Seattle to San Francisco 5 – A great route that combines the mountain line and the coastline of North Western USA, from north to south, which includes a trip in the states of Washington, Oregon and California and also includes the cities of Seattle and San Francisco (and many other picturesque towns along the way). This is a perfect route for lovers of the sea and marine mammals (since this route includes many days along the coast) and for lovers of scenic mountain views d (Mount Rainier and St. Helens as well as Crater Lake and Newberry National Monument located on the Cascade Mountain Range).
Day 1 – Land in Seattle and spend a few hours in the city
Lodging location: Seattle
Day 2 – Enjoy the day in Seattle
Lodging location: Seattle
Day 3 – Drive to south Mount Rainier National Park and visit the Paradise area of Mount Rainier National Park, 3 hours drive
Lodging location: South Mount Rainier or Paradise or Longmire
Day 4 – Drive to the Columbia River and on the way visit the eastern slope of Mount Saint Helens (see map here), 5.5 hours drive
Lodging location: Hood River
Day 5 – Visit the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area and take a hike or visit sites in this region and then drive to Bend, 3 hours drive
Lodging location: Bend
Day 6 – Drive to Newberry National Volcanic Monument and enjoy half a day in the beautiful park and then drive to Crater Lake, 3 hours drive
Lodging location: Crater Lake
Day 7 – Visit Crater Lake National Park and then drive to Bandon, 3.5 hours drive
Lodging location: Bandon
Day 8 – Spend the morning in along the scenic Bandon coastline, and the continue driving south along the dramatic coastline of HWY 101 towards Crescent City (California), on the way stop at: Cape Blanco Lighthouse, the scenic town of Port Orford and at Meyers Beach, Lone Ranch Beach and Harris Beach State Park, 2 hours drive
Lodging location: Crescent City
Day 9 – Visit Redwoods National and State Parks and then drive south to Fort Bragg (located on scenic HWY 1), on the way stop at MacKerricher State Park, 3.5 hours drive
Lodging location: Fort Bragg
Day 10 – Drive south on this extremely scenic portion of HWY 1 to the town of Jenner, on the way stop at the town of Mendocino (with it’s galleries, restaurants and beautiful coastline), and at Salt Point State Park, and Goat Rock State Beach (here you may walk to the mouth of the Russian River), 2.5 hours drive
Lodging location: Jenner
Day 11 – Drive south to San Francisco and on the way stop at beautiful Wrights Beach and at Duncans Landing (a wonderful viewpoint), 2 hours drive
Lodging location: San Francisco
Day 12 – Spend the day in San Francisco
Lodging location: San Francisco
Day 13 – Fly home
– In order to fill this route with content – see our Northwest USA and California destinations pages, where you can find articles that include suggestions what to do in various locations along this route.
