Features

Driving on the All American Road

31 Oct 2010

It seems that each country has a road that must be travelled, whether simply to get to a destination or for the pure pleasure of driving it. California’s Highway 1, which stretches along the coastline from Orange County south of Los Angeles to Mendocino County north of San Francisco, is certainly a road you drive for the latter reason. There are faster alternate routes, to be sure, but they are poor substitutes for the visual stimulation and the thrill of driving you experience on this twisting coastal road.

After flying from Hong Kong to Los Angeles, I am picked up at LAX airport by a driver in a Rolls-Royce Ghost. As a general rule, it’s not wise to drive immediately after a long-haul flight. However, there are many car rental agencies at LAX or elsewhere in Los Angeles that will let you drive away in a luxury car or what some call a “beater”. Whatever your budget or preference, be extra cautious when driving after a flight.

All American Road

The first stop after leaving LAX is, not surprisingly, on the highway as LA’s notorious traffic turns a relatively short drive north-northwest on the 405 and 101 highways to Santa Barbara into a three-hour ordeal of stop-and-go traffic. Glad I’m not driving, I settle into the back seat and tune out everything but the view. This state is car crazy, to be sure. I see every type of vehicle, from the latest sports cars to jalopies that probably shouldn’t see any more miles put on them.

All American Road

Upon arrival at the Four Seasons Resort Santa Barbara, aka The Biltmore, which was built in 1927, I quickly check in and am shown to a private cottage past the hotel’s grassy yard, where amateur astronomers are setting up for a night of sky watching. Whether they’re looking for planets or UFOs is unclear, but some of their telescopes are as big around as an oil barrel. The cottage is at least 92.9sqm, with a private terrace, and I notice that it is connected to a few more cottages. It’s a lot like Meadowood Resort in Napa Valley, to the north. But it’s cooler here, with more lush foliage.

A few trains rumble past during the night (a note left on the bed tries to nostalgically explain this is the sound of history, when guests used to arrive and depart by train). In the morning, the breakfast buffet is excellent and I’m soon behind the wheel of the Ghost, ready to tear up some asphalt on my way north along Hwy 1 to Carmel-By-The-Sea in Monterey Peninsula. Construction of this highway began around 1919 (and continues to this day) and it has several other names: Pacific Coast Highway, Cabrillo Highway, Shoreline Highway or the succinct Coast Highway. 

The initial part of the drive is along Highway 101, which isn’t very scenic unfortunately. But there are some good vineyards along the way and I stop at the Turley Wine Center on Vineyard Avenue in Templeton for a few sips of organic wine and purchase a few bottles for after I’m done driving for the day. It almost goes without saying, but the drink-driving rules in California are strictly enforced, especially in the numerous wine valleys. It can be much hotter in the valleys than along the coast, so dressing in layers is advised, along with sunscreen.

All American Road

Leaving Turley’s, I head west along Hwy 46 across some mountains to meet up with Hwy 1, just north of Harmony. I’ve skipped a few miles of Hwy 1 along the coastline, but with a couple of bottles of organic wine in the back seat I feel it was well worth it. Soon, I’m entering Cambria and then San Simeon State Park. The scenery starts to get interesting along here, with the Pacific Ocean stretching out to the left and cliffs rising up to the right.

One of the major highlights of this part of the drive is a visit to Hearst Castle, located on a mountain top above San Simeon. On a massive piece of property owned by the Hearst family since 1865, William Randolph Hearst hired San Francisco architect Julia Morgan in 1919 to build “a little something” so his family didn’t need to camp there any more. The end result, now a National Historic Landmark, is an estate of about 165 rooms spread out over a main Spanish-style building called “Casa Grande” and three Mediterranean-style guest houses. Visitors are quite welcome, with frequent shuttle buses to take them up the long and windy road to the top of The Enchanted Hill.

Hearst spent millions to buy art, furniture and even ceilings from around the world to create his palace, where Hollywood stars and millionaires used to come and relax, party and enjoy the scenery. It’s well worth a visit, especially since it is self-funded. Interestingly, the deed that gives the state the right to run and maintain Hearst Castle stipulates that the property be kept almost exactly the way Hearst left it. The precious artworks seen throughout cannot be sold to raise money, even though some of them are worth upwards of US$50 million.

Back out on the Pacific Coast Highway, the terrain begins to get rougher and the road twists even more. There are numerous lookouts where you can pull over to admire the view and rest. Refreshingly, the road is not lined with fast-food outlets and other eyesores. It’s all quite natural and beautiful. Some of the restaurants along this route, such as the Sierra Mar at Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur, serve excellent food and have spectacular views. 

There are several stops along the way, including those due to road construction or repairs after rock slides. But all too soon, I enter Carmel-By-The-Sea. This is a fascinating town. Besides the fact that Clint Eastwood is a former mayor, there are no house numbers or mailboxes. Letters must be picked up from the post office. It’s an enchanting place dotted with tiny cottages and it’s no wonder it has long been a favourite of the “arty” crowd.

My drive ends at the entrance to the Inn at Spanish Bay near the famed golf resort of Pebble Beach. It’s been an excellent day, and the best part is there’s plenty more places to explore and road to drive for a few days until I reluctantly head back to Los Angeles for my return flight to Hong Kong. 

Glen Watson is a Canadian freelance writer and editor who has lived in Hong Kong since 1996. He writes about travel and motoring for a variety of publications in Asia.

 

Useful Links

fourseasons.com/santabarbara/

hearstcastle.org

pebblebeach.com/accommodations/

the-inn-at-spanish-bay

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