Portland, OR to San Fran - HOW LONG??

[MaryG]

We are from MA and are going to a wedding in Mount Hood Oregon (Portland). We only have a bit more than 10 days? Would we be better off flying from Portland to San Jose, or is it enough time to drive it? We want to feel relaxed and able to site see, not feel we are constantly driving, especially if there is nothing to see. Any book recommendations?

[danna]

10 days is MORE than enough time to get there!! you can travel across the whole country fairly liesurely in that time! mount hood is beautiful. i recommend stopping at some hotsprings in oregon and seeing the redwoods in northern california. are you driving from mass to portland? when are you plannig to be in portland? i am headed that way and looking for a ride.

[MaryG]

We will fly into Portland from Hartford, then drive down to Cali. We are not going until next summer. I Need some more advice, what is the Cheapest way to rent a car in Portland and return it in San Fran? I see all types of great rates you can bid on, however they are all pick up/return in same location (i do not wish to rent a nice car for 2 weeks for $500). I am also looking for the best way to get ONE WAY airfare's for cheap. Due to it not being ROUND TRIP TICKETS, the price bumps up big time.

[Mark Sedenquist]

Mary,
While that distance could be done in 2 days -- it would really be pushing it. On the other hand, we have spent ten weeks covering the same distance and missed hundred of places we would like to have explored.
As I mentioned in an earlier posting, Mendocino is well worth a visit. A vegetarian meal at the Stanford Inn would be high on my list of "must-do's".

Sorry, we don't have good advice for cheap rentals, but $600 is a bit steep in our experience. Generally you can always find deals circa $20/day and even with a drop-off surcharge I can't imagine having to spend more than $275 for your ten day car rental.

Mark

[B Durbin]

Really, it depends on what you're driving and HOW you drive. I'm a Sacramento native who went to college in Washington, and let me tell you, if you are driving just to get there, Portland to SF can easily be a one-day trip. But you're probably not, which is good.

I would actually allot two to three days for the trip unless you have something along the way that you'd really like to stop and see. My family has a tendency to stop and see rocks (no joke) but there are obviously other fun things to see and do. If you head down I-5, for example, there are the Shasta Lake Caverns-- but I will warn you that they're probably seasonal.

And while I have not made the trip personally, I am told that you really really do not want to be drving *down* the coast on Highway 1 unless you have nerves of steel or lots of practice driving down a windy clifftop road overlooking a 50-foot plunge into the surf. If there's something you need to see on the coast, go for it, but the locals will be piling up behind you as you drive half the speed limit. 101 is much further inland and should be fine.

[Mark Sedenquist]

Greetings

In regards to driving Rte 1 -- we have done it around 40 times over the last few years. It can be challenging -- in deep fog or in stormy conditions -- but each trip has always been worth it!

Local rarely drive the route -- it is mostly full of tourists!

Mark