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Northern California

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Northern California, from San Francisco to the Oregon border and inland towards Nevada, offers a wealth of natural beauty from pristine ocean shoreline, lakes, mountains and forests to vibrant smaller cities and towns. Check out places like Sacramento, Lake Tahoe, Wine Country, Yosemite National Park, Redwood National Forest and Point Reyes National Seashore.

Where is Northern California

Sacramento 1.5 hrs northeast of San Fran on I-80; Point Reyes Station 1hr north of San Fran along Hwy 1; Yosemite 3.5-4hrs east of San Fran; Klamath 6hrs north of San Fran on Hwy 1; Lake Tahoe 3.5 hrs east of San Fran on I-80/US-50; Montara & Pescadero 50 and 25 miles south of San Fran.

Coach

Greyhound Sacramento (715 L St); Klamath (closest city Arcata, 925 E St); South Lake Tahoe (closest city Reno,155 Stevenson St).

Highlights

Sacramento located just 1.5 hours east of San Francisco, 1.5 hours west of South Lake Tahoe and 2 hours west of Reno, the capital of California is steeped in Gold Rush history. This vibrant and cosmopolitan city offers friendly faces, a mild climate and a small town feel. Explore the many museums and wander through Old Sacramento, a key commercial and agricultural center during the 1940s.
Montara and Pescadero are home to lighthouses converted to hostels by the California Department of Parks and Recreation. America’s tallest lighthouse, the Pigeon Point Lighthouse, stands at 115 feet and was built in 1872. Nearby are tide pools, redwood forests and gray whales. In season, you can see the whales, swim, surf and cycle along the shore.

Point Reyes Further on up the coast you can go to Point Reyes Peninsula with its secluded beaches and miles of hiking trails.

Redwood National Park Home of the old-growth coast redwoods. Some tower over 300 feet and are over 2000 years old! The park not only includes forest but rivers, streams and over 37 miles of ocean along the Northern California Coast. The park is located south of Klamath and entrance is free. Nearby is Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park and Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park which charge an entrance fee of just $5.

Yosemite National Park located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Yosemite National Park was created in 1890 to preserve this amazing piece of nature that stretches from 2,000 to over 13,000 feet above sea level. Today it is one of the world's most impressive sceneries and home to the world-famous Half Dome and El Capitan. Both were sculpted over millions of years by volcanic forces, glaciation, and other natural forces.

The mountains of Yosemite National Park contain great biotic richness with more than 230 species of birds, 80 species of mammals, and 1,400 species of classified shrubs, trees, and flowering plants.

Yosemite National Park also boasts three giant sequoia groves, Tuolumne, Merced, and Mariposa. Many consider the giant sequoia trees the largest of all living things, some towering over 300 feet (91 meters) with tree trunks of 40 feet (12 meters) in diameter.

South Lake Tahoe Located 3.5 hours east of San Francisco and 1.5 hours south of Reno, South Lake Tahoe is a great ski and snowboard as well as summer destination. The pristine lake offers breathtaking blue waters created by the thin clear mountain air that allows the lake's pure water to reflect the blue sky above. Talking about blue skies, the sun shines over 300 days a year here. At 22 miles long, 6,225 feet above sea level and 1,645 feet at its deepest point, Lake Tahoe is the third deepest lake in North America and the tenth deepest in the world.

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