Pacific Coast - Seattle to SF - Fall 2016

[seameg]

First solo trip, first time this route, looking for recent route notes and camping recommendations.

Thanks!

[John Nelson]

Camping is pretty easy on this route. Suggest you get the ACA maps, and also the Oregon DOT coast bicycle map. Also, read some Pacific Coast route journals on crazyguyonabike.com. Also get the book, "Bicycling the Pacific Coast." Tons of information out there about this route.

[seameg]

Thank you! I appreciate the response and am checking all of these out. Since the book is more than a decade old, I'm also interested in any tips from recent travelers down the route. Favorite campsites? Places you could have skipped?

[John Nelson]

For cost reasons, avoid campgrounds without hiker/biker sites. Most have them, but not all.

If you go through Elma, WA, Grays Harbor Hostel is very nice.

County Line Park along the Columbia River is in a great location. Enjoy the river and river traffic.

Cape Lookout State Park has the best hiker/biker sites you've ever seen.

Bullards Beach State Park has lockable charging stations right in the H/B camp.

Of course, you have to camp somewhere in Redwood National Park.

Manchester State Park is rather bleak. Consider the private campground next door. Only marginally more expensive.

Samuel Taylor State Park near San Francisco has a small but charming H/B site. When I was there, the showers were closed because of the drought.

[staehpj1]

The state parks are generally all pretty nice.  I think Harris Beach was my favorite and I chose to spend a second night there.  For Oregon I found the ODOT Pacific Coast bike map to be my most used resource.  Elsewhere I used the ACA maps.  The book was interesting and I used it to get excited about the trip, but didn't bother to carry it.

On this route you likely will fall in with a group and wind up stopping in places that the group picks.  I found that to be one of the nice things about this route.  Since everyone goes N-S and typically go similar daily miles it makes it easy to make friends.  I didn't choose to ride with anyone, but did enjoy camping with the same folks most nights.  I met some really nice folks and it greatly enhanced the trip.

[sanuk]

When I did the Seattle to SF route more than five years ago and never having done any long distance cycling before in the US what turned out to be my main concern and recurring nightmare was motorised traffic - specifically in Washington and Oregon the dreaded sound of loaded logging trucks coming up behind on roads with little or no shoulder and nowhere to hide. Of course, motor homes and trailers weren't much better. The only state providing anything like a decent space for cyclists was Oregon which seemed to be premoting cycle touring. But then that's coming from a European perspective where designated cycle routes are more or less the norm. Otherwise the state parks were the best and there was a good hostle up on the Marin Headlands overlooking the SF bay.

[PhilPub]

Hi, I've just got back from pretty much the same trip a couple of weeks ago, so here's some fresh info on where we stayed en route.  We started at Tillamook so I can't help with anything further up.

RV park, Pacific City - meh, nice and close to the beach and some bunnies hopping around but not the most scenic environment.
Beachside SP (H/B) - quite nice, no other campers in h/b other than a colourful character from Kentucky pitching up very late on his motorcycle!
Sunset Bay (H/B) - scenic, popular h/b section so very sociable.
Gold Beach - rest day, so we stayed in a motel for a couple of nights. Unremarkable but nice to sleep in a real bed.
Mill Creek (H/B) - lovely site amongst the redwoods, but you need to descend a 2 mile long hill off Hwy 101 to get there which is steep in places, which means you need to climb up it again in the morning.  Hard work!
Patrick's Point (H/B) - another deserted site, potentially very scenic (but very foggy when we were there) and good access to rugged coast paths
Burlington (H/B) - possibly our favourite site, amongst the huge redwoods part way along the Avenue of the Giants. If I was doing the route again I would consider stopping here (or Standish-Hickey) to fit in some hiking.
Standish-Hickey - see above.  Also, there's a quirky but nice store on the road opposite which is a convenience store and restaurant/bar.  Swimming also available in Eel River. A good stop before tackling the climb after Leggett.
MacKerricher Beach (H/B) - Great location next to the beach with excellent wildlife opportunities.  We spotted whales!  (Just about!)
Salt Point (H/B) - Nice forest environment but one of the more disappointing sites, particularly in that it was the only h/b site that didn't have showers, plus the warden was about the only one we didn't find to be particularly friendly.
Samuel P Taylor (H/B) - As an update to above, the showers are working fine!  :-)  Another nice site, following Lagunitas Creek, and an obvious final rest point before cycling into San Francisco, as it's about 25 miles north.

We also heard good things about Elk Prairie campground but it didn't fit in with our mileage schedule.

When you get the ACA maps, make sure you get hold of the latest amendments. Some of the updates are fairly trivial (e.g. campground changing name slightly) but there are also some useful corrections, e.g. "turn right at Ocean Drive should read turn left", etc.

Charges: Oregon h/b sites were around $6 per person, Californian ones $5 (but $7 for Salt Point with no showers!)  Showers tended to be free in Oregon but required a few quarters in California (something like 50c min. for 2 mins).

It's a great route, enjoy!

[PhilPub]

Here are some pics of the tour:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/37023885@N06/albums/72157670228527964