shiekie

We are planning to drive from Seattle to Napa (and ultimately on to San Francisco) spending 2-days in Napa in late March. We are asking for suggestions on other places to stop along the way down the coast. We only have abolut 5-6 days for the entire trip.

happytrailstoyou

That would be the Oregon coast and the redwoods of northern California. Our favorite places to say in Oregon are Cannon Beach, Newport, Yachts, Florence and Brookings. In the redwoods our favorite place to stay is the Best Western in Garberville, and our favorite place for dinner there is Cecil's.

HTtY

shiekie

Thank you. Trying to budget time is so difficult with so much to see and do.

Shiekie

Dave0099

In my opinion very sparse drive between Seattle and Redwood forest. Stopped at some hotel for the night, kind of a castle like hotel....it was a hoot, we slept with one eye open, felt like we were staying at the Munsters home....the staff was just as odd, we were glad to get back to SF. The Redwood forest was absolutely the highlight, other than that it was kind of a long boring drive.

smetz1

Portland is nice, though it's only a few hours from Seattle. We did this drive this past summer, and stopped in Brookings OR, so we could be close to Redwood Nat'l Park the following morning. The Oregon coast was beautiful to drive down, but to me the coastal towns didn't offer much else to do or see. Loved the Dungeness crab, clam chowder & fish, though. The redwoods are great, not to be missed. We stayed in Ferndale, CA after visiting Redwood, NP, which turned out to be a lot of fun - we loved the bar at the Hotel Ivanhoe. From there we drove down 101 to Sonoma, & it took longer than we thought it would.

All in all it's a great drive, and hope you have a lot of fun.

starrs

Crater Lake if the roads are open -
http://www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm

Mendocino, CA

janisj

Dave0099: It sounds like you drove mostly down I-5. Down the coast could not be called 'sparse' in any way. Curious re where you stayed. Was it in CA or OR?

starrs: Crater Lake won't be open in March

starrs

janisj, the visitor center will be. I confirmed before I posted and added "if the roads are open". From the link above -


"The park is always open, but some of the roads and facilities are closed during the winter. For more information on facilities, read further. Information on the weather, trails and roads can be found on our "Current Conditions" page."

Steel Visitor Center - Open 9 am to 5 pm daily from late April to early November. Open 10 am to 4 pm daily (except December 25) from early November to early April.

Inside the visitor center building, a US Post Office is open Monday through Saturday, 9:00 am to noon and 1 pm to 3 pm in the summer and 10 am to 2 pm in winter."

janisj

There is no reason to go to Crater Lake when just the one visitor center is open and the roads aren't . . . . And ESPECIALLY when it is a significant detour and they have so little time.

starrs

"There is no reason to go to Crater Lake when just the one visitor center is open and the roads aren't..."

UNLESS one wants to see Crater Lake.

Dave0099

janisj I'm sorry but I cant remember exactly where. I know we deviated a bit because it was taking way longer than I expected, and we had to drop the car in Seattle and were flying out of there.

It started as 101 but because it was taking so long we cut over on some winding dark mountain road to I5 after dark. My wife was petrified...pure city girl whose idea of roughing it is the W New York. She was not too happy about the hotel we found, but we laughed about it for weeks afterwards. They were such characters there...and it was especially funny when we checked in and we went to eat and found that the restaurant was closing at 8:30pm. I mean were used to going out to eat at 9pm in Miami!!! We ended up at the vending machines eating cheese and crackers.

The funniest part of the evening was when we discovered that the room included a crystal decanter half filled with "complimentary Sherry" we dared each other to take the first drink, but after a few hours in this odd place we dove into it in the hopes it would help us sleep...hopefully not the eternal sleep! We still laugh to this day about that trip.

tomfuller

About Crater Lake in the winter: The park is open 365 days a year. If the gate is closed just past the visitor center it's because the rotary plow is working on the road up to the lodge.
On a Saturday last March I went on a Ranger led snowshoe hike that started at the lodge. I wore my own snowshoes even though the Ranger will provide loaners (free). You can rent snowshoes if you feel capable on your own.
The next day (Sunday) someone rented snowshoes and took a hike. Whoever it was, stepped out onto a snow cornice which broke off and they tumbled down nearly to the lake. I never heard when they recovered the body.
Some years the north entrance (off Rt. 138) does not open until July 1.
If you want to skip the Oregon Coast, you can take I-5 to Grants Pass and then US 199 to US 101 near Eureka. Rt. 199 goes through an area of big Coast Redwoods.

happytrailstoyou

I am surprised, flabbergasted, and bewildered that two or more people have stated that the drive from Seattle to the redwoods is boring because the drive down the Oregon coast on Highway 101 is one of the most beautiful in the USA. Several stretches of 101 (including Lincoln City to Florence and Port Orford to Brookings) offer spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean. Perhaps those folks drove on I-5.

HTtY

happytrailstoyou

Discussions about Crater Lake or tipping always bring out a great range of opinions and advice. Here is mine to those who are visiting only Oregon: After you have thoroughly explored the Columbia River Gorge and the Oregon Coast, if you still have time--go to Crater Lake (but only at the time of year when the road around the lake is completely open).

I will now cool my heals while waiting to be told why I am way off base.

HTtY

happytrailstoyou

Or my heels!

starrs

My thoughts re redwoods - If you are heading to Napa, you can also visit Muir Woods
http://www.nps.gov/muwo/index.htm

shiekie

Many thanks to all who have replied so far. You've given us much to think about in planning our drive.