Pacific Highway, California
Discussion
Whos driven the Pacific Highway in California ? Looks like theres only part of it that is worth doing - north of LA to Monterey ? Can anybody confirm this ?
Looks like its a day cruising with the odd stop of for scenery on the way.
Any 'must dos' along the way. Plan to go end of June/July time.
Looks like its a day cruising with the odd stop of for scenery on the way.
Any 'must dos' along the way. Plan to go end of June/July time.
done it on a motorbike. southern cal its pretty s
te and doesn't hug the coast much, you get pushed onto the 1 by a big military base (20+ miles long from memory - somethingberg???)
northern cali is better, but oregon and washington is better still. does hug the coast and cliffs and have some very big drops with little walls and grand vistas, but...
...even at its best it really isn't that good: crowded, slow, some twists which will inevitably have a house sized winnebago creeping round, and a pretty rich (i.e. private / unwelcoming) part of the states.
if you're going anyway then it will be a good, and very pleasent way to kill a day, if its a special trip then i would recommend looking at the northern 101, or south to the mex200 or baja.
big sur is a bit of a let down, some lovely coast around SanFran.
All IME and IMHO of course.
hth
te and doesn't hug the coast much, you get pushed onto the 1 by a big military base (20+ miles long from memory - somethingberg???)northern cali is better, but oregon and washington is better still. does hug the coast and cliffs and have some very big drops with little walls and grand vistas, but...
...even at its best it really isn't that good: crowded, slow, some twists which will inevitably have a house sized winnebago creeping round, and a pretty rich (i.e. private / unwelcoming) part of the states.
if you're going anyway then it will be a good, and very pleasent way to kill a day, if its a special trip then i would recommend looking at the northern 101, or south to the mex200 or baja.
big sur is a bit of a let down, some lovely coast around SanFran.
All IME and IMHO of course.
hth
The whole of California Route 1 between San Francisco and San Luis Obispo is a good drive, but it's really the bit between Monterrey and San Luis Obispo that's special, the bit in Big Sur National Park. I never drove north of San Francisco, but it's supposed to be pretty special up around Humbolt and Mendocino counties too.
The Big Sur part is absolutely fantastic, there's absolutely no radio reception, no mobile reception, and if you go out of season not that much in the way of traffic.
The Big Sur part is absolutely fantastic, there's absolutely no radio reception, no mobile reception, and if you go out of season not that much in the way of traffic.
It's very scenic but in places the surface is rubbish and remember unless you spend the $ you'll be driving some American sedan with blancmange handling on what is a *very* twisty road.
FWIW I thought the really special roads in Cali were the ones going up to Yosemite from the West (wide, good surface, very fast sweeping bends, views...)
FWIW I thought the really special roads in Cali were the ones going up to Yosemite from the West (wide, good surface, very fast sweeping bends, views...)
Sam.F said:
FWIW I thought the really special roads in Cali were the ones going up to Yosemite from the West (wide, good surface, very fast sweeping bends, views...)
The roads in and around Yosemite really are great. A personal favourite was called (I think) the Tioga Pass and ran to one of the tree sequoia groves. Another road that I cannot remember the name off ran from Camp Curry to the Sequoia National Park. The downhill route was very fast and sweeping with perfectley cambered corners. The way back uphill was less fun though.As for Highway 1, the route down to Monterey was good but I preferred the part just north of San Francisco heading towards Point Reyes which gets extremely twisty and is set high above the coast into the cliff face. The scenery was stunning, the drops where big and it was a whole load of fun
Sam.F said:
It's very scenic but in places the surface is rubbish and remember unless you spend the $ you'll be driving some American sedan with blancmange handling on what is a *very* twisty road.
FWIW I thought the really special roads in Cali were the ones going up to Yosemite from the West (wide, good surface, very fast sweeping bends, views...)
The Big Sur is indeed very scenic but you do need a half decent car to really enjoy the roads... there is not a lot of traffic either so you can have some fun! If you get stuck in something 'floaty' (like the Town car we had) then you just have to sit back, cruise, and enjoy the scenery. The rest of the Pacific coast drive is enjoyable. It beats the usual never ending straight highways that you use everywhere else thats for sure.FWIW I thought the really special roads in Cali were the ones going up to Yosemite from the West (wide, good surface, very fast sweeping bends, views...)
SimonV8ster said:
Whos driven the Pacific Highway in California ? Looks like theres only part of it that is worth doing - north of LA to Monterey ? Can anybody confirm this ?
Looks like its a day cruising with the odd stop of for scenery on the way.
Any 'must dos' along the way. Plan to go end of June/July time.
Drove it in 2009 in a convertible red Mustang. fLooks like its a day cruising with the odd stop of for scenery on the way.
Any 'must dos' along the way. Plan to go end of June/July time.
king brilliant.You know that big bridge near Big Sur where everyone stops to take pictures? I used it as a long line of sight to overtake about 12 cars that had been holding me up. Absolutely brilliant drive, just wish it was a manual instead of an auto, despite the power.
Prolex-UK said:
Did this in 2007 was excellent we went from SF to LA........booked a Mustang convertible ended up with an asthmatic sebring convertible...........bag of pooh..............
Did you actually book a Mustang, or just a "convertible"? I could have booked a "standard convertible" and gambled on ending up with a Sebring, but paid an extra £200 and guaranteed a Mustang.The thing is the rental desk genuinely did not understand why I would want a Mustang that much.
Simon V8ster said:
Who's driven the Pacific Highway in California ? Looks like theres only part of it that is worth doing - north of LA to Monterey ? Can anybody confirm this ?i have mate from san francisco to LA its all worth doing i loved it
Looks like its a day cruising with the odd stop of for scenery on the way.
Any 'must dos' along the way. Plan to go end of June/July time.
Looks like its a day cruising with the odd stop of for scenery on the way.
Any 'must dos' along the way. Plan to go end of June/July time.
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