Hi there,
My husband and I are driving down from Oregon to meet up with our Reno friends in Williams, California. From there, the boys will head back North for a hunt and we, the girls, will head to Napa for several days. It definitely seems the shortest route is via the interstate but I was curious about the route from Williams to Napa through Clearlake. Is this route advisable? I was looking for something more scenic and thought this might fit the bill. Please let me know what you think! Thank you!

Parts of the drive is beautiful -- Hwy 20 is fine. It is longer, and more winding/curving/hilly. Just depends on what you think about that sort of drive?

The I-5/505/80 route is about 85 miles of very high speed and is pretty boring and the I-80 section can be pretty congested.

The Hwy 20/29 route is maybe 20 miles farther but would probably take nearly an hour longer. Hwy 20 down through the Napa Valley can be stop and go through the towns.

If you have the time to spare --I'd probably take the more scenic Hwy20/29 option.

However, the highway between Lower Lake and Napa is hugely scenic if you don't mind one lane in each direction and, as a poster above states, some backups. I much prefer that route, even after drivinh it dozens of times.

Thank you for your feedback, janisj! We don't have anything planned so Hwy20/29 it is!

Thanks, dwooddon! I'm all about the scenery. Can hardly wait!