San Jose in 2 weeks

[theophilus]

I will be in San Jose for the week of November 12-17.  I'll be in at 9:00 in the morning on the 12th and have all day to do some photography.

Last time I went to the John Muir area just north of the Golden Gate bridge.  I was just going to go back there but thought I'd ask here first.  Any other recommendations for the area for some landscape shots?  I'm willing to drive up to 2 hours each way.

[raptorsys]

I will be in San Jose for the week of November 12-17.  I'll be in at 9:00 in the morning on the 12th and have all day to do some photography.

Last time I went to the John Muir area just north of the Golden Gate bridge.  I was just going to go back there but thought I'd ask here first.  Any other recommendations for the area for some landscape shots?  I'm willing to drive up to 2 hours each way.
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=83066\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

With only a little time I'd drive south on the PCH (US1) to about Cambria and then turn back.  From SJ I'd take SR17 to Santa Cruz and drive US1 (PCH) south from there bearing in mind that there will be a few places where you'll have to step onto the 101. Just north of Cambria is the Hearst Castle at San Simeon but hitting that place will eat up too much time.  Near there is the seal colony at Piedras Blancas where you'll be able to view and photograph hundreds of seals on the beach.

Further up the PCH is one of the most beautiful stretches of road you'll find anywhere in the world.  Bear in mind that you can be socked in with fog almost any day and though it seldoms impact driving it can make photography very hard.  OTH, even when it's foggy you will usually find places where the layer is broken and you can get some great shots WITH the fog in the BG.

There are many places you can pull over and walk/hike up to the shoreline to see things you can't from the car.  Particularlly north of Santa Cruz you'll see many such places with quite coves unseen from the road.

Of course if your taste runs more towards urban environments you will not find many nicer cities than SF.

Lastly, there is a wildlife preserve along the southern edge of the bay.  The San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge near Alviso is probably pretty good this time of year.


Brian

[Lisa Nikodym]

If you feel like more redwoods, there are excellent redwoods far closer to San Jose than Muir Woods.  The best place on the southern peninsula is Big Basin Redwoods State Park (though all roads there are little and curvy).  If you have time and energy for a hike of something like 12 miles round trip, there's one to a quite respectable waterfall in the park (surrounded by redwoods, of course).  Even if you don't hike much, there's a very good nature trail with big trees just off the parking lot.  Their web site for more info: http://www.bigbasin.org/

If you feel more like urban landscapes, I'd second the recommendation for San Francisco.  The recommendation above for the central coast (Cambria etc.) is fine, but I wouldn't try it as a round trip day trip; that's a very long way.

Lisa

[raptorsys]

If you feel like more redwoods, there are excellent redwoods far closer to San Jose than Muir Woods.  The best place on the southern peninsula is Big Basin Redwoods State Park (though all roads there are little and curvy).  If you have time and energy for a hike of something like 12 miles round trip, there's one to a quite respectable waterfall in the park (surrounded by redwoods, of course).  Even if you don't hike much, there's a very good nature trail with big trees just off the parking lot.  Their web site for more info: http://www.bigbasin.org/

If you feel more like urban landscapes, I'd second the recommendation for San Francisco.  The recommendation above for the central coast (Cambria etc.) is fine, but I wouldn't try it as a round trip day trip; that's a very long way.

Lisa
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=83125\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

The trip to Cambria and back is indeed a long day trip, but it is doable as I've done it myself.  If you want a shorter trip then going down 20 miles or so below Big Sur should shorten the trip an hour or so.  Along the way you might stop for sunset at Moss Landing.  There should be a good many birds and otters this time of year.

If you want a more leisurely trip then Santa Cruz to San Fransisco is a great but easier trip with almost none of the twisties seen south of Carmel.  One of my favorite places to eat breakfast is the Main Street Grill in Half Moon Bay.  The place is filled with jazz and blues posters dating back to the 30's and the owner, Pops, will entertain you with something akin to singing while he cooks your meal.

Brian

[howiesmith]

With only a little time I'd drive south on the PCH (US1) to about Cambria and then turn back.  From SJ I'd take SR17 to Santa Cruz and drive US1 (PCH) south from there bearing in mind that there will be a few places where you'll have to step onto the 101. Just north of Cambria is the Hearst Castle at San Simeon but hitting that place will eat up too much time.  Near there is the seal colony at Piedras Blancas where you'll be able to view and photograph hundreds of seals on the beach.

Further up the PCH is one of the most beautiful stretches of road you'll find anywhere in the world.  Bear in mind that you can be socked in with fog almost any day and though it seldoms impact driving it can make photography very hard.  OTH, even when it's foggy you will usually find places where the layer is broken and you can get some great shots WITH the fog in the BG.

There are many places you can pull over and walk/hike up to the shoreline to see things you can't from the car.  Particularlly north of Santa Cruz you'll see many such places with quite coves unseen from the road.

Of course if your taste runs more towards urban environments you will not find many nicer cities than SF.

Lastly, there is a wildlife preserve along the southern edge of the bay.  The San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge near Alviso is probably pretty good this time of year.
Brian
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=83091\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

This is a long day, well over 2 hours one way.  Big Basin described above would be a better one day choice.

Trine's Cafe in San Jose used to be really good Mexican food.

[theophilus]

Thanks for the suggestions, the Big Basin area looks great.  If I get done early one of the days during the week I might try to make the drive to see the seals.

[plawrence]

One can spend the whole day photographing the San Mateo (and Santa Cruz County) coastline between Santa Cruz and Pacifica (near San Francisco).  Pescadero State Beach can be a very good spot for sunsets.  And the rural countryside off of Stage Road between the hamlets of San Gregorio and Pescadero can be especially scenic.

[raptorsys]

One can spend the whole day photographing the San Mateo (and Santa Cruz County) coastline between Santa Cruz and Pacifica (near San Francisco).  Pescadero State Beach can be a very good spot for sunsets.  And the rural countryside off of Stage Road between the hamlets of San Gregorio and Pescadero can be especially scenic.
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=83633\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

Yeah, I love that stretch of the PCH very much as well.  There are so many places you can't see from the road however that you do need to get out and hike to the coast to fully appreciate.  

Up on the hillside overlooking the coast just north of Pacifica is a remnant of WWII that always catches my eye.  I once hiked up to the old gun implacement to shoot some pictures and was run out of there by a very nice female PO.  I'd ignored the Keep Out signs and she saw I was no threat and cut me a break.  I have always found the decay of manmade things VERY interesting and often very photogenic.  
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Brian

[tjotala]

Here are couple of additional ideas, in no particular order:

1) Drive up Mt. Hamilton for views from Lick Observatory. It's a good 2hr drive each way, though, if I recall correctly. Narrow winding road, not for the faint of heart.

2) Drive up Page Mill Rd in Palo Alto or Alum Rock Ave in San Jose in the evening for night shots of the South Bay area as a "it's full of stars" scene (no, I'm not talking about Google millionaires

3) Hakone Gardens in Saratoga. Not exactly landscape, per se, but if you're into Japanese gardens...

4) Stanford University quad is always a nice sight, especially around sunset.

5) If you don't mind hiking a little, Almaden Quicksilver County Park offers some nice views over the South Bay (daytime only).

[theophilus]

Thanks for all the recommendations.  I made it down to Big Basin on Sunday and Thursday, and went to the beach Sunday evening.  I think I got a couple portfolio shots, though my portfolio is rather small and I didn't have anything remotely similar to the coast or Redwoods