Leave for San Francisco
19/04/2009 San/Fran
20/04/2009 leave San Francisco 4:30pm

As the 'big' drive is the Pismo to Williams, AZ stretch, would people
suggest missing this S/F to Pismo Beach and do a S/F to Tecopa or
similar area instead. I know that the Californian coast is great, but
perhaps this could wait until another road trip!

I really want to see the Grand Canyon and really to drive through some
magnificent scenery. I look forward to any suggestions on this
itinerary.

Regards,
Anthony

I think your drive times verge on the imaginary, and wonder why you're
flying into California at all if you just want a is a few hrs in San Fran.
What's the allure of Pismo Beach in April? Why not just fly into Las Vegas
and have at the Arizona countryside, perhaps a bit of Utah? As someone else
mentioned, you *should* be out of storm season on the CA coast, but what if
you're not? Northern AZ can be stormy/snowy right into June. What will you
do if you face a 2-3 day road closing?

I'm sounding negative, and I don't really mean to. We have tackled daunting
intineraries many times and lived to tell the tales, and they do turn out to
be enjoyable in the end, for the most part. We have been stuck though, in
some rude (and expensively rude) places, and that's never fun, nor is it
value for the money spent.

If this is your thing, then go for it, but have an alternative already in
mind for most days.

Keith

"tommy" wrote in message
...

Hi,

Thanks to everyone who has posted here! I know my plan is somewhat
ambitious - living in a country where the coast is only 2 hours drive
in any direction. the idea of driving for 9 hours and seeing nothing
on the way except desert and mountain ranges is still 'something'. I
do, however, take on board what everyone has said. My itinerary is
this:

10/04/2009 Arrive San Francisco afternoon 2pm
11/04/2009 S/F City
12/04/2009 S/F to Pismo Beach (4 - 6 hours)
13/04/2009 Drive to Williams, AZ (9 - 10 hours)
14/04/2009 GCNP
15/04/2009 Drive to Las Vegas (3 - 4 hours)
16/04/2009 Las Vegas
17/04/2009 Leave Las Vegas Tecopa (2 -3 hours)
18/04/2009 Leave for San Francisco
19/04/2009 San/Fran
20/04/2009 leave San Francisco 4:30pm

As the 'big' drive is the Pismo to Williams, AZ stretch, would people
suggest missing this S/F to Pismo Beach and do a S/F to Tecopa or
similar area instead. I know that the Californian coast is great, but
perhaps this could wait until another road trip!

I really want to see the Grand Canyon and really to drive through some
magnificent scenery. I look forward to any suggestions on this
itinerary.

Anthony -

It appears that your trip has two segments - the California coast and the
southwest, the latter centered on Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. I
suggest that should another trip to the US be in the offing, that you
concentrate on this trip on the one segment or the other.

You can well spend the 10 days making a loop trip from Las Vegas to Zion to
Bryce to Capitol Reef to Dead Horse Point to Arches to National Bridges to
Gooseneck to Monument Valley to Grand Canyon (south rim) back to Las Vegas.
And while you can easily spend more than 10 days on this loop trip, 10 days
will give it ample justice. And on this trip you will have magnificent
scenery.

And a California trip later in the year schedule-wise can include not only
the coast south of San Francisco, but to Yosemite, Kings Canyon, Sequoia,
and (because the mountain roads would be open) ready access to the east
Sierras as well with - should you be so inclined - the option to visit the
Los Angeles area. The caution here would be to watch your timing because
the coast tends more often than not to be fog bound during the summr months.
On the other hand to wait until too late in the year risks a number of the
waterfalls stop falling.