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STATE & NATIONAL PARKS
Epic Horizons, Wild Dreams
California’s parks will soothe your soul
By Bonnie Smetts
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK
This stunning view of Yosemite National Park showcases the iconic granite monoliths of El Capitan and Half Dome. In the foreground are Merced River’s tranquil waters.
Scramble up boulders in Joshua Tree’s Wonderland of Rocks. Time travel on a historic ship in San Francisco Bay. Stand beneath giant redwoods that author John Steinbeck called ambassadors from another time. Whatever your passion, California’s 280 state parks and 32 national parks, seashores and monuments—whose mission is to protect the state’s natural and cultural treasures—are the gateway to experiences as varied as the state’s geography.
Yosemite & the Sierra Nevada
Yosemite National Park, with its glacier-sculpted valley and granite peaks, is one of the world’s natural treasures. Visit in spring for the thundering waterfalls or in summer to explore by tram, bike, or on foot. Enjoy a gentle hike or climb Half Dome. Junior Ranger Walks are popular with kids. Backpackers can find solitude in the park’s high country and expert rock climbers have dozens of granite walls to scale. Don’t miss Glacier Point for views of Half Dome and Yosemite Valley or the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias.
To see the world’s largest tree by volume, head south to Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks to marvel at the weighty General Sherman. Visit Lake Tahoe, North America’s largest alpine lake. Along the lake’s west shore, visit D.L. Bliss, Emerald Bay and Sugar Pine Point state parks for camping, hiking and white sand beaches. At Lassen Volcanic National Park, watch roaring fumaroles, thumping mud pots and boiling pools.
Giants in the Mist
California’s fog-shrouded coastal range from Oregon to Big Sur boasts the tallest redwoods. Humboldt Redwoods State Park, home to the largest contiguous old-growth redwood forest, features the 31-mile Avenue of the Giants. Make stops along the way to stroll among the titans. Founders Grove with its majestic 346-foot specimen is always a favorite. Visit in spring to see pink redwood lilies and purple calypso orchids in bloom.
Farther north and closer to the coast, the Redwood National and State Parks is a collection of four parks with miles of unspoiled coast and hiking trails. The tallest recorded coast redwood hides here, its location kept secret to protect it.
Burning Sands & Delicate Wildflowers
California’s deserts are lands of extremes. Death Valley National Park holds records for the hottest temperature, driest climate and lowest elevation in North America. It is famous for its wildflower explosion after winter rains. For a bird’s-eye panorama, stop at Dante’s View. On the valley floor, walk the Badwater Salt Flats or take an afternoon drive to Zabriskie Point to snap the garishly colored badlands.
The Mojave National Preserve is famous for its singing sand dunes and 7.6-million-year-old volcanic cinder cones. Joshua Tree National Park, a favorite with rock climbers, mountain bikers and birders, is home to the gangly tree that gives the park its name. While both have spring wildflower displays, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is legendary. Its flowers are usually the first to burst into color—catching the park’s cactus bloom is the prize.
To the Beach
Continuing down the coast to Santa Cruz and Monterey, surfing spots alternate with quiet coves that are home to sea otters and seals. Behold the thousands of monarch butterflies that winter at Natural Bridges State Beach. In Carmel, whose beauty has been long-favored by plein air artists, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve is a must-visit for everyone. Big Sur’s Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park offers stunning views of the rugged coast from its cliffside trails. Access to Pfeiffer Beach, a day beach, is just south of the Big Sur Ranger Station.
At mid-coast, rocky cliffs finally give way to warm water and California’s famous endless flat beaches. Movie buffs can camp at Malibu Creek State Park where The Sand Pebbles, Planet of the Apes and outdoor scenes from the TV show M*A*S*H were filmed. And then there’s Huntington Beach, a.k.a. Surf City USA. Huntington State Beach’s soft sand, safe swimming and good surfing make it the California classic.
