Pacific Coast Highway Route 1 (non GS)

Not done on a bike but it may give insight into a good tour.

San Francisco
Started of with flying from Heathrow for ten hours and landing San Francisco. Probably the worst jet lag EVER.



We stayed in the Rex hotel which was good with classic features and had free Tea & Coffee in the morning. It was a bit noisy (on the main road) and air con was a little mobile which could be better.

We were here for 2 days.





Did the tourist thing and relaxed. On the third day we picked up ther hire car. The wife had wanted a convertable, when we got there the convertables were either all out or broke so we had to have this



A Dodge Challenger

Which is a bit of a tank but at the same time great fun. The wife was ok with it after a while.

So we are off and enjoying the coast down to San Diego stopping at pismo beach and Santa Barbra






Montery




The penis enhancement LOL


Hurst Castle


Malibu Beach Houses


LA Free Way


Universal studios LA


Desperate House wifes set


Sea World & Shamu

The route 1 is great but has been a bit over grown by the towns getting bigger but still has some good sections

Travel was through Trail finders who are very good with only one minor problem.

The only bad bit was the Hilton in San Diego, we wanted a bit of nice hotel rather than motel at the end but got a glorifyed expensive motel. Some of the cheaper motels were alot better and cheaper than the Hilton.

Enjoy

Jim

Jet Lag

Weird - I can fly into SF and feel fine the next day but coming back I'm knocked out for a week or more.

Schtum said:

Weird - I can fly into SF and feel fine the next day but coming back I'm knocked out for a week or more.

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Same as that

No need to book motels in the US when you are on the road as there is always something available. Can't remember the name of the motel but I got one right on mission beach is SD a couple of years ago for peanuts

That Charger looked a blast

For pure riding, tne central belt of California is much more exciting on a bike and R33 is a treat as are the roads around it. The Los Angeles Skyway is also absolutely stunning and is Hwy2 if I recall. The coast is a little dull south of San Francisco IMHO and north of SF is a much better PCH riding experience

Jet lag kept waking up at 4am local time !

Our Hotel at Pismo Beach was like this from The Shining



Spooky

The Challenger was a bit of a laugh and eneded up being free as the radio stopped working (which didnt bother me as its just hot air and adverts). The response from the old fashioned auto box was like waiting for a bus. Still better than the usual rental crap.

Jim

Sgt Bilco said:

The coast is a little dull south of San Francisco IMHO and north of SF is a much better PCH riding experience

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Very true. Some pics from NorCal around the Garberville area...

Avenue of the Giants...

Ocean front hotels are cheap and plentiful in far northern Cali. We always stay here - great views and nice to go to sleep at night with the sounds of the waves crashing the rocks below you...

Earache said:

Ocean front hotels are cheap and plentiful in far northern Cali. We always stay here - great views and nice to go to sleep at night with the sounds of the waves crashing the rocks below you...

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For future reference - where is that, Eric?

Schtum said:

For future reference - where is that, Eric?

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The Inn of the Lost Coast, Shelter Cove, CA
See: www.Innofthelostcoast.com








We've stayed there 5-6 times over the years and always have fun there. Shelter Cove is a bit remote. Only a single lane 1/2 paved and 1/2 gravel road that's 25 miles long gets you in or out of Shelter Cove. There's also a small runway through the town of about 50 homes where pilots fly in.

Town's only restaurant is located across the street from the Inn. The Chart House has fantastic fresh caught seafood and seating for about 9 people...
Pretty decent imported beer selection, too.

Delightfully weird little place to spend a couple of days. Lots of sea lions, seals, etc on the rocks to watch as well as whales going past your room. Fun to sit on the deck and watch.

My wife likes the Benbow Inn in Garberville a bit more. It's a nicer place, has a cool little bar in it, but isn't on the water....
www.Benbowinn.com

It's kinda overpriced for what ya get, but a lot nicer rooms than the Lost Coast has.

There are tons of B&B's in the area, but most tend to be pretty pricey. They usually offer local made wines, free range meats, local whole grain baked goods, and other NorCal hippie bullshit.

Hard to argue with the riding and scenery though...