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California Travel Question

E

elipse

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Apr 22, 2003
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My wife and I moved from Iowa to Colorado last year. This winter we were thinking about taking a 2 - 4 week get away to the beach in California. Our priorities are as follows:
1) Minimal amount of population.
2) Beach - or close.
3) Prefer "Rocky scenic coast" versus flat beach.
4) Activities would be biking, hiking, sunset beers, dog walking (2 small dogs), relaxing, a few good restaurants. Don't need any touristy things.
Note - We would be making the drive from Western Colorado to the location in a 2 day drive.

I have been looking at Cambria, Cayucos, Morro Bay. Any thoughts on these locations - or better options given the priorities I listed?

Thanks - Go Hawks!
 
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elipse said:
My wife and I moved from Iowa to Colorado last year. This winter we were thinking about taking a 2 - 4 week get away to the beach in California. Our priorities are as follows:
1) Minimal amount of population.
2) Beach - or close.
3) Prefer "Rocky scenic coast" versus flat beach.
4) Activities would be biking, hiking, sunset beers, dog walking (2 small dogs), relaxing, a few good restaurants. Don't need any touristy things.
Note - We would be making the drive from Western Colorado to the location in a 2 day drive.

I have been looking at Cambria, Cayucos, Morro Bay. Any thoughts on these locations - or better options given the priorities I listed?

Thanks - Go Hawks!
Click to expand...
This isn't a good answer to your questions, but last summer we flew into LA and rented a car and drove up the PCH to the Fremont/San Jose area. We stayed one night in Pismo which we really liked, nice beach town. We liked Capitola also and I believe Pescadero. I wasn't a huge fan of Santa Monica. Half Moon Bay was nice as well. It was a really nice drive on the PCH, not terribly busy.
 
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elipse said:
My wife and I moved from Iowa to Colorado last year. This winter we were thinking about taking a 2 - 4 week get away to the beach in California. Our priorities are as follows:
1) Minimal amount of population.
2) Beach - or close.
3) Prefer "Rocky scenic coast" versus flat beach.
4) Activities would be biking, hiking, sunset beers, dog walking (2 small dogs), relaxing, a few good restaurants. Don't need any touristy things.
Note - We would be making the drive from Western Colorado to the location in a 2 day drive.

I have been looking at Cambria, Cayucos, Morro Bay. Any thoughts on these locations - or better options given the priorities I listed?

Thanks - Go Hawks!
Click to expand...
Big Sur. There really isn’t a town of Big Sur just enclaves of beachside motels/hotels and cool fish shack type restaurants. If you want to actually go to the beach, Pacific Beach down in San Diego
 
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ping72 said:
And it sounds like OP isn’t planning on it, but just to state: you won’t want to get into the water in California in December.
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Vanessa Williams Smile GIF by Narcissistic Abuse Rehab
 
Well, I'm not sure you could get there in 2 days, but I'd recommend Eureka.
Lots of breweries, rocky coastline, humboldt redwood park nearby, not very large.
Dress warm.
 
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Son went to college on the Central Coast. It’s awesome. We would stay in Avila Beach ( amazing little town) and Pismo is not far, though I like Avila much more. San Luis Obispo 10 minutes away, great little college town with a ton of good restaurants and a great downtown. Morro Bay is ok but the wind is always blowing and it’s 10 degrees colder there at all times.
 
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For grins, I am going to make an alternate, more southerly suggestion. I have been going to this area for the past 23 years.

www.visitnewportbeach.com

Balboa Peninsula & Balboa Pier

At Balboa Peninsula ride a bike down pier, the park, or along the beach. Enjoy all the different activities the Balboa Peninsula has to offer. From live music, to bars, to your favorite nightlife destination, there’s always something at the Balboa Pier.
www.visitnewportbeach.com www.visitnewportbeach.com

OP's initial reaction will likely be that this won't meet the first criterion. However, on a 2-4 week roadie, it would present lots of options.

1. Stay on the peninsula and enjoy miles of beautiful beaches, biking, restaurants, dog walking and sunset beers. There are also great fishing charters close by. Despite being only an hour south of LA, it offers a vastly different experience, great surf town with fun locals.

2. Big Bear is a little over two hours away if you want to spend time hiking or just enjoy a different setting.

3. The drive from Newport Beach to La Jolla is beautiful, offers smaller town experiences and a variety of terrain.


4. Average temperatures are 65-70 in November and December, roughly five degrees better than Carmel, etc.

I just can't say enough about the area. If you were flying, it would be a further no-brainer as you could fly into John Wayne and be just 15 minutes from the peninsula.

Either way, you can't go wrong. I am more than a little jealous. Please report back!
 
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I would look at areas around San Diego or the Central Coast. We did a staycation in the central coast, around the Hearst Castle area and loved it. Depending on your budget, I would highly recommend Post Ranch.
 
ping72 said:
And it sounds like OP isn’t planning on it, but just to state: you won’t want to get into the water in California in between October and August.
Click to expand...

FIFY

Yeah, I've surfed in California enough to know you want a wetsuit most of the year.
 
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Oh, and OP, just so you don't commit a faux pas, Highway 1 north of Santa Barbara is called the Cabrillo Highway, not the Pacific Coast Highway.
 
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Stay in Sausalito or Tiburon and visit the beaches south of Muir Beach. Rodeo and Tennessee are both fine and you have the Muir Woods and Mt Tam very close by. Or you can stay in Mill Valley. More than a few good restaurants in the area.
 
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There's less than 300K in the entire county of San Luis Obispo county. Also the Firestone Walker brewery is only 30 miles away and as far as I'm concerned their beer is as good as it gets. The whole area is the best kept secret in the US as far as I'm concerned. So laid back, zero traffic, easy to get around, tons of hiking, dog friendly, good restaurants and of course you can be along the beach. But as others have said it's probably in the 60's that time of year.
 
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SSG T said:
Oh, and OP, just so you don't commit a faux pas, Highway 1 north of Santa Barbara is called the Cabrillo Highway, not the Pacific Coast Highway.
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It is also closed north of San Simeon. You have to take 101 to get to Big Sur, et al
 
littlez said:
There's less than 300K in the entire county of San Luis Obispo county. Also the Firestone Walker brewery is only 30 miles away and as far as I'm concerned their beer is as good as it gets. The whole area is the best kept secret in the US as far as I'm concerned. So laid back, zero traffic, easy to get around, tons of hiking, dog friendly, good restaurants and of course you can be along the beach. But as others have said it's probably in the 60's that time of year.
Click to expand...

And hit or miss rain. It could be 70 and sunny for a week, or 55 and raining every day. Was there for a week one February, it rained the entire time I was there. A front stalled over the coast and just sat there raining. I think they got around 6" over the week. It never stormed, never poured...it just never stopped raining.
 
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elipse said:
My wife and I moved from Iowa to Colorado last year. This winter we were thinking about taking a 2 - 4 week get away to the beach in California. Our priorities are as follows:
1) Minimal amount of population.
2) Beach - or close.
3) Prefer "Rocky scenic coast" versus flat beach.
4) Activities would be biking, hiking, sunset beers, dog walking (2 small dogs), relaxing, a few good restaurants. Don't need any touristy things.
Note - We would be making the drive from Western Colorado to the location in a 2 day drive.

I have been looking at Cambria, Cayucos, Morro Bay. Any thoughts on these locations - or better options given the priorities I listed?

Thanks - Go Hawks!
Click to expand...
Monterey area was my favorite. Could be cloudy windy and cool that time of year.

Think 55 and drizzly

SoCal will at least be sunnier and warmer. Lots of good beaches around San Diego
 
My in laws recently moved to Morro Bay. I like the town but have only visited twice (once in summer and once in Jan) - somewhat decent sized but not a ton of traffic. Can't say I'd want to visit in the winter based on my visit in January.

Carpinteria would be something I'd want to explore more - south of Santa Barbara but pretty small. Not sure what the weather is like in the winter but should be warmer than Morro Bay.
 
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flyfishstout_CO said:
My in laws recently moved to Morro Bay. I like the town but have only visited twice (once in summer and once in Jan) - somewhat decent sized but not a ton of traffic. Can't say I'd want to visit in the winter based on my visit in January.

Carpinteria would be something I'd want to explore more - south of Santa Barbara but pretty small. Not sure what the weather is like in the winter but should be warmer than Morro Bay.
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Have a friend that used to live in Cayucos just up the coast. He owned an apartment between the vacation rental place (his wife ran) and Schooner's Wharf. His living room window looked out onto the beach and ocean. I think his step son now lives there.

If I'd have taken the job at Camp San Luis Obispo I was offered, he was going to lease it to me for $500 per month (he owned it outright at that point and was moving to an acreage inland). $500 per month for a 2bdr overlooking the ocean...I wanted to move just for that.
 
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flyfishstout_CO said:
My in laws recently moved to Morro Bay. I like the town but have only visited twice (once in summer and once in Jan) - somewhat decent sized but not a ton of traffic. Can't say I'd want to visit in the winter based on my visit in January.

Carpinteria would be something I'd want to explore more - south of Santa Barbara but pretty small. Not sure what the weather is like in the winter but should be warmer than Morro Bay.
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My mom lived in Morro for a short period of time. She hated it. Everything was always wet. It’s a good place to go out for fishing. We’d leave out of Morro and just kill the long cods

The rock is habitat for Peregrine falcons. It’s cool to watch them hunt if the rock
 
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Fijimn said:
My mom lived in Morro for a short period of time. She hated it. Everything was always wet. It’s a good place to go out for fishing. We’d leave out of Morro and just kill the long cods

The rock is habitat for Peregrine falcons. It’s cool to watch them hunt if the rock
Click to expand...
Like I said, Morro definitely not the place to be. Cold and windy seemingly all the time.
 
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Route 1 ride is beautiful and lots of small trails for dogs to be walked. Obviously lots of tourist spots along the way too, not that you asked for it
 
Scruddy said:
Route 1 ride is beautiful and lots of small trails for dogs to be walked. Obviously lots of tourist spots along the way too, not that you asked for it
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Wow, Scruddy I thought you wouldn’t set foot in that leftist state?
 
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littlez said:
Wow, Scruddy I thought you wouldn’t set foot in that leftist state?
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I actually go there more often than I'd like for work. San Diego is the best spot followed by the Carmel/pebble Beach area. San Francisco and LA are absolute shit holes in comparison.
 
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Scruddy said:
I actually go there more often than I'd like for work. San Diego is the best spot followed by the Carmel/pebble Beach area. San Francisco and LA are absolute shit holes in comparison.
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Carmel/Pebble Beach is nice? Who knew? 😏
 
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SSG T said:
FIFY

Yeah, I've surfed in California enough to know you want a wetsuit most of the year.
Click to expand...

I lived in La Jolla for almost a decade. I always told people the best time to visit was mid-September.

Every year there’d be families rushing to the beach from the Midwest as soon as school was out in May/June. The two absolute worst months to visit. They’d be so sad when they realized it was too cold to swim. For some reason, people expect it to be tropical.
 
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ping72 said:
I lived in La Jolla for almost a decade. I always told people the best time to visit was mid-September.

Every year there’d be families rushing to the beach from the Midwest as soon as school was out in May/June. The two absolute worst months to visit. They’d be so sad when they realized it was too cold to swim. For some reason, people expect it to be tropical.
Click to expand...
June gloom is a real thing
 
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