CA HWY 1 & HWY101 questions

D

dave_lucas

Well-known member
Apr 19, 2004
638
0
52
Golden Colorado
I am in Roseville California this week and looking for something to do over the weekend (Friday afternoon ? early Monday morning).

My current plan was to drive the 1 and 101 down to LA area or San Diego. I have made the trip down the coast from WA ? Big Sur but have no idea what it is like between Big Sur and LA or San Diego.

Is the drive between big sur and so cal worth it or should I just drive down as far as Monterey / Carmel and hang out in that area?

Any other recommendations?
 
L

lrsafari

Well-known member
Apr 19, 2007
163
0
Sacramento, Orig Phoenix
Are you going and coming back up to Roseville? A R/T would be pretty hurried if you are doing it in 3 days.

That being said, it is a great drive.

Other than that, have you explored the area around Roseville? You could run Hwy 49 all they way down to Yosemite, then back up north of I80. Some gorgeous country, but few beaches:)

To bad you are not into gold prospecting. If you saw a Home Depot on the freeway in Roseville, there is a little creek below it that has a more than fair amount of flood/flour gold in it. Might be something to try one evening. I can give you some directions easy access areas not to far from Roseville.

Scott
 
GotRovr

GotRovr

Well-known member
Jun 16, 2004
377
0
If your looking for the best scenic coastal highway, this is it. However, not much between Monterey and San Luis Obispo (hwy 1 and 101 connection).

Don't expect to be in a hurry, very windy 2 lane highway.

What to expect, things to do
Big Sur
Hearst Castle
Cambria
Morro Bay

all are worth a stop, but you could spend at least a day at each of them
 
p m

p m

Administrator
Staff member
Apr 19, 2004
15,643
867
58
La Jolla, CA
www.3rj.org
Hwy 1 - 98 miles from Carmel and Cambria, of a windy 2-lane road. It is the most scenic road one can take, no doubt about it. Gas is about $5.50 in Big Sur.

You can do better than that, and find Nacimiento-Ferguson road - a dirt road that connects the coast near Big Sur and Nacimiento Lake/Paso Robles area.

Hwy 46 connects Hwy 1 to 101 from Cambria to Paso Robles - fantastic views and wines in this literal neck of the woods. Check Santa Rosa Creek Road if you have time (it's on most maps, surprisingly).

Skip Hwy 1 through Guadelupe and Lompoc - not much to see there (unless you have ways to get to Vandenberg AFB)

Hwy 101 - nice and scenic, a little dull all the way to about ~30 miles South of Salinas, and great from there on to split to Hwy 1 in Oxnard. By the way, it is very often faster to take Hwy 1 from Oxnard to Santa Monica than 101/405 between the same two locations. Very scenic from Paso Robles to Santa Barbara.

Things to do are too numerous to list - beach, shops, and dining in Carmel and Pebble Beach, scenic views and hikes from there all the way south to San Simeon, Hearst Castle near San Simeon, beach, shops, and dining in Cambria and Morro Bay, you know what in Oceano (Pismo Beach). Views, wine, and cheese in Atascadero, Paso Robles, and San Luis Obispo - the latter is a nice college town, with all the appropriate things for it.

You can do the stretch from Monterey to San Diego, using Hwy 1 from Monterey to Morro Bay, in 10 hours - but you'll hate yourself for doing it. Whenever we're on this route, we try to plan to stop every ~40 minutes or an hour, and have a little hike or picnic. I'd stay overnight in San Simeon, Cambria, or Morro Bay.
 
Dave Legacy

Dave Legacy

Well-known member
Jul 24, 2007
360
1
Hacienda Heights, CA
I wouldn't recommend going any further south than San Luis Obispo as there's not much to do or see. Monterey/Carmel/Big Sur is the best place to use your time in my opinion. I was just there two weeks ago and the weather was great. Gas prices in Monterey were equal to where I live in Los Angeles County.

Here's a couple pics:

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj252/D_Legacy/DL_PCH.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj252/D_Legacy/DL_PCH.jpg
This is about 15-20mi north of San Luis Obispo I believe. This spot is a really popular Elephant Seal Hangout.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj252/D_Legacy/DL_PacGrove.jpg
This is in Pacific Grove, which is located between Carmel and Monterey, on Scenic Drive.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj252/D_Legacy/DL_MBA.jpg

I don't know if you have kids, but even if you don't, the Monterey Bay Aquarium is a must if you're even the least bit interested in aquatic life.

I also recommend Katy's Place in Carmel for breakfast, CASH ONLY, be advised.

Have fun,
Dave
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom