Need input on planning a trip

L

Ladymc

Novice
We are thinking of taking a long trip West this summer. We're thinking towards Washington to see the Lavender fields (at least I'm thinking that) - I know there's a Lavendar festival mid-July (thank you Al Gore for inventing the internet!)

We'd also like to see the Redwoods, Northern California, make a big loop and head back to Texas. But I want to know what to see and do along the way - Bear? I'm a campground/state park kind of person if anyone can help in that areana too. I have internet and books on all that, but I don't want to ck. campgrounds till I know what I'm going to be going and seeing - just looking for suggestions of some really neat "must see" type of things - and we also like tourist traps...yeah, yeah, I know...
 
I am right now doing the same. Ours is slightly different. Ellen and I am planning to spend several days in the U.P. We are going out of our ways to visit friends and log a couple of days at Niagara Falls. Then on to the U.P. A stop at the Cherry Festival at Traverse City on the way home will complete. I was just on line looking at the state parks and other campgrounds. I am using mapquest for a mileage estimate. We are just putting it together one leg at a time. I was wondering about a "wedding planner" sort of thing. You fill out a questionaire and someone lays it all out.
Hope this helps,
Steve
 
Newsflash! I don't have to go to Washington State to see the lavender fields - they're right here in Texas and will bloom in April & May! Whodathunkit? Thank the Lord that I googled Lavender fields, usa to see if they were closer...they were...WAY closer! Right up the road in Stonewall, Tx.! 1 1/2 hrs. away! Phew! Think of all the gas I saved...

But still, those Redwoods and Northern California beckons...gotta plan that trip!
 
Bill and Linda. Both Oregon and Washington have good state parks along the coast, but we are very impressed with Oregon's. Showers are free (!)and there appear to be a lot more of them. We are particulary fond of Umpqha Lighthouse State Park along Hwy 101, but also had a lovely stay at Cape Lookout State Park. The website is very easy to use: www.oregonstateparks.org

There is tons of stuff to do in both Washington and Oregon. One of our favorite stops is Tillamook, OR. There is a fascinating air museum and the Tillamook Cheese factory (although we found the massive numbers of tour busses somewhat irritating.) Just about a mile south of that is the Blue Heron French Cheese Company - a wonderful place to stop for lunch.
 
Kathy & Bob,
Hey thanks for the info.! I find it funny that you say the showers are free - I had assumed that they all were in the State Parks - they are in Texas and Arkansas...I guess different states have different fees....just strange to a Southern Girl!

Can you tell me something about the raining in Washington & Oregon - all the time, right?

We were in Amish country in Ohio in 1999 and went to cheese factories there, bought homemade bread and cheese and had it outside on the lawn...awesome memory and would love to make some more like it!

We're not exactly sure where or when we'll be going but just gathering info. at this time - thanks for the state park info. I'll file it in my "Go To" file and start my research!
 
Linda,

Route 66 offers a lot of kitschy/touristy options. That was our first trip in a teardrop. We used 2 different books on Route 66 to see everything & get the history. We did a detour & went to Carlsbad Caverns, over to Guadalupe Mts, up to Las Cruces, over to White Sands & Alamogordo,on up to Albuquerque & back on the Route 66 path. Besides the national parks already mentioned, we went to the Petrified Forest. Then up to the Grand Canyon & on up to Utah, stopping at national & state parks along the way. We used to live in Utah, so we've been to lots of parks there.

Went to the IRG this summer & spent a lot of time in & around the redwoods. It was amazing! Planning on going back next year.

:cool:
 
Yeah Bear, sorta figured that - not a problem. We like nature too, but also our conveniences. But thanks anyway - not sure just where we're headed - just trying to see some interesting things on our way there - wherever there is!
 
ladymc said:
Kathy & Bob,
Hey thanks for the info.! I find it funny that you say the showers are free - I had assumed that they all were in the State Parks - they are in Texas and Arkansas...I guess different states have different fees....just strange to a Southern Girl!

Can you tell me something about the raining in Washington & Oregon - all the time, right?

We were in Amish country in Ohio in 1999 and went to cheese factories there, bought homemade bread and cheese and had it outside on the lawn...awesome memory and would love to make some more like it!

We're not exactly sure where or when we'll be going but just gathering info. at this time - thanks for the state park info. I'll file it in my "Go To" file and start my research!
Click to expand...
 
Our rainy season is mid-October to late May; during the summer we usually have blue skies ("the bluest skies you've ever seen are in Seattle"). They say - whoever they are - that we actually have less rain than Atlanta. Never having been there except to fly through, I can't verify that. They good weather news is that we rarely have the snow in winter and mosquitos in summer that the rest of the country has. Wouldn't live anywhere else!

Kathy
 
KathyBob said:
guess I need some help with including text from a previous post in my reply!
Click to expand...

KathyBob,
In order to include someone's text in your reply, all you have to do is click on the word quote at the bottom of their text and it will place that quote in a new box and you can just type away to your little hearts content, replying to that specific statement. Hope this helps!
 
KathyBob said:
Our rainy season is mid-October to late May; during the summer we usually have blue skies ("the bluest skies you've ever seen are in Seattle"). They say - whoever they are - that we actually have less rain than Atlanta. Never having been there except to fly through, I can't verify that. They good weather news is that we rarely have the snow in winter and mosquitos in summer that the rest of the country has. Wouldn't live anywhere else!

Kathy
Click to expand...

Bill's Aunt & Uncle lived in the Northwest - Portland, OR I think and he said it rained everyday. We were in Seattle in Sept. 2008 a day prior to cruising out to Alaska and found that we enjoy Seattle much more than the Alaskan cruise! Both were good, but Seattle and the Sound were GORGEOUS! And yes, the sky was BA-LUE!!!! That's why I'd like to go back to Wash. and spend more time there. Gotta convince Bill that the drive's worth it. Hey, with the Raindrop who needs to hurry there OR back?
 
Will do Bear - that may be a while - I'm about to get really busy for this next month with family things. Apil will probably be a month we'll be doing some short trips with the Raindrop (assuming it's delivered before then.) We won't be able to take a big trip till about July or August.
 
ladymc said:
KathyBob said:
guess I need some help with including text from a previous post in my reply!
Click to expand...

KathyBob,
In order to include someone's text in your reply, all you have to do is click on the word quote at the bottom of their text and it will place that quote in a new box and you can just type away to your little hearts content, replying to that specific statement. Hope this helps!
Click to expand...

thanks for the help. Let's see if I do this right!
 
I agree with Kathy about the blue skies is Washington. The Seattle area has a bad rap about the omnipresent rain, which I think is due in large part to the movie "Sleepless in Seattle" where it rained the entire movie. :confused: We actually get some very nice weather for a good part of the year. It's not uncommon to have 20 to 30 days in a row without rain during the summer or in late September. It actually seems like the summers are getting hotter - perhaps I should send Al Gore a thank you note for inventing global warming too... just kidding... :)

Anyways, the NW is arguably one of the most beautiful areas in the country. I hope you will be able to make it up this way sometime soon.
 
Oregon's weather really varies depending on where you are. Oregon has every climate except frozen tundra, so your options differ. In the valley, our rainy season starts the first weekend in October, and ends 5 July. The high dessert stays dry longer (they don't get the rain we do, and it is hotter in the summer and they do get snow in the winter), but you will get the cold rolling in much earlier. It is gorgeous out there though as you are surrounded by some of our most magnificent mountains. The coast gets more rain, but clears sooner than the rest of the state (the storm watching is amazing, especially over a bowl of chowder at Mo's...be very careful of our ocean though...rip tides and sneaker waves are deadly and best viewed from a distance). The exception, weather wise, is the southern coast. Brookings was reporting temps in the high 70s last month when we had a warm front move in (Portland had highs in the 50s (people were out in shorts and t-shirts), which was stellar, and we had a week of sun to get our vitamin D levels back up!). Generally the central and northern coast has cooler temps than the valley in the summer, so on hot days we try to take refuge there if possible (we are not people that generally do well with heat...85 is plenty hot for this webfoot!).

I always tell people the best time of year to visit is September. It is dry, temps are in the 80s and you are most likely to fall hopelessly in love with the place. It is the pay off for the nearly 9 months of rain we get. We get more rain in Portland than Seattle, but I am told they have more grey days. It is why everything is so gorgeous and green, which I wouldn't trade for anything! The rain doesn't stop us natives from doing anything, isn't such a bad thing, and helps us put water in those free showers!
 
Great weather detail - thanks. Good for "trip dreaming" we are under 17" of snow but the sky is clear, sunny and very bright on our white world.
 
We currently have snow forecasted for the valley this week. The mountains have gotten a lot of snow these last few days...made for some excellent skiing this weekend, even at the lower elevation ski areas. I don't think we will get 17" in PDX and it will melt quickly, but you can be sure it will shut things down if it sticks! Folks here tend not to know how to deal with it. There can be mass hysteria. It is kind of comical, because we used to get more snow, and nobody used to be bothered by it.
 
No particular help in planning this particular trip -- I don't know this part of the country -- but isn't planning trips great? I think weighing the possibilities, choosing the route, picking between sites to visit is wonderful fun.


Mick-and-Sarah, We in the South know how to deal with snow: We close the world for a couple days. We look forward to that mass hysteria!

Seriously, our towns don't own snowplows and don't stock slag (or whatever it is that y'all put on the roads in other parts of the country). On the plus side, we don't pay taxes to supply these things, which are really used only a few days every other year or so.

It's not practical for other parts of the country, but it's also not a bad way to live.
 
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