The missus and i are off to San Francisco for a week. We’re making a couple of stops along the way, staying a night with friends in LA, and a night with friends in Santa Cruz.
Our drive from LA to Santa Cruz is this Sunday, March 29, and i was wondering if any local Dopers could advise on which route is likely to have the least traffic. According to Google maps, taking I-5 is about 344 miles, and should take just over five and a half hours. And it says that 101 is 360 miles, and should take a half-hour longer.
If i could rely on both of those predictions being accurate, we’d probably take 101, just because it’s a more interesting and attractive drive. The extra half-hour would be worth it for the better scenery.
But i know that Sunday driving, especially around a break (like Spring Break) can be a hit-or-miss affair, so i thought i’d seek out some advice. Anyone got an opinion on which is likely to be the most hassle-free route this weekend?
I did contemplate taking the real scenic route along the coast on Highway 1, but that adds at least an hour and a half, and it seems to me that this is the type of road that is most likely to be congested on a Sunday.
Hmm, regarding the 1: I don’t think I’ve ever driven it on a Sunday during break, but it SEEMS the type of road that’s unlikely to be congested: North of Morro Bay and especially around the Big Sur area (where it’s most scenic), it’s mostly rural countryside or mountainous, very windy road. I’ve gone up and down a few times and never encountered more than the occasional idiot driver who thinks the speed limit is the maximum, not minimum, and refuses to use turnoffs. And yes, “cliff that leads straight into the ocean” is a turnoff, especially if you’re a fat, balding guy who doesn’t know how to use his fancy midlife-crisis convertible.
Ahem.
Point is, it’s a beeeeeeeautiful stretch of highway and definitely worth the drive if the weather is good and you’ve got time to burn. You have a week to relax… enjoy it! That way the drive won’t just be a pain in the ass you have to get through but rather part of the experience.
101 is a far more pleasant highway than I-5 is, and then you don’t have the hassle of crossing over. I’d say it’s more than worth the extra half hour. It is likely to be a little slow in spots, which 5 mostly is not, but still. Waaay better drive. You even avoid that big cattle lot halfway up 5.
Plus you can wave hi to my hometown when you go through lovely (:rolleyes:) Santa Maria!
Ah, yes. Eau de cow merde. A tourist attraction in its own right.
You know that little button that toggles whether your car gets air from the outside? In the six years that I’ve been in Cali, that lovely stretch of the 5 is still the only place I need to use that. Such memories!
Thanks for the advice. Unless there’s some report of problems on Sunday morning, i think we’ll definitely do 101, at the very least.
Reply, i’d love to go on 1, and the main determinant will be whether we can get up and away at a decently early hour. You’re right that we have a week, but we only have one night with our friends in Santa Cruz, and we’d like to get to see as much of them as possible, so we don’t want to roll into town at 9 pm or something like that.
5 is a little shorter and on 5 you can go just under 80 and probably not get stopped.
101 most of the way you will be safe traveling around 70. Trafic should not be a problem. It is possable that it will drop down to 60 outside of Salinas. But if you switch use San Maguel Road to go to Watsonville that is about 5 miles out of Salinas.
When comming back from Murreta of we want to relax and enjoy the ride we go 101, if we want a short borring drive then we will use 5.
5 is boring as hell, but easier with company and a CD changer. 101 is okay. Hwy 1 is a must not miss drive, but you need at least 10 hours to do it with stops. It is the most scenic road I’ve ever been on. And it goes through both LA and Santa Cruz.
One compromise would be to take 101 up to the road to Carmel/Monterey, and take 1 north after that.
The only fun trip I had on 5 was when we counted the tomato trucks heading south. We got to over 100 double trucks. Besides that, boring. Plus, though 152/156 from 5 to 101 is better than it used to be, it is still a miserable drive, especially on a weekend.
BTW, the last time we drove up we didn’t have a choice - it was President’s day, when the Grapevine was closed due to the storm.
The last time we drove north, 5 was closed due to snow, and we sat in a traffic jam on the freeway for about 2 hours before we were able to turn around, go across on 126 to 101, then head north.
5 is the dullest highway there is. That said, you can probably drive 85mph without fear of getting a ticket. Highway 101 has a bunch of speed traps. Just drive 10% over the speed limit and you are probably OK. It’s the fastest route for me, and I still marvel at the lack of development that gives me some sense of old California. I notice the problem areas are between Solvang and Salinas, with special notice around King City. There are tons of cops hanging out on the south bound route 101 between King City and Buellton. Highway 1 is spectacular, but just plan on taking all day long to do it. By the way, if you have the opportunity to do the coast route, go ahead and do it.
Take the 5, then cut across highway 46 and drive through the intersection where James Dean was killed after being struck by another car. There’s a sign and everything. Ironically, my husband got a speeding ticket on 46 last trip, in almost the exact same place that Dean got his, minutes before he died… :eek:
If you are going under 80mph on I-5 you are going to earn the enmity of every trucker within twenty miles. 80mph is probably minimum speed, and the drivers will let you know it by blowing their horns and riding up on your ass.
To the o.p., if you are crunched for time, Voyager’s suggestion is best; however, the coastal drive past Morro Bay and San Simeon is great. Pismo Bay has an excellent takeout seafood place down by the pier, and there are of course the elephant seals (which despite some claims to the contrary, are not manatees, snark) just north of Hearst Castle. And this is definitely a good time of year to do it before the coastal fog rolls in for the summer.
We’re just about to get on the road for our short trip to LA.
I think we’ve decided that tomorrow’s drive to Santa Cruz will be some mix of 101 and 1. How much time we spend on 1 will depend on whether we can get a reasonably early start, and whether traffic is OK for the first couple of hours.
I’ll report back once the trip is done. Thanks again for the advice.
Son got a ticket going 83 mph. I set the cruze at 82 mph in the middle of the night. A car came up behind me a 84mph. I pulled to the right and let him pass. 5 minutes later another car came behind me and passed. CHP. 5 minutes later I passed the two and the CHP had out his little book. So if I am not traveling in the middle of a group my top speed is around 79, and I am passing people and sometimes I get passed.
Are there elephant seals there now? We saw them at Ano Nuevo one Thanksgiving, before they restricted access. Our kids never have forgiven us from having dinner a day early and dragging them there to see the pre-mating rituals. This at the time consisted of the seals laying on the beach not doing much of anything.
