Road trips from SoCal: California
To help you tap the region's cache of getaways, we've compiled this list of road trip spots in California. For a list of out-of-state destinations, click here. Browse by region on our road trips page. Distance to each destination is one-way from downtown Los Angeles.
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( Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times )
Idyllwild
California deserts Distance: 109 miles one-way What happens if, two-thirds of the way to a Palm Springs weekend, somebody grabs control of your family's vehicle, veers hard to the right, follows the cliff-clinging goat path known as California 243, then roars into the pines looking for a soft meadow between granite peaks? Idyllwild is what happens. Arriving from Los Angeles, you first climb to the largely residential community of Pine Cove, then descend to about 5,300 feet, where you see half a dozen blocks of shops, restaurants and art and craft galleries, all surrounded by trees, rocks, scattered vacation cabins, the odd A-frame and the odder geodesic dome. The year-round population is about 3,500. -- Christopher Reynolds Read more: Find simpler times in Idyllwild's peaceful San Jacinto mountain retreat |
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