We'll be celebrating our 25th anniversary this August and we're considering a trip up the PCH from L.A. (my boyhood home) and San Francicso. We will have a week.
We know most of the spots we'd like to hit, but any suggestions would be helpful.
The main question we have is how to do it.
We would like to be as freewheeling as possible, so if we can avoid a tour-type schedule, that would be great. We will probably spend a day in L.A. seeing the old house in Palos Verdes and maybe visit our friends at Venice Beach where they own the freakshow. I think we would like 2 days in S.F. at the other end.
Our options seem to be:
Rent a car and do the hotel thing
Rent an RV and save on hotels
How have you done it?
Thanks!
JB
I would plan on just staying at motels rather than a RV. There may be a little more driving involved but there are nice places along the way to stay and relax. With just a week there are far more places to see than what you have time for. Plan accordingly. My favorite places and times are the out of way quickly passed by, Morro Bay, Cayucus, Cal Pines, Big Sur....and be sure to stay at least 2 days in San Francisco. Depending on the type of food etc. I know of a few good places to go to.
Pablo B-)
I surveyed the fire station on the south edge of Cayucos.
SWMBO grandfather lived there in his final years. We loved to visit him and would go out on the pier and fish. Can't remember the names of the seafood joints. But it seemed so unCalifornicated there.
Pablo B-)
> Rent a car and do the hotel thing
> Rent an RV and save on hotels
> How have you done it?
IMHO this itinerary screams "convertible".
I'm thoroughly confused. First I thought this was a surveying thread but I couldn't figure out whether the P stood for purple or pink or peroxided.:-O
I don't think an RV will be cheaper than hotels.
A convertible would be a lot more fun than an RV on route 1.
> We will probably spend a day in L.A. seeing the old house in Palos Verdes
Where in PV? My wife grew up "in the trees" on Via La Selva; her mom still lives there. Nice place, but a bit pricey these days.
An old friend and I will be traveling up the coast this May from Santa Barbara all the way to Seattle. We are retired and have no urgent schedule, but figure at least 3 weeks. We both grew up in the Bay Area and spent lots of time kicking around the California coast.
We plan mostly on inhaling the lovely Pacific air, looking at birds and fiddling around in the tide pools. Sort of a Steinbeck-Ricketts sort of thing.
If we learn anything interesting, I'll be happy to pass it along...
PCH
Pacific Coastal Highway?
Did I get it?
N
I'd recommend a couple hours on the beach in Ventura just hanging out to relax, maybe lunch at Ericsson's on the Pier. so many beautiful places on that drive from LA to SF...hard to choose, and difficult to go wrong.
I'm thinking Big Sur is total eye candy and the Monterey aquarium is world class. You're definitely going to want to be able to put the top down and feel the sun and the wind.
I think an RV would be a hassle on some of those narrow roads and the smaller cities like Carmel. Rent a nice convertible and enjoy the ride.
Oh and by the way, wave at Fort Ord for me, as you go by it. Summer 69'
Joe
JB,
I recommend renting the car (jeep or convertible would be best) and hitting Neptune's Net for a lunch, snack, beer, etc. between Malibu and Ventura.
Dinner at Erik Eriksson's on the Ventura Beach Pier
Just north outside of Ventura, take the first exit after leaving Ventura and ride along the old PCH until you are forced back onto Hwy. 101 just before the Rincon and Carpinteria.
In the beach community of Summerland (between Carpinteria and Santa Barbara) get a bite to eat at the Summerland Beach Café (old Victorian house that serves very good food) take in some of the shops along the main drag.
When you get to SB, take the Cabrillo exit (left exit of hwy 101) to East Beach along the SB harbor waterfront. Cabrillo Blvd follows the coast eventually becoming Shoreline Drive and then Meigs Road and Carrillo Street as you leave the ocean. You can get back on Hwy. 101 from Carrillo or continue to State Street (main drag through SB), turn left on State Street and drive until eventually hitting Hwy. 101 again. State Street is a fun place to see.
I would recommend that you stay on Hwy. 101 through Goleta and Refugio before finally turning inland at Gaviota. Beautiful, mostly untouched coastline for miles here.
You can take the exit for PCH (Hwy. 1) shortly after turning inland and go through Lompoc, Vandenberg, backside of Santa Maria or choose to stay on Hwy. 101 for this stretch as it is mostly countryside and a few towns.
Eventually, you will get to Arroyo Grande, Oceano, and Pismo Beach which is very cool area. Pismo is a great place to grab a room for the night (definitely make a reservation ahead of time) and check out the coastline. AJ Spurs is better BBQ than McClintocks in my opinion.
From Pismo Beach, you follow Hwy. 101 for a short ways inland to San Luis Obispo and existing on PCH (Hwy. 1) again. This will take you out to Morro Bay (Morro Rock is very cool), Cambria, and San Simeon (Hearst Castle). Very cool coastline here and epitome of California environment. Eventually coming to the little town of Cambria which is very cool area. If you have the time, take in the town and stay for a night.
Then it becomes very remote and very beautiful all along this stretch including Big Sur until you eventually get to Carmel and Monterey. They have a new tunnel in the Big Sur area that I hear is cool, but haven't seen it myself. Carmel has some neat shops in their little downtown and plenty of cool places to eat in Monterey. Carmel Mission Inn is a great place to stay for a night or go into Monterey and find a place close to downtown by the pier so you can walk around. Racines is a great place for lunch (awesome desserts right inside the door so you can't miss them) and very good clam chowder on the pier. If you want to avoid the tourist stuff stay away from the Cannery Row area (though the aquarium is worth it) and stay more around Fisherman's Wharf and Alvarado Street. There is the original state house nearby here where they argued and announced statehood in 1849.
PCH (Hwy. 1) eventually winds its way up through Watsonville into Santa Cruz which is another cool area, but can be crowded at times depending on when you are there. After that you can choose to continue on PCH to Half Moon Bay or Hwy. 17 over the mountains to San Jose and the Bay area. All depends on how much time you have left, the time of day and which day, and whether you still want more coastline or ready to get into SF.
Have fun.
Ric
Ric nailed it. Try to hit San Luis Obispo on a Thursday night and check out the farmer's market. It's more like a massive block party than farmer's market, bands, BBQ, etc. Head west from San Luis Obispo and check out Los Osos and Montana De Oro State Park. Well worth the detour.
Forgot to mention Old West cinnamon rolls in Pismo Beach (I believe right on Hwy. 1 in town). They are the BEST! And it doesn't matter what time of day, grab some to go.
We were on Cartier Drive and the end of the street at the canyon. I see on Google earth that a house has been built between out place and the canyon. The ol' shack
Some of my memories... Point Vincente Elementary. Catalina was right out the living room window. Redondo Beach. Many bonfire nights at Abalone Cove with my Dad's Navy buds. Grunion runs. Parents split and we were off to Ohio...Ohio. Gonna bring back some painful emotions, but I'm excited.
LOVING your suggestions!!! This should be a great trip.
Pismo Beach is cool. You can drive on the beach. Renting a RV is very expensive + they get terrible mileage and have big fuel tanks.
The Hearst Castle in San Simeon if you've never seen it.
Stay at Ragged Point ($$) in Big Sur. Get an ocean view room.
Have lunch at Nepenthe Restaurant in Big Sur. Awesome views and great food.
17 mile drive in Pebble Beach.
