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Old 08-14-2009, 07:11 AM
 
Location: Whiteville Tennessee
8,262 posts, read 18,485,841 times
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Will you be doing your trip during the week? If so I would recommend a Thursday night in San Luis Obispo to check out thier FANTASTIC farmers market. This is where Hwy.1 seperates from 101 and begins its beautiful run up to Big Sur, Monterey, Santa Cruz and Frisco. Since all the restaurants in SLO cook outside during the market, you can just sample a little of this and that. Reasonable lodging in SLO too. I hope you have a blast!

Last edited by Capt. Dan; 08-14-2009 at 07:42 AM..
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Old 08-14-2009, 07:30 AM
 
Location: Bella Vista, Ark
77,771 posts, read 104,739,062 times
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yep, SLO farmers market and Solvang are great places. Hearst Castle, it is something to consider but I don't know if it would be at the top of my list. Much depends on how long you plan to be gone and your finances. You do have to consider the cost of some tourist attractions.

Nita
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Old 08-14-2009, 09:39 AM
 
30,902 posts, read 33,003,025 times
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Thanks, guys! Ooh, awesome ideas. I'm not sure how long we'll be taking yet--maybe two weeks.

Thank you!!! Making note of these. The castle, the farmer's market and Carmel sound very very cool.

I too am really really starting to think that going all the way up to Washington sounds a little bit overambitious!!!

My older son is in school so we'll see about the timing...we did want to go during the summer and school is why...
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Old 08-14-2009, 01:55 PM
 
Location: Long Beach CA, the sewer by the sea.
273 posts, read 655,466 times
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If you Google Map the coast, you will find a lot that you might like to explore. The whole drive is pleasurable no matter what your route. Pismo Beach is a fun place for young and old alike. You can drive out on the beach in your car.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium is a good stop as is the wharf. North of San Fran in Marin County is a great place to spend some time. Sausalito and the Muir Woods are nice up there. Stinson Beach is a nice place if you like to gaze at the wealthy and their homes.

Further north is the Russian River and Valley. Very beautiful and some nice winerys. If you like Pinot Noir, Russian River area Pinot is legendary.
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Old 08-14-2009, 02:16 PM
 
Location: West LA
2,318 posts, read 7,845,698 times
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I plan on doing a much shorter version of what you are doing, and driving from SF to LA via the coast. I'm planning on hitting up Santa Cruz (boardwalk & downtown), Carmel, Big Sur, night in SLO, then SB and back to home. I'll give you some feedback after my trip!
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Old 08-14-2009, 06:10 PM
 
30,902 posts, read 33,003,025 times
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Thank you...ooh, sounds good...I love aquariums...

Thanks, LASam, do let me know!
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Old 08-14-2009, 08:04 PM
 
Location: Mountains of Oregon
17,635 posts, read 22,639,503 times
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Howdy Jer Z & Family.................

We lived in the Monterey area fer about five lustrums. Folks have mentioned many Fun Spots.

We always had fun at Carmel Beach.

You can drive from Cannery Row past Lover's Point & the New Monterey/Pacific Grove Beach............close to 17 mile drive

The old Edgewater Packing CO close to the Aquarium has a neat Merry Go Round & arcade...


Over four lustrums we moved here where we Love Livin'.
We live in the forested mountains inland from Gold Beach among the forest critters.



www.hellgate.com is Great FUNs


Have a Fantastic Adventure
Drive Safely
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Old 08-15-2009, 12:36 PM
 
Location: Lakewood, CA
17 posts, read 46,450 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JerZ View Post
Well...just thought I'd post something to smile about for a change. Or something for me to smile about, anyway.

I've been here in the SGV for four years now and haven't been very far from it except for trips to Big Bear (we're about to take another, actually) and twice to Vegas. My DH keeps telling me there's so much more to the west coast than the suburbs of L.A. and now finally we've decided to take a trip up the coast to see some of it.

We're hoping to go next summer. We'll be driving and will have our by then 7-year-old and 4-year-old with us.

We want to possibly go all the way up to Washington but worst case scenario, check out southern Oregon before heading back.

Anyone know a great route to take? Cheap places to stay? Towns not to miss on the trip up? I know this is far in advance but I'm too excited to not talk about it so I'm just getting the ball rolling. I'm huge on nature and trees and all that granola-ey stuff. My husband loves the water. Any ideas?
I would highly recommend seeing the north coast redwoods (check out the areas of Ave. of the Giants) on highway 101. I think it is some of the most beautful country in the world. We camp in Richardson Grove State park in the area, it is a great place and right on the Eel River (like my user name, LOL). We get out our little inflatable boat and float down the river and the kids find the little rapids areas we go over lots of fun. There are good swimming holes here and there along the river. I just really love this river, but I am partial since I partially grew up in this area and have many memories here.
As you travel north towards Oregon on 101, there are so many beautiful areas and state parks to stop at. You could look on google earth, that is what I like to do when planning a trip, LOL. Patrick's Point comes to mind. Prairie Creek Redwoods state park is gorgeous. There are always elk there to look at. We drove down the windy, narrow road to the Gold's Bluff beach. There is a short hike to a place called Fern's Canyon but we were unable to go at that time. You may want to look into that. North of that, check out Trees of Mystery and the gondala ride, this is a neat roadside attraction! Even if you don't have time to walk the trail or do the gondala ride, your kids would love to stop and look at the huge statues of Paul Bunyon and Babe the Blue ox. The 49 foot Paul Bunyon will talk to your kids and wave to them. We did the gondala ride, it was pretty neat.
Up in Grants Pass Oregon we have done the Hellgate Jetboat Excursion. This was a BLAST and our kids who were 5 and 7 at the time LOVED it too. It was very exciting. I will do this again in a heartbeat if we make it up to Oregon again. I think this was the highlight of our trip to Oregon that year, such great memories! We also went to Crater Lake and did the boat tour and went on Wizard Island. So gorgeous.
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Old 08-15-2009, 05:23 PM
 
676 posts, read 3,076,139 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BayAreaHillbilly View Post
Take PCH, grab a bite overlooking the water in Malibu. Go to SB and spend the afternoon and overnight. Take 101 over the Gaviota Summit, then peel off on Hwy 1. 1 will in a few places merge back in with 101, but will largely be separate, especially after SLO, all the way to SF. Along the way to SF, of course, Big Sur, Carmel/Monterey, Santa Cruz, Half Moon Bay. Got to stop in SF and take it in. Then the real adventure starts, the long, rugged coast from there up to where 1 merges back in with 101 in Humboldt County. Far too many places along the way to mention, I'd recommend browsing the web to come up with a general list, but be open to the spur of the moment "hey let's check out this beach!" Mainly you just need to know where you'll stay and how far you want to go each day.

Personally, I'd say you could make a vacation out of the CA coast alone.
I 100% agree with these suggestions. You may want to take in the Santa Barbara zoo with your kiddies. It is a fabulous zoo for your age kids plus you get some great views. I also enjoyed going to the Monterrey Aquarium in Monterrey. Maybe also go to Hearst Castle (but stay in Cambria not San Simeon). I think you should stop at Humboldt and go back home. I would do the OR/WA thing another time. Malibu, Santa Barbara, Cambria, Pismo, Monterrey, Big Sur, Santa Cruz, San Fran, Bodega Bay are all nice places to check out. Cruising HWY 1 is amazing!!!!!!
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Old 08-15-2009, 05:31 PM
 
676 posts, read 3,076,139 times
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Oh, another thought when you can ditch the kids with the grandparents is doing a winery tour in Santa Ynez valley which wouldn't be as far as Napa, but still pretty cool. There is a great place in San Luis Obispo near Avila Beach called Sycamore Mineral Springs. Before kids, we would go wine tasting and stay there for a night. It was a nice mini-getaway.
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