Five Days up the West Coast
We’ve done a lot of driving over the last five days. About 1500 miles over a total of approximately 34 hours spent in the car. For those of you doing the math, you might notice that it averages out to less than 45 miles per hour. The reason for the lazy pace is the fact that we took the Pacific Coast Highway the vast majority of the way rather than the comparatively bland I-5, and I’m incredibly glad we did, even if it added significant time to our route. The drive, rather than a blur of rest stops and fast food signs, was a medley of wide stretching beaches, dense ancient forests, and charming seaside towns.
Day 1 – Los Angeles to San Luis Obispo
Our first day of driving took us from our home city of LA up to the small town of San Luis Obispo, although I suppose SLO would only be considered small when directly compared to the sprawling metropolis of LA County. The route takes you through Santa Monica, Malibu, and Santa Barbara, offering plenty of sandy white beaches and great ocean views.
Historically a mission town settled by the Spanish in the 1700s, San Luis Obispo now caters to the college demographic from the nearby California Polytechnic State University, so you can expect a variety of bars, restaurants, and shops in a vibrant, very walkable downtown area.
We spent most of our time in SLO just meandering, enjoying our first day on the road. We had a beer in three or four different bars along the main stretch of downtown, many of which overlooked the bubbling stream running through the area. The old Spanish mission, older than America itself, was an interesting look at both the founding of the town and the Native American customs and lifestyle of that period. We also had the opportunity to explore a cute Japanese garden hidden away near our hostel.
At that point, less than a day removed from our LA life, it hadn’t quite sunk in that we were really on our way (although I’m not convinced that it has even now). We could easily have persuaded ourselves that it was just a weekend trip, mere hours from our home, that would only last until the next workday. Thankfully, that didn’t turn out to be the case.
Day 2 – San Luis Obispo to San Francisco
The next morning, we headed further up the California coast towards San Francisco. The winding route is comprised largely of beaches and cliffs, filling the drive with scenic panoramas. There are also a number of beach towns along the way, offering a number of interesting places to stop and eat or refuel.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have the opportunity to spend any time in San Francisco when we were in the area, but we were able to visit with some good friends we haven’t seen in a while.
Day 3 – San Francisco to Eureka
Eureka was chosen as a destination less for its merits and more for its convenient location approximately halfway between San Francisco and Portland, our next destination. The drive continued to offer beaches and shoreline, although it turned more rocky than sandy. As we wound our way up, the trees grew substantially in both height and width, eventually revealing the legendary California Redwoods in the north of the state. While I always knew they were huge, and had even seen some of the smaller southern redwoods, the size and scope of the trees and forests was beyond even the picture I’d built in my mind.
Running parallel to the US-101, the familiar path we took the majority of the way up the coast, is the aptly named Avenue of the Giants. Running through the heart of the redwood forests, it takes you on a twisting path lined with, quite literally, the largest trees you will ever see. There are turnoffs every few miles with recommended self-guided walking paths, usually in a loop, allowing you to wander between the towering giants while never straying too far from your vehicle. Most of the paths are a quick tour anywhere from 15-60 minutes; they offer a way to stretch your legs and head into the forest while still allowing you to stay on track to your eventual destination.
Day 4 – Eureka to Portland
After spending the night at a campground in Eureka, we hopped back on the 101 heading north. It was with a twinge of sadness that we crossed the border from California to Oregon, leaving our now-home state for the last time (at least for the near future). Along the way we encountered a variety of kitschy roadside attractions, which were entertaining not necessarily for what they offered, but for the unabashed gaudiness of it all. We stumbled through “Confusion Hill”, a diagonally built house with a variety of gravity-based puzzles, and the Prehistoric Gardens, which boasted numerous life-sized plastic dinosaur statues.
Portland itself is just as much a hipster’s paradise as Fred Armisen would have you believe. Each street hides an array of coffee shops, yoga studios, and vegan markets. Despite (or maybe because of) that, there’s a deep sense of calm that permeates the city, as if the buildings themselves take cues from their populace. Overall, I wish we’d had more time to explore Portland, although the same could be said about pretty much everywhere we’ve gone thus far.
Day 5 – Portland to Seattle (via Astoria)
Rather than heading straight for Seattle, we decided to detour into Astoria, which we knew almost nothing about beyond the eponymous song by The Ataris. It turned out to be a cute riverside shipping destination with large cargo ships anchored just offshore. Although a moderately important port town, Astoria has a small-town charm that wouldn’t be out of place in one of those nostalgic 80’s films. We spent some time strolling along the waterfront, and even more time exploring the local brewery scene, making for a very relaxing afternoon visit.
Later that day we finally made our way into Seattle, our northernmost destination along the coast. Our room was in the University area of the city, and the surrounding streets were reminiscent of our college days in Athens, so we took to it quickly. The next morning, we headed over to the world-famous Pike Place Market, a sprawling cacophony of stalls containing fresh fruits, spices, meats, fish, and handmade gifts of every variety.
While we got a superficial taste of each of our stops, each one left me wishing we had more time to explore it. We have a deadline for this road trip; even though it’s not a hard date, we know that we’ll only have a limited amount of days visiting back home with our families in Ohio, so we aren’t able to linger along the way quite as much as we’d like. Still, I’m glad we’re able to explore as much as we are, and am looking forward to the rest of our drive and our time back home!
