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West Coast Road Trip
My husband and I are considering a trip down the West Coast this summer. We would fly into Seattle for PAX (August 31 - Sept 2). We would then go down, probably as far as San Francisco, with a rental car and then fly home from San Francisco. Neither of us have been down in that area (okay, DH was there for PAX a few years ago, but that's all he did) and I was really hoping for some input from those who either live in the area and/or have been on a similar trip.
How long would you suggest taking for this trip? Our schedule is really flexible as I'm on Maternity Leave until October (In-laws will look after peanut) and DH has a million hours of banked overtime to use.
What are the things that we must see and do?
Is this even a good idea at that time of year?
Where would you recommend that we spend the night? Is there a place where we should spend more than one day (other than San Francisco)? How long would you stay in San Francisco?
Thanks!
"God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it" 1 Corinthians 10:13
Re: West Coast Road Trip
Late August and early September is a good time to be in Seattle. I went to PAX last year and the weather was gorgeous (this stans out to me because I rode the bus into Seattle and did a lot of outside walking then).
I haven't done it but I hear the WA coast really isn't worth it, so my advice would be to take I-5 down to Portland, maybe stay there for a day or so, then head over to 101 to go down the Oregon Coast. My favorite places there (which I have done a LOT) are Seaside, Cannon Beach, Newport, Florence, and Bandon, which are a little bigger so therefore there is a bit more to do. But really you could do lots of stuff on the coast from the cheese factory tour in Tillamook, to the Sea Lion Caves (I actually prefer this Sea Lion overlook beach that's near Coos Bay, but it's kind of hard to find and I can't recall the name).
Since you have a lot of flexible time I'd probably give yourselves at least 3 days, and maybe up to 5 if you want to stretch it out, for just the Oregon Coast portion of the trip. Hwy 101 is pretty narrow and curvy, and you'd still be going near the end of the peak season, so there will still probably be a lot of RVs and people on bikes, which can slow traffic quite a bit.
I can't help with the California portion of the trip.
But once you decide on more of an itinerary for Oregon I can give more specific suggestions.
Several years ago, I drove from San Francisco to Vancouver. I spent 1 week driving up and another 5 days or so driving back. I thought that the pace was okay, but I still felt rushed. Two weeks might be perfect if you really want to take your time. I'd definitely consider adding Vancouver B.C. to your trip if you're up to it. It's not really too far north past Seattle, and it's a lovely place to visit if you haven't been before.
I don't really enjoy Seattle, but I love Portland, OR. I spent 2-nights/3-days of my trip there and skipped Seattle completely (except for lunch.)
Some other worthwhile stops: Newport, OR; Ashland, OR; Fort Bragg, CA; Napa or Sonoma, CA; and if you're already in Northern, CA you could continue a little south past SF and visit Santa Cruz, Carmel or Big Sur. Or, take a detour east and visit the Lake Tahoe area.
I think it's a great time of year to visit. The weather in the Pacific Northwest should be pretty mild that time of year, but prepare for rain and cool temperatures, especially at night.
I happen to love Seattle.
In addition to some of the above, consider stopping in Mendocino to check out the Redwoods if you want to stick to the coast roads.
We did the same trip two summers ago-- great trip! We stayed in Seattle for 2 nights and then heading out early for the coast. I would recommend avoiding the Seattle coast as PP mentioned (it wasn't as great). We didn't hit Portland because we decided to do the coastal route straight from Seattle. I would recommend heading straight down to Portland instead to make better time, and then head to the coast from there. Southern Oregon and Northern California was so pretty. I would say the California Coast was the prettiest, but there were more places to pull over in Oregon to take pictures.
We stayed over once in Oregon and once in Northern California and hit San Fran by early evening the next day. We had to limit the amout of pull overs for pictures to make it there! We also stopped in a Redwood Park and took a picture of our car in a giant redwood! But we took our time and enjoyed the trip! Minus the last day, when all the whiny roads got me a little car sick
You may want to consider taking an extra day and staying in Wine Country too. My brother was in San Fan so we planned 4 days to stay with him and skipped wine country since I've already been. I would recommend at least 9-10 days for the trip, and maybe more if you can
Where would you recommend we spend the nights? My DH and I are definitely not wine drinkers, so I don't know how much we would enjoy Wine Country. What do you think? I'm thinking a full day in Portland (worth it?) and at least a full day in San Francisco.