2 driving vacation options = need ideas

Matthew

Matthew

Touchdown! Greaser!
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Matthew
Looking at 2 different road trips. No particular scheduling restrictions, so not limited to certain times of the year.

This will be a fly out (commercial), rent a car, drive, hike, eat, drink, repeat, fly back, kind of road trip. Maybe a week long, not so much interested in shopping or those kind of things, but getting off the beaten path and a day hike or three would really be nice.

The Pacific Coast Highway and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Years ago we drove a section of the PCH in northern CA and always wanted to go back and do a longer stretch. Not just for the oceanfront view (we went North to South), but stops along the way to see and do things.

This past summer we drove across the Blue Ridge mountains, east to west and back again, and it's been nearly 40 years since I've driven any section of the Parkway itself. That short crossing reminded me how pretty it really is. It's a place we'd like to visit again but spend time in it rather than just cutting across.

Anyone more familiar with either area that has some suggestions or recommendations?
 
The highway out to Key West, US 1 maybe.
 
mscard88 said:
The highway out to Key West, US 1 maybe.
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A good idea, and one we might do another time - my brother and his family live close enough to that route (they've done it at least once) that we could visit them. But I'm looking for more specifics on the other two options.
 
BR pkwy fun and scenic, but I haven't been on it in years. Of course fall the best for leaf color but it's very slow going as there's a ton of people on it. Ashville NC a good stop, downtown cool and the Biltmore mansion. Shenandoah Nat Pk not too far off the Pkwy.
 
Yellowstone park up to glacier natl park.
Best scenery, great people and great beer.
 
Yes, at one point or another, I've driven the entire PCH from San Diego to Washington. The best views are on the Big Sur Coast between San Simeon and Monterey, and on the North Coast from the Golden Gate Bridge to Mendocino. Parts of the North Coast get very isolated. Further north, the weather starts to get poor, but if you can tolerate the rain and fog, some of it is interesting, such as the rainforests on the Olympic Peninsula. There is some interesting history in places as well, such as the first Western settlement in California (Monterey), and the southernmost Russian colony (Ft. Ross).

Be prepared to spend some time. It's not a fast road, except for a few places. But something tells me that's not the point....
 
mscard88 said:
BR pkwy fun and scenic, but I haven't been on it in years. Of course fall the best for leaf color but it's very slow going as there's a ton of people on it. Ashville NC a good stop, downtown cool and the Biltmore mansion. Shenandoah Nat Pk not too far off the Pkwy.
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We were moving our daughter out to eastern NC this summer. We drove through (can't remember the way OUT there very much) Ashville on the way back. We stopped for the night, but got there too late to have any time at the Biltmore. We did have plenty of time to eat and drink our way around downtown. Shenandoah NP, I barely remember visiting when I was jr high or younger. We are looking to spend more time in those mountains.

Acrodustertoo said:
Yellowstone park up to glacier natl park.
Best scenery, great people and great beer.
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Yeah, we did the Yellowstone trip a couple years ago. Outstanding. But we didn't go up to Glacier, though. That will have to be another time.

MAKG1 said:
Yes, at one point or another, I've driven the entire PCH from San Diego to Washington. The best views are on the Big Sur Coast between San Simeon and Monterey, and on the North Coast from the Golden Gate Bridge to Mendocino. Parts of the North Coast get very isolated. Further north, the weather starts to get poor, but if you can tolerate the rain and fog, some of it is interesting, such as the rainforests on the Olympic Peninsula. There is some interesting history in places as well, such as the first Western settlement in California (Monterey), and the southernmost Russian colony (Ft. Ross).

Be prepared to spend some time. It's not a fast road, except for a few places. But something tells me that's not the point....
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We've driven parts of it north of SF. Best memory of that visit was on our way back to San Francisco to catch our flight home. We stopped for dinner in Sausalito, then sat outside and watched the sunset. We want to do something like that again.
 
I've done both, and while both are great rides, I'd do the California coast first. It's just fabulous. I had a great day a few years back riding motorcycles with three other friends, we left Pismo Beach and rode the coast up to San Fran. Great views for the most part, good day!
 
PCH all the way. Did a car rally on the Blue Ridge Parkway once...and it's gorgeous...but there's a sameness to the views after a while.

Get a rental car with decent power to blast past the motorhomes! Or not, if you're content going at a more leisurely pace.
 
SoCal RV Flyer said:
PCH all the way. Did a car rally on the Blue Ridge Parkway once...and it's gorgeous...but there's a sameness to the views after a while.

Get a rental car with decent power to blast past the motorhomes! Or not, if you're content going at a more leisurely pace.
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All the way...

Where are decent start/finish suggestions? Rough idea of an itinerary (how many days, decent stopping points along the way)?
 
I didn't know about it when I was vacationing up there with my Honda S2000. Caught hell when people found out and I didn't go drive it. Some crazy you tube videos on it.
 
mscard88 said:
I didn't know about it when I was vacationing up there with my Honda S2000. Caught hell when people found out and I didn't go drive it. Some crazy you tube videos on it.
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I can't remember how I heard of it, but I've seen some of those videos, too.

The Pig Trail in Arkansas gets a lot of riders, too:

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Matthew said:
I can't remember how I heard of it, but I've seen some of those videos, too.

The Pig Trail in Arkansas gets a lot of riders, too:

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That yours after sliding out of that wet turn? :D
 
Ah, The Dragon. Drove that once in a Porsche Boxster...heaven.

Start/finish? Maybe Los Angeles up to the Columbia River Gorge? Hearst Castle, Morro Bay are interesting stops. If you're into cars at all (or just great Mexican food), you've gotta go to Baja Cantina & Grille in Carmel; it's the go-to hangout for when I've gone to the Monterey Historic Races and is packed with auto/motorcycle memorabilia. I'd search "PCH driving trip" and see what jumps up that might pique your interest.

Just talking about this makes me want to plan a trip of my own! :D
 
SoCal RV Flyer said:
Ah, The Dragon. Drove that once in a Porsche Boxster...heaven.

Start/finish? Maybe Los Angeles up to the Columbia River Gorge? Hearst Castle, Morro Bay are interesting stops. If you're into cars at all (or just great Mexican food), you've gotta go to Baja Cantina & Grille in Carmel; it's the go-to hangout for when I've gone to the Monterey Historic Races and is packed with auto/motorcycle memorabilia. I'd search "PCH driving trip" and see what jumps up that might pique your interest.

Just talking about this makes me want to plan a trip of my own! :D
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Thanks. This has been something we've talked about doing for a long time. A road trip with no particular schedule to keep.

Any particular time that isn't going to be packed with recreational vehicles?
 
The Humboldt area in NorCal is pretty cool (Avenue of the Giants) and then North to the border (Del Norte County). Crescent City and the Redwoods up and around there is worth spending time at (Jedidiah Smith Redwoods State Park).
 
Matthew said:
All the way...

Where are decent start/finish suggestions? Rough idea of an itinerary (how many days, decent stopping points along the way)?
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Well, you can spend two weeks doing it.

I usually take it in small quantities, generally day trips or shorter. That limits you to about 200 miles, with moderate stops. It's more than 2000 miles long from end to end, across three states.

Where to stop really depends on your interests. I found Fort Ross rather interesting. Muir Woods, not so much; there are great stories and local culture there, but it really has been loved to death. But I have hiked the Dipsea. Not for the faint of heart. No running in wet season unless you want to break a limb.

There are various retreats of all flavors up and down the coast, from a massive Buddhist temple (it's a good spot to see from the air) to a Quaker retreat and several family Y-camps, if that's your thing.

The Skunk Train at Ft. Bragg is a nice afternoon.

Mendocino is an artist colony, if that's your thing.

What I don't suggest doing is leaving the highway in the northern forests. It was clear cut in the 80s and still looks like hell, except right around the Avenue of the Giants.

The far North Coast has a local thing for barbecue clams. I'm allergic, so I've never tried them, but they seem to be everywhere.
 
Fly into Vegas, spend a few days there and then rent a car and drive up to Zion National Park in Utah. Beautiful country.
 
North of Santa Cruz, there are thieves. I stopped to use a rest room and found the window of my rented SUV smashed and a suitcase stolen last November. They got my clothes; but missed all the valuable stuff. If I had a trunk, I would have put everything there.

It is pretty there though. There weren't many RVs in my way.
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Just go strait to Astoria Oregon and live out your Goonies fantasy!
 
I like the area around Pt. Reyes. Is the lighthouse still open? There's also the lighthouse at Point Bonita, which is on the north side of the Golden Gate. Actually there are quite a few lighthouses...
 
If you go California Big Sur make sure you stop at McWay Waterfall in Julia Pfeiffer state park. Its just a short hike. And make sure to visit the campground above there with all the Big Redwoods! Both spectacular.

Also, California has these one lane paved "trails" that go from the coast to the inland highway.

Malibu area has some great roads as well as LA's Sierra Crest Trail (probably one of the worlds greatest motorcycle roads).
 
Everskyward said:
I like the area around Pt. Reyes. Is the lighthouse still open? There's also the lighthouse at Point Bonita, which is on the north side of the Golden Gate. Actually there are quite a few lighthouses...
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When we were on our trip up that way, we drove out to Pt. Reyes. I don't know if the lighthouse was open, but I'm pretty sure the walking trail to it was open. We got there first thing in the morning and were walking on the trail, there were lots of people wrapped in blankets and sleeping bags trying to stay warm. I asked somebody what was going on. Turns out the gray whales were migrating and all these people had been out since well before dawn, hoping to get a look. I looked out, said, "Is that them?" just as a pod swam by.
 
PCH for sure.
Fly into Burbank, LAX or John Wayne. Drive North.
Hearst Castle, San Luis Obispo, morro bay to big sur, Monterey -lots to due and see in that area (towns, wineries, artsy ****, etc)

Fly into OAK or SFO and do northern CA from there up to OR, redwoods, SF, etc. also nice.
Lots to see in OR area - beaches, seals, Tillamook cheese, working fishing boats, little towns/harbors, etc. (Dad lived in Coos Bay for a decade)
 
Lots of good advice here for the PCH. My favorite stretches are between Ferndale and Petrolia up north (the Lost Coast), and between Monterey and the Hearst Castle (Big Sur). Stop for lunch and a glass of wine at the Post Ranch Inn if you do Big Sur. You'll be treated to a spectacular view of the mountains plunging into the sea. Better yet, spend a night there. Each room is architecturally stunning and includes a real wood burning fireplace.
 
Cool ideas, thanks all.

I mentioned some to my wife. She brought up Big Sur and a few other places near there. Sounds like we might be leaning towards that as a starting point and going north. Will have to dig out the Rand McNally and start plotting a course, then figure out a time. About 30 years ago my wife was in San Francisco for a week and I flew out to meet her at the end of the week. We rented a car, took a couple extra days off, and started driving with no particular goals in mind. We did very close to the "flip a coin to decide if we go left or right" thing. We ended up in Napa and it's valley, Sausalito, Point Reyes, other places I've forgotten, and saw all kinds of cool things. The wine was great, the food was outstanding, and it was just one of the best vacations we've ever done. We've always talked about trying to recreate that trip.

Blue Ridge mountains aren't going anywhere and our daughter now lives out that way. We'll work out a time to to double-dip soon enough.
 
Sounds like you're getting in nailed down, Matthew. Some of the best trips I've done have had minimal planning...hotel reservations and a list of bullet points. You'll find little adventures along the way!
 
Matthew said:
Cool ideas, thanks all.

I mentioned some to my wife. She brought up Big Sur and a few other places near there. Sounds like we might be leaning towards that as a starting point and going north. Will have to dig out the Rand McNally and start plotting a course, then figure out a time. About 30 years ago my wife was in San Francisco for a week and I flew out to meet her at the end of the week. We rented a car, took a couple extra days off, and started driving with no particular goals in mind. We did very close to the "flip a coin to decide if we go left or right" thing. We ended up in Napa and it's valley, Sausalito, Point Reyes, other places I've forgotten, and saw all kinds of cool things. The wine was great, the food was outstanding, and it was just one of the best vacations we've ever done. We've always talked about trying to recreate that trip.

Blue Ridge mountains aren't going anywhere and our daughter now lives out that way. We'll work out a time to to double-dip soon enough.
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Carmel is a great little town with a nice beach. That is a good place to stay if you are going to do Big Sur and Monterey.
 
John221us said:
Carmel is a great little town with a nice beach. That is a good place to stay if you are going to do Big Sur and Monterey.
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What's a decent airport for something like that? SJC, then head south, then back north? Or is there another place south of there so we wouldn't have to backtrack?
 
Monterey has airline service, but depending on what the connections look like, SJC might be easier.
 
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