# Is it realistic to see a Sequoia tree while in Solvang, CA?



## northwoodsgal (Dec 28, 2009)

I'm leaving on Friday for a week's stay at WM Solvang with my mom and sisters.  It's been mentioned it would be nice to see the Sequoia trees but I really have no idea where they are in relation to Solvang.  Is it possible to see them if we do a long day trip?  I don't think it's necessary to be in a national park but just to see a few.  Yep, I'm from the midwest!


----------



## sue1947 (Dec 29, 2009)

*How about Redwoods instead of Sequoias*

I'm not aware of any Sequoias outside of the National Parks and that is too far for a day trip from Solvang.  However, I do know there are Redwoods along Big Sur which would be an option (though a long day trip of 3 hours each way).  There are several state parks with Redwood Groves about mid-north end of the Big Sur peninsula.
If you do this drive, make a point to stop at the viewpoint along the coast near Hearst Castle and watch the elephant seals.  They are giving birth in January and they all put on quite a show.  There are usually docents in the area to explain and help out.  
Closer and similar is the Monarch butterfly grove at Pismo Beach.  It's a pretty amazing sight to see 1000's of orange butterflies; definitely worth a trip especially if it's sunny.


----------



## northwoodsgal (Dec 29, 2009)

We were planning on going to Hearst so that's definitely a possibility.  If we stayed overnight somewhere near Hearst, could we make it to a National Park and back to Solvang the next day?  

I looked online and it seems the Sequoia forests are quite extensive in northern California.  Is there one or two "best" spots to go?


----------



## Rent_Share (Dec 29, 2009)

IMHO the best Sequoia trees would be in "Sequoia National Park"  308 miles 

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sou...1,0.88028&g=Sequoia+National+Park&ie=UTF8&z=8

There are a couple of other WM resorts that would be much closer

Bass Lake  125 Miles and just outside of another lesser know National Park

Yosemite


----------



## nightnurse613 (Dec 29, 2009)

As I recall Solvang is a couple hours from Hearst Castle (if you don't stop at Morro Bay!)The problem with being at Hearst Castle is Highway 1.  You would have to take it to the Monterey Peninsula and that's a slow, windy, mountain road-another two to three hour drive (although, if it's not foggy it is beautiful). As it has been said, there are some very nice redwood trees in the Big Sur area. The trees you are looking for are mostly north of San Francisco and that's still a good piece away from Monterey (since you would probably want to cut across to Salinas once you get to Monterey).


----------



## T_R_Oglodyte (Dec 29, 2009)

nightnurse613 said:


> The trees you are looking for are mostly north of San Francisco and that's still a good piece away from Monterey (since you would probably want to cut across to Salinas once you get to Monterey).



I believe the trees she is looking for are the Giant Sequoias, which grow on the western slopes of the southern Sierra Nevada.  the closest stands to Solvang are probably those in Sequoia National Park and in the southern unit of Sequoia National Monument.  That should be a minimum of six hours drive time, each way, from Solvang.  So that's not doable as a day trip.

The large trees along the coast are the Coast Redwoods, which are also in the Sequoia family.  They are not as massive as the Giant Sequoia, however, but the tallest Coast Redwoods are taller than the tallest Giant Sequoia.  

The southern extent of the natural range of the Coast Redwoods is the Bug Sur area, with the tallest stands situated on the northern California Coast between Fort Bragg and the Oregon border.  While it may be feasible to see some nice Coast Redwood stands on the Big Sur Coast (such as at Julia Pfeiffer state park), the truly tall redwoods are a much longer drive from Solvang than are the fine Sequoia stands east of Visalia.


----------



## ricoba (Dec 29, 2009)

Steve's answer is excellent....and he is correct the Redwoods and Sequoia's are both a long way from Solvang. 

 But if you remember the movie, Sideways with Paul Giamatti & Thomas Haden Church, that's Solvang and the area surrounding it.  It's a quaint lovely place but alas no big trees.


----------



## LisaH (Dec 30, 2009)

If you could somehow squeeze in a stopover in SFO, Muir Woods has amazing coastal redwood forest. It's only a short drive from SFO.


----------



## sue1947 (Dec 30, 2009)

*Redwoods vs Sequoias*

The Redwoods are coastal and are about 3 hours north of Solvang (at the 2 Pfeiffer State Parks).  The Sequoias are east in the Sierras 6 hours so that really isn't a reasonable option.  Redwoods are really, really tall and Sequoias are shorter but wider (the largest living thing by mass, I think).  Both are nifty.  
Your best bet for the Sequoias from a timeshare:
  Bass Lake is about half an hour from the south entrance of Yosemite and the Mariposa Grove of Sequoias.  They close the road in the winter and you can then snowshoe or ski the 2 mile road to the grove.  It's a really nice (and easy) snowshoe and has a completely different feel than in the summer when there are lots of people around.  Sequoia National Park is east of Fresno and is a very long day trip from Bass Lake but might be doable.  Some of the roads there are also closed by snow in winter.
  Angels Camp is less than an hour from Calaveras Big Trees State Park.  This area also gets snow and I'm not familiar with the road conditions in the winter.  I was there in October a couple of years ago and the fall colors of the Dogwoods (which are the understory) was stunning underneath the larger trees.  

Both of these resorts usually has lots of availability and you might check into adding a couple of days at Bass Lake and see if you can rent some snowshoes.  The Mariposa Grove is very suitable for novice snowshoers.


----------



## eal (Dec 30, 2009)

You could go to Bakersfield and then head towards Lake Isabella.  There are Sequoia trees north of the lake at the southernmost portion of the Sequoia National Forest.


----------



## luvsvacation22 (Dec 30, 2009)

Mountain Retreat in Arnold (one of our timeshares) is the exit right before Calavaras Big Trees. 

Here is the Big Trees website. http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=551


----------



## northwoodsgal (Dec 30, 2009)

Thanks for all of the great information.  It looks like we would have to make a choice of 1) making Hearst a day trip and saving the Trees for another trip, 2) going to Hearst, staying overnight, and heading up to Big Sur area, or 3) going to Hearst, staying overnight and heading over to Sequoia Natl Park.  

My youngest sister, who will be with us, lived in Monterey for awhile and knows that area fairly well.  She said she had driven from Monterey to LA before (long trip) but never stopped along the way.  I'm not sure how much help she'll be with touring that area but it would be nice to see where she had lived for awhile.  

So far we had one day scheduled to go to the Price is Right taping (along with another sister's nephew, who lives in Hollywood as an aspiring horror film director), perhaps another day to tour the Days of our Lives studio (for mom), Hearst castle, wine tasting, and checking out Santa Barbara & area beaches.  There was no big "plan" to this trip.  We try to get together every 5 years for a trip and this time around it was a matter of finding a week that would work for five people and didn't have snow.  The Solvang week came up as we decided to take it.  I've been to LA a few years ago when our daughter (she turned 18 today) marched in the Rose Parade but we stayed in Carlsbad then.  I truly have no concept of what's north of LA so the input is really, really appreciated.  

TR, you're right, the trees I'm thinking of are the Giant Sequoias.  I remember seeing photos when I was young of people standing by these trees and being dwarfed by them.  It made such an impression on me.  

If we go to the Sequoia Natl Park do we need to worry about weather and being able to drive around?  Would there be snow on the ground?


----------



## DeniseM (Dec 30, 2009)

northwoodsgal said:


> If we go to the Sequoia Natl Park do we need to worry about weather and being able to drive around?  Would there be snow on the ground?



Here is the 10 day forecast - they definitely get snow there, but it looks OK right now.  If it snows, I wouldn't go up there without a 4WD.

http://www.weather.com/outlook/recreation/outdoors/tenday/CANPSKC:13


----------



## thedeeperwell (Dec 30, 2009)

*About Sequoia National Park*

[Promotional links deleted - advertising is not permitted on TUG. - DeniseM Moderator]


----------



## debraxh (Dec 31, 2009)

Option #2 sounds good to me.  The drive up the coast is beautiful and there are lots of interesting places to stop.  The trees are not as big as the Sequoia's, but still really nice.  Here's a pic from a trip to Big Sur a couple of years ago:


----------



## Liz Wolf-Spada (Jan 1, 2010)

I would agree, option 2 is probably the most practical. Solvang is not all that close to LA, (maybe 2 hours) so you have some days with lots of driving and bringing clothes for snow is an additional hassle. The cost can be pretty cold, but not like the Sierras.
Liz


----------



## nightnurse613 (Jan 3, 2010)

Also, if you are going to Hearst Castle, it might be wise to  book your tour in advance.  There is not that much to see in San Simeon so waiting for two or three hours to catch the next available tour would not be productive.  By the way, I recommend the basic tour for first time visitors.  There are several nice motels near HC.  I thought I saw a TravelZoo listing for Cambria Pines Lodge a couple of weeks ago. Rustic (Older) and about 15 miles away from HC.  Of course, if you got up early enough, you could get to HC, go on the tour and spend the night in Big Sur ( a little on the expensive side) but wake up in the morning and go to Monterey-visit Carmel, the 17 mile drive (Pebble Beach)the MB Aquarium and shoot across to Salinas and take the 101 back to Solvang! Whew!!  Long day!


----------



## Liz Wolf-Spada (Jan 3, 2010)

When we went to Hearst Castle we stayed at the Motel 6 in San Simeon. It was a very nice converted Holiday Inn with indoor corridors. We had an ocean view room for probably about $65.
Liz


----------



## northwoodsgal (Jan 10, 2010)

We ended up doing a one day, very long, trip to Hearst and Big Sur.  We made the 10:20 Hearst Tour, skipped the Hearst movie and drove up to Big Sur.  It took about 2 hours to do the 60 mile drive from Hearst to Big Sur.  Once there, we walked through the redwoods to the waterfall.  By then it was getting close to sunset so we went to Julia Pfieffer beach to watch the sun go down.  It was a long drive back but we stopped at the Madonna Inn for awhile to break the drive up.  

We spent a second day and drove back to Hearst to catch the movie and watch the elephant seals (I'm SO glad we knew about the seals ahead of time - thanks Sue!!).  We then saw the butterflies and sunset at Pismo Beach on the way back.  It was a very nice, relaxing second day and I'm glad we decided to spend two days along the coast and not just the one.  Yes, it was two days of the same views but they were spectacular views!


----------



## islandhome (Jan 13, 2010)

If you do go to Big Sur, make sure to stop at Nepenthe.  Its my all time favorite place to eat in Big Sur.  Joan Baez and friends used to hang out there.  You are up on a cliff overlooking the ocean, be sure to request the back patio.  Its small but worth the wait.  The fruit, cheese and bread board is amazing !  Wish I was there right now http://www.nepenthebigsur.com/


----------

