Drive California Highway 1 Carmel to San Francisco
November 11, 2009 by Travel Guide Greg
Filed under Travel Guides
California Highway 1, in the north, goes from Carmel to San Francisco along Monterey Bay, the Pacific Ocean and Half Moon Bay.
Carmel-by-the-Sea is a quaint town known for expensive boutiques, art galleries, its beautiful Spanish Mission and golf courses. You can easily linger a day or two here. Visit Point Lobos State Reserve and view sea otters, sea lions, and at the right times of the year, California Gray Whales migrating.
Pacific Grove is a beautiful little town right next to Carmel which offers some great B&Bs. If you want to play golf on Monterey Bay without the high prices of the famous Carmel golf courses, see if you can book a tee-off time at the Pacific Grove Municipal Golf Links. You’ll get the backdrop of the Monterey Bay Coastline for a fraction of the cost.
Only about 4 miles (6 km) north of Carmel and Pacific Grove is Monterey…. But why not take the scenic route? Pay the price of admission… (there is a fee of about $9.00 per car)… and drive the 17 Mile Drive (27 km – but the name IS 17 Mile Drive). You’ll see some world famous golf courses, forests of Monterey Pine and the Lone Cypress tree on Cypress Point which is a favorite photo subject for tourists.
If you stop for lunch at one of the restaurants at Pebble Beach, Spanish Bay, Poppy Hills, or the Lodge, you may get your ticket validated and get your gate fee back. (You may be able to talk your way in without the fee if you tell the gate keeper that you will be stopping for lunch. It’s worth a try.)
You can probably find cheaper motels and B&Bs in Monterey than in Carmel. Visit Fisherman’s Wharf. Most of it has been converted into touristy markets and restaurants, but it’s worth a visit and there are some historic building nearby from Spanish times and from when Monterey was California’s capital.
You should also see Cannery Row… made famous by the John Steinbeck novel. This is a little further along the seafront. The old sardine packing plants have been turned into shops and restaurants, but it is here that you will find the Monterey Bay Aquarium. It’s exhibit of California kelp forests is amazing. It’s one of the largest and finest aquariums in the country and really shouldn’t be missed.
Follow California Highway 1 around Monterey Bay to the surfing town of Santa Cruz. It’s a laid back beach and university town… full of students and retirees. Visit the old fashion Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, eat salt water taffy, and ride the Giant Dipper, a wooden roller coaster built in 1924. There is a surfing museum along West Cliff Drive near the Beach Boardwalk.
Heading north again, you pass coves with roaring surf, sandy beaches, agricultural towns and Pigeon Point Lighthouse. Half Moon Bay is lined by miles of sandy beaches.
Then you pass through Pacifica, and you’ll soon be in San Francisco, ready to take on this jewel of a city after a few relaxing days spent driving California Highway 1.
California Highway 1 – the famous Pacific Coast Highway – may not be the fastest way between San Francisco and Los Angeles, but this 485-mile road is one of the great scenic drives in the country. A minimum of two days will allow for some sightseeing and plenty of stops to admire the beautiful views.