Just 9 more California State Parks to go!

In 2014, our campground photo tour covered 19 states, 20,000 miles and hundreds of campgrounds – mostly in the south, along the east coast and northeast. This year we’re planning on photographing the remaining state park campgrounds in California. We have about 9 more to photograph and a few others to update. By May, we’ll have all of the California state park campgrounds photographed for your viewing pleasure! We’ll also photograph many more popular campgrounds in California and then head up to the Northwest. But we won’t stop there, adding many more campgrounds in several other states!

Drop us a line, post, or email (info@campsitephotos.com) if you have any suggestions for campgrounds you’d like to see on CampsitePhotos.com and we’ll do our best to visit them.

Our California photo tour is already on the road with Greg starting out in the Santa Ynez Valley, just over the hill from Santa Barbara. Take it away Greg…

The first order of business after setting up camp was to make a fresh batch of tacos.

Which I tasted for dinner.

I also had some for breakfast, accompanied by the sound of pouring rain.

You can see the flooding of my site between the cooler and the chair.

After waiting out several days of rain, I journeyed to the beach to check out two campgrounds.

El Capitan is about 10 miles north of Santa Barbara on US 101.

There are 133 sites here on a small bluff overlooking the Pacific.

There is even a little beach store.

Very quaint.

A few of my favorite sites were 32, 82, and 84.

Just a few miles up the road is Refugio.

This is a smaller spot with only 66 sites, along with it’s own quaint store.

The difference here is that there is no bluff.

Sites 24 and 25 face the ocean, just a hundred feet away across a grass field.

Sites 34, 35, and 60 are parallel to the beach and closer.

But you have to pay for that view.

At both parks the winter rate is $35, going to $45 the rest of the year. At Refugio, the ocean front sites are $45 in the winter and jump to $55.

10 years ago they were all $12.

Let’s look at some sunsets and sunrises from last year to get our mind off that figure.

Florida.

Georgia.

South Carolina.

North Carolina.

Pennsylvania.

A pair from Maine.

New Hampshire.

Three from Adirondack Park.

Arkansas.

New Mexico.

Arizona.

Feel better? Almost?

OK, let’s finish it off with some of the critters I encountered last year.

Birds.

Reptiles.

Mammals.

Insects.

And a fish.

Then there is the “Unclassified Mutant” category.

Moss Man.

Texas Rabbit.

Wacky Virginians.

Pennsylvania Cow.

And a Georgia Feathered Bass.

But while all of these critters were relatively harmless and polite, one was downright rude.

The Maine Mocking Moose.

Right back at you, big boy.

Regards and happy camping, Park Ranger