We did a similar trip two summers ago. That drive from Yellowstone down along the Grand Tetons to Jackson is gorgeous. As well, south of Jackson, we took the route that goes through Montpellier and Logan, which was one of the nicest days of driving I had (if you like winding roads that go in and out of one valley after another.
Northern Nevada is a bit of a grind to drive through. It's actually pretty scenic if you get off the freeway. I wanted to take highway 50 (aka the loneliest highway in the US), but we were starting to fall behind schedule so we took the freeway to make up time.
We didn't go through Reno/Tahoe areas, we went south on 95 to Hawthorne, then west, which takes you right to the back gate of Yosemite, and from there we drove through to Monteray. Doing it again, I'd probably spend a day at Yosemite, rather than treating it as a drive-through destination.
If you haven't been to Monteray (particularly the aquarium, it's worth making a day-trip to from SF, but it's south of the city. On the drive back, you can't find anywhere nicer than Cannon Beach. My favorite place on the Oregon Coast. We spent a week there, either hanging out around town or taking day-trips up and down the coast from there. Tillamook and Astoria are both pretty nice.
Like Thneed says, definitely see the redwoods around Crescent City.
|