26 2024-25 TRAVEL GUIDE TO CALIFORNIA
REV UP YOUR ENGINES
California's thrilling drives and iconic highways await!
BY JOHN FLINN
LUX
BLUE/SHUTTERSTOCK
.
OPPOSITE:PUNG/SHUTTERSTOCK
;
MIN
CHIU/SHUTTERSTOCK
;
LUCKY-PHOTOGRAPHER/SHUTTERSTOCK
C
alifornians didn't invent the car, but
they like to think, with some justifica-
tion, that they invented the automobile
lifestyle. With drive-thru grocery stores,
drive-thru pharmacies, drive-thru churches
and even drive-thru mortuaries, one gets the
feeling that if Californians could only invent
a drive-thru delivery room they could hap-
pily go from cradle to grave without ever
having to pull over to the curb.
California is a land of supersized dis-
tances, jumbo landscapes and big-gulp
vistas, and the best way to see it all is on a
road trip, or, better yet, a series of road trips.
Here are a few favorites.
Up the Coast
Northern Californians call it "Highway 1"
and Southern Californians call it the "Pacific
Coast Highway"—or, simply, the "PCH"—but
there's no doubt that the road that hugs the
state's remarkable coastline, often close
enough to feel the salt spray, offers one of
the world's classic driving trips.
From sun-splashed Southern California
beaches to the misty redwood forests near
the Oregon border, the journey, which
includes a few stretches on other highways,
is a touch over 1,000 miles.
The sights are so numerous one can
barely scratch the surface: The Hotel Del
PACIFIC COAST
HIGHWAY
One of the world's great drives,
the Pacific Coast Highway
meanders along California's
rocky coastline with
breathtaking views over most of
its 1000-mile length. Visitors
could spend their entire
vacations driving and exploring
the attractions along the way.
ROAD TRIPS
