TravelPangs's Passport
 | Been to 324 Attractions |
 | 200 Reviews |
 | 125 First to Review |
 | 398 Photos |
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Send a ComplimentHometown:
SF, California, United States
About Me & My Family
I'm a mother
3 Kids 0-8 years old boys and girls
3 Kids 0-8 years old boys and girls
When we travel, good food and adventure always abound. Our family loves to push the limit of what we can do with children. Our mantra has always been - have kids, will travel. However, this doesn't mean I'm unlike most frantic moms before a trip. Wanting adventure and being a control freak can sometimes be a lethal combination.
Our Family's Travel Personality
adventurous, independent, spontaneous
We Just Got Back From
Northern California and Oregon
Our Favorite Vacation Spot
Hawaii
A Place We'd Love To Visit
New Zealand, Argetina, Brazil, Eastern Europe, Cambodia
Favorite Vacation Memory
Climbing Machu Picchu with a 4 month old infant in a slight and having all the locals stop us to ask what happened to his feet which were all bundled up. They just couldn't believe it wouldn't be bow legged.
Worst Travel Moment With My Kids:
Getting to the airport on our way to Scotland with my 15 month old and discovering that my husband's passport had expired. Instead of rebooking all of our flights, we decided that I would do the first leg of our journey on my own with baby. Unfortunately, we had not packed for me to be flying by myself. I could bearly walk to the runway with all my bags and a 15 month old who would get distracted by everything along the way. He then proceeded to sleep only 1 hour of the entire 11 hour journey (red-eye). It was pretty miserable.
Websites I Like:
Best Places to Enjoy Fall Foliage with Kids in N. California
While California may not be as famous as New England for it's Fall Foliage, it doesn't mean that we don't have our fair share of beautiful places to take kids to see the beautiful colors of fall.
South side of Highway 88 at Carson Pass
60 miles east of Jackson Kirkwood, California
Comment:
Carson Pass is ablaze with aspen in brilliant gold, with occasional hints of orange.
Hwy 267 and Hwy 28
Kings Beach, California
Comment:
The from Kings Beach to Agate Bay in North Lake Tahoe is a prime drive to view fall colors. Lots of beautiful aspen.
10065 Donner Pass Road
Truckee, California
Comment:
Highway 89 north from Truckee to Sierraville is filled with aspens, willows and cottonwoods. If you want to keep driving, head west Sierraville on Highway 49 over Yuba Pass provides spectacular views of the Sierra Valley.
Avenue of the Giants
Weott, California
Comment:
Humboldt Redwoods State Park is home to some of the most spectacular redwoods, but is also a wonderful place to enjoy the fall colors. The display may not be as dramatic as in the Sierras, but it is lovely none the less. Founder’s Grove and Weott Overlook are two good bets.
204 West Alma
Mount Shasta, California
Comment:
While there are miles and miles of fall foliage to be enjoyed through the wilderness areas of Shasta Trinity National Forest, most of it isn't accessible with kids. However, around Wiskeytown and Douglas City, you'll find lots of fall colors around the areas lakes and rivers.
Lassen Peak Highway (Hwy 89)
Lassen Volcanic National Park, California
Comment:
Lassen welcomes the fall with grandeur, but due to heavy snow fall, hwy 89 is closed.
reviewed on: November 23 2008
"Disappointing"
Maybe it was the time of year that we went - memorial day weekend. There was still tons of show on the ground and no trails were open. The views and vistas were really beautiful, and the boiling mud was fun for the kids, but all in all, it's nothing compared to Yellowstone park. Maybe I'm spoiled. Perhaps if we had the opportunity to explore the park a little more I'd find more to appreciate about it. If your child has never been exposed to a volcano, then I think it's worth visiting, but if this is not your first volcano, it's nothing special really.
7 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr
Golden Gate Park San Francisco, California
Comment:
Surprise surprise, some beautiful fall colors can be found at the Japanese Tea Gardens if you can't make the long drive out to the Sierras. It might take on a different look than you're familiar with, but it's beautiful nonetheless.
reviewed on: September 06 2008
"A small dose of culture and quiet"
The Japanese Tea Garden located next to the famous De Young Museum in Golden Gate Park isn't a place you automatically think of bringing kids to. But when I visited with my 2.5 and 5 year old, we had a delightful visit. It was a peaceful respite and the children enjoyed running around the beautiful garden. There is a really cool bridge that 3/4 of a circle that the kids loved climbing up. There are also little zen bridges through the ponds. What a quaint little garden. A nice visit for a cultural experience especially if your children have never seen an Asian garden. Older children might possibly find it boring. But for young children, it's really delightful.
Lake Almanor
Chester, California
Comment:
Plumas County is far from lacking in great spots for peeping at fall foliage. Lake Almanor is great spot for families to base themselves because it's easy to get to, has great campgrounds, and there's more to do here then just enjoying the season's colors. According to the Fall Foliage Guide from the Plumas County Visitor's Center:
Start out on Main Street in Chester, where cottonwoods and domestic maples grace the highway and banks of the Feather River. Miles of reddened dogwood are found east and west on Hwy. 36. Turning onto Feather
River Drive at the fire hall, you’ll be rewarded with glowing birch and aspen along forest roads to Warner Valley, Benner Creek and
Juniper Lake. East of Chester, follow Hwy. 36 to Hwy. 32, which parallels Deer Creek. There are many places to pull over and enjoy
the alders, oaks and Indian Rhubarb along the creek. Another great drive is into Lassen Volcanic National Park on Hwy. 89,
for quaking aspen, thermal pools and stunning landscapes.
For more fantastic information about peeping in Plumas County:
http://plumascounty.org/Awesome_Autumn/Leaf%20peeper%20reports.htm
640 S. Main Street
Lone Pine, California
Comment:
Gorp says this is one of the of the top places in the COUNTRY to see fall foliage and it's actually in California. Lots of beautiful drives and hikes here. Updates from the National Forest Service: http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/inyo/recreation/fallcolors
Yosemite Village Loop
Yosemite National Park, California
Comment:
As to be expected, Yosemite is one of the most spectacular places in California to view fall foliage. It is also one of the last places in the Sierras to turn. The best things about Yosemite is that so much of the fall colors are are easily accessible by car of on nicely maintained trails. Great for families with young kids. Check in at the visitor's center to find out the where are the best hikes and drives the weekend you're there. A drive along Tioga Pass is famed for it's beautiful fall colors.
Grass Valley, California
Comment:
?is area boasts some of the most spectacular fall foliage to be found
anywhere in the region. Brilliant red and
yellow tones of maples, pistachios and liquid
ambers further enhance the beauty of these
Gold Rush towns.
2400 London Ranch Road
Glen Ellen, California
Comment:
nice for hikes with breath-taking vistas of Wine Country ablaze with autumn colors. There are long and arduous hikes like the Ridge Trail as well as easy ones through the forest depending on the ages and energy levels of your kids.
20 East Spain Street
Sonoma, California
Comment:
Annadel State Park has quite a few of big maple trees near the creeks which turn vibrant colors. Annadel is located east of Santa Rosa.
Hwy 158 June Lake Loop
Lee Vining, California
Comment:
June Lake Loop is one of the most spectacular spot in the Eastern Sierras to view Aspen in every shade of gold in the Autumn. It's easy to reach from Mammoth Lakes.
Fall Foliage Report for Mono County: http://www.monocounty.org/fall-colors/
Hwy 120 South Mono Lake
Lee Vining, California
Comment:
Lee Vining and Lundy Canyon are great spots around Mono Lake to view fall foliage
For the Fall Foliage Report in Mono County:
http://www.monocounty.org/fall-colors/
reviewed on: June 14 2011
"Very unique formations"
If you're a geology buff, you'll be in heaven when you visit the South Tufa State Reserve located on the south end of Mono Lake. There is a loop trail from the parking lot that takes you through some of the most spectacular tufa towers that have formed in Mono Lake due to calcium deposits that have accumulated over time around underground springs at the bottom of Mono Lake. We learned from our informative trip the Mono Basin Visitor's Center that Tufa Towers are petrified springs that form under water due to a chemical reaction that occurs when underground spring water encounter the salt water of Mono Lake. The tufa towers form under the water until they get so large and strong that they can exist above water. As you meander through the oddly shaped tufa towers, you'll feel like you're walking on some strange Star Wars planetAt some points along the trail, you're able to get to the shores of Mono Lake and see the strange greenish turquoise colored water. The waters of Mono Lake are more salty than ocean water and has been dubbed the Dead Sea of California. Similar to the dead sea in the Mediterranean, Mono Lake is fed by streams, but has not outlet. During some seasons in the year, the surface of the water is covered in a special fly larvae that migrating birds love to feast on. So be forewarned if you have a bug or bird phobia.
The trail is easy for kids to walk on, but do prepare them ahead of time that they are to stay on the trail at all times and not clamber on the enticing Tufa Towers. On the day we visited, the entire basin was hit by gusty winds that made the short trek a little uncomfortable. If not for our ski jackets we just happened to have that day, we would all have been miserable.
Hwy 1
Big Sur, California
Comment:
The drive along Big Sur Scenic Byway is already stunning with unparallelled views of the blue as blue can be Pacific Ocean. Set that against splashes of fall colors makes for lots of photos ops for peepers.
