2 overnights on way to CA from WA??

Folks, My wife and I are driving from the Olympic Peninsula to Crescent City CA this July. It is our first visit to your beautiful state. We plan to spend two nights on the road and stay right on the coast. Can anyone make suggestions of a route with stops and overnights? We are not camping. We love the ocean and I am a fisherman, although I don%26#39;t think I will have the opportunity to fish on this trip. All suggestions are appreciated. Thanks.

2 overnights on way to CA from WA??

guess it depends on how much time you have. going south you could take the coast road and stop near cannon beach...it%26#39;s beautiful. the whole coastal area is great. there are cliff views, touristy activities and tidal pools to explore. it can get pretty congested in areas on the weekends though. on southern oregon coast there are huge sand dunes. you can dune buggy there or just explore. before entering california and the phenomenal red woods, there is a guy who makes furniture out of cool pieces of wood. he has a very neat tree house. fun for a brief stop. one of the nicest golf courses is in southern oregon as well...bandon dunes...if you golf. along the rogue river, you can go river rafting or go on the jet boats that go very fast...they are a blast.

it is also a great trip to head south thru washington then east along the columbia river gorge and check out the water falls and breathtaking scenery of the gorge. you can then head south toward bend, oregon and check out crater lake and the various lava tubes in that area.

you can find plenty of accommodations along the way.

one year i was there, i just stayed in various B%26amp;B%26#39;s i found on the web. it made it very interesting. but the traditional places are columbia river gorge hotel (classic but expensive) and sun river resort area. they have a lot of activities to offer there...biking, hiking, rafting.

2 overnights on way to CA from WA??

First of all, the Columbia Gorge Hotel is out of business and would not be anywhere near the coast anyway.

I%26#39;ll let our coastal experts advise you regarding your best 2-night itinerary, but I must warn you that most, if not all, of the better lodging choices along the northern coast (your best first night destination) will require minimum 2-night stays in July. Your best choice for your second stop, I think, would be Yachats.

Keep in mind that going from the Olympic Peninsula to Crescent City with just two stops will involve long driving days, with few opportunities for enjoying our coastal treasures.

(We are in Port Townsend but have a family place on the central Oregon coast so travel down fairly often so here are my thoughts) First is deciding when to head over to the coast and I think there are two options that best meet your needs: Aberdeen and down 101, or Kelso over to Oregon/Astoria. I would opt for the the trip down the Columbia and perhaps staying in Astoria the first night - it is not as touristy as Cannon Beach/Seaside but it is certainly a ';fisherman%26#39;s'; town and there are things to do and see right there. The next day I would go at least as far as Newport but no further than Florence (staying in Yachats would be very reasonable!!) That would allow a full day to drive the most scenic (in my mind) coast road down to Crescent City.

Folks, These ideas are a good start for my trip research. We are visiting our daughter who lives in Moclips WA and will be driving with us down to Crescent City. I think we may do the Columbia River gorge on another visit because it seems we could spend 2 overnights there with no difficulty. I could also do a day of fishing there.

So, we may go down the WA coast via 101 and then into Oregon at Astoria. It looks as though Yachats could be the first overnight. Is that something that can be a reasonable goal? That way we can do another overnight while taking in the southern coastline on day 2 and 3. Is there a good spot for the second overnight?

Can we do whalewatching anywhere from the shoreline?

Okay, I do not know where Moclips WA is? But to drive from Astoria to Yachats in one day in July will take you about 5 hours just driving time, no stops. So add on driving time from Moclips to Astoria to get your total time.

The problem with dividing the Oregon coast up ';evenly'; is that some parts of Hwy 101 are inland a bit. Bandon is a pleasant town, but is only about 2 hours north of Crescent City. North of Bandon, Coos Bay is on a bay, not ocean . . . Winchester Bay is a nice sport-fisherman%26#39;s small town, but has only two older lodging choices on the bay . . . Florence is on a river, although there is one motel on the ocean there.

If you are a professional fisherman you might like to stay in Astoria one night and Newport on the bay one night.

Where you stay may also depend upon what type of lodging you desire.

I will re-emphasize oregonpoppa%26#39;s post that the Columbia Gorge, Bend, lava tubes and Crater Lake are nowhere near the Oregon coast.

I would do an Astoria or Seaside (if you wanted a beach view), and Newport.

I think you would love Astoria, we have been traveling here for over twnety years and have a second home in Astoria. It is right on the Columbia River, a fisherman%26#39;s dream! Stay at either the Cannery Pier Hotel or the Holiday Inn Express, depending on your budget, the CPH is a bit more pricey but beautiful. Go to the Bridgewater Bistro for a meal, you can walk there from the CPH. Both of these properties are right on the trolley run, it will be running in July. www.oldoregon.com is a nice website for Astoria. Have fun and let us know how your plans progress! :)

I had to Google to see where Moclips is too, half-Brit. It%26#39;s on the coast, north of Ocean Shores, a 2.5 - 3 hour drive from Astoria. So, it doesn%26#39;t make much sense that Astoria would be the first overnight, especially since hwy 101 is mostly inland in WA. Except maybe for Cape Disappointment State Park, outside of Ilwaco, WA, I don%26#39;t know that you%26#39;d be stopping before OR.

You would want to see the view from the Astor Column, and a few other Astoria sights perhaps, then on to Ecola State Park, just north of Cannon Beach. The town itself is also worth a visit, as well as a walk on the beach to Haystack Rock, where if it%26#39;s a low tide, you%26#39;ll find lots of tidepools to explore.

Some great coastal views from hwy 101 south of Cannon Beach, but I%26#39;d suggest your next stop be at the north end of Three Capes Scenic Loop, outside of Tillamook: Cape Meares State Park, maybe. Suggest you stop for the night at the south end of the Loop around Cape Kiwanda/Pacific City, or Neskowin.

Don%26#39;t rush through day 2; there%26#39;s lots to see and do between Lincoln City and Florence. But, I%26#39;d think you%26#39;d want to get at least that far before stopping for the night. Take a dune buggy ride on day 3 before heading south. There are countless scenic stops along the south coast, but you%26#39;ll not need to spend a whole lot of time at any of them.

Folks, you have helped to shape our journey down the Oregon coast. If you ever plan to bne in the Philadelphia area. send me a PM. I will post again to get more info. Thanks

those of you who commented that the gorge and crater lake are not on the coast are correct. i just thought i would throw that in as there is sooo much more to see in oregon than just the coast...in case they decided to extend the trip a bit or return another time.