weekender.
Weekend trips from Fresno Pacific
Hidden spots near Fresno, day trips and weekend road trips from Fresno Pacific in November, scored 1–10 on price, timing and what's happening, with gas, park fees, a campsite or room and food included.
Plan your own trip from Fresno Pacific →Local finds near campus
Fresno County Blossom Trail
Miles of almond, peach and plum orchards in bloom, usually late February to mid March. Free.
Millerton Lake
A foothill lake half an hour from Fresno, with bald eagles in winter and swimming in summer.
Forestiere Underground Gardens
A Sicilian immigrant's hand-dug underground home with fruit trees growing through skylights.
Day trips
Kern River (Kernville)
Whitewater rafting through a granite canyon, a few hours from LA.
Columbia State Historic Park
Pan for gold and ride a stagecoach in a preserved 1850s mining town.
Carrizo Plain
An empty grassland that erupts in yellow and purple in a good spring, beside Soda Lake and Painted Rock.
Pinnacles National Park
Crawl through talus caves with a flashlight while California condors circle above.
Hearst Castle & San Simeon
A newspaper tycoon's hilltop castle with a marble pool, and elephant seals below it.
Kings Canyon
A canyon deeper than the Grand Canyon, with fewer people than Yosemite.
Weekend trips
Death Valley
Salt flats below sea level, rainbow-colored hills and the darkest night sky in California.
Monterey & Carmel
Sea otters on kelp, 17-Mile Drive and Carmel's fairytale cottages.
Bishop & the Buttermilks
World-class bouldering, Keough's hot springs and Erick Schat's famous bakery.
Kern River (Kernville)
Whitewater rafting through a granite canyon, a few hours from LA.
Morro Bay & Montaña de Oro
Sea otters under Morro Rock and wild bluff trails in Montaña de Oro.
Big Sur
McWay Falls dropping onto a beach, Bixby Bridge and the purple sand at Pfeiffer Beach.
Long weekends
Death Valley
Salt flats below sea level, rainbow-colored hills and the darkest night sky in California.
Valley of Fire (Nevada)
Swirling red and pink sandstone, petroglyphs and the Fire Wave, an hour past Las Vegas.
Anza-Borrego & Borrego Springs
Giant metal dinosaur sculptures in the desert, wildflowers in spring and a dark-sky town.
Salvation Mountain & Salton Sea
A hand-painted hill, Slab City's off-grid art town and the eerie shores of the Salton Sea.
Joshua Tree
Twisted trees, boulder scrambles and some of the darkest skies near LA.
Monterey & Carmel
Sea otters on kelp, 17-Mile Drive and Carmel's fairytale cottages.
Personalize it
Set your budget, how many friends are coming, your car (or no car: train and bus), and what you're into (hiking, beaches, camping, stargazing, food and more), and Weekender re-ranks every trip for you, with a day-by-day plan, directions and campsites.
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