Travel

Order groceries with Instacart and we’ll stock your Airstream rental! We are happy to present a new amenity for our guests at GoSilver: grocery delivery!  There’s nothing worse than getting all hitched up and ready to go, but then to have to stop off at a grocery store to stock up your Airstream for your vacation.  Or you have to bring all your groceries with you (and not to mention all your cooler bags which you then have to store in the Airstream).  By offering this grocery delivery to our guests, you guys can show up to a fully stocked Airstream! If you haven’t heard of Instacart before, it’s a grocery delivery service that hires personal shoppers to do your grocery shopping for you.  They partner with stores like WholeFoods and Safeway (see the above picture for all the stores available for delivery within our zip code, 95131).  There is a delivery charge of $9.99-$11.99 depending on the time window that you want it delivered.   If you want to have your groceries delivered and stocked into your Airstream we ask our customers to follow these guidelines to make it easier for us and to prevent any miscommunications: Schedule the delivery for the day of your departure, anytime after 11AM. Please send us the delivery information as soon as you order so we can set aside time in our schedule to stock the groceries. Make sure to give the business name and our phone number as the alternative phone number just in case the delivery person has trouble finding us.  You can also add the description that our business is “located in the Club Auto Sport complex, in the far corner of the back parking lot.” Please remember that the freezer section of the Airstreams (especially the smaller ones) are quite small so buy accordingly. And please remember to tip your personal shopper (they have a section for that on the Instacart site). We of course will stock items as soon as they are delivered but we are not responsible for the state of the groceries as they are delivered (for example if something had thawed out).  But in general we have had only pleasant experiences with Instacart, their personal shoppers, and the items they delivered.  We hope this amenity adds convenience to our customers lives and there’s one less thing to worry about before starting your Airstream trip!

Online Resources To Help You Find Your Next Campground or RV Park Sometimes you’re at a campsite or RV park just to have a place to eat and sleep enroute to other destinations on your trip.  But other times the campsite is the destination and not just part of the journey.  In those times, you want to book the best spots at the best campsites/RV parks.  To us, that means a clean RV park that’s generally quiet or in a convenient location (and that’s not shady, in the criminal sense).   And once we choose the best RV park, sometimes we want to choose the best RV space (especially if we’re staying longer than a couple days) and to us that means a spot that’s secluded with great views if they’re available.  To help us make these decisions, we use the following resources when planning our RV or camping trips: AllStays Camp & RV app:  This is the single most useful app that we have tried for our own extended RV trips.  Yes it’s a $10 investment but this app is available for family sharing and trust us, it’s worth it.  This app will show you every single independently owned RV resort, state park campsite, national park campsite, national forest campsite, and just general areas to park an RV.  The best thing about this is app is that it doesn’t need cellular reception to work (which is especially useful when picking a last minute RV park while on the road).  But if you do have reception, the app can take you directly to Google images of the RV park/campsite as well as to its website and/or booking site.  Though they have a couple reviews up on the app, there’s not a whole lot so if you have service, cross-reference your chosen RV park/campsite with one of the sites listed below. RV Park Reviews: This site probably has the most user generated reviews on RV Parks and campgrounds than any other site though there’s not much in the way of pictures.  You can filter parks with their search filters but sometimes their search can be a little glitchy (just make sure when entering the location you’re interested in the search bar to include the state, otherwise it will say nothing found).  But for the most part, the reviews are detailed and provide some great tidbits of advice. Good Sam Club:  This site is like the Michelin guide of RV parks and resorts (but not campsites).  They have a 1-10 rating system (with 10 being the best) for the categories Facility, Restroom (cleanliness), and Appeal.  I’m not sure who decides the scores, but for the most part they are reliable ( 10/10/10 RV resorts are usually really awesome, though more expensive).  They also have reviews from other Good Sam members, which really helps to paint a better picture of the RV park.  (Also a note about Good Sam, by joining their Club you can get a 10% off discount at any Good Sam RV Park and there’s a lot of them.  So if you’re going to be going to a lot of RV parks during the year, it’s worth getting the membership.  But otherwise the reviews on their website are great resources and their search function on the site is pretty easy to use). Campendium: This is a relatively new website that is trying to become the Yelp of campgrounds and RV sites.  All reviews and most of the photos are user generated.  The site was create by the couple behind Aluminarium (one of my favorite Airstream blogs on the web).  One of the best features of the reviews is the cell coverage info for each review (this is super important when you like to work on the road like we do), but each review comes with a ton of valuable information.  They also have reviews of free campsites for dry-camping (i.e. no hook-ups), which is a great tool for those just need the best parking lot to those who want to camp in nature away from the crowds.  There aren’t a lot of reviews out there yet for each campsite/RV park, but just like any community, it takes some time to grow. Trip Advisor: Surprisingly TripAdvisor can be a great resource for some of the bigger and more popular RV sites and campsites.  The great thing about TripAdvisor is they usually have some pictures of the campsite and sometimes tips on which sites in the RV park or campground are the best. Yelp: Yelp is still Yelp when it comes to RV parks, and like TripAdvisor, there are a lot of good reviews and photos for the bigger and more popular RV parks and campsites. And last but not least, one of the best way to find a good campsite is to talk to a local (if you’re trying to find some last minute RV campsites).  Of course not all locals will be the camper types and know where to go, but we’ve lucked out and found some great places just by striking up conversations.  At the very least it’s sometimes worth a try.   And finally if you’re planning ahead, once you find the park that you want to stay at, just call the RV park or campsite and you can ask them which sites are the best (most secluded or with the best view).  Most of the time, the RV parks are more than happy to tell you their recommendations.

How to use your Airstream without any hook-ups (aka Dry-Camping) What does it mean to dry-camp? For those who really want to use their rented Airstream to it’s fullest potential and for those with a love of camping out in private, less-populated areas then dry-camping is for you.  Dry-camping is when you park your Airstream in a place with no hook-ups (but usually a designated campsite).  Thus, unlike at a posh RV park, you do not have electricity, water, or sewer connection available onsite.  And what that means for you is that you will have to monitor both your electricity and water consumption, and forgo hours of TV watching and long hot showers.  But in exchange for those sacrifices, you’re rewarded with a usually quiet and isolated spot and nature right at your Airstream door-step.   Also another term related to dry-camping is called dispersed camping, but dispersed camping pertains to parking in sites that are not designated campsites and can only be done on public land that allows for it.  The term boondocking can pertain to both dry-camping (at a designated campsite) and dispersed camping (not designated campsites). Dry Camping Tips Dry-camping challenges can be categorized by  the different resources that have to be managed during your trip: power, water, and tank space. Power When you are not connected to 120V shore power at an RV park or campground with hook-ups, power is being provided by the two 12V house batteries onboard the Airstream. These batteries will charge up during the day by the solar panels on the roof if the Airstream is parked in a sunny area. The solar panels on the 19’ and 20’ models are smaller and will take 2 full days of solar charging to get back to a full charge.   The biggest user of power when using the trailer is the furnace. Even though the heat is created by burning propane, the furnace has a blower that spreads the warm air and uses up power whenever it is running. The other items that use up power when dry camping are the lights, the water pump, the flat panels, DVD player, refrigerator, fans, and running the inverter. The trailer has an inverter that converts the battery 12V power to 120V power that allows you to run any electrical item up to 1,000 Watts. Unfortunately, this leaves the coffee maker, hair dryer and air conditioner off limits when dry camping unless you have rented our optional generators. If the onboard batteries have completely drained, connect the 7-way plug from the trailer to the 7way connector on your tow vehicle (as you would do when hitching up your Airstream).  Keep them connected for a few minutes and this will provide enough juice from the vehicle’s 12v battery to begin allowing the solar panels to charge the batteries.   However if you plan to dry-camp for multiple days (and especially don’t know if you will be having sunny weather), we recommend renting one of our Honda Generators that operate on gasoline. The primary uses for the generator are recharging batteries and running high wattage appliances.  Running the generator for few hours during the day will bring the batteries back to a reasonable charge and allow you to have an enjoyable evening with heat, refrigeration and lights. If you plan to run the air conditioning with a 2000W generator, make sure that no other electrical devices are plugged in and turn off the the electric water heater. A 3000W generator will allow you to run the A/C while providing power to few devices.   Propane – The trailers have two 30lb tanks that are good for many weeks of camping. We make sure each trailer leaves our facility with full tanks and the propane is included in your rental fee. The hot water, refrigerator, stove and oven all work off of propane. Water This resource may be the most challenging one to stretch over multiple days. Our 25’ and 27’ models have 39 gallons of water and the 19’ and 20’ models have 23 gallons. We have 6-gallon water jugs available which can provide water to refill the tank and provide that extra shower or extra day of camping. Some campgrounds have water available on the premises but not at each campsite, so the jugs can be handy to shuttle water from the water spigot to refill the water tank. For campgrounds with no water you can bring water with you or take the jug and fill up in town when you are visiting the local sites.   Fresh Water Supply Grey Water Tank Black Water Tank 19’ International 23 gallons 21 gallons 18 gallons 20’ Flying Cloud 25’ Flying Cloud 39 gallons 35 gallons 39 gallons 25’ International 37 gallons 27’ International 39 gallons Holding Tank Space Typically, the gray water tank (water from shower and faucets) will fill up first.  Take short showers, and use the start/stop switch on the shower head to rinse, soap, and rinse.  Although it’s not as nice as a long hot shower when you are at a park with hookups, it will keep you fresh and use about 4 gallons of water. The outdoor shower is another alternative for quick rinses. Cleaning dishes can also use up the gray holding tank so using paper plates and cups can help save water.   The black water tank (sewage) is good for several days up to a week depending on the size of your Airstream. Each flush equals about a ½ gallon so you can estimate how many days you can go without dumping the tanks by guessing how many times a day you flush. As with water, many dry camping sites may not have a sewer connection at the site but provide a dump station where you can dump on your way out (this is recommended only for those who are going on multi-day dry-camping trips, otherwise we flush and sanitize all tanks as part of our service). Dry-camping at Alabama

Welcome to the family, the 23-foot Flying Cloud We are very excited to announce the addition of a new Airstream to our fleet: the 23-foot corner bed Flying Cloud!  For families and couples looking for a bit more extra space compared to the 20′ Flying Cloud, but don’t have the capacity to tow the 25′ Airstreams, this is the one for you!   This 23′ Airstream comes with all of the usual suspects including full bathroom with shower, kitchen, fridge with freezer box, stove, propane oven, bed, convertible dinette, TV, Blu-ray player, air conditioner and furnace.  But it also has additional features like a microwave, ample storage (2 wardrobes!), and a bike rack mounted to the back of the Airstream.   At 6000 pounds fully loaded, this 23-foot Airstream can be towed by cars like the Audi Q7, BMW X5, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Range Rover, Lexus GX, Mercedes ML250, Toyota Sequoia, and Volkswagen Touareg.  Also it is the smallest Airstream with 2 axles, which helps stabilize the trailer when towing.   We highly recommend this Airstream for families of 4 to 5 because of the ample sleeping quarters.  Not only does it have a bed (slightly narrower than a standard full sized bed) and the convertible dinette, but it also has a pull out lounge bed that can accommodate an adult taller than 6 feet.  For families of 4 or more, the kids could take the corner bed, which then can be screened off for privacy while the adults can have full utilization of the kitchen and dinette area late into the night (as well as easy access to the door to come and go).  This is also great if the kids sleep-in in the morning, allowing the adults to get a head start with breakfast.  (As a note this is a sleeping arrangement we recommend for those who take the 25′ Flying Cloud as well.)   So if this sounds like the Airstream for you, or you want to learn more, find more details and available dates here.

How-To: Book an RV site Here’s a quick follow-up to our previous post about researching RV parks and campgrounds. As an example, we’ll be using the Costanoa reservation webpage. This RV site is managed by KOA (Kampgrounds of America) and when booking your RV spot here’s a brief look at what your reservation form looks like:   Airstreams are travel trailers and they don’t have any slideouts.  And depending on what you rent, we have Airstreams ranging from 19 to 28 feet.  Here’s all the details you might need when making a reservation at a RV park or campsite: Equipment Type: Travel Trailer Slideouts: None Electricity: 30 Amp Length: 19 – 28 ft Width: 9 ft And that’s it!  You’re on your way to an unforgettable vacation!

A Hitch-up Tutorial Video by GoSilver We are excited to present to you our first video tutorial (of hopefully many)!  Our first video shown here goes over the process of hitching up your rented Airstream to your towing vehicle.  We of course will go over this at the start of your trip, but we will be sending this video to all customers so that they may familiarize themselves with the process before picking up their Airstream.  Thanks for watching!

Destination: Zion National Park and Antelope Canyon Zion National Park and Antelope Canyon are bucket list destinations for most people due to their majestic natural splendor.  And for good reason, both destinations showcase desert beauty at its finest and is not to be missed!  There’s nothing quite like an Airstream road trip to visit How to Get There Zion National Park is a total of over 11 hours from our Airstream rental garage in San Jose, so we recommend breaking up your drive over two days.  When we took this trip, we stopped off at Barstow, CA, which is a 6 hour drive from San Jose.  We stayed at Shady Lane RV Camp, which was nothing more than a gravel parking lot but was suitable for a quick overnighter.  If you are an experienced tower and don’t mind the 8 hour haul, Las Vegas is another option.  One of our favorite repeat customers Jason and Grace (who’s picture appears at the top) made the trek to Zion National Park and they stopped off at Las Vegas Oasis RV Resort.  From Barstow it is another 5 hours to Zion, while it is another 2.5 hours of driving from Las Vegas to Zion. Glamping at Zion National Park There are only two campgrounds within Zion that can accommodate RVs: South Campground and Watchman Campground.  Of the two,only Watchman Campground has electrical hook-ups, which we highly recommend if visiting the desert in the summer.  You can make a reservation for either campground here.  Since both are campgrounds, neither have water or sewer hook-ups.  Thus you’ll be dry-camping and will need to monitor water usage while there.  If you prefer to have the full glamping experience or if you are unable to make reservations at the campsite of your choice, Zion River Resort is another option.  This is where we stayed while visiting Zion (and Jason and Grace stayed there as well).  This RV resort is located about 20 minutes outside of the park, but comes with full hook-ups and is one of the nicest parks we’ve stayed at. What to do there Hiking hiking hiking.  Zion National Park has some of the most breathtaking hiking trails we’ve ever done.  We went hiking everyday and each trail had its own gorgeous scenery.  Most hikes can be accessed by the Zion shuttle, which we highly recommend using.  Not only do you get a bit of history on the free shuttle, but it also means you don’t have to search for parking.  Plus it keeps car pollution within the park to a minimum.     The easiest hike, and the only one that dogs are allowed on, is the Pa’rus Trail that starts from the Zion Canyon Visitor’s Center (pictured above).  This is the easiest hike they have and is paved the whole way, but there are still some spectacular views of the mountains.  During sunset, the mountains are especially orange and make for some gorgeous landscape photography. Another easy hike is the Lower Emerald Pool Trail that leaves from the Zion Lodge.  The picture above doesn’t do it justice, but the small pools of water reflect the orange mountains beautifully. For a little more effort, the Canyon Overlook trail was easily one of our favorite hikes.  You can’t take a shuttle to this trailhead but parking wasn’t too bad.  It wasn’t as crowded as some of the more popular hikes and there were some cave-like overhangs that was fun to walk through.  It wasn’t particularly difficult though there are some drop-offs (but the paths were nice and wide) and so maybe not suitable for young kids.   One of the more popular hikes in the park is The Narrows, which requires walking on a riverbed and depending on the level of the river may or may not be suitable for kids.  Jason and Grace were able to take their kids on this hike so it is doable with children.  When we went, we wanted to go as far as possible so we started out early but we also rented gear from a place in town.  The gear included shoes, wading trousers and hiking sticks.  If you’re going in the spring or fall (like we did) I would highly recommend the gear if you plan to be walking through the cold river all day.  However in the summer you could probably get away with a walking stick and shoes (like Jason and Grace).  If you’re planning just a short trip down and back you might be able to get away with gear that you already have.  Since the river stones are quite slippery, we recommend this hike for those who are partially in shape with no problems walking. Another popular hike is called Angel’s Landing, which is a moderate trail up until you have to climb the peak.  If you’re with children I recommend not doing the last bit since it’s quite dangerous and there have been people who have fallen off in the past.  There are chains to grab onto, but the pathways are narrow and especially nerve-racking when there are a lot of hikers on the same path.  I did it once, but I’m not sure I would do it again (I would probably do the Canyon Overlook hike for the similar views without the anxiety).   And finally for those wondering where Antelope Canyon fits into all this, we decided to take a day trip to Antelope Canyon (located in Arizona) while keeping our Airstream parked at Zion.  It’s about a 2.5 hour drive each way, but since Antelope Canyon was out of our way (we were heading north), we decided not to take the time to drive the trailer down for a day and then go back up.  If you do want to take some time out near Page, Arizona, there are several RV parks there where you can park your Airstream (consult our favorite RV park/campsite app AllStays).  There is an upper and lower Antelope Canyon.  Both will give you similar views

Destination: Teton National Park and Jackson, WY When Brian and I went to our first Airstream road trip, Jackson, WY, and Grand Teton National Park was by far one of our most favorite locations to visit.  We originally had intended to drive through the small town and just do a pit stop for lunch.  But we were so taken with this charming town that we changed our plans and decided to stay overnight at Teton National Park.  Isn’t being able to do last-minute changes one of the joys of doing an Airstream road trip?  And it made for one of our most unforgettable experiences of our whole trip. How To Get There Getting out to Wyoming from California is, as you can expect, quite a trek.  We were on our 3-week road trip and had gone to Zion National Park first (read all about how to get to Zion here).  From Zion, it is still a 9 hour drive so we split it over two days by stopping at Salt Lake City, UT.  If you are going to go directly to Jackson from California, it is an 18 hour drive.  So we recommend splitting it over 3 days with a stop in Reno (a 4 hour drive), then a haul to Salt Lake City (a 7 hour drive), and then finally to Jackson (4.5 hour drive).  For recommendations on where to stay in those cities, we highly recommend consulting the app AllStays (it’s what we use when we’re traveling on the road).  And yes, that’s a lot of driving, but once you’re out there at the last frontier of the old Wild West, I promise you won’t regret it! Glamping at Grand Teton National Park Again consulting the AllStays app, there are several RV parks located within Jackson, including Jackson Hole Campground  and the Jackson Hole KOA.  If you want to camp within the Grand Teton National Park, the closest campground within the park is Gros Ventre CAmpground and is only 20 minutes north of town.  Unfortunately, this campsite is only first-come-first-serve and no reservations can be made for its 300 sites.  Also there are no hook-ups at this campground.  However, if you’re staying during off-peak season you have a good chance of snagging a spot, and this is our first choice of campgrounds. If you are going during peak season we recommend snagging a spot in a RV park that allows for reservations.  There are only two reservable RV parks in Grand Teton and both are about an hour north of Jackson Hole.  The first one, about 50 minutes away, is Colter Bay RV Park.  The wonderful thing about this RV park is that all sites have full hook-ups and you’re only a 5 minute walk from Jackson Lake.  I should also note that the Colter Bay RV Park is different from the Colter Bay Campground which is non-reservable and also doesn’t have hook-ups.  The second reservable RV park, about an hour an 15 minute north of Jackson, is Headwaters Campground at Flagg Ranch, and these sites also have full-hook-ups.  If you’re on your way up to Yellowstone National Park as part of your road trip then this RV park is halfway between the two national parks.  For a quick look at all your RV camping possibilities within Grand Teton, go here. What to do there I love charming towns in the middle of nowhere and Jackson is especially charming.  There is a rustic chic vibe all around.  But what’s even better is a charming town located right next to a breath-taking national park like Grand Teton.  Now you have the best of both worlds. The great thing about Jackson is that they have free parking for your trailer (though not overnight parking).  We went during the off season so we didn’t have any issues finding a spot but I’m not sure how busy it is during the peak season.  Thus Jackson is such a great little town to stop off in to grab something to eat or kill some time before heading into Grand Teton National Park.  We enjoyed walking into stores like MADE (which focuses on hand made items from the Wyoming Area) and Mountain Dandy.  We ate at Local, which served a fresh locally sourced menu that was really delicious.   For the more outdoorsy type, Grand Teton National Park has everything you want from fishing, boating, climbing, and horseback riding.  We spent our time there mostly hiking and doing the scenic drives.  To learn more about the hikes they offer, go here.  And for those who prefer the scenic drives, you can find out more here. Where to go next From Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park is a short 45 minute drive north and so we highly recommend seeing both national parks in one trip.  If you are driving south and had made Yellowstone your first stop, then heading down to Zion National Park is about a two days drive.  Or if you’re limited on time, you can head back to California via Salt Lake City and Reno.

Destination: Rincon Parkway Campground, Ventura County With 840 miles of coastline, California has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to Airstream beach destinations.  But there are only a few RV parks where you can park right next to the beach.  Most RV parks like Morro Strand State Beach Park and  Carpinteria State Beach Campground are lots adjacent to the beach which is a short walking distance away.  Others like Jalama Beach may be beach adjacent if you are able to snag the right spot.  But it’s rare to find a campground where every single spot is beach adjacent, and that’s why Rincon Parkway Campground is such a gem.  There are 127 spaces (no hook-ups) alongside the beach where each RV is parallel parked, allowing for views of the ocean from the passenger-side windows of every RV. Getting There Since Rincon Parkway is over 5 hours away from our San Jose garage, we advise splitting up the drive over two days (especially for first-time towers).  We recommend stopping over at Vines RV (or Wine Country RV) in Paso Robles.  There, you can practice your Airstream maneuvering skills, have full hook-ups in preparation for some beach dry-camping, and taste some of the best wines in California (and maybe pick up a bottle or two for the beach).  The next morning you can get up bright and early to head to Rincon Parkway, which is another 2.5 hours away.  Since there are no reservations at Rincon Parkway, we advise getting there earlier rather than later in the day.   Glamping at Rincon Parkway Campground As I said, you will need to parallel park your trailer at Rincon Parkway, which might be easy if there are several empty spaces in a row.  If the campground is on the full side, we advise using your walkie-talkies to help guide your Airstream into the space.  If you have any concerns about this, ask Brian for a mini-tutorial ahead of time on how to parallel park your Airstream.  Luckily the street that the campground is adjacent to isn’t a busy street, with mostly bikes traversing the area.  There are no hook-ups at this campground so if you plan to run the air conditioner or watch TV at night, we recommend renting on of our generators for a more comfortable stay.  The RV fees are $30/ a day and spaces are a first come first serve basis.  Pets are an additional $1/ day and leashed dogs are allowed on the beach.  Also if you’re a light sleeper I might not recommend this campground because there are train tracks that go right by the site (located on the other side of the road). What To Do There Well you came all the way out here for the beach so there’s that.  But for those who want a little more variety or for something to do at night, Santa Barbara is only a 25 minute drive north.  Here are some city guides to give you ideas of what to do in this charming California coast city: city guide from DesignSponge, city guide from Travel and Leisure, and one from Goop. Where To Go Next If you want to keep the beach camping going, Jalama Beach is about 1.5 hours along the coastline or Morro Strand State Beach and Pismo Beach is about 2 hours straight north.  If you want to change it up with some National Park camping Joshua Tree is 4 hours east and King’s Canyon/Sequioa National Park is 4 hours north-east.

Destination: Pinnacles National Park If you want to include a national park in your Airstream road trip, Pinnacles National Park is an easy check off your national park list.  It’s not as well known as the larger and more majestic national parks in California like Yosemite or Sequoia National Park, but it was recently designated as a national park for good reason and shouldn’t be missed.  It is in fact the second newest national park, designated as such by President Obama in 2013.  Pinnacles National Park is named after the narrow peaks, which were formed from volcanic activity millions of years ago, that make up its unique landscape. Getting There Pinnacles National Park is actually the closest national park to our San Jose garage, and is located about 2 hours south of us.  The majority of the drive is on major highways and thus is fairly easy.  However about 3 miles before the park entrance, you will need to turn off onto a narrow road.  We advise driving slow and cautiously down that winding road, especially if you are renting an Airstream 25′ or larger, so as not to damage the sides of the trailer.  There is only one campground in Pinnacles and it is located at the east entrance. Glamping at Pinnacles National Park Pinnacles campground is open year around and allows reservations up to 6 months in advance.  We highly recommend making reservations if you’re planning to go during the summer months or on the weekend.  The campground itself is well maintained though rather flat and open.  There are 37 sites with electrical hook-ups and 82 sites with no hook-ups.  Since generators are not allowed at the campground, we recommend reserving a site with electrical hook-ups if possible (especially in the hot summer months).  There are water stations where you can fill up your water tanks and a dump station to empty your tank if you need to do so.  Pets are allowed at the campsite.  There is no firewood sold here (at least in the off-season) so if you want to build a fire in your BBQ pit or fire ring, you will need to bring your own.  There is also a small market at the Pinnacles visitor center, located at the entrance of the campground, where you can purchase ice, beverages, camping gear, and any other items you have forgotten to pack.  And last but not least, there is no cell service in the park.  If you need reception, you will need to drive about 5 miles out towards the main road to get service. What to do there Rock climbing is a popular activity at Pinnacles, with a lot of designated climbing spots on the face of the volcanic rocks.  For those who rather keep their feet on the ground, there are a 30 miles of hiking trails within the park.  And what makes hiking at Pinnacles especially fun are the two trails that wind through caves formed when large boulders fell between narrow canyons.   The Bear Gulch Cave Trail is the closer of the two cave trails and is located just south of Pinnacles campground (in fact if you wanted to add 0.3 miles to your hike, you could just walk to the trailhead).  The Bear Gulch Trail is a little over 2 miles roundtrip and is one big loop that goes through Bear Gulch Cave and passes by Bear Gulch Reservoir.   We highly recommend this moderate hike for some fun cave “spelunking” and beautiful views of the unique rock formations.  We advise going through the caves first and then going around to the Rim Trail to get back instead of going in the other direction.  Rangers advise carrying a flashlight when going through the cave, though our phone lights worked fine.  Also pack a light lunch with you so that you can enjoy it at the reservoir, but just watch out for some fairly assertive squirrels that are very used to humans.  Also while you’re there, see if you can spot the face that guards the reservoir.   The other cave, called the Balconies Cave, is located by the west entrance of the park.  Since there are no roads that connect the east and west entrances, you will need to hike there to see it.  It’s about a 9.5 mile hike from the Pinnacles Visitor Center. If you’re a fan of flora and fauna, wildflowers bloom from mid-February to early June making that a popular time at the park.  Bird watching is also another popular past time with a plethora of birds calling the park home.  Pinnacles is also the home of the endangered California Condor, and it’s a special thrill to see one of the largest birds in North America. Where to go next Pinnacles National Park is a great first stop on your Airstream road trip because it is located in central California.  From here, there are a variety of options of where to go next.  If you are done with camping, head to Vines RV Resort in Paso Robles, about 1.5 hours away, for full hook-ups and some great food and wine.  Or if you want to camp amongst redwoods (and still have full hook-ups) we recommend Santa Cruz Redwoods RV Resort, also about 1.5 hours away from Pinnacles.  If instead you want to camp by some California coastline we recommend Morro Strand State Beach Park.  And last but not least, if you want to keep the California National Parks tour going, head to King’s Canyon National Park (3.5 hours away) to see some sequoia trees or Yosemite National Park (south entrance is 3.5 hours away) to see some granite cliffs.