#carrizo plain national monument
Spring at Carrizo Plain National Monument
Carrizo Plain is amazing all year round and quite lovely in the spring when the grasses are green and the flowers have bloomed. We went during flower season which might be the only time of year you’ll see a lot of people at this remote California location but it still wasn’t very crowded. We were still able to find an amazing campsite with a beautiful view overlooking the vast plain. The wildlife here is unbelievable. But sometimes you have to be patient and keep your eyes peeled. Carrizo Plain is one of our absolute favorite places to visit and camp. You really have to stay the night to get the full experience. One exciting bonus to this trip is that we were testing out our newly restored tent.
THE TENT: So what is up with this cool tent? It’s a vintage brown label North Face tent called North Star. It was made in Berkeley, California between 1979-1983. Once I saw this really amazing looking geodesic dome sort of a thing way back when it was a dream to track one down and restore it. I spent a few years looking for one and realized quickly that it was very rare and hard to find. When I was lucky enough to actually find one It took a few weeks to restore the tent which was basically removing all of the old waterproofing. Not a fun process but now it’s in close to new condition and extremely fun to camp in. The tent is not intended for warm weather but is perfect for winter and cold weather camping. Even in May, plenty of areas in California are still dropping into the 30′s and 40′s at night. At Carrizo it was getting into the low 40′s. The North Star tent was practically silent all night and rock steady on a windy mountain overlook. I really look forward to using it in the high altitudes of the Sierras. I’ll definitely be posting a lot more photos of this beauty.
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Carrizo Plain National Monument
This was our first time to Carrizo Plain and it’s a truly incredible place. It’s home to the largest concentration of endangered species in California and we managed to see a few including a Pronghorn and Tule Elk.
It’s hard to believe that such a cool National Monument is the least crowded place we’ve ever visited in California. The Carrizo Plain is just 100 miles as the bird flies from Los Angeles but by vehicle it’s a trek and be ready for dirt roads because that’s how you’ll be getting around. The Carrizo Plain gets brutally hot and dry in the summer and there are no services in the monument. Come prepared with lots of water and watch out for the low flying birds. The Carrizo Plain is a remarkable hidden treasure.
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