A few weeks ago a friend and I took a two week road trip by flying into San Francisco and then driving up the west coast into Canada. We planned out our hotel stops but left flexibility in our day schedule. We had both traveled this area of the countries but never together and never as a road trip. The weather was a little rainy and cool but perfect for this trip.
Once we landed in San Francisco our adventure begin by driving south to explore the city of Carmel by the Sea. This is a very upscale and posh area, we did find a few stores to enjoy and take in the vibe of the city. We drove the Pebble Beach 17 Mile Drive and was amazed at the coastal beauty along the way. We headed back north and across the Golden Gate Bridge to end our day.
Napa Valley was the focus for the next day. If you've never been to Napa it can be overwhelming as there are hundreds of wineries. We had researched prior to find the ones that offered sweet wines as that is our preference so it makes the trip more manageable.
Our goal for this trip was to drive as much as possible on Highway 101 and enjoy the coastal views. This drive has a lot of curves and goes from coastal to mountain terrain within minutes along the way. You will pass through small towns that have a personality of their own. Be prepared to stop often as each curve presents an amazing view.
Over the two weeks we drove through the Redwood National Forest, stopped for every lighthouse and winery we could find, took an early morning walk through Muir Wood National Monument, spent an hour watching 80 sea lions enjoying life in a 12 story cave, hiked the sand dunes in Oregon, experienced Powell's City of Books for the first time, looked for vampires in Forks, WA, did some shopping at Pike's Place Market, stopped at random places along the way to enjoy the stunning views and always asked the locals where the best place for dinner was.
Canada is one of my favorite countries and it was good to be back as we visited Victoria and Vancouver. We took the ferry over to Victoria and I was thankful that I still had my sea legs on the way back as it got a little rocky. We visited wineries, Lynn Canyon suspension bridge which is awesome as it is free and no tour buses, enjoyed great food and amazing scenery.
This is a great road trip with amazing views, highly recommend doing it!