Rt. 1 or Rt. 101 north of SF
 

We'll be exploring the CA coast north of San Francisco and were planning on traveling Rt. 1 up to connect with Rt. 101 in Leggett. But a guide I was reading suggested traveling Rt. 101 all the way only going over to Rt.1 to see the Mendocino-Fort Bragg area. Any thoughts on the more scenic and best of the two routes?

I think SR 1 north of SF is one of the most beautiful drives in the State, while 101 is just okay by comparison. Take the coast. Note it's not a quick drive by any means - take your time.

By all means, Route 1. It has the most beautiful view of the Pacific coastline , and the vistas are unbelievable. Take time to wander off to some of the access points to the beach-couldn't figure out how to bring some of that driftwood home with me. At one overlook, just last week we discovered three gray whales feeding at the mouth of one of the rivers, and of course the sea lions are basking in the sun on many of the rocks. Take time out to pelruse some of the small coastal towns-like Mendocino. A small Victorian village, perched on the Headlands, it was founded in the 1800's by a gentleman from CT.- fun museum on the Headlands also. Have fun.

>> But a guide I was reading suggested traveling Rt. 101.......Any thoughts <<

Yes - use another guide book.

Very little of 101 is scenic till you get past Healdsburg. CA #1 is beautiful!!!

Stu Dudley

Route 1 is gorgeous, absolutely, but give yourself plenty of time, it is a winding twisting road, but the vistas make up for it. We were married in Mendocino 2 years ago on a cliff overlooking the ocean at sunset--it was awesome.

I think you should take as much of route 1 as you can. You might want to skip the first leg north of the Golden Gate, the Muir Woods/Mt. Tamalpais/Stinson Beach area, especially on summer weekends. It can get very jammed up, especially getting through Stinson Beach. You can stay on 101 to San Quentin (yes the prison), then take Sir Francis Drake Boulevard to route one at the entrance to Point Reyes. Calif-12 to Sebastopol, then local roads over to Bodega Bay is another choice a bit farther north. That will get you well away from the SF Bay Area and still show you most of the north coast.

Even your guidebook presumably means to get over to the Mendocino-Fort Bragg area on Calif-128 through the Anderson Valley, which is a picturesque wine and redwood rural valley with its own lingo, "Boontling". If you don't have a lot of time this route avoids the slowest parts of route one and will allow you some time to linger once you do get to the coast; before heading inland to the deep forest.

Any guidebook that recommends Route 101 as more scenic than Highway 1 should be tossed. Include time for a stop in Mendocino to walk around the town and the magestic headlands.