Road Trip to California & Oregon Coast

[Winsor_Pilates]

We are planning to do a road trip from Vancouver to Palm Springs at the end of March. The total drive is about 21 hours so we're planning to drive around 6-7 hours each day and stay 2 nights at stops along the way.

On the way there we don't care for too much scenery, just good stopping points and will likely stay close to the I5.
On the way back, we plan to take the Oregon Coast Hwy and enjoy the journey a bit more so it doesn't feel like a drag getting home.

Anyone done this before and have recommendations and good places to stop and stay? We also will have our dog with us, so needs to be dog friendly spots.

[blankall]

The entire Oregon coast is great imo. Very scenic. Very laid back. Cheap sea food. Great beer everywhere. I'd also try and spend time in Portland. Lots of breweries, charcuterie, etc.. Everywhere.

Never done the California part of your drive though.

[opendoor]

I've done that drive a bunch of times. The Oregon coast is beautiful, but maybe not so much in March, as the climate is fairly similar to coastal BC (mild and rainy). If it's clear, it's nice though.

For the California coast, the entire thing is nice, but it does add some driving time if you do the whole thing. If you want the best bang for your driving time, the Big Sur coast/Monterey area is probably your best bet. It's the nicest part (IMO) and it only adds about 2 hrs of driving vs just staying on the I-5. If you have more time, you can keep going up the 1/101 north of San Francisco; not as nice in terms of coast, but you do get to drive through the Redwoods. But if you do that you're probably adding another day of driving.

For going down, the I-5 is pretty boring most of the way, but there are tons of places to stop for the dog and lots of pet-friendly places to stay. My main advice for that would be:

-check the weather in the mountain passes (Grants Pass -> Redding area); snow likely won't be an issue that time of year, but you never know.
-don't stay in Stockton
-try to time your drives through LA to avoid the worst of the traffic. 2 hrs from Palm Springs -> LA in light traffic can be more like 4 hours at busier times of the day. Same applies to Seattle which can be a nightmare to get through at the wrong time of day.

So in terms of itinerary, something like the following makes sense for a 3-day drive down:

Vancouver -> Eugene or Cottage Grove
Eugene -> Sacramento area
Sacramento -> Palm Springs

For the way back, it'd really depend where you want to go. And if you're not otherwise going out to LA, you might consider staying just past there so you can spend the day there; though you can't really go to any beaches in LA with a dog. There's one dog-friendly one in Malibu, but that's about it.

[GGG]

Consider Crater Lake as a detour in one of the directions. It is amazing.

Crater lake to Crescent city then down through the redwoods and into Sanfrancisco.

I prefer the Northern California coast over the Oregon coast as it feels more remote once past the redwoods and the redwoods are really neat.

As a general rule the Coastal routes take twice as long as the interstate

[DoubleK]

Another vote for San Fran down to Monterey. Especially the stretch from Pacifica to Santa Cruz. You are literally driving right along the ocean the whole way.

You could cut back over to I5 at Watsonville and save a bit of time and catch the best part IMO.

[DFO]

If you can lengthen the trip I recommend driving as much of the coast as possible. It's really a bucket list trip in a nice car. We stuck to the coast as much as possible from Seattle to San Diego.

The top 3 experiences were:
Avenue of Giants - drove it north to south with next to no traffic. Really fun road through the incredible forest.
Big Sur - The trip from Monterey thru Big Sir is epic. Views don't get any better. Do it up right and grab lunch at the Post Ranch Inn.
Angeles Crest Hwy - Iconic twisty road driving experience.

[CaptainYooh]

Avoid Portland. It has become a total dump. Literally.

[Locke]

You should trek the Oregon Trail!

Watch out for the Diphtheria though...that usually gets Granny.

[CASe333]

I've done this trip numerous times with gf (now wife) and friends. You have a good plan to burn through the drive fast going down then enjoy it coming back.

Going down just make sure you avoid rush hour around Seattle on the I5. It just isn't a good way to start or end a long days drive and I have had way worse experiences being stuck in that traffic for whatever reasons vs southern California where it always can be bad. The I5 traffic flows good the rest of the way to LA and there are lots of options that work ok for overnight. Lots of truck stops to stretch dogs legs too. Just avoid Seattle and to a lesser extent Portland and Sacramento rush hr traffic with your start times and when to plan for breaks. I actually recommend not staying/stopping in any of the big cities on the way down as you just end up dealing with their traffic unless its just off the I5. We had one good hotel in Sacramento just off I5 and everywhere else just ended up wasting time driving to an unrememberable hotel.

Coming back consider the 101 from Ventura to San Francisco. Or if you want to avoid big cities cut back to the I5 at Monterey. This is the best coastal scenic route in California in my opinion. An odd recommendation is to stay the night in Solvang. Its a very danish styled town and very different for California. Beer, wine and pastries were extremely good and the town is a bit eccentric but small town friendly and really sticks out in my memories of those trips.

Oregon coast is great and you can't really go wrong where you decide to stop. It kind of depends what you are after but all of the coastal cities/towns are good. The drive is laid back and there are lots of towns like Cannon beach, Seaside, Lincoln City that has something worth visiting. Lots of hiking trails and beaches that are accessible near those towns. Pacific city was a highlight with coastal dunes and I recommend the Pelican Brewing taphouse that is right on the beach there. Such good beer and location.

It really is a good road trip, good luck.

[Zoller]

It's a nicer drive going down than coming up just by nature of being closer to the coast on the way down.

Big Sur is a must.

But my personal favorite is Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. The tallest tree in the world (Hyperion) is located in this park and if you do a bit of digging you can figure out where it is. The exact location is kept a secret but with a bit of research it's obvious where the tree is once you are there. Mind-bottlingly tall.

[MoneyGuy]

This is a dream trip for me.

[Nyah]

Originally Posted by CASe333

The drive is laid back and there are lots of towns like Cannon beach, Seaside, Lincoln City that has something worth visiting.

I agree - I've visited both Lincoln City and Seaside and I would recommend them both.

[RichieRich]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

This is a dream trip for me.

Sounds like a good slow-travel journey. Many years back a friend did it on his motorcycle and loved it despite using a sport bike. I’m thinking comfy SUV or a future bucket list RV with bikes and hiking gear.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by opendoor

I've done that drive a bunch of times. The Oregon coast is beautiful, but maybe not so much in March, as the climate is fairly similar to coastal BC (mild and rainy). If it's clear, it's nice though.

I would disagree about the Oregon coast not being beautiful in March. Part of it's charm is the endless clouds sweeping out from the ocean. It's never the kind of place you want to hang out at in your bathing suit and take a swim. In December, the wind/rain would be too much, but around March that's a great time to go.

Like other's have said, you can stop in any of the small towns along the way. Get some seafood and craft beer and just relax.

[Winsor_Pilates]

We'll be going in my comphy SUV. Wife will also be 7 months prego so need to make sure she's comfortable.

Thanks to everyone for the advise, this is getting me more and more excited!

[blankall]

Originally Posted by CaptainYooh

Avoid Portland. It has become a total dump. Literally.

Portland has always been that way. Part of the charm. The Portlandia joke about it being stuck in the 90s has a lot of truth to it. It's always been kind of a laid back skid row in may parts.

More recently, the DIY restaurant and brewery scene has made it a pretty great spot to visit though. It does all the things that hipsters in places like Vancouver are trying to pull off, but properly. The beer and food is better, more walkable, and the prices are reasonable. You're not paying top dollar to get a local craft beer from the back of a warehouse.

The homeless epidemic has hit Portland hard, but it's hit every city on the Westcoast just as badly.

[Weitz]

Took 2 weeks to drive the whole pacific coast highway In September years ago. Drove just a bit every day. Brought surfboards and kite boards. camped on the beach. Was an amazing trip.

[opendoor]

Originally Posted by CaptainYooh

Avoid Portland. It has become a total dump. Literally.

While I think that's overstating it (Portland in particular seemed more or less the same as I remembered it when I was there a couple of months ago), the US definitely seemed a bit sketchier and run down this last time. I don't know if it's COVID or what, but the difference was pretty stark.

[Northendzone]

sac town, the bay area and back down......dre put me down for cali-forn-i-eh......

[troutman]

I want to try this place:


http://www.wildspring.com/





https://www.redfishportorford.com/