weekender.
Weekend trips from Menlo College
Hidden spots near Atherton, day trips and weekend road trips from Menlo College 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 Menlo College →Local finds near campus
Half Moon Bay & Pescadero
Tide pools at Fitzgerald Marine Reserve and warm artichoke bread in tiny Pescadero.
Mission Peak
The Bay Area's most-climbed summit and its famous pole; go at sunrise.
Alum Rock Park
California's oldest city park: a canyon of old mineral-spring grottoes right above San José.
Castle Rock & Skyline
Sandstone caves and boulders on the ridge between Silicon Valley and the ocean.
Big Basin Redwoods
California's oldest state park, regrowing after the 2020 fire: blackened giants sprouting green.
Day trips
Monterey & Carmel
Sea otters on kelp, 17-Mile Drive and Carmel's fairytale cottages.
San Francisco
Mission burritos and murals, cable cars, the Castro and fog rolling over Twin Peaks.
Elkhorn Slough
Kayak past dozens of sea otters and harbor seals in a quiet estuary.
Sonoma Valley
Bike between family wineries, then picnic on Sonoma's mission plaza.
Santa Cruz
A 1907 boardwalk roller coaster, surfers at Steamer Lane and redwoods ten minutes inland.
Calistoga & Napa
Volcanic mud baths, an erupting geyser and the valley's grand wineries.
Weekend trips
Pismo Beach & Oceano Dunes
Drive or sandboard on the only beach dunes you can camp on, then clam chowder in Pismo.
Monterey & Carmel
Sea otters on kelp, 17-Mile Drive and Carmel's fairytale cottages.
Point Reyes
Tule elk on the bluffs, a lighthouse 300 steps down a cliff, and oysters on Tomales Bay.
Muir Woods & Mount Tam
Old-growth redwoods in a canyon, then the sunset over the fog from Mount Tamalpais.
Bodega Bay & Sonoma Coast
Where Hitchcock filmed The Birds: whale-watching headlands and secret coves.
Big Sur
McWay Falls dropping onto a beach, Bixby Bridge and the purple sand at Pfeiffer Beach.
Long weekends
Pismo Beach & Oceano Dunes
Drive or sandboard on the only beach dunes you can camp on, then clam chowder in Pismo.
Death Valley
Salt flats below sea level, rainbow-colored hills and the darkest night sky in California.
Nevada City & South Yuba
A gaslit Gold Rush town and emerald swimming holes on the South Yuba River.
Morro Bay & Montaña de Oro
Sea otters under Morro Rock and wild bluff trails in Montaña de Oro.
Bishop & the Buttermilks
World-class bouldering, Keough's hot springs and Erick Schat's famous bakery.
Hearst Castle & San Simeon
A newspaper tycoon's hilltop castle with a marble pool, and elephant seals below it.
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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