dms666

We are leaving from Pacific Grove on this leg of our journey. Point Lobos, 17 mile drive, Carmel by the sea, and Monterey are already in the itinerary for earlier in the week before we start heading south.

Surfergirl

I'm with Logandog, especially with 2 children 10 and 12 perfect age to stop at the San Miguel Mission. Tour the whole mission . . . it is also one of our favorites.

dms666 just so you know, in California, children in the 4th grade learn about the state of California and the missions, with a field trip to a mission as part of the process.

You can also tie it into the El Camino Real Greenish/Turquoise bells you will see driving down the 101. The 101 is essentially the trail (royal road) taken by wagons and on horseback. The 21 missions in CA were located generally within a one day horseback ride between missions. The missions were the night's stopping point, among other uses in the expansion of religion.

tomfuller

The Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge came down today>
http://abc7news.com/news/demolition-...egins/1798561/

aprillilacs

On a very recent two-week road trip from SF through Southern California and back, we too had to detour from Pacific Grove back to 101 and then head back to it Hwy 1 Paso Robles. We took advantage of the detour to stop in Salinas for a too-long-postponed visit to the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas. It's a lovely museum that covers Steinbeck's life and life's work in great detail. (Give it an hour or two.) And we were nicely surprised by the downtown section of Salinas--a well-maintained blast from the past where we enjoyed a short stroll. I can't tell you how many times we've rushed by Salinas on 101, certain we weren't missing anything, so I'm glad we took the time to explore it a bit.

We also enjoy having lunch along the piers in Morro Bay and a walk at the big rock (interesting geological history)--that would be a great place to rent kayaks and paddle around. (Oh--while you are in the Pacific Grove area be sure to head to Elkhorn Slough for a great kayak excursion or boat ride with the kids--you'll see so many wonderful marine animals up close. Have a great trip.

jenmarkolson

Make sure to check out some tide pools with the kids. They were a highlight of the trip for our kids. I think there were some near Monterey and some in Cayucos.

MichelleY

Not so fast:

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/lo...138343958.html

mlgb

Wowza! Looks like tomfuller needs to change his news source!

sf7307

dms666 just so you know, in California, children in the 4th grade learn about the state of California and the missions, with a field trip to a mission as part of the process.

Just an aside - when my son was in 4th grade (he's 32 now) we stopped at the Mission San Antonio de Padua on the way back from Las Vegas, so he could do his "research". We went to the entrance and right at the door there was a table setup with a sign that said "4th grade mission materials" - for $10, you got a booklet, a little Father Junipero Serra figurine and more. Worth every penny (sorry all you teachers in Fodor-land). But really the mission itself was very interesting.

MonicaRichards

The San Marcos winery right off of 101 is good. Their wine is tasty and they have a pond and peacocks so the kids can look for feathers while you taste. They are also friendly in the winery itself, with resident dogs and maybe a cat (can't remember right now).

maitaitom

Here are two missions off of 101 near Solvang (which might be fun, too).

Head east through Solvang and you will reach Old Mission Santa Inés...
http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/old-mission-santa-ines/

Head west, and you hit...La Purisima Concepción
http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/la-purisima-concepcion/

jamie99

Jocko's in Nipomo off the 101 has terrific steaks and roast beef.

LBloom

Ha ha,- of no interest to anyone else but give anod to the place where I jumped into back seat while husband was driving because the drive was so scary, about an hour south of Carmel, PS I was 8 months pregnant!

aprillilacs

After a delay while seeking a stronger demolition method, authorities have now in fact taken down the bridge. It won't reopen for at least a year. http://sfist.com/2017/03/19/video_pf...dge_collap.php

mlgb

jamie99 I've never been to Jocko's or the Far Western Tavern but I can vouch for the Casmalia Hitching Post.

I also like Sissy's Uptown Cafe in Lompoc, they nearly always have the local halibut, good wine list and great pie.