Highway 101

[ardandy]

OK, in my other thread I was debating whether or not to go to San Fran or Las Vegas.

Well we've decided to do both!

Basically this is what part of our trip will be;

Flying to Vancouver (few days)
Drive From Vancouver to San Francisco (stay few days)
Drive to Las Vegas (few days)
Fly to Calgary from Las Vegas (about a week in banff)

Can rent a Mustang from Hertz (best they do) so should be fun.

My problem is we know nothing about America, well, certainly not in this detail.

We're trying to figure out where to stop on the way down and where to join the coast road? From Vancouver we'd only like to stop overnight twice!
So; Vancouver -> Stop -> Stop -> San Francisco

Is there anywhere that you'd recommend to stop overnight on the way down 101?

From there;

SF -> Las Vegas

For this leg is it worth visiting G Canyon on the way to LV or should we stop overnight there? Should we use the few days in SF to visit G Canyon and then just drive straight to LV or stop over night actually at the canyon?


Hopefully makes sense!

Cheers!

[the other pc]

Coming from SF, GC on the opposite side of Vegas. So you’d be going past Vegas to get there.

GC is beautiful, but so is a lot of stuff you’ll be seeing between Vancouver and Vegas. If you don’t mind more driving time it might be worth it. But that’s a personal choice.

Keep in mind that everything’s a lot farther away out here. You’ll spend a lot more time in the saddle than in the UK or Europe.

Besides partying till you drop in Vegas, are you looking forward to seeing the desert? If so, Death Valley is on the way.

I’d definitely recommend spending at least one night (or more) in either Yosemite or Lake Tahoe (or both) on your way to Vegas. You can head down the 395 from either and hop over to Death Valley and on to Vegas.


PC.

[Picus]

When you go down 101, do you plan on taking highway 1 from Legget CA to SF? I'd personally recommend it strongly rather than staying on 101. Highway 1 is probably the most beautiful drive in the US and 101 at that point is basically just a giant freeway. It'll take an additional 2 hours or so (and is totally worth it).

As for 101 up to that point; I'd probably take 5 from Vancouver and stop in Portland the first night. Then get over to 101 and stop near Redwood National Park the second night, then stay on 101/1 into SF the third day.

If you do take Highway 1 stop in a town called Bolinas, it's only ~1 hr or so outside SF, but it's a good place to stop for some lunch, gas, and prettiness.

[sQuashed]

When is the date for the SF to Vegas Drive ? If its winter, have plenty of alternate routes planned. Im directly in the middle of both so let me know when you are leaving and I'll give you the scenic route to take (weather permitting)

[the other pc]

From the other thread:

Originally Posted by ardandy

...We're off on our hols next Sept ...

All the passes should be open so by all means chime in with your faves. (I love 'em all! )


PC.