31’st birthday trip. Suggestions?

[Rene Daniel]

Hey guys, I’m super stoked to get this trip almost nailed down and so I thought I’d share where my current route planning has landed me and see if y’all had any must do’s or must sees along the way. My schedule is kinda flexible so let me here it! This is where I am at now.


Day 1, Friday March 23
Starting in Houston drive to Carlsbad caverns and sleep.
Carlsbad, NM
(10 Hrs from Houston)
Sleep in carlsbad

Day 2, Saturday, March 24
Carlsbad Caverns, NM
Wake up & spend the morning exploring & hopefully taking a tour of the caverns. $10/ person to explore the caves. When we finish in Carlsbad, NM we will hit the road & drive to White Sands, NM.
(3.5 hrs from the caverns)
White sands will be a short stop for a walk and photo opportunity. After no more than a couple hours we will hit the road again and drive to Tucson, AZ/Summerhaven, AZ.
(6 hrs from white sands)
Depending on how the GF feels we will either sleep in the RTT in the mountains or we have the option to sleep at a friends house or sisters house.

Day 3, Sunday, March 25
Summerhaven & Tucson, AZ
Wake up and spend the day with family and friends. Maybe take GF to Redington pass or Peppersauce caverns. I want to drive by triangle Y ranch camp. I want to take a photo from the Windy Point lookout on Mt. Lemmon. Sleep in Tucson and leave early for Flagstaff.

Day 4, Monday, March 26
Flagstaff, AZ
(4 hrs from tucson)
Leave early from Tucson, AZ and hit the road for a straight shot to Flagstaff, AZ to visit Family. Spend the day with them at their property and exploring Flagstaff. Take a hike, play with the dogs. Drink a beer. Have lunch and dinner with them. Leave that evening to drive and sleep at the Grand Canyon. (Details to be determined)

Day 5, Tuesday, March 27
Grand Canyon
Wake up early to see and photograph the sunrise on the Rim of The Grand Canyon. Have breakfast and take a walk. Spend the morning exploring a sightseeing a little. Get Back on the road by 11/1200 in order to drive to the Hoover dam (5/6 hr drive) and see the sun set from the dam. Sleep nearby.

Day 6 & 7, Wednesday & Thursday, March 28 & 29
Hoover Dam, AZ & Temecula & SD, CA
Wake up and have breakfast. Hit the road to head to Temecula (4.5 hrs from hoover dam) to see family and friends. Spend the day with Family and friends. Spend the night with friends in Vista to see his house and go on base to show GF where I was stationed. Spend the day and night showing GF the beach and have breakfast at Curbside Cafe. Hit the road for Yosemite (9 hr drive from Vista, CA). Arrive and spend the night.

Day 8 & 9, Friday & Saturday, March 30 & 31
Yosemite, CA
Spend a full day & night and day in Yosemite National park. Leave the evening of the 31st to drive to SF and cross the Golden Gate Bridge at night and make sure GF gets Ghirardelli's from the chocolate factory and gets on her plane on Sunday April 1st. Stay in a hotel Saturday night to let her shower and have a nice dinner date before she leaves.

From here the plan is to take my time and take the coast all the way to WA and spend time with brother camping with is boys for our Bday then get back to Houston by the 13/14 of April at the “~earliest”

Washington
(take my time along the 1 and 101, B&B or tent, minimum of two days two nights with brother, most likely 3-4)
(taking the HWY1 and 101 along the entire coast is 21 Hrs)

I have not planned my return route and am open to suggestions. I do have a dirt capable rig but this trip is more about seeing sites and friends and family than any extended off-road periods.

Please give me any suggestions for stops along the way or folks to meet up with for a beer and photo op!

Thanks guys!

 

[Merk]

Looks like a solid trip, That's a lot of driving! I would recommend start planning your Yosemite basecamp ASAP. It's a popular destination in the springtime when the waterfalls are raging

 

[brien]

Sounds like a great trip for sure! The drive from Tucson to Flagstaff via I-10 is "meh", especially the first half, so if you don't mind adding some time onto the drive, there are a few routes on backroad highways that take you right through Tonto National Forest all the way to Flagstaff. Might be worth considering. Some example routes:

Tucson >> 77 >> 60 >> 188 >> 288 (awesome dirt highway) >> 260 >> 87 >> 209 >> Flagstaff (about 7.5 hrs)

Tucson >> 77 >> 60 >> 188 (Apache Trail) >> 87 >> 209 >> Flagstaff (5hr 44m)

Most of the routes through there will be about 300 miles from Tucson to Flagstaff, so depending on what your fuel capacity is, you'll wanna plan your fill up spot(s). Places that definitely have gas: Globe, Tonto Basin Marketplace, Payson

There's also Montezuma Castle National Monument on hwy 17 north of hwy 260. If you are in the area during daylight, it's worth the short detour to see if you haven't yet.

Have fun!

 

[soonersfan]

I would suggest Moab &/or Ouray on your way back. Other than Carlsbad, I think you are going to wish you had more time at your other locations, even at the expense of skipping something. If you plan on hitting more National parks this year, you might want to consider an annual pass. It’s $80 and will cover you and whoever is in the car with you. I hope you report back. Should be an epic trip.