Well I need to go and see some more of california so I think I'm going to take a road trip from SF up to the Oregon border, then down through Redding and back. I want to take the coast up from SF as fare as I can. I've done the SoCal run down hwy 1 a few times so it is time to go north hwy 1.
Does anyone know of cool stuff to see up north? I have a good set of maps so I'm going to try alternative routes, but if anyone has any suggestion of cool roads to take I wouldn't mind them. Last year I took hwy 36 from Redding to Fortuna on my blast and that was a hell of a ride. Took 7 hours to do 180miles over a bunch of mountain.
Any suggestions are appreciated!
Have you done the hopland grade? That's Hopland to Lakeport, it takes off from 101 about 1.5 hours north of SF and takes you up to Clearlake.
36 is fun, and it goes from Red Bluff, not Redding 
299 from Redding to Arcata has a couple fun hillclimbs, most specifically the Redding side of Buckhorn (the first major pull out of Redding). You also go past the location of the Hoopah Hillclimb.
Highway 70 is a pretty trip, that takes you up the Feather River canyon from Oroville up to Quincy. If you go that way you can take 89 where it splits off about 5 miles before Quincy, up through Greenville, up the west shore of Lake Almanor (my old stomping grounds), then take 36 either down to Red Bluff, or take 32 down to Chico (32 is one of my favorite roads).
If you take 36, that'll take you past Lassen Park, I'm pretty sure you can drive through it this time of year though I'm not 100% where that spits you out (I think 299 east of Redding).
I actually took the A16 from redding through Ino and Ono to the 36, that is a fun little rode, about 30-40miles of two lane canyon driving. I'll be planning this for a week or so, so I'll have time to decide and exact route.
Thanks for the suggestions Rev and keep em coming folks!
The road following the Salmon River from Somes Bar to Gazelle via Callahan is pretty spectacular. Just make sure you bring plenty of time.
Oh, if you're into hidden backroads, look up Honey Run from Chico to Paradise. Doesn't really get you anywhere, but if you end up in the Chico area, it's worth a drive up and back.
There are some Good breweries up in the Mendocino area...
Capt Slow wrote:
There are some Good breweries up in the Mendocino area...
Yeah, that's not all that's good in Mendocino, wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more!
Thank you for the information, I'll be sure and take pictures while on the trip. I've never driven north highway 1 so that is a must, after that everything else is optional.
Salanis
SuperDork
9/9/10 12:02 a.m.
Capt Slow wrote:
There are some Good breweries up in the Mendocino area...
North Coast, in Fort Bragg, is my absolute favorite brewery.
Lost Coast is Eureka is mine 
Be sure to stop and get out of the car in the redwoods. They're one of my favorite places in the world. If you're into camping hit up Mattole Beach. Take Mattole Road out of Ferndale to Petrolia and then take Lighthouse Road from there to the campground.
Those pictures are on Mattole Road. I've never seen a cop out there and I doubt I ever will. Look it up on google maps so you can see how far from anything it is. Watch for cows, occasionally they can be found in the road over a crest or around a blind corner. Also, some corners just kind of turn to dirt for a hot second before going back to pavement. Its a fun road
Crescent City is nice and the last time I was there, the trip through the redwoods and along the coast was awesome. They have a huge car show every year. Not sure when that's happening though.
Great suggestion Thatsnowinnebego, I'll put that on the list. I've never driven 1 north of say Tomales bay so I'm looking forward to it. The car is pretty much ready. Some camping is in store so I'll keep my option open.
Last time I took highway 1 down the coast from SF, I remember the road falling apart, I'd come around a curve doing a good pace and have to hit the brakes hard because the road turned to gravel. I like a good chance to hit the brakes every now and again.
I'm starting to get excited, hopefully nothing breaks on the car in the next 2 weeks.
I just hit the maps and I think I will be heading towards the lost coast, that was really a hell of a suggestion. I'll be going with my old man so I have someone to push the car should it die, I'm set.
