Jeeves wandering around San Luis Obispo and 101 to the north

[DC47]

My daughter and I are going to hit the backcountry on the back side of Big Sur State Park next weekend. We might spend some time in San Luis Obispo as well. Neither of us has been there. Any tips on things to do or see, and places to eat or sleep?

Since route 1 is closed, we'll be on 101 to go north and south. Anything interesting between San Luis Obispo and Palo Alto? Places on the route include Paso Robles, Salinas, Gilroy. I haven't been in this area for 30+ years; I presume some things have changed.

[teeteebee]

Not sure what's going on with the 1 but SLO is a cool area. If you get a chance and 1 is clear, try to get up to the Hearst Castle. It's in San Simeon and just above SLO.

There are also some pretty nice little beach towns down that way. We stayed in Avila Beach. There's a pretty interesting history about that place re some environmental issues that needed to be cleaned up. Also, Pismo Beach is a cool little town as well.

Again, not sure about the 1, but Half Moon Bay is a cool place to check as well. Mavericks, the surf haven, is right there. You need to walk a little bit to get out to the point but I'm sure it's pretty good this time of year.

Obviously, check out Stanford campus and Palo Alto. Also, maybe stop by the Googleplex. I found that pretty interesting.

All in all, you are heading to a great part of the country. Enjoy!!

ETA: Oh and Big Sur is the shit. Have lunch an Nepenthe. And check out the little bookstore just south of Nepenthe. Check out the trees in Pfeiffer.

[DC47]

As far as route one, it appears to me from reading the CalTrans website that several stretches are undergoing repairs from storm damage. Some work will last through the summer. So you can't take route one from Monterey through Big Sur and then south. As far as I can tell, you can't get to Big Sur from the north (where we're coming from). The coastal mountains prevent any local detour options to get around the closed sections. If anyone knows differently, please let me know as this route was our first option for this trip.

With route one presumably down, we're improvising by shifting inland to 101. Apart from a bar fight with a Mexican motorcycle gang in San Juan Bautista long ago (which I sadly can't count on replicating) and a rodeo (wrong season), I don't recall anything particularly interesting on that stretch of California.

Is the surfing hot spot "Mavericks" the same place as Maverick's Beach, off route one just south of Moss Beach and northwest of El Granada? With the right weather, that could be a nice place to take a lunch and watch the big waves, even if no one is out there.

What did you like about the Googleplex?

I'll check out the beach towns you mentioned. Can you say more about why you found them cool?

[Steve of phpBB]

I don't know how much time you folks have, or how familiar you are with the area, but I personally would rather do an up-and-back along Highway 1, from either the north or the south, rather than bypass it all on Highway 101. Gilroy is nice and charming and all, but those coastal mountains are stunning.

[DaveInSeattle]

We were in Monterey/Carmel between Christmas and New Years and it was awesome. If you have a chance, go to Pt. Lobos, just south of Carmel. Beautiful spot (and personally meaningful for my GF. Both her Mom's and Brother's ashes were scattered at Whaler's Cove).

[sancarlos]

My daughter and I are going to hit the backcountry on the back side of Big Sur State Park next weekend. We might spend some time in San Luis Obispo as well. Neither of us has been there. Any tips on things to do or see, and places to eat or sleep?

Since route 1 is closed, we'll be on 101 to go north and south. Anything interesting between San Luis Obispo and Palo Alto? Places on the route include Paso Robles, Salinas, Gilroy. I haven't been in this area for 30+ years; I presume some things have changed.

The town of Cambria is pretty and worth a walk around. If your girl is ok with an alcohol-related visit, Paso Robles is home to Firestone-Walker brewery and some great Pinot Noir and Zinfandel wineries (notably Windward, Tablas Creek, and especially Turley.)

Eta: SLO is a college town so check for live music!

[DC47]

The CalTrans website is my source on Route One being completely closed (until later in March) just past (south) of Carmel when driving south from San Francisco/Silicon Valley.

[Route 1] IS CLOSED FROM RAGGED POINT (SAN LUIS OBISPO CO) TO 15 MI NORTH OF BIG SUR /AT PALO COLORADO/ (MONTEREY CO) - DUE TO A MUDSLIDE

The text seems to be confirmed on their map. I see no other way than Route 1 to get to the Big Sur area from the north.

Does anyone know something different, perhaps due to being around that area since the big storm?

[Steve of phpBB]

The CalTrans website is my source on Route One being completely closed (until later in March) just past (south) of Carmel when driving south from San Francisco/Silicon Valley.

[Route 1] IS CLOSED FROM RAGGED POINT (SAN LUIS OBISPO CO) TO 15 MI NORTH OF BIG SUR /AT PALO COLORADO/ (MONTEREY CO) - DUE TO A MUDSLIDE

The text seems to be confirmed on their map. I see no other way than Route 1 to get to the Big Sur area from the north.

Does anyone know something different, perhaps due to being around that area since the big storm?

Yikes. I didn't realize the whole route was closed - I thought it was just closed at one point.

[DC47]

Day one: Flew into San Jose, picked up the daughter and drove south on 101. Walked around Morro Bay. 75 degrees and lovely. At sundown witnessed the classic scene of a floating otter cracking shells with a rock. Then off to San Luis Obispo for dinner and walking around. 70 degrees and lovely. Great Mediterranean food. The nicest "cheap hotel" I can remember.

Day two: Breakfast at a Creole place in a cool part of SLO. 70 degrees and lovely. Then off to climb The Pinnacles. Incredible volcanic rock formations rising from the valley to the east of Salinas. At the top, talked to a scientist who was scanning for radio collars on Condors. He had picked up 18, as far as 40 miles out. Three visual sightings. Told us how to distinguish condors from vultures (not easy without binoculars). We had seen nothing but vultures in two hours. Then to our surprise, fifteen minutes later, three condors flew right past us. Majestic. Only four Condor colonies exist in the USA. Lead poisoning from lead pellets/bullets in their prey is their primary downfall. Next, off to the beach at sundown in Santa Cruz. 70 degrees and lovely. Terrific dinner at an Afghan place. To my surprise, my daughter had arranged an AirBnB night at a tiny cabin (just big enough for a bed, with an outhouse, no electricity) in the Santa Cruz mountains. Full moon through the redwoods, reflecting off the pond. It was a considerably improved version of the place where I lived up in Sonoma County in the late 70s. So it served as a wonderful blast from the past. It's really something to have a daughter who will come up with something like this for the old guy.

Day three: Breakfast at a nifty mediterranean place in Mountain View. Tres Silicon Valley. Then off to meet her pals over lunch on campus. Break for both of us to do some work. Then long hike up a tall hill featuring "the dish" -- a big radio telescope. Dinner in town at a mexican place. Did I mention it was in the 70s and lovely? Night in a surprisingly cheap and appropriately very beat-up hotel, oddly located close to five-star hotels and dealerships for McLaren and Tesla. Somehow I didn't previously imagine McLaren even had dealerships.

Day four: Breakfast at an spectacular, unpretentious bagel shop, with coffee from a roastery down the street, located in the back of a running shoe store housed in the back of a converted classic movie house. 70s and lovely. A bit of work. Then lunch back at the Mexican place, which was proven laudable by being full of Mexican construction workers. Off to the San Jose Airport. 70s and lovely indoors. Then to Phoenix, where it was 90 and almost lovely. Finally to Detroit, where it was 20 degrees and somewhat less lovely at 2am. But at least the power was back on at home.

Man, a convincing case can still be made for living in coastal central to northern California. Especially in the winter. I suppose it's not always 70 degrees and lovely. But close enough.

By the way, the planned hike into the back (east) side of the Big Sur wilderness via an entry off 101 was a no-go due to mudslides knocking out the trails towards the coast. That was one rough fall and winter for this area. It will take many more months to recover full access both driving on route 1 and even hiking inland from 101. But this problem got us to The Pinnacles (a new US National Park); I feel lucky it did.

Thanks to those who pitched in with advice here.

[sancarlos]

Sounds like it was a great trip. Too bad we couldn't get together.

[BSF21]

Love seeing fun recaps like this. Glad your trip went smoothly DC!

[Steve of phpBB]

Man, a convincing case can still be made for living in coastal central to northern California. Especially in the winter. I suppose it's not always 70 degrees and lovely. But close enough.

Yeah, Northern California in nice weather is hard to beat. Glad you enjoyed your trip.

[sancarlos]

Man, a convincing case can still be made for living in coastal central to northern California. Especially in the winter. I suppose it's not always 70 degrees and lovely. But close enough.

Yeah, Northern California in nice weather is hard to beat. Glad you enjoyed your trip.

Yeah, it's generally always nice weather, except for a couple months of rainy season. This year, with all the rain we've gotten, the hills are really green and pretty now.

I've had job opportunities elsewhere, but the wife and daughter have made it clear to me that if I move, I'm going alone.

[blundercrush]

Parents winter down near Avila Beach now, maybe closer to Nipomo. They've made friends down there and like it quite a lot. My mom keeps trying to tell me to get a job down there.