West Coast 101

[Travelers]

Looking to travel from San Fransico to Seattle using 101 along the coast. Good / Bad? Suggestions?
Planning on 3 weeks. And yes pulling the rig. End of March into April.

[snoking]

Places to stay that we like. Brookings, Or. Brookings Marina and RV.

Lane County Park, Florence, Or

Fort Stevens State Park, Or at Columbia River.

Grayland State Park, Wa.

Guys will belong to tell you about the club west coast outstation at Winchester Bay!

Chris

[Don Wilson]

I have driven the California part and pulled the trailer over most of 101 from Los Angeles to Crescent City and it is pretty good road. In the larger metro areas like LA to Ventura and Monterey to Santa Rosa it is four lanes but much of the rest of it is two lane. I would not have any problem recommending it however 101 goes through downtown San Francisco and crosses the Golden Gate Bridge and I have not pulled the trailer on that section.

It should not be difficult finding campgrounds along the route either except close to San Francisco. If you want to see the city you may have to find a campground about 20 miles away and either drive in or take public transportation.

Don

[snoking]

San Francisco on Sunday is a good time to transit. Chris

[sew2bhappy]

And try to avoid 101 between Novato and Santa Rosa during afternoon commute hours - typically Mon thru Fri between 3pm and 6pm. There is an area there the locals call "The Narrows" where the road narrows to 2 lanes each direction, and it just can't handle the massive traffic. I have been caught in that a couple of times...and kick myself for forgetting to plan my time better!

Sonoma County (Santa Rosa) Fairgrounds seems to be about the best place to overnight for that area. But it is just a large gravel parkig lot with full hook ups. I thought Petaluma KOA was overpriced, over crowded and staff way to cranky.

If you get a chance, explore Healdsburg and surrounding wineries. And if you are into thrift stores...Lytton Springs (north of Healdsburg) has one of the largest Salvation Army stores. Actually, it's a ranch with many of the outbuildings being converted to separate "stores". And if you are there on a weekend, they have their famous "yard sale" with tons of stuff set outside. Fill a box, bag, or whatever...take it to an employee and they'll quote you a price, which is usually a pretty good deal. There is a lot of junk, but if you look carefully you can find some real treasures for cheap!

[Mike Clay]

Winchester bay Oregon

[Chief409]

We lived in the S.F. Bay area for years, and go there 4 or 5 times a year still, so, from plenty of experience commuting and pulling trailers in the area I advise getting off 101 and avoiding San Francisco and the Peninsula entirely pulling a trailer. Construction, congestion, accident and then more construction. I680 in the East Bay is your best route. Rush hours 0530 - 1000, 1400 - 1800. And weekends are not much better. If you plan on stopping in the S.F. Bay, the Alameda County Fairgrounds RV park is the best bang for your buck. Just south of the intersection of I680/I580. A reservation is recommended.

http://www.campingfriend.com/AlamedaCou ... ?file=Home

Jeff

PS: The link to the CalTrans Quickmap page. Select San Francisco from the menu on the left and you get real time info on traffic in the area.

http://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/

[Travelers]

Thanks All.
Trying to take in the National Parks going from South to North. Maybe hit the 101 North SF. Still planning.

[Traveler II]

A few years ago we made the trip on 101 north of SF all the way to Port Townsend, WA, it was great. The only thing I recall was in Oregon pulling in for fuel and this guy coming out telling me he had to fill up our rig, that I couldn’t do it myself. Actually it’s a nice service.

[Olbird]

John,
Its a nice drive from CA to WA just be prepared to slow down entering many many towns along the way. It is a long haul but you will see alot of nice things.
Roads are good and bad with a lot of repairs from slides this year.