![]() ![]() If you’re considering a drive down (or up) the western coast of the U.S., look no further. Making a Pacific Coast Highway road trip is a popular bucket list experience – for good reason! Stretching from Washington to California, the Pacific Coast is picturesque, with cliffs, sea stacks, gorgeous urban spaces, and the raging ocean. The Pacific Coast Highway is arguably one of the most famous drives in the entire world. ![]() If you click, book, or buy from one of these links, I may earn a commission. It's a much more pleasant way (IMO) to enter LA than the Ventura and other freeways.My blog posts likely contain affiliate links, including for the Amazon Associates program. The final day (I think I've counted correctly) just keep on going south on SR 1 to the junction with 101 at Morro Bay but again if time allows I'd exit 101 at Ventura and follow the coast all the way into LA - through Malibu and Santa Monica. If time allows en route (it will depend how fast you exit the SF Bay Area) I'd stop at the aquarium in Monterey, Point Lobos State Park near Carmel (lots of wildlife) and Big Sur. The next night I'd aim for someplace around San Simeon on the southern stretch of CA Hwy 1. Spend the night in San Francisco or the suburbs if the next day is a work day rely upon the HOV/commuter lanes until you're south of the City. Once past the trees, push the right pedal and aim for the Golden Gate. It's worth your time to explore as many as possible - IMO this is the real highlight of the drive. The coastal Redwood groves start around Crescent City and continue past Eureka. The next day, the distance isn't great but the scenery is eye-popping. ![]() Highlights along this route (and there are so many) include great coastal scenery around Cape Mears, Depoe Bay, Newport/Yachats, Heceta Head lighthouse, the sand dunes around Florence and Winchester Bay, Bandon, and umpteen pull offs and state parks from Bandon all the way to the California line. I'd pre-book a place to stay so that I could spend the full day doing so (it's a longer drive than it looks on paper) and not have to scramble for accommodation at the end of the day. The first day I'd aim for Brookings or Gold Beach OR for the night, taking my time to pull off at various state parks and beaches along Hwy 101. Then you'd have four days to make the drive down the coast back to LA. I'd make Ilwaco WA, Astoria OR or Cannon Beach OR my stopping point for that night. Helens in Washington, around 2 hours from Portland, then following MSH I'd return on I-5 only as far as Longview, then follow WA Hwy 4 out to the mouth of the Columbia, following the north shore of the river much of the way. The second day I'd leave early and head up to Mt. The first day should be a loop consisting of a drive up the Columbia Gorge to Hood River, then returning to Portland via the Hood River Valley and Mount Hood. With eight days overall, two of which are spent roaring north, and not knowing if you need to allocate some time in Portland itself, I'd spend two days in the Portland and northwestern Oregon/SW Washington area before heading back. Regarding national parks or other scenic/natural areas, this too should be conserved for the Portland area and south. I would absolutely try for one and only one en-route stop northbound you want to conserve your days for the southbound return. The drive on I-5 is very fast (too fast in places, especially given the quantity of big trucks) but there's very little visual interest until one is around Redding, after which it's pretty decent until you get to the Willamette Valley around Cottage Grove. I would leave LA at the earliest time possible in fact if you're up for it, a middle-of-the-night departure is great (makes it quite adventurous for kids) with the aim being to get as far up I-5 as possible that day, avoiding the heat and boredom of the Central Valley, both of which occur in abundance. ![]()
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