Holiday

I have a three-day weekend coming up, much like the rest of the United States and Canada. I hate sitting at home letting time slip by like that, so naturally, I'm going to have to go somewhere. This presents me with an issue, however.

This summer, I have gone just about everywhere that is within driving range from Southern California. This means Northern California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah. My other option is to fly somewhere. However, airlines, using some form of nefarious trickery, have figured out that I might want to utilize their services, and have increased their fares for the weekend.

Flying to the East Coast is out of the question anyway. Time differences, combined with flight time, would mean that of the three days, two would be spent traveling there and back. This does not make sense.

This leaves flying to somewhere nearby, but that undermines the whole purpose of flying. I'd much rather drive somewhere than fly there.

While flying somewhere like Seattle is still an option, I'm going to use the rest of this post to try to come up with somewhere I might want to drive.

I love the Northern California coast, but it is most likely out of consideration this year. Going there would require the same schedule as when I went there last year: leave on Friday night and drive through the night, get to the northern end of California on Saturday night, and then head straight back on Sunday morning. This leaves almost no time for, well, anything. Granted, the Pacific Coast is a destination unto itself--driving through is good enough.

San Francisco--Probably not, since I went there last week. Also, I don't approve of the 4% surcharge that I was charged at a restaurant that is supposedly required under the city's new Health Care Security Ordinance. Socialists.

Las Vegas--Too hot, and I don't gamble, although I guess there's more to Vegas than gambling. Drinking, for instance. Or prostitutes.

Mexico--No.

Kings Canyon--Everyone goes to Sequoia but no one ever goes to adjacent Kings Canyon. The reason for this is that pretty much everything worth seeing is very remote and only accessible after a long hike (read: multiple days). It also doesn't have the high-profile tourist attractions that Sequoia has. I suppose it could be worth it if I visit both parks. I went to Sequoia last fall but it was a one-day thing so I didn't have a whole lot of time there. Plus, Kings Canyon is, apart from Channel Islands, which can't be easily accessed, the only national park in California that I haven't visited.

Yosemite--worth consideration, although it will probably be very crowded. Which may not be too much of an issue considering I wouldn't be staying in the park itself. The plan would be to stay somewhere outside the park on Saturday night, drive through Tioga road to the other side of the Sierra Nevadas, maybe visit Bodie or Mono Lake, and then drive down. At this point this plan seems the most attractive.