Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve discovered a groovy California quartet that’s playing our RV-lifestyle tune.

We’re talking about four state parks, all of them situated along the gorgeous southern and central coasts of the Golden State.

Two of them are completely new to us. The other two we’ve experienced before, and during our return trip to the Pacific Northwest, we have a brand new appreciation for them.

Let’s cue up the recent hits.

Leo Carrillo State Park -- If you’re of a certain age (you look up when hearing the word “geezer”), you may remember the “Cisco Kid” television show. Carrillo played Pancho on the show, but his contribution to the California state parks system is why this park is named after him.

Leo Carrillo State Park sits on the northern end of Santa Monica Bay, just a few miles north of Malibu. This year, we decided to try it out and came away impressed. The beaches are wild and rocky and the campground even offers electrical hookups. This new find provided a comfortable place to park for a couple of days as we began our trip north.

Pro tip: Stock up on supplies at the Tranchas Country Market, which has a good selection of grab-and-go deli offerings.

Pismo State Beach -- Oh Pismo, we just can’t quit you. We’ve stayed in this easy-going Central Coast town many times and love it. But the town’s commercial RV parks have always left us cold.

So this time, we decided to check out the state park, located along a beautiful section of beach. The downside? None of the sites have hookups.

It didn’t matter, because we hit Pismo State Beach on a sunny weekend with temps in the 60s. Besides offering beachy activities, this state park is also situated next door to one of the West Coast’s largest monarch butterfly refuges, a spectacular sight during certain times of the year.

Don’t miss: After a stroll on the popular pier, head to the rightly famous Old West Cinnamon Rolls to indulge in something sticky sweet.

Morro Strand State Beach -- As we were planning our trip north, we knew we would need power after Pismo, so we booked a couple of days at the Strand because it offers full hookups.

We’ve always been a bit lukewarm about the Strand because the hookup sites are somewhat basic. It’s just a place to park with power, water and sewer -- or so we thought.

This time, we saw the best of the Strand, and we added on two more days because of all the things it does well. It’s situated next to a long, wide beach, perfect for daily walks, and it gave us a comfortable base camp to explore the glorious Central Coast and bustling Morro Bay.

Speaking of Morro Bay, we enjoyed an excellent dinner at Tognazzini’s Dockside, including a fantastic cioppino loaded with fresh Dungeness crab.

Hearst San Simeon State Park -- We needed to book one day before heading north toward the Bay Area. California Highway 1 through Big Sur was washed out -- again! -- so where to stay?

Enter San Simeon, situated just south of Big Sur and always, it seems, with available sites. Like a veteran bassist in a quartet, it does its job exceptionally well.

San Simeon offers no hookups, but it’s in a beautiful spot, just north of the charming town of Cambria. While we were there, we drove up the coast a bit and hiked into a new-to-us state beach (Arroyo de la Cruz, complete with grumpy elephant seals) and later capped our successful stay with a roaring fire and s’mores under the California stars.

So bravo to this fantastic RVing foursome -- we’re already thinking about an encore next year.

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