Adventuring the Iconic Pacific Coast Highway

Pick your way through mile after scenic mile of the Pacific Coast Highway

One of the most celebrated and scenic highway routes in the world can be found on the West coast.  The Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) or simply Highway 1, is a contour-hugging drive that winds along the Pacific shoreline from California all the way to the Washington’s Olympic National Park.  You can start the trip at either end, but this guide will travel North to South – using the National Parks, Monuments, and other beautiful spotss as our guide along the way.  The Pacific Coast Highway offers access to some of the most exciting Public Lands on the West Coast.

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Start Here: Olympic National Park, Washington

Olympic National Park encompasses nearly one million acres, 95 percent of these designated as wilderness, with lush rainforest valleys that offer some of the most peaceful and secluded hiking trails in the country. If you have time to spend the night, you’ll also find dozens of campgrounds that range from primitive to modern. Summer is the least rainy season at Olympic, but you should still be prepared for the possibility of rain.  Designated as both a World Heritage Site and an International Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations, the park serves as a living laboratory for scientists and students, as well as an incredible natural playground for visitors.

Olympic is very large and there are no roads that cross the park so its smart to consult the Park’s mileage chart for distances between destinations. The summer months of June through September are the busiest time of year so make your camping reservations for Kalaloch and Sol Duc Campgrounds early.  All other camp sites are first come, first served.  Lodging accommodations are available seasonally inside the park at Lake Crescent Lodge, Log Cabin Resort, Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, Kalaloch Lodge. Additional. Sample destinations within each of the park’s major ecosystems: subalpine, coast, temperate rain forest, and lowland forest.

Stop #2: 538 miles, 11 hours – Oregon Caves National Monument

Despite its small size, 480-acre Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve is rich in diversity.  The landscape above the caves immediately immerses you with its’ old-growth forest, prepping you for what lies underground. Don’t leave without exploring the parks’ marble caves, created over hundreds of thousands of years by the power of rainwater from the forest above. Rain is rare during the summer months, and you can expect comfortable temperatures from the mid-60s to the mid-80s.

Stop No. 3: 571 miles, 12.5 hours – Redwood National Park, California

Entering into California from the north is a surreal experience.  The world’s 5th largest economy seems much more quiet, scenic and serene than when you’re further south.  As you approach Redwood National Park and neighboring Redwood State Park, you’re greeted by some of the tallest trees on earth, plus 40 miles of pristine coastline and vast grasslands that support Roosevelt elk and black-tailed deer.  The weather in summer is usually rain-free, but you can expect a thick veil of fog to rise up along the coast on any given morning.

Stop No. 4: 870 miles, 19 hours – Point Reyes National Seashore, California

The rugged coast that makes up Point Reyes National Seashore claimed more than its share of shipwrecks before lighthouses were erected along the shore in the late 1800s. Today, people come for the scenery, wildlife-viewing, and unbelievable oceanside solitude. The inland portion of the park is usually warm and dry in summer, but coastal areas can be up to 20 degrees cooler with heavy fogs at any time of day.

Located just an hour’s drive from a densely populated metropolitan area, the Seashore is a sanctuary for myriad plant and animal species and for the human spirit—for discovery, inspiration, solitude, and recreation—and exists as a reminder of the human connection to the land.

There is no car or RV camping available in the park. There are, however, many nearby campgrounds, located outside of Point Reyes National Seashore, that do have car and RV camping.  Hike-in camping is however allowed, but only in one of the four established campgrounds. Boat-in camping is allowed on national park beaches near Tomales Bay.

Abundant recreational opportunities include 150 miles of hiking trails, numerous beaches. Hiking, biking, kayaking, horse riding, beachcombing, wildlife viewing, and fishing are just a few of the self-guided activities awaiting your visit.

 

Stop No. 5: 908 miles, 20.5 hours – Golden Gate National Recreation Area

The history of Golden Gate National Recreation Area encompasses everything from Native American culture through the California gold rush to the rise of urban San Francisco. The recreation area includes a vast collection of historic buildings, military installations, and other structures, some dating back to the 1700s, along with a view that offers a striking contrast between urban and rural landscapes. The summer climate is dry, almost to the point of being drought-like at times.

There are plenty of outdoor recreation opportunities throughout the parks, and all the views are beautiful. Everything from trails for hiking and biking, beaches and a ropes course, GGNRA is full of ways to have fun with family and friends.

Stop No. 6: 1,066 miles, 23.5 hours – Pinnacles National Park, CA

East of the rich Salinas Valley and just south of San Jose, lies the spectacular and unique landscape of Pinnacles National Park. Hiking and rock climbing are popular among the park’s rugged valleys and towering rock formations, though the hot, dry summer climate makes it essential that hikers carry plenty of water.

Some 23 million years ago multiple volcanoes erupted, flowed, and slid to formed the Park.  What remains is a unique landscape, where travelers journey through chaparral, oak woodlands, and canyon bottoms. Hikers enter rare talus caves and emerge to towering rock spires teeming with life: prairie and peregrine falcons, golden eagles, and the inspiring California condor all nest here – making the park a bird watchers paradise. A few million years of powerful explosions, lava flows, and landslides created the 30 mile wide volcanic field that forms the foundation of Pinnacles National Park today. This field of fire was then split down the center by the San Andreas Fault and the west side traveled 195 miles north at a rate of 3-6 centimeters each year, all while being worn away by water, weathering, and chemical erosion.

Stop No. 8: 1,147 Miles, 26 hours – Big Sur, California

Big Sur, California is one of the world’s most unforgettable stretches of coastline. This roughly 90-mile-long stretch of redwood-and fog-trimmed waterfront between Carmel-by-the-Sea and Hearst Castle has no specific boundaries and no urban core, but draws you in (like it did for writers: Henry Miller and Jack Kerouac) with a magic allure.

Drive Big Sur’s length via twisting Highway One, with plenty of pullovers at places like Bixby Bridge. Another favorite photo op: McWay Falls, a silvery cascade that falls some 70 feet from the sea cliffs to a remote beach below in Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. You can see it from the open sections of the park’s Overlook Trail. Look up to see endangered California condors, North America’s largest birds, or look down to scan the swells for migrating whales or sea otters floating among dense beds of kelp, California’s signature seaweed.

Try the famous Ambrosia burger on the deck of Nepenthe, then sip your local craft beer at Big Sur Taphouse to watch the sunset. Campgrounds abound around Big Sur, as do rustic cabins at Deetjen’s Big Sur Inn. The region’s beauty also makes it a magnet for splurge-worthy hotels like the cliff-hugging Post Ranch Inn, or Ventana Big Sur, which combines traditional luxury accommodations with fabulous glamping options.

Continue north along Highway One towards your next stop, romantic Carmel and historic Monterey. Along the way, consider a detour to explore Andrew Molera State Park, where you can ride horses right next to crashing waves.

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A good start to your discovery of the Pacific Coast Highway

There’s always more to discover when you’re covering 1100 miles and three states.  But this is a good start for for your personal discovery of what makes the Pacific Coast Highway so special.  Let us know what you think out on social media!