well off the beathen path

Vermilion Resort Originally uploaded by danamight meteor showers and comets Fair weather means anytime is a good time to watch the sky. totalescape.com/outside/event/perseid-meteor-shower The high Sierra Nevada is the place to really enjoy the show in summer camping out, but winter means snow is likely and a cabin rental might be a better choice, or grab a guest room at a rustic lodge like this one photographed above. Meteor showers are best viewed after 2AM, so you first need to decide if you are "a stay up late", or "wake up early" kinda person. Partying and drinking in the early evening means the excitement will be worn off and you will be dozing after midnight, missing the entire possibility of seeing any grazers. Taking a nap in the early afternoon before might help your odd sleep schedule adjust but be prepared to kick up the caffeine when you want to take in the awesome night views. Mount Pinos and Mount Abel are both popular SoCal spots f

Romance for Camping Couple Vacations in California Why not keep the passion alive all year long. Take solo weekends away from one another and also vacation as a couple. All local, outdoors and on a budget. Kick your creativity into high gear and plan something totally spontaneous: Get a cabin or condo on the slopes for a few days. Book a lake view suite at a small resort, read, relax and fish all day long. Walk in the forest, bring a picnic and lay out to stargaze at night. Travel locally to enhance your love life, snuggle up close to a cozy fireplace, with a good bottle of wine. Hike, bike and enjoy the outdoors. Holiday season road trips & Valentine weekend ideas Local small towns in California is what Total Escape is all about. We have only small, independent lodges , but focus more on bed & breakfast inns , camping sites and cabin rentals . Discover more, stay local, spend less and enjoy your honey pie more often. top romantic places in California Auburn A

Lake Sardine California upper sardine, lower sardine lakes One of the best camping lakes in California. Any lake near Gold Lake is prime pickens. This picturesque lake called Sardine Lake, or Sardine Lakes, is located within the Lakes Basin Recreation Area , north of Gold Country Highway 49 next to the peaks of Sierra Buttes and in between Tahoe National Forest and Plumas National Forest . A two tiered water storage in granite basin bowls, with the larger upper lake situated up above at the base of the mighty granite spires of the Sierra Buttes. Very impressive views all around the Gold Lake highway. Sardine Lake Campground , elevation 5,800' developed NFS campground near lower lake w/ fee, 29 camp sites, piped water, vault toilets. 530-862-1368 Tahoe National Forest nearest town: Sierra City California, on Historic Hwy 4. Frasier Falls, Gold Lake, Long Lake Trail, and Sierra Buttes are just a few of the area attractions. more on Sardine Lake Lake fishing,

California has the most amazing and diverse terrain you can imagine. Ancient lava beds to dense forests, giant boulder rock outcroppings to sand dunes. Off road motorcycles, otherwise known as 'dirt bikes' can find riding trails near home or across the state, in far away locations. dirt bike routes dirt bike camping dirt bike trails Dirt biking off road trails can be found outside of nearly any urban city in California. In National Forests, on BLM lands, all across the many deserts and in a good portion of the mountains. The Sierra Nevada mountains located in the middle of the state has many high elevation OHV routes to small alpine lakes and primitive camp sites. SoCal has the winter prime-time desert warmth, Central Cal has coastal dunes, steep canyons, and rugged foothills, plus the giant Mojave desert which stretches from Joshua Tree area to Vegas. NorCal has the endless forests, solitude and rivers you seek. SoCal Off Road Areas Imperial Sand Dunes Heber Dunes

Camping sites in Southern California While camping in California is an amazing experience overall with thousands of picture perfect settings to pitch your tent, camping in SoCal definitely has it's limitations. The primary reasons are.... Camping in SoCal is - 1. crowded (half the population is located in the lower third of the state) 2. dry terrain (minimal rivers, dry seasonal streams, few waterfalls) 3. wildfire prone (with average rainfall of only 10") 4. costly (all developed campgrounds charge fees) 5. not secluded (with suburbia spread into foothills, busy roads nearby) With the California population nearing 40 million, you will need to do your research in order to find a good, secluded, scenic camping area. Coastal camp sites are the most popular on the list and you should seek advanced reservation w/ the State Park system. City camping is mostly RV parks and a few county parks. Beyond the neighborhoods, countryside camping in the coastal footh

NEW SEARCH California road trip planner Like cooking and gardening, travel and trip planning is an art form unto itself. Local vacations should be worry free and easy, close to home, with plenty of time for relaxing and enjoying the outdoors. Spend some time dreaming, browsing online and planning (well in advance). Laying down a basic itinerary ahead of time will help so you can see more sights - and stress less. maps.google.com is an invaluable tool for planning local road trips, getting an overview, plus an idea of travel time, mileage and distance. Total Escape is now 17 years old and founder DanaMite is celebrating this milestone by cleaning house, redesigning some areas and moving servers. So, this was perfect time to redo the SEARCH tool , aka search box, search Total Escape featured at the top of every page. Please take in mind that there are two different sites that make up Total Escape (not including the blogspot blog, flickr photos or any social media pages).

organic cali Organic search results proves well for Total Escape data. (Google Analytics 2008) If you are actually searching for prime Organic finds inside California - organic cafes, organic wineries, organic farms, organic bnbs, organic orchards, organic food seeds, farm stands, fine dining restaurants... you will find organic small businesses listed on the A to Z town pages under local links section.

Pismo Beach California is the big beach oriented tourist destination along the Central Coast of California & just south of San Luis Obispo . Ocean front sand dunes is the primary draw here at Pismo. The Oceano State Vehicular Recreation Area (aka Pismo Dunes) is a seaside haven for off-roaders wanting cooler temps & coastal breezes. This off road park is actually located between Grover Beach and the town of Oceano, miles south of Pismo Pier. You can actually drive your vehicle on the beach sand & set up camp on the shore. Pismo also has a State Park Beach Campground as well & that is more suited for RVs, family camping & tent camping. Downtown Pismo has several private RV parks, which are walking distance from the popular pier and  many restaurants. Oceano has a county run campground near a lagoon and close to the beach too. Pismo State Beach Oceano SVRA Oceano County Campground Inland from Grover Beach is Arroyo Grande Lake Lopez, for those wi

Trinity Wilderness Map  new edition 2013  After 2 years outta stock status the Trinity Alps Wilderness Map is finally back in stock at Total Escape. USDA recently updated, reprinted and released this long-waited NorCal title and we expect it to be a great seller (just like the last version was). Backpacking, day hiking, horseback, high elevation camping - all campgrounds, roads, trails, waterfalls, lakes, mountain peaks and trailheads. Trinity River, Salmon River, Klamath River, Highway 96, Highway 3, Forks of the Salmon. Surrounded by Six Rivers National Forest and Trinity National Forest, both west of Interstate 5 in Northern California.   nearby towns include -  Douglas City, CA Etna, CA Fort Jones, CA French Gulch Gazelle, CA Happy Camp, CA Helena Junction City Lewiston, CA Orleans, CA Trinity Center Weaverville, CA Willow Creek Yreka, CA   Big Foot in Happy Camp, CA

If you are searching for an alpine lake near a National Park to visit - that is driving distance from Southern California, the dual region of Kings Canyon & Sequoia National Park are easy access. These 2 popular parks are located in the southern most sections of the Sierra Nevada. Hume Lake is located in between both of these parks & offers a variety of camping options - cabins, campgrounds, primitive camping, backpacking and horse packs. Giant Sequoia groves are to the south via Highway 198, which leads down the hill to Mineral King Road & the riverside village of Three Rivers. Big Meadows Road #14S11 is a prime choice for folks who want to camp away from the National Parks, but still be within driving distance. The further back on this narrow road you drive, the better it gets. The wilderness boundary is 12 miles back, becoming dirt roads forking off in many directions. Great horse camping near a big meadow too. Buck Rock Fire Lookout is worth a hike up with s

Hidden Campsites small campgrounds, tent camping, free camping We know, we know, you want a lake to yourself and don't really wanna share a huge campground with hundreds of other folks. Picking a decent campground online is difficult enough - with the numerous managing agencies , confusing park names, long driving times, freeway routes and hefty reservation fees. Avoid reservations all together and discover travel off the beaten path. Mid week campground stays can be better than weekends, but during summertime all week long is peak season w/ maximum visitors circulating. Neighbors at camp can often mean annoyances - children, generator noise, vehicle engines, boating trailers, music and partying. Quiet time is usually 10pm to 7am, but that doesn't mean the loud garbage truck won't wake you at 6:50am. big campgrounds vs. small Big campgrounds are developed parks with more than 20 camp sites, usually found along paved roads and highways. Level tent spots, pa

 Bike Trails in California / Beach Bike Paths California has some amazing scenery, small towns to big cities and what better way to enjoy it then by bike. Numerous bike paths, a couple of miles of beach or a full day cycling journey. Paved, level, leisurely bicycle routes near marinas, beaches, city bays, connecting villages small towns, redwood forest, some in the country, some along rivers and several within National Parks! Town links listed below will lead to several prime biking destinations where you can browse bike routes, hiking trails, museums, parks, campgrounds, cafes, coffee shops, restaurants, farmers markets, lodging, bike rentals and surf shops. San Diego Bike Paths Coronado to Imperial Beach (12 mi. oceanside) Mission Beach San Diego (14 mi. bay side) Mission Beach to Pacific Beach (3 mi. oceanside) Lake MiraMar, E of La Jolla (5 mi. loop on lake) Los Angeles Biking Paths Santa Monica Pier to Venice Beach (8 miles) Manhattan Beach - The Stra