Perfect Pitch: Three Cool Places to Camp in California

Live to rough it? Then check out this guide to the some of the best camping spots from NorCal to SoCal.

California has everything to offer the camping enthusiast … national parks, year-round access to various sites and no shortage of breathtaking landscapes. The abundance of options can be overwhelming, even to the most experienced outdoorsman or woman.

According to a recent story published by The Travel Channel, “Choosing the best place to camp within California’s 18 national forests is like choosing just one flavor of ice cream at the ice cream parlor. California boasts thousands of campgrounds that range in landscapes from the sierras to the desert, and from the redwoods to the bluffs; with styles of camping that range from primitive camping basics to modern-day glamping.”

In this nifty guide, the writer, also an experienced camper, handpicks nearly a dozen top campsites throughout California, with regional picks for the best places to camp, by foot, car, boat, motorcycle or RV.

Here are a few highlights:

Crystal Cove State Park
“With over 2,400 acres of wilderness and 3.2 miles of coastal beachfront, Crystal Cove State Park is in Southern California’s Newport Beach area between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach in Orange County. Crystal Cove Beach Cottages are an historic seaside colony of rentals within the 12.3-acre Crystal Cove Historic District, which is an enclave of rustic cottages built in the 1930s and ’40s and is a federally listed historic district on the California coast. There are currently 24 sought-after beachfront cottages available for rent, with another 17 to be restored. There is also tent, RV, family and bluff camping available at the Crystal Cove wilderness area of El Moro Canyon.”

Redwood National and State Parks
“The oldest California redwoods in the Redwood National and State Parks started as seedlings many years ago and camping among these 2,000-year-old beauties in this UNESCO World Heritage Site is divine. A 50-mile stretch that starts in northernmost California approximately 325 miles north of San Francisco, ending in the little-known town of Orick, Redwood National and State Parks have four campgrounds to choose from; three campgrounds in the redwood forest and one on the Pacific coastline at Golds Bluff Beach.”

Salton Sea
“One of the world’s largest inland seas and minus-227-below sea level, and one of many California State Parks where my family and friends pitched tents, cooked on the grill, gobbled s’mores by the campfire and simply enjoyed the great outdoors.”

Check out the complete list on The Travel Channel’s site.