Los Angeles to Vancouver in 5-6 days

[Jonas78]

Hi,

I'm planning to go on a 5-6 day road trip from LA to Vancouver.
I would like som input about the travelling time and "must" do/see things along the way. Im planning to go on highway 1 I've heard it has som really good scenery.
My trip would start at end of October.

Now... are 5-6 days WAY too short to this trip in, and if so how many days would be needed? I will be traveling by my self, and estimate to drive about 5 hours/day.

/Jonas

[Robert Schaller]

If you only drive 5 hours per day, it stretches the time enroute on these slower highways to about 9 days or so.

I recommend the coast road at least from San Luis Obispo on north. You might see San Simeon (The Hearst Castle) and Fort Ross along the way, also take the time to visit the Redwood parks north of San Francisco. Fort Ross was a Russian fur trade settlement/outpost placed to challenge the Spanish claim to California, very interesting. Be sure to spend a little time in San Francisco too.

From Crescent City, cut over to see Crater Lake NP, then go on north to drive into Portland from The Dalles, down the Columbia River Gorge. Stop for a hike up to the top of Multnomah Falls if you're up to it.

Then, you can see the coast around Astoria if you want more beach time (and see Fort Clatsop, Fort Stevens and maybe tour the Cheese Factory at Tillamook), or...

I recommend the next stop should be Mount St Helens and the visitor center there -- see what change the volcano has wrought. From there, you could mosey up to Mount Rainier, then Olympic National Park, ending at Port Angeles for the ferry across the Sound to Victoria, then from there to Vancouver on another ferry ride. Or instead of something else, you could check out the charm of our "bluest" city -- Seattle. These are just some of the possibilities -- you probably can't do them all even with 10 days, but you could get close. Bob

[Jonas78]

Thanks for that info, I just might have to drive a few more hours per day and/or extend the trip to 10 days.