My husband and I will be traveling down PCH from Portland to Orange County (where we live) in May 2015. I would like advice for activities, scenic stops and memorable restaurants along the way. This will be our first trip to Portland and San Francisco as well, so let me know all the must-dos! We love to go hiking, biking, and fishing… anything outdoors!

I have already booked our accommodations, this is our itinerary:
- 3 nights at a hotel in Portland, OR in the Pearl District
- 1 night at a B&B in Yachat, OR
- 1 night at a B&B in Trinidad, CA
- 1 night at a B&B in Little River, CA (near Fort Brag)
- 2 nights at a hotel San Francisco, CA in the Fisherman’s Wharf District
- 2 nights camping in Big Sur, CA

I am also looking for any general tips/advice for driving down PCH.

We are planning to leave each location early in the day (after breakfast) so that we can take our time and still arrive at our next destination before sunset. In planning our itinerary, I have tried to break up the drive as much as possible. Most days we only travel about 3.5 hours (without stops). Our longest drive is between Yachat and Trinidad which is 5.5 hours without stopping. Obviously we won’t make the drive without stopping, but even still I think this will be a manageable drive?

For the drive home from Big Sur, we plan to only drive along PCH until we get to Santa Barbara. We have been to Mailbu several times and there isn’t much to see on PCH past that point

Thanks!

Yachats is pronounced Ya-Hots. On the way from Portland to Yachats, make a stop at the Tillamook cheese factory (just north of town). Taste test the free samples to decide what to buy. They also have good ice cream. I hope you go west on US 26 so that you go through Cannon Beach. Haystack Rock should not be missed.
Why not spend a night in Gold Beach instead of going all the way into California? You might even want to take a boat trip up the Rogue River the next morning.
South of Brookings you might want to stop at the "Trees of Mystery" in California before heading to Trinidad.
On your trip north to Portland (I-5?), you could consider a detour over to see Crater Lake NP. Only the south entrance will be open in May.

In Yachats we like to stay at the Fireside Motel or Overleaf Lodge (both operated by the same folks) because they have rooms right on the ocean.

Highway 101 from Yachats to Florence and from Port Orford to Eureka, offers quite spectacular views of the ocean.

I assume you will visit the redwoods while you are in northern California.

Little River is three miles south of the quaint town of Mendocino. We always enjoy walking around Mendocino and out on the Mendocino Headlands.

The Paso Robles wine district (near Cambria), the Santa Barbara wine district, and the town of Ojai are some of the places we like to visit on this route.

Enjoy!

HTtY