Wanderlust During Stay-At-Home Orders

It occurs to me that I have never gone this long without some form of travel. Whether national, international, flight, cruise, road trip, car, train... I mean, never. Oh how the wanderlust pulls at my soul.

So as the world begins to slowly reopen,

I am putting together a plan for safe travels while social distancing.

Any travel plan begins with means of travel and lodging. Since I currently do not trust flying, trains or any other form of travel that places me and my family in a vessel with other human beings; and most hotels remain closed, I am opting for an RV. Well, thats the plan anyway!

The obstacle? Thus far, very few things are open. I visit the National Parks Service website daily to see which parks have at least partially opened. While they are few, I am hopeful that by the time I wrap my head around traveling, and slowly become more comfortable with leaving the house (which should be about mid summer), parks will begin allowing patrons.

So, the plan is to rent an RV for about a week, every couple of months travel California.

Northern California

One of my favorite places in the world is right here in California. Bug Sur! Big Sur has stolen my heart many times over, and what makes it even more special, is that hubby and I discovered it on our very first solo trip, post baby.

Princeton, our first born, had just turned one when I finally felt like I could be away from him for a few days. So my husband Craig and I, booked a hotel in Half Moon Bay, a place neither of us had ever been before. We drove up the coast and stopped at a gas station in Big Sur., which was along the way. We immediately put Big Sur on our "must do" list, and came back to celebrate a wedding anniversary the following year.

Big Sur is ours.

The lovely thing about Big Sur is that even if their parks are closed, there are plenty of trails, mountains, and forests that are accessible and can be explored.

So the plan would be to travel up the coast through Big Sur, Monterey Bay, maybe even a stop in Napa Valley, then if it is open, circle back around to Yosemite.

There are so many wonderful stops along the way. Stops that do not require things to open. Like the Elephant Seal View Point in San Simeon, CA, dozens of waterfall trails all throughout that part of California, mountain hikes and beautiful beaches.

I would go so far as to say that this particular RV trip could even be done now, when little is open to the public.

You can read all about our previous trips HERE and HERE.

Idylwild, CA

Another stunning California destination lies in the mountains of Palm Springs. Idylwild!

Idylwild is a sleepy mountain town, with amazing restaurants, and wonderful boutiques. A wonderful film festival takes place in this scenic town every summer. There is a gorgeous lake and plenty of trails, which do not require the country's opening to enjoy. You can read all about it HERE.

I am hopeful that by midsummer, some of the shops and restaurants will be allowed to fully reopen. Because this is such a small town, I would not anticipate big crowds, making it one of the safer destinations on my list.

The Salton Sea

If you follow me, you've read all about the Salton Sea in my recent article The Salton Sea, Then and Now.

This is one of my favorite destinations, and another one that is near and dear to me (you can read all about it HERE).

While I would not necessarily park an RV here over night, I would absolutely make the day trip and head back to spend the night in Palm Springs or Indio.

What I love about The Salton Sea is the amount of exploring to be done. The scenic view, the apocalyptic wasteland vibe in many parts, the desert art installation. It's a place to behold, and it is open!

Options

Of course, you can always rent a beach house anywhere along the coast, we are in California after all, and enjoy a lovely week or weekend, safely playing on the beach. The options are endless here in California, and I for one, choose to take full advantage... soon.