Expert: Ernest Tufft - 2/11/2009

Question
Hi, me and my wife are planning a trip down the PCH this August from England.
We plan to take about a fortnight to do this so plenty of time to take in the
sights. Any recommendations of where to go and stay would be greatly
appreciated. Also I would love to detour via Sonoma to get my pinot fix! Many
thanks

Answer
Hi Paul

I recommend that you visit my online pages for California at virtualtourist.com.  My membername is atufft.  Check out these places and decide which among these you have time for.  Hwy 1 north of San Francisco includes the best opportunity for a fishing excursion at sea, and the coastal towns of Fort Bragg and Mendocino, and the Anderson Valley wineries around Phil and Booneville are underappreciated by the average tourist.  Russian river is a popular redwood forested canoe recreation area, and Tomales Bay, Dillons Beach, and other Marin County areas are among the favorite weekend get-a-way places for those living in the Bay Area.

The Santa Cruz Mountain communities along Hwy 9 are generally speaking the better drive thrill south of SF.  Look up Saratoga, Big Basin State Park, Boulder Creek, Felton, Roaring Camp Railroad, Santa Cruz, and Capitola.  I personally find the Santa Cruz Mts and north Monterey Bay area area overall my personal favorite region along CA coast.

South of SF to Santa Barbara, particularly betwee Carmel and San Simeon, is the most famous part of Hwy 1.  Consider stops or overnight stays at Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Carmel, Big Sur State Park, San Simeon, Cambria, Morro Bay, and San Luis Obispo.

Again, use Virtualtourist.com to get more information about these great places.