Planning this year's vacation in California....

[Schtum]

.....and points North.

My wife and I are flying into SFO on Friday 13th June. We're there until 4th July.

We need.....

An SUV, preferably a Nissan Murano or something equally as good....is there anything? Anyone know of any good deals? Last year we rented a mid-size SUV from Alamo out of SLC and got a free upgrade to the Murano because the three Chevy's they tried to give us all had bald front tyres.

Accommodation in SF for c. 3 nights. Also a cottage or a condo in Marin County for a week or so would be great.

A rental R1200GS for a couple of days. Dubbelju or San Jose BMW?

Any help or good advice much appreciated. We've been to SF a couple of times before. I like the randomness and the opportunities that word-of-mouth brings rather than the usual channels. So what have you got guys....?

I'm more than happy to reciprocate for anyone who wants to visit Scotland.....

 

[Aluisious]

If you're going to fly into and stay in SF, rent your BMW in SF. It's just easier than getting to SJ and back repeatedly.

Have you tried the HWY 1 south and Skyline Blvd north trip? I had friends from Texas visit and they enjoyed the route. Would be extra fun on a moto. Awesome views all along, and excellent riding.

Here's a link for the route:

http://tinyurl.com/3cjug3

Have lunch here:

http://www.nepenthebigsur.com/

On the way back you'll go through Big Basin Redwoods State Park, which has some enormous trees right next to the Park parking lot. You'll want to stop there and check those out.

 

[weasel]

Dude, you have to plan your trip around MotoGP later in July

 

[Aluisious]

Dude, you have to plan your trip around MotoGP later in July

Oh yeah...Laguna Seca is about 2 hours south of SF on Highway 101.

 

[LuckyStar387]

Wow, you should stay a little longer towards the end of the month to go to Monterey.

 

[Schtum]

Have you tried the HWY 1 south and Skyline Blvd north trip? I had friends from Texas visit and they enjoyed the route. Would be extra fun on a moto.

Yeah, thanks we have. We've driven LA to SF up the PCH in '99 and driven it the other way in '05. We also rode bits of the PCH on a borrowed Cagiva Alazurra in '99. As for Skyline, that's on the agenda as well. We'll probably do the usual quick shopping trip into REI at Saratoga and then head up onto Skyline....lunch at Alices.....you know... I was hoping that if I can sort out a bike rental I'd be able to do the Doc Wong Riding Clinic.

The plan this year is to head up Hwy1 into Oregon and Washington. Last year was 4.5K miles around Utah, Colorado, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming and Montana, taking in some of Bonneville Speed Week at the Salt Flats.

 

[Schtum]

Dude, you have to plan your trip around MotoGP later in July

Thanks but probably not again this year. We did that in '05. Do you want to see my pics off the pit garages shot from the piltane....? I'm fortunate to have a good buddy who signs off the sponsorship for Castrol so he arranged for the Gresini Racing Melandri / Gibernau team to look after us.

 

[Aluisious]

You obviously know what you're doing, then. I could suggest a trip up Mount Hamilton (east of San Jose) to visit the observatory there, then down the other side on Mines road to Livermore.

Runs through the middle of nowhere, also prime moto fun.

 

[Schtum]

You obviously know what you're doing, then.

Thank you... I like to think that having done about 12K miles in the US over the past 3 years, I've just about got rid of my rookie vest.

I could suggest a trip up Mount Hamilton (east of San Jose) to visit the observatory there, then down the other side on Mines road to Livermore.

Runs through the middle of nowhere, also prime moto fun.

OK, thanks for that one. I was also thinking of riding up Mt Tamalpais. That looks like fun.....

 

[TTTom]

I've gone through this company for coastal cottage rentals multiple times, highly recommended:

http://www.ramshead.com/

note this is in Sonoma County, about an hour north of Marin

 

[Schtum]

I've gone through this company for coastal cottage rentals multiple times, highly recommended:

http://www.ramshead.com/

note this is in Sonoma County, about an hour north of Marin

Excellent..! Thank you very much - subject to availability, we may have found a cabin.....

Re: "note" - yeah, thanks - we'd looked at a house in Jenner, already, so I'm pretty clued in as to where it is....

 

[NoGall]

If that's where you going to be...

- Hwy 1 from north of GG to however far north
- Fairfax-Bolinas Rd.
- Marshall-Petaluma Rd.
- Chileno Valley Rd.
- Coleman Valley Rd. from Occidental to Bodega Bay
- 128 between the coast and Cloverdale
- Skaggs Spring from Steward's Point on 1 to Healdsburg
- North on Hwy 1 to Leggett
- 36, 299, 96, and 3
- Crater Lake, OR
- The Sisters, OR

Places to eat...

- In Pt. Reyes Station, Bovine's Bakery is the hangout.

- In Marshall (Marin), there are three oyster places. The general store/shack that's right across from the post office is my recommendation. Although Hog Island Oysters is fun too.

- In Tomales, there is only one bakery. Get the Puffy Daddy.

- The town of Gualala on Hwy 1 (just a short jaunt from the Sea Ranch)

- In Cloverdale, lunch or dinner at World Famous Burger Farm and Pasta Ranch.

- On your way north to Trinity... http://www.eelriverbrewing.com/location.html

- Dinner or lunch at 96 and 299 (Willow Creek), Cinnabar Sam's.

- Lunch at Dotty's in Etna on Hwy 3

 

[Schtum]

Places to eat...

- In Pt. Reyes Station, Bovine's Bakery is the hangout.

- In Marshall (Marin), there are three oyster places. The general store/shack that's right across from the post office is my recommendation. Although Hog Island Oysters is fun too.

- In Tomales, there is only one bakery. Get the Puffy Daddy.

- The town of Gualala on Hwy 1 (just a short jaunt from the Sea Ranch)

- In Cloverdale, lunch or dinner at World Famous Burger Farm and Pasta Ranch.

- On your way north to Trinity... http://www.eelriverbrewing.com/location.html

- Dinner or lunch at 96 and 299 (Willow Creek), Cinnabar Sam's.

- Lunch at Dotty's in Etna on Hwy 3

Ahh yes.....food - thank you.

ISTR eating in a hip pasta / pizza place in Inverness in '99. Is that still there, do you know...? Likewise, there used to be one very similar on the main drag in Mountain View but the last time I tried to find it in '05 it seemed to have been replaced by a spendy Italian restaurant with fine dining pretensions.....

 

[Aluisious]

I'd suggest lunch in Davenport on the way south on 1, but Schtum's probably been there more often than I have

 

[Schtum]

I'd suggest lunch in Davenport on the way south on 1, but Schtum's probably been there more often than I have

Good point..... Nah....we only did 6 states last year - 4 the year before - 2 the year before that...

There is a nice restaurant on 1 just set on its own with some rooms out the back. Is it South of Monterey...

We ate there in '99 and tried to get a room there in '05 but they were full so I think we just ate. A buddy in Sunnyvale said they used to go there for breakfast rides. I know that's not a lot to go on....

 

[budman]

If in Mt. View.. stop by Fred's for a pint www.fredsplace.tv

A fine little pub where the Scot's, Brit's and Irish sling some fun....moto friendly.
Have a fun trip.. sounds great

 

[Aluisious]

South of Monterey was probably Carmel. Nice little area. Clint Eastwood was the mayor there once.

South of there is Big Sur, with that restaurant "Nepenthe."

 

[Schtum]

A fine little pub where the Scot's, Brit's and Irish sling some fun....moto friendly.
Have a fun trip.. sounds great

Thank you very much and that's the point really. For the past three years it has been great and when we did it back in '99. The US road trip thing just presses all the right buttons for both of us. I have to say that the Western states I've visited just blow me away and we've met some of the finest most hospitable people wherever we've travelled.

We've also had some strange serendipitous experiences like meeting the telephone operator from my home town of 2,500 people in Southern Scotland up at Glacier Point in Yosemite in '99. I didn't know her but spoke to her because I heard her speaking in a Scottish accent and discovered who she was from there.

If I go on about it at too much length, I apologise in advance but I get a buzz just thinking about it.

There's a smattering of pics from last year's trip in this thread for folks who might be interested......

http://www.bikersoracle.com/vfr/forum/showthread.php?t=86050

 

[Schtum]

More likely, you were in Carmel.

No, I've done 17 Mile Drive a couple of times and driven round Carmel's gnarly streets.

The place I'm thinking of is pretty much in the middle of nowhere. As you approach from the North, it's on the left hand side of the road, with a gravel car park and it's a stand-alone building with a porch? Is it perhaps half-timbered and ISTR it has some large glass windows on the South side at right angles to the Highway. Round the back there's an accommodation block.

 

[Aluisious]

I'm schtumped