Five state parks to visit this summer
California has the largest state park system in the country, with 280 parks that together encompass more than a million acres of nature preserves, beautiful waterfalls, vast forests and more.
Today I have some recommendations for the best parks to visit this summer, no matter what kind of vacation you desire. The park system was recently started a digital passport program to encourage people to try and visit them all. (You can use a mobile app to track your visits and earn badges.) You can, too view vehicle passes for most California state parks from your local public library.
Jorge Moreno, a spokesman for the state parks department, advised travelers to check the weather before heading out and to bring plenty of drinking water. And keep in mind that California’s rivers are flowing faster and colder than usual because of melting snow.
Stay safe and have fun traveling.
Take a dip in an ancient inland sea.
Majestic Mono lake, about 60 miles east of Yosemite National Park, is one of the oldest lakes in North America and is estimated to have existed for over a million years. The lake and its surroundings were largely protected as parkland to preserve the lake’s tuff towers – knobby limestone spires that rise high above the water’s surface and make for a stunning Seussian sight.
Mono Lake is so loaded with minerals that it is more than twice as salty as the ocean, and “makes for wonderful floating swimming,” according to the State Parks Department. The department adds, “Old-timers claim that a dip in the lake will cure almost anything.”
Visit a 19th-century state capital.
The oldest former California State House still standing is in Benicia, a Bay Area waterfront town that was the seat of the state government in 1853 and 1854. guided tour of the original Benicia Capitol buildingwhich has been restored to look as it would have 170 years ago, and learn about the legislation passed there, including the law that created the state Department of Education and another law that allowed married women to own property own property independently of their spouses.
Stay in a historic cottage on the beach.
Along the coast of Orange County, Crystal Cove State Park offers expansive sandy beaches, tide pools to explore, and miles of backcountry hiking and biking trails. The park includes a charming historic district, originally a coastal colony built in the 1930s and 1940s for vacationers visiting what was then a private beach. In addition to a few restaurants, the district has 21 quaint beachfront cottages that the public can rent.
Fishing in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Northeast of San Francisco Bay, Brannan Island State Recreation Area is known for year-round water recreation, including fishing, swimming, and boating. The park includes a collection of waterways that run through swamps and islands in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Even on hot summer days there is usually a cool breeze to keep you comfortable.
Camp in a SoCal coniferous forest.
Although only a 90-minute drive from downtown San Diego, Palomar Mountain State Park feels much more remote, with pristine forests and quiet meadows. At an elevation of 5,000 feet, the dense coniferous forests, where you can camp, picnic, and hike, are rare in Southern California.
Where we travel
Today’s tip comes from Lisa Riddell, who recommends a spot in Cambria on the Central Coast: “The Fiscalini Ranch Preserve Trail is stunningly beautiful and dog friendly! It’s one of our family’s favorite road trip destinations.”
Tell us about your favorite places to visit in California. Email your suggestions to CAtoday@nytimes.com. We will share more in upcoming editions of the newsletter.
Tell us
We are almost half way through 2023! What are the best things that have happened to you this year so far? What have your victories been? Or your unexpected joys, big or small?
And before you go, good news
This week, the wild parrot became San Francisco’s official animal.
Parrots arrived in San Francisco in the late 1980s — most likely escaped from a pet store — and two species have since mated to create a hybrid parrot unique to the city. That reports the San Francisco Chronicle.
Mark Bittner, who starred in Judy Irving’s 2003 documentary, “The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill,” told The Chronicle that parrots were perfect ambassadors for San Francisco: “They’re colorful, they’re loud, they come from somewhere else, and they have really quirky personalities.