Drive Seattle WA to San Francisco in six days (at liesure?)

Dear Fellow Travelers:

I have 2 scenarios in my mind but might be thinking foolishly on both accounts. I%26#39;ve never been to the Pacific Coast other than LA. We are 2 travelling together by car - ages 42 and 50 - love seeing and nature. Here are my 2 scenarios:

Scenario 1: Can I realistically drive highway 101/1 down the coast at liesure without too much trouble. I plan to fly to Seattle very late and spend the next 1/2 day (do I need more?) in Seattle site seeing. Drive to Olympic National Park, do the hot springs, and then meander down the coast to San Francisco. What%26#39;s a must do along the way and can I really do it in six days? My planned route by town is: Seattle, Tacoma, Port Angeles, Queets, (and MAYBE detour to see Portland, or just stay on highway 101) putting me next towards Lincoln City OR, to Crescent City, CA, toward Fort Bragg, to Bodega Bay (where I would like to stay ';The Birds'; and all), to San Francisco. CAN I DO IT REALISTICALLY? Anyone have any great things besides of course the view and the amazing parks and shore line along the way. I%26#39;ve never been to any of these places and am coming from the Chicago area. I don%26#39;t want to rush rush but I%26#39;m wondering if the drive (1198.75 miles) is too much because I don%26#39;t have a clue about the terain.

Scenario 2: Drive from Seattle down through Mt. Rainier via highway 410 picking up highway 12 toward Mt. St. Helens and then through Portland toward Lincoln City to get toward the coast. This would miss the entire coast of Washington State, but would allow us to drive the coast along Oregon and California to our ultimate desitination, San Francisco. We really want to see the mountain ranges too, so this might be a better, easier trip. What are the roads like driving through the mountian regions of Rainier and Mt. St. Helens? Talk back anyone! THANKS IN ADVANCE!!!! Maggie

Drive Seattle WA to San Francisco in six days (at liesure?)

Thanks for your input - I%26#39;m iffy now because we%26#39;re traveling October 18th through the 25th - I hadn%26#39;t thought about the fact that there will most likely be snow already. We%26#39;re renting a car, so now I%26#39;m also wondering about snow chains on the car and all that. Is this a foolish idea?

Drive Seattle WA to San Francisco in six days (at liesure?)

Hi

All local experts are forgetting you. Shame!

Let me try.

I like to drive coastal routes, but not all the time without having a ly down at the beach once and a while, and october is not the best time to do so. (Maybe you are lucky)

So many sight along your route. Say: Seattle,Olympic, Mnt Rainier, Mnt St. Helens, Portland, The Falls, Mnt Hood, The Sisters area, Crater Lake, Redwood NP,Mount Shasta, Humbolt Redwoods SP. Lassen Vulcanic, Napa, San Francisco to name some. So you have to make choises.

Here%26#39;s my $ 0,02

1. If Olympic is high on your list I would drive from Seatlle early in the morning to Olympic and visit it for the rest of the day. Take the views from Seatlle and beyond to Mount Rainier. If you are lucky (weather) you can see her from many places.

2. Drive the long road from Olympic to Mnt St Helens, go to the visitor center and amaze yourselves. If cloudy no need to go and go directly to Portland and enjoy down town.

3.From Portland to the Falls east of Portland, to Mount Hood and via Bend to Crater Lake.

4. Visit Crater Lake in the morning (again, I hope there are blue skies ortherwise CL is not deep blue but deep grey). Try to get as far as the Crescent City area.

5. From Crescent City to Redwood NP and to the Avenue of the Giants in Humboldt Redwoods SP. Great place!. Stay for the night in Fort Bragg.

6. From Fort Bragg to San Francisco along the coast.

7. A day in SF is a must!

Local experts will tell you if you need chains. We visited all these places in other times of the year. At Crater Lake we already had snow in september, so I%26#39;m not sure it will be closed end of october.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Tet{:o)-

I hope you have seen the comments on the Washington Forum, as well.

Hello Mamckenn-

Hopefully the Wash site has given you some info...

I am conservative on how much you can do...I would say if you don%26#39;t stop at many sites you can drive the OR coast in 2 days comfortably. If your overnight stop on the OR coast is Lincoln city, I would actually stay in Newport-it is not too much further down the road and has more ambiance, IMO. There was a whole discussion about this not to long ago on TA-look at this post if interested.

The OR and Wa coast 101 is mostly a 2 lane curvy road(i.e not many passing oportunities if you get stuck behind a motorhome) and during Oct may be wet and rainy...or beautiful and sunny. If it is wet you will have to take it a little slower.

Im not sure about the Mt Rainer and hwy 410- but if this is anywhere near Mt Rainer and at elevation, definetlly check out the weather report before you go. There is the possibility of snow at this time of year.If you need to go to Mt Rainer and it is snowing...traction devices may be required to carry by the DOT. If thats the case and you really want to go, you will need chains, esp if you are in a 2 wheel drive.

I have never driven the whole coast to San Francisco but have considered it. I grew up in the SF bay area and have only been as far north as Pt. Reyes driving on the coast. Have been to Eureka and Crescent City but go there via I-5. I have seen all of the Oregon Coast and just a touch of the Washington coast (the very southern tip). Let me tell you that driving the entire coastline would be either an excercise in frustration or a way to really practice patience. I like your second scenerio. Mt. Ranier has some wonderful hiking trails. You%26#39;ll probably want to talk with local trekers once you get there to see what is practical for the time you will be visiting. Mt. St. Helens is very interesting. You%26#39;ll want to go to all of the visitor centers. They do charge $ but it is worth the price of admission. There are hikes around this area that will show you how the area is still recovering after the devastating 1980 eruption. If you are dairy loving people, you must stop in Tillamook for a quick visit to the cheese factory. Tillamook has some interesting hiking around Cape Lookout. I like the idea of staying overnight in Newport. If you like casinos and outlet shopping malls, then Lincoln City. The area just south of Yachats, has an place worth a stop and a hike, Cape Perpetua. In the Fall, this is a wonderful place to walk and see different colored mushrooms and tall old growth rainforest. Heceta Head lighthouse isn%26#39;t too bad either. You will take lots of pictures here. The drive on the Oregon Coast will be slow through all of the bigger towns but really isn%26#39;t bad. In Northern Cal, you%26#39;ll want to go through Redwoods state park or Redwood National Park. Fort Bragg is supposed to be a really neat town to visit but I have never had the ambition to drive there. The Northern California coast is enormous. I hope someone who has driven it will advise. I am envious that you will get to see so much of the area that most of us avoid due to time constraints.

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