Okay, with all the help from everyone on these boards, it took some time, but we think we have a preliminary itinerary for our summer trip with my husband and two boys. I would like to post the routes we plan to take and see what you think.

Day 1 Fly from Newark to San Francisco
Giants night game
Day 2 A's day game
(we have been to san francisco before so will not be doing much sightseeing, just really going to get the A's game in to knock off another game on our stadium tour and the Giants happen to be home too, so we'll squeeze that in again)
Day 3 Drive from San Francisco to Eureka via 101, stay overnight Eureka
Day 4 Drive to Portland via 101 to Florence cut to 126 to 5 to Portland, 2 nights
Day 6 Drive to Seattle via I-5, stay 3 nights
Day 9 Drive to Port Angeles, take Ferry with car to Victoria, 2 nights
Day 11 Ferry to Vancouver City
Day 13 Drive to Everett to see Boeing Factory, then to Seattle
Day 14 Fly from Seattle to Newark

These are some of the sights we would like to see- I am still researching. When and where would you fit them into the itinerary and am I missing anything?

Redwoods, Mt. Hood, Columbia River Gorge, Space Needle, Seattle Waterfront, Pioneer Square, Pike Place Market, Mt. Rainier, Mount St. Helens, Victoria Inner Harbor, Butchart Gardens, Whale Watching. Vancouver - Stanley Park, Granville Island, Grouse Mountain, Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver Lookout
When visiting Mt. Hood, Rainer and St. Helen's, do they have tours our is it best to do it on our own. We are not too adventurous and really just want to visit to say we were there, although i know these places are huge and a lot to see, so if there was a tour of some sort, we would do that. Once I get input on this, I will book the flights and get started planning the fun stuff. Everyone has been so helpful and I have everything printed out and keep referring to it. Another thing, will I have to book the ferries ahead of time or when I get there.

Yours is a busy itinerary, but it is doable. Since you seem to want to see as much as possible within the time you have, I suggest you add an extra day for your drive north and stay in Victoria one night rather than two.

This will give you the chance to spend two nights on the Oregon coast, for which you will be most grateful.

HTTY

Where else on the oregon coast should we stay. According to the route I posted, will we be seeing a nice portion of the oregon coast. Also, rather than stop in Eureka is there somehwere else on the way that would be a better stopping point. We do not have any time constraints so adding in a day won't be a problem.

Our favorite places to stay on the Oregon coast are Bandon (quiet), Newport (plenty to do), and Cannon Beach (quaint and fun). We also like Yachats (quiet)--and there are many other options. I suggest Cannon Beach and one other town.

HTTY

So you would suggest driving to one of those points rather than Eureka.

Are you aware that according to Google it will take 8.5 hours to go from Eureka to Portland via Florence?

"We do not have any time constraints so adding in a day won't be a problem"

Yes, you should add another night. Somewhere on the Oregon Coast. Bear in mind that August is peak season along Hwy 101 and at times, the traffic may slow you down.

Or, you could leave right after the A's game on the 2nd and drive up to somewhere in the redwoods like Garberville and spend sunday night.

The Oakland Coliseum used to be a very nice place to see a game until they built Mt. Davis when the Raiders returned. Still, I think you are right in doing the Giants at night and the A's during the day.

How come you didn't tag Oregon and California.

Yes, we know it's a long ride, but what would be another route to take from Eureka to Portland?

If we left after the oakland game, as suggested, how far to Garberville. We do not want to drive at night, that is why we thought we would just stay in san francisco again, but I do like the idea of leaving after the game. You mentioned this was in the redwoods, which is something we would like to see.

The game will probably end around 4pm. Garberville is about a 4 hour drive from the Coliseum if there is no traffic. So, you would be there at 8pm if you don't stop. Since you are going to see the stadium and don't care about the game itself, you could always leave early.

Or you could drive up to Willits which is an hour closer and which has a lot of motel options. From Willits the next morning, you would be in the redwoods in a little over an hour.

To see the redwoods, you can leave Hwy 101 and drive on the Avenue of the Giants for a while. This will give you access to a number of redwood groves. There are also a number of state parks in this area which have trails and interpretive centers.

If you do a search for information about the redwoods, you can determine what your options are. There are also lots of redwoods north of Eureka in the vicinity of Redwood National Park. Again, an internet search will provide lots of information for you to determine where you might want to go.

If you want to see the Oregon Coast you pretty much have to stick to Hwy 101 north of Eureka until you get into Oregon. Once there, you have many options to head inland. You should get a good road map and study it. Or at least use google maps to see what your drive may entail.