Looking for Advice on Where to take the Family EXPO after Disney Land, HELP NEEDED!!

[Adventurerider]

Hello All,

My wife and I started a tradition when we got married, every Christmas holiday we go somewhere, normally we go skiing. We've been to some great resorts throughout the years, Jackson Hole, Aspen, Steamboat, Tahoe & Park Silly haha.

This year we decided to something different, we had planned on going on the Disney cruise, but after having a not so great year finically we decided that we would have to postpone going on the cruise but with the kids all hyped up about Mickey, we decided that we would instead take the family to the coast and to Disney Land.

Now this said, we have been working hard on our build of our van (which is posted here & SMB forum) so we have decided to take everyone in the van and after Disney Land go exploring. We thought about going to Baja or maybe turning north, driving up the coast to B.C. & doing some skiing at Whistler. But after going back and forth for the last month on what to do, we decided that having to take all the extra gear and the extra $ it would take to go north wouldn't be worth doing on this trip, besides we live in Utah so were not going to miss that much skiing and the sun is what everyone is really wanting.

So that brings me to the task at hand, were looking at trying to find some sort of loop from Anaheim (Disney Land) back towards Utah. We would really like to find something cool each day on the trip to show the kids while trying to stay off the HWY's using as many two lane & dirt roads as possible. Because of the kids and the fact that my wife and I have never been to Baja, she is really nervous about going down there without having a group of us to kind of show us around. She does a lot of research online, and she looked up the US Travel Advisory on Mexico and they said that because of the Drug violence that traveling with small children is not advised. So, that's where I'm looking for more advice! Besides we will also be traveling with our dog and I'm not sure what is totally involved with bring him along?

So we thought after leaving Disney Land taking hwy 1 south (I know this is a major hwy but the wife and the kids will really dig it) to San Diego, then heading east towards AZ. In AZ travel close to the boarder finding something to check out, then from there heading north using again, two lane & dirt roads up through Sedona & Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon etc.

If possible, I'm looking to find something everyday that we travel to or towards that we could show the kids, this will help keep the excitement up on the trip, besides it gives us all something to look forward to. This is another area I need allot of advice on, if anyone has done a trip like this and has any advice on places to go, places to camp, roads to travel, things to do, etc. please by all means, post or P.M. me it will be greatly appreciated!!

I hope everyone had a fulfilling Thanksgiving weekend!

 

[seanz0rz]

i would do joshua tree to mojave road (should be no problem for your van, i only remember one slightly tough spot and im sure theres a road around), then some overlanding through nevada on the way back to utah. mine as well use your overland time to get you closer to home! maybe see the grand canyon as well (would be a bit out of the way but probably worth it) im not sure what is east of california/nevada border as ive never been out that way. seems like there should be lots of long dirt roads across the desert (avoid area 51 though!)

avoid mexico. its just not worth it when you have little kids and people are getting killed everyday.

 

[Stan the Man]

Pismo Beach/Oceano Dunes is nearby. I'd spend a day in the dunes, play in the ocean (burrr) and have a lovely bbq/camp on the beach. It gets cold there, but the winters on the beach are the best.

 

[Martinjmpr]

If you haven't been to Death Valley you should check it out. It's one of my favorite National Parks and there's lots of stuff there. Several nice trails, too, that your SMB should be able to handle.

Christmas should be a perfect time to be there, too. Not too hot, not too cold, and I don't think they get a lot of tourists that time of year. There are some cool old ghost towns around there, too (Gold Point is one of my favorite) as well as Scotty's Castle, the semi-ghost towns of Ryholite and Beatty, the Manzanar internment camp (very somber, particularly with the Shinto shrine at the far Western end) and so on.

Death Valley can also be more or less on the route back to SLC, especially if you wanted to take Highway 6 or swing around Las Vegas and take the "Extraterrestrial highway."

 

[ntsqd]

I'll second DVNP. If you go there be sure to first check out the road conditions.

The railroad tracks just west of Tehachapi run in a complete circle. It is currently double tracked and if your timing is good you'll get to see a train going each direction at the same time (I've managed it once). The side road shown in the picture is narrow, but there is a little parking on the North side.

National Trails Highway (Old 66) is easy to pick up at Victorville (turn North at the CA-18 East off-ramp) and can be driven to Barstow. That is a neat drive that I do semi-frequently.

Calico Ghost Town (NE of Barstow) was renovated by Walter Knott (Knott's Berry Farm), but was turned over to San Bernadino County before it became too much of an amusement park. The mountains around the town are BLM. Some of the canyons (Mule & Odessa in particular) are not well cared for by the frequent visitors, but other areas are quite nice.

 

[SunTzuNephew]

Anaheim to Anza-Borrego to Joshua Tree to DVNP enter @ southern end, out through Beatty, speed through Vegas to the north rim of the Grand Canyon?

 

[Adventurerider]

Matin, NTS & Suntzunephew,

That all sounds really cool, do you have any suggestions on roads to travel (besides the few mentioned) or how we should map it out?:smiley_drive:
Also we are looking for somewhere fun :wings: to take the kids on a daily or so basis on the loop we are trying to plan, I know I'm asking a lot. We are desperately looking for suggestions on daily destinations, which route/roads to take, cool places to see along the way, etc.. My wife and kids have never been to this area of the country & I've only had quick in & out's to spesific spots and a few at that, nothing like what were trying to do. So that means we would like as much help as possible to stay off the HWY and on two lane or preferably dirt roads when possible and when theres something fun or cool to do. The last thing we want to do is do this trip using all interstate, we what to really see & experience as much as we can with our family.
So PLEASE by all means if you or anyone else has some idea's, loops & destinations you've done that you really enjoy (again, with kids, though adventuresome kids), we'd be extremely grateful to hear about them!
Thanks in advance to everyone who helps us Plan a killer Christmas Holiday,
Cheers:victory:

 

[Martinjmpr]

I've only been to DV once, and that was 11 years ago so I'll defer to those with more extensive (and recent) experience.

Only recommendations I can make are: Dante's View is a must- see (it's paved) and I liked Ubehebe Crater. I never made it to the Devil's Racetrack but I heard it's pretty cool. Rhyolite and Gold Point are neat little ghost towns. I didn't go inside Scotty's Castle but I drove by it. Really, there's lots of stuff to do there, and this time of year the weather should be absolutely perfect.

 

[SunTzuNephew]

Matin, NTS & Suntzunephew,

That all sounds really cool, do you have any suggestions on roads to travel (besides the few mentioned) or how we should map it out?:smiley_drive:
Also we are looking for somewhere fun :wings: to take the kids on a daily or so basis on the loop we are trying to plan, I know I'm asking a lot. We are desperately looking for suggestions on daily destinations, which route/roads to take, cool places to see along the way, etc.. My wife and kids have never been to this area of the country & I've only had quick in & out's to spesific spots and a few at that, nothing like what were trying to do. So that means we would like as much help as possible to stay off the HWY and on two lane or preferably dirt roads when possible and when theres something fun or cool to do. The last thing we want to do is do this trip using all interstate, we what to really see & experience as much as we can with our family.
So PLEASE by all means if you or anyone else has some idea's, loops & destinations you've done that you really enjoy (again, with kids, though adventuresome kids), we'd be extremely grateful to hear about them!
Thanks in advance to everyone who helps us Plan a killer Christmas Holiday,
Cheers:victory:

Well, I particularly like the Jumbo Rocks area of Joshua Tree.... And from Anza Borrego, head east to the western side of Salton Sea, take Hiway 86 up to Palm Springs then 62 to Joshua Tree... And if you have time and interest, Mt. Palomar (where the BIG telescope is) isn't too far from Anza-Borrego...

In DV, enter from Barstow, via 247 from JT, or Amboy Rd. Lots o' desert out there...

 

[latinoguy]

First a word on baja, while yes it is risky (but no more than any big US city with higher than average crime activity) it is not irresponsible going there with family. So if you plan to drive along the border (8 freeway to meet up on the 10 in AZ) I would say go.

San Felipe
from San Diego take 8 freeway to El Centro to Calexico, cross border proper (Mexican Insurance) and head to San Felipe (much safer than Tijuana to Ensenda area) spend 2 days in town at one of the palapa rental parks) relax, eat some tasty fish tacos and return same way you came but this time plan on your destination being Anza Borrego.

Spend 1-2 days exploring Anza Borrego. Then take hwy 86 to Indio, enter Joshua Tree through Berdoo Canyon and camp out in Hidden Valley where the kids will get a kick of watching rock climbers climb large rocks...also there are some nice trails to explore. Spend 1 day and head out south Entrance which leads you to the 10 freeway where you can now have choices on how to get to Sedona.

While the Mojave and Death Valley National parks are also must see destinations, Anza Borrego and Joshua Tree NP will give you plenty of desert trail experience and combined that with Baja and the fact that this area puts you closer to Sedona, it is a trip worth making.

So that brings me to the task at hand, were looking at trying to find some sort of loop from Anaheim (Disney Land) back towards Utah. We would really like to find something cool each day on the trip to show the kids while trying to stay off the HWY's using as many two lane & dirt roads as possible. Because of the kids and the fact that my wife and I have never been to Baja, she is really nervous about going down there without having a group of us to kind of show us around. She does a lot of research online, and she looked up the US Travel Advisory on Mexico and they said that because of the Drug violence that traveling with small children is not advised. So, that's where I'm looking for more advice! Besides we will also be traveling with our dog and I'm not sure what is totally involved with bring him along?

So we thought after leaving Disney Land taking hwy 1 south (I know this is a major hwy but the wife and the kids will really dig it) to San Diego, then heading east towards AZ. In AZ travel close to the boarder finding something to check out, then from there heading north using again, two lane & dirt roads up through Sedona & Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon etc.

If possible, I'm looking to find something everyday that we travel to or towards that we could show the kids, this will help keep the excitement up on the trip, besides it gives us all something to look forward to. This is another area I need allot of advice on, if anyone has done a trip like this and has any advice on places to go, places to camp, roads to travel, things to do, etc. please by all means, post or P.M. me it will be greatly appreciated!!

I hope everyone had a fulfilling Thanksgiving weekend!

 

[Roverholic]

Hello Jamie,
I realize there has been a ton of negative press about Baja, some legit, some not. We (we = wife and 3 young kids) recently completed a 7-day trip down to Loreto over Thanksgiving. This was our first trip to Baja in 2 years and I'll tell you....I'm ready to go again! We met a ton of cool folks; many with young children and NONE of us had any issues. A few of them had already been down for 2-3 weeks and had traveled further than we had.
This is not to say you won’t have an issue…but if you’re brave enough to visit Disneyland, you’ll probably be fine.:sombrero:

What ever you decide to do, have a blast and feel free to fire off an email if you travel through Carlsbad. I currently have Green Flash West Coast IPA on tap at the house.
Cheers,
Paul