Hi, Myself and my boyfriend are planning to go on a 1 week road trip towards the end of August. We'll be driving from Vancouver to San Francisco. Here's the option we have come up with so far.....

Day 1 - early start; drive from Vancouver to Astoria/ Cannon Beach (look around and have lunch) --> drive to Portland and spend the evening exploring the city; spend the night in Portland

Day 2 - early start; drive from Portland to Columbia River; stop at Multnomah Falls, Eagle Creek Trailhead to Tunnels hike (12 miles return); drive back to Portland and spend another night there; Alternatively we were thinking about skipping the hike and doing the Mount Hood loop instead?

Day 3 - drive from Portland to Bandon ( stops at Newport, Yachats, Cape Perpetua, Thor's Well, Heceta Head Lighthouse, Oregon Dunes ); stay overnight in Bandon
Day 4 & 5 - Bandon to Mendocino (stay for a night in Ferndale and Mendocino):

- Jedediah Smith (Stout Grove or Boy Scout Tree Trail, Howland Hill Road)
- Prairie Creek Redwoods (The Big Tree Loop, Fern Canyon, James Irvine Trail)
- Redwood National Park (Lady Bird Johnson Groove)
- Avenue Of Giants (Founders Groove Trail)

Day 6 - Mendocino to San Francisco, through Sonoma

Day 7 - exploring San Francisco (we've already been to San Fran before)

Is this a good route? Are we missing anything that just cannot be missed along these routes?

We were also thinking about driving from Vancouver to Columbia River Gorge through Yakima; explore Columbia River; drive to Portland; from there go to Cannon Beach and then all the way down to Mendocino? Is this a better route?

We want to get the best out of this trip and we both enjoy the coast, mountains, hiking and the nature in general.

Any help would be really appreciated. Thank you in advance!

Joanna

IMO day 3 is too much (but you almost <i>have </i> to do it to make the subsequent days doable). Portland to Bandon will be nearly 6 hours in the car. When you factor in all the stops and meals it will take ALL day.

Some comments...

(Original) Day 1 - Vancouver, over the border, through Washington to Cannon Beach, then back to Portland is a <i>really</i> long day, and not a very interesting one, regardless of which roads you use. By the direct I-5 route, Vancouver to Portland is seven hours of freeway driving, plus what could easily be an hour at the border. Substitute the 3+ hours from Seattle to Portland with a 4 hour detour to Astoria and Cannon Beach, then another two hours back to Portland, and, well...

Just my opinion, but you're going to be seeing a lot of beautiful Oregon coast as it is, so I'd give strong consideration to skipping the whole Astoria/Cannon Beach part and using those hours elsewhere in the trip.

(Revised) Day 1-2, Vancouver to Portland via Yakima and the Gorge. Again, this is a very long day - 3 hours plus border to Seattle, 2 more to Yakima, 3 more to the Gorge area. I personally like this route a lot as it offers huge variety, but in August it's also going to be very hot once you're on the east side of the mountains, and you'll be driving west through the Gorge with the sun right in your eyes in the evening.

Here's a possible alternative Day 1, also a long one. Drive from Vancouver through Seattle, but instead of heading out to the coast or over the Cascades, continue south along I-5 to the turnoff for Mt. St. Helens, and run up to the Johnston Ridge overview of the crater. How many chances do you have of looking into an active volcano? Anyway, then down the mountain and into Portland.

Day 2 - There's so much to see and do in the Columbia Gorge/Hood River/Mt. Hood area that having just one day there is a real shame, so go with your gut. Personally, I'd do the "fruit loop" including Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood. If you're determined to hike, and if the weather's hot (and it probably will be) AND you don't mind getting wet AND you're able to climb over a logjam, do the Oneonta Gorge hike - https://oregonhike.files.wordpress.c...59694183_n.jpg - for an other-worldly experience.

Day 3 and beyond. Again, I'd skip the north coast and aim for the central and south coasts. Bandon is a good overnight spot, as is Ferndale.

Not sure of your plans/budget for accommodations, but you're going to be there during the peak visitor period, so I'd be making some hotel bookings pronto.

Janisj & Gardyloo - thanks so much for your comments. We wish we could spend more time in Oregon but from San Fran we'll be heading towards Teton, Yellowstone & Glacier so we're limited on time

Gardyloo, we'll consider skipping Cannon Beach and stopping at Mt Helens - thanks for suggestion. Also, Oneonta Gorge hike looks amazing and we'll try to fit it in! Any thoughts on the Eagle Creek Trailhead to Tunnels hike?

Is this the route you had in mind? https://goo.gl/maps/RzllM

My suggestion for what it's worth: Take I-205 where it splits off I-5 in WA and take I-84 east past Multnomah Falls and spend night 1 in Hood River instead of expensive Portland.
You should be able to see several waterfalls including Multnomah on the way to Hood River.
Day 2 drive south on Rt. 35 up the east side of Mt. Hood and then get on US 26 west all the way to US 101 near the coast. Stop in Cannon Beach to see Ecola and Haystack Rock.
Honestly, it is easier/shorter to go from Washington or Oregon to Glacier and Yellowstone than from San Francisco.

Thanks Tomfuller! The original plan was to skip San Fran but we'll be dropping my brother off at the airport so we've extended the route. Also, we're considering going to Lake Tahoe. Any idea what the best route from San Fran/Tahoe to Teton is?

>>Any idea what the best route from San Fran/Tahoe to Teton is?<<

To Tahoe: Since you are on such a short time frame there are really only two (well two and a half) ways to get to Tahoe from SF. #1 is I-80 all the way to Truckee and then either 89 or 267 to the north end of the Lake, or #2 I-80 to Sacramento then hwy 50 to the south end of the Lake.

(The 'half' is a slight variation on #1 where you stick to I-80 as far as Auburn the cut north 49 to Grass Valley to hwy 20 which heads east and eventually reconnects to I-80 farther east. So basically I-80 w/ a detour along hwy 20)

How long either drive takes depends a GREAT deal on the day of the week and time of day. What would take about 4 hours on a Saturday morning can take 6+ hours on a Friday afternoon.

From Tahoe to Grand Teton: I-80 to Wells, 93 north to Twin Falls, I-15 to Idaho Falls and on to GT. This will be a VERY long drive - almost 800 miles and well over 12 hours behind the wheel w/o stops.

Thanks for the routes Janisjj! We'll be heading towards Tahoe either on Wednesday or Thursday and won't have to rush too much - we have over 3 weeks to do do Tahoe + Teton + Yellowstone + Glacier. Haven't done much research on Tahoe lake yet (still trying to figure out the first part of the trip)I assume there isn't much to see between Tahoe and Teton? :/