ladynole35

We had planned a coastal trip from San Diego to San Francisco and now he wants to do Oregon too. We have been to SF and down to Carmel but never farther south or north. I would like to fly into LA and drive up but we only have about 10 days. SF is a must 2 day trip for me and my husband says that timewise we will have to either fly into SF and go north or fly into SD and go to SF. For all of you who live out there, which is the best scenery? We just want to enjoy driving the coast and stopping here and there. Please help. Thanks.

JackOneill

Where in Oregon? Crater Lake? The coast?

Sounds like a "two-trip" deal to me.

easytraveler

lady: could you give a bit more detail?'

Where are you flying OUT OF? San Francisco? Portland?

Advice on how far up the coast to drive depends on where you will be flying out of.

Certainly ten days driving from San Diego to Portland along the entire coast is very doable, but this means that you fly into San Diego and out of Portland.

The entire coast is spectacular. I've seen many coastlines and this is one of the very best, so how far up the coast you drive will depend on the costs of your flight. If you have to fly out of San Francisco, then you need to slot at least a couple of days for the return trip from Oregon to SF.

Help us so we can help you!

ladynole35

We would leave out of Portland and we will stay on the coast. I just don't want to be to rushed and I am thinking that doing all of Ca. and Or. is just to much. I think that flying into S.F. and then going up is more doable. What do you think?

jimshep

The Oregon highlights are (1) the coast, (2) the Columbia River Gorge, and (3) Crater Lake.

OaktownTraveler

It is two trips.

COntact AAA for the exact mileage and road conditions/construction which will also effect the driving time.

Enjoy!
Oaktown Traveler

Gardyloo

So I'm figuring 10 days less 2 in SF = 8 days total available? Summer? Makes a difference.

8 days SFO-PDX is easy - 2 days along the north stretch of Calif. SR 1, along the Sonoma and Mendocino coasts - spectacular scenery, nice towns for overnights. Beautiful.

Then 2 days exploring the Redwoods - between roughly Garberville and Crescent City, along US 101. If you haven't seen them, it's time you did.

Then 2 days along the Oregon coast. You'll have already seen great coastal scenery on SR 1, so 2 days ought to get you up to Newport or Lincoln City (US 101) as a point to head east to the Willamette Valley and Portland.

Then 2 days around Portland - Mt. Hood/Columbia Gorge loop, one day in the city. Then home.

This itinerary doesn't involve any backbreaking drives, and will give you time for spur-of-the-moment detours. You won't have huge amounts of time in any one place but you can certainly identify targets for future trips.

JackOneill

in re-reading your first post, I think i sense you're trying to figure out which makes a better trip:
1) LA (or San Diego) to San Francisco, or
2) San Francisco to/from Portland.
Am I right?
If I am, then my recommendation would be to stick with California.

Yes, Oregon is nice and has some twonderful things to see, but since you are limited to the coast of Oregon, I'd say do California. (For the record, I was not blown away by the Oregon coast.)

Personally, I think the drive from San Diego to San Francisco is a great, albeit long, drive. Big Sur wins every award in my book for scenic vistas. And I love Santa Barbara, Laguna, La Jolla. North of San Francisco, though there's some gorgeous scenery, other than Mendocino there aren't many towns that are particularly noteworthy.

malvado

I second Gardyloo's itinerary.

easytraveler

And I second O'Neill's itinerary!

If you drive the coast of California, you really don't need to drive the coast of Oregon. If you were to go inland in Oregon, then I would second that. There's so much to see inland Oregon.

Otherwise, confine yourselves to the California coast. More than enough to do and see!

Enjoy!