Gearhead Jim

In January, we'll be driving a C6 from San Francisco to San Simeon (Hearst's Castle) to Bakersfield, then down to central Los Angeles. I'm looking for advice on routes that will be enjoyable and hopefully free of snow and salt. We've got A/S runflats that can be put on the car, but most of the drive will be on good roads and I'd like to stay with the summer tires if practical.

San Francisco to San Simeon-
Mostly along the coast and beautiful, we did it once before.

San Simeon to Bakersfield-
CA-46 is said to be boring.
CA-58 is supposed to be more fun.
CA-166 is marked on Rand McNally as "scenic", but ???
I'm not sure about elevation/snow on any of them.

Bakersfield to LA-
I-5 is listed as sometimes closed in winter due to snow, could be a salty slippery mess.
CA-33 to the west and C-58/14 to the east look interesting on the map but seem to have some higher elevations also.
I'd like to avoid having to go all the way back to the coast, but don't want to end up in a snowy ditch or bored to tears.

Suggestions?
Thanks!

TerryL

I've lived here most of my life and have never seen salt used on any roads. I've also never found any snow west of Bakersfield from the coast. During a heavy winter there can be snow heading over the Grapevine on I-5 into the LA basin. 101 won't have any. Never taken 395 into LA. There won't be any snow until 4,000' or more anywhere IME. You can check here anytime.

http://www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/roads.cgi

Almost forgot, don't get caught on a freeway in the LA area between three and seven pm.

Gearhead Jim

Thanks.
Anyone else have comments about the route choices?

buckmeister2

California does not salt roads south of Tahoe. I seem to recall that there has been some use further north on occasion. I am sure you already know that the routes you are considering seldom get any snow. I do recall going over the Ridge Route one year when it got about a foot, but that is pretty rare. If you watch the weather forecast, you will know several days in advance, as any storm that will bring snow to that area will be easy to see coming.

Don't sweat it. Watch the weather, and have a great trip.

Boomer111

The Grapevine, I-5 from Bakersfield into the LA basin, can get snow. No salt though.

All the other routes mentioned I would not be concerned with snow and definitely not salt.

Now it could happen that snow can hit the lower elevations but it will not stay long and it will be very minimal compared to what you are used too. I would not even worry about it at all.

Famous last words, right.

CA-46 is a straight shot and the fastest, it is a dangerous stretch of road too with no lane barrier. No elevation here either.

Driving across the California Central Valley is boring period for the most part.

As you might already know especially during the Winter months debris, rocks, can be a problem especially through the Monterey south stretch along HWY 1. It is a short part of the drive and the most work.

I have made the drive many times over 50 years and only once in the Vette. I will not do it again during the Winter. It was a nightmare with the C6 ride height. This is especially true during heavy rain or right after. So watch the weather but understand that with all the tight turns expect trouble.

Safe motoring!

ruxvette

First question: who's Corvette. Rental? Hell, drive on!!!

(I would stay on the coast all the way to LA.)

AORoads

As you know, the Winter months referred to above by Boomer means rain for the most part. That's what triggers the mud- and rockslides. It can be dangerous and cause road washouts, trees falling over, house slides, etc.

All that said, if it were me (and it has been many times), I'd take 5 all the way down to Los Angeles and not cut out at CA46. It is a fascinating route both north and south of San Simeon. Do note the drive times of when NOT to hit Los Angeles for traffic reasons.

The valley (San Joaquin) is the fruit and vegetable "basket" of California, but it is kinda boring to some extent, and can be hot because it's actually a desert. I've read that the San Joaquin Valley which stretches from Sac to Bakersfield has been changing in the relatively recent past with influences from both bigger cities (Los Angeles and San Francisco).

After going between the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego which includes Orange County and Camp Pendleton further south, you might like to stop and see San Diego (one of my home towns). Then, take the major, and most southerly route east, which is I-8 which becomes I-10 at the junction road to, and just south of Phoenix (on which you'll go north to Phoenix/Chandler). Before getting to AZ you'll hit some of the nicest low "mountains" and dry desert after El Centro, CA.

cclive

I would go the coast all the way, unless there is some reason that you must go to Bakersfield. I-5 over the grapevine can get snow but this is very rare and will be well publicized. It is not a highway that will have snow by the side of the road all winter..it all melts in a day or two.

vetintheblood

Stay close to the coast. The 101 is way better than the 5.

Best wishes for a fun cruise!

Gearhead Jim

Under normal circumstances, we would indeed stay along the coast for the entire trip. But this is a "visit friends and family" expedition, so Bakersfield is on the list. Yes, I've been there and it's nothing exciting.

So since we do need a route from San Simeon to Bakersfield to downtown LA, what are your suggestions?

(ruxvette- yes, it's our own car. We're having it shipped to the first "friend stop" in Sacramento, then driving via several stops in the Bay area and southward. Shipping it to Sacramento is about the same cost as driving, and in winter it's a whole lot easier. Probably safer, too)

RagTop69

Whenever I drive to L.A. from the Bay Area for recreation I always take 101. Much prettier country than I5. Hwy 1 between Monterey and Moro Bay can be somewhat challenging, but it is a beautiful drive. There isn't enough heavy weather these days to warrant being concerned about debris or road collapses. We're in the middle of a draught. I've never driven a Vette over Hwy 1, but I've done that trip in a number of different cars and never had a problem. You say that Bakersfield is a required stop. Lucky you. That means you will be coming into L.A. via the Grapevine whether you take Hwy 99 (which is a nicer drive) or I5. There can be snow in the Grapevine occasionally. We got caught in one of those freak storms in our '69 Mustang convertible a few years back. Not enough snow to really present a problem. Just keep your speed down if you hit snow and you'll be fine. And the others are right, you have to go out of your way to find snow in CA even in normal winters. That's why all the ski resorts are in the high Sierras.

AORoads

I guess then it's Pac 1 as far as you can go south (to San Simeon), then over to Bakersfield. People in the area will have to comment on CA 58 and 33 as to less boring, and better. Once you're in Bakersfield, and ready to go south, I'd use 5 to 405 and get off to the Pac 1 thru the 'beaches' starting with Santa Monica. It can get slow going thru Manhattan, Redondo, Long Beach, Huntington, Newport, Laguna, but then it picks up as it becomes 5 again. I do it.

Or, you can do I-10 out of Los Angeles straight to Phoenix. Not my favorite route. I go the southerly route (south to San Diego and on I-8).

Gearhead Jim

We'll be spending a day or two in LA with family, then down to Ramona (NE of San Diego) and then east to the Phoenix area. It looks like Ramona to Phoenix has a variety of nice choices.

RocketDawg

Shouldn't that be "don't get caught on a freeway in the LA area between 12:01 a.m. and 11:59 p.m."?

TerryL

Gearhead Jim

Agree.
We lived in Santa Monica, right off old Rt 66, for several years. LA traffic is awful.

Gearhead Jim

The pic is CA-20, east of Sacramento. We're not going there in the 'vette. The drought is definitely ending.

We're staying with a friend near Sacramento, waiting for our car to finally show up this afternoon. The shipping has been a real bummer. Despite good reviews and friends' recommendations, we have a shady and incompetent shipper. Plus bad weather, etc.

The good news is that the rain and snow are supposed to stop in a couple of days, we should have no weather problems along our route to the south. I-5 from Bakersfield to LA is good even now.

We're still tying to decide on the route from San Simeon (Hearst Castle) to our friends in Bakersfield.
CA-46 is said to be a good road, and Rand McNally thinks the first half is Scenic. But their standards are sometimes rather low.
CA-58 looks curvier, which could be fun and scenic, or just annoying.
CA-166 is a bit out of our way, but we have the time and Rand McNally marks most of the way as Scenic. The topo map makes it look nicer, too.
Suggestions?

ptroxx

You could make a stop on the 41 & 46 where James dean had his accident. There's a little store right there with a little memorial.
Really that the only goood thing making your way across.
And yes like other said. I'd rather take 101 as much as possible to avoid the big rigs. And the sand they use on the roads You'll get a lot of debri of the bigger hwys like 5-99.

buckmeister2

46 is a quick run all the way through. It is somewhat scenic, if you enjoy the west. the little memorial is cool, and the small cafe has great sandwiches.

Like petroxx said, 101 is very scenic, pretty quick, and a lot cleaner, as there is never any snow.

There is no salt applied on CA roads.

33 to 58 is a good route, fairly scenic, but pretty out of the way compared to I-5, the fastest north/south route in CA. There really is seldom any snow up there. If the forecast shows that storms have left the area, you can get from Bakersfield to outer-L.A. in two hours, and you are done with it.

Where near Sac are you staying?

BTW, standard fare for transport companies to not make the time scheduled. I have shipped 14 vehicles east to west, and maybe four arrived the day scheduled. Lots of things can hold them up, not always shady people that have glitches.

buckmeister2

BTW, I don't like the sections of 58 or 166 that connect 101 to I-5. VERY curvy, slow traffic, narrow two-lane roads. You will have to do a lot of passing with short visual clearance of oncoming traffic, or you will have to chug along behind folks.

I took 46 maybe 100 times...it is fast, safe, and somewhat scenic. Los Banos has a dynamite Mexican restaurant on the far east side of town, right side of road. Man, it is good food.