Day 14: King City, CA to San Luis Obispo, CA
Postcard from San Luis Obispo, California.
I tried to enter the Cabrillo Highway as far north as possible to avoid a long drive back and forth, but it turned out that most of the roads cutting through the Big Sur mountains were closed. Hence, the first possible intersection with Highway 1 was a whopping 50 miles south of the northern point of closure, a mere 3 miles or less from Lucia, where I had to stop yesterday.
Same landscapes, same breathtaking views, but little or no clouds this time. Less drama, less tragedy, no pathos. It felt wrong.
San Luis Obispo. A pastel-colored mid-sized city right on the border between northern and southern Cali. Sitting outside a taco place (+3) in the historic district: families strolling around, teenagers cycling and laughing out loud, everything is clean, everyone is smiling. Welcome to Hill Valley, A Nice Place To Live.
Nice but not for me. Boy, I am a big city person..
National Geographic moment:
what I said once about sea lions applies to elephant seals too.
– They eat all the fish
– They sunbathe all year round
– They have a nonsensical shape but who cares they are all the same
– They burp all day
– They stink AF
Fucking marvelous animals.
Driving from King City to San Luis Obispo cheat sheet
Accommodation in San Luis Obispo:
- Motel 6 San Luis Obispo, CA – North, 1433 Calle Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, CA 93405 Decent, clean and cheap accommodation. You might need a uber – or you can drive – to go downtown. There are 2 Motel 6, pretty close to each other.
Where to eat and what to see between King City CA and San Luis Obispo CA
- BarrelHouse Brewing SLO – Taproom, 1033 Chorro St, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 good beers in a nice basement space with live music
- San Luis Taqueria, 1032 Chorro St, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401, OK I like tacos. And these, right opposite Barrelhouse brewing were pretty good. You can sit outside and watch life goes by.
- Antigua Brewing Company, 1009 Monterey St, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401. Another nice brewery with plenty of beer to compose your perfect flight.
- Elephant Seal Viewing area, San Simeon. I said before: I think these are superior animals. I could watch them doing nothing for hours…
Driving from King City to San Luis Obispo FAQ
The shortest way to get from King City to San Luis Obispo is 80 miles long. I drove well over 200 miles, due to a completely different itinerary and my will to go back to the Big Sur northern point of closure.
The shortest way takes you a bit more than 1 hour. Took me over 7 hours due to the different, longer route and all the stops to take pictures and have lunch.
Taking the route I took, the best part is the road itself with its incredible breathtaking views.
Taking the route I took for sure the highlight is driving the Big Sur with all its breathtaking views. The elephant seals viewing are is a must see place. Going on a straight line directly from King City to San Luis Obispo probably there is less to see.
The road is all paved so it really depends on the weather (that on the Big Sur might change every other turn)
My itinerary on a West Coast road trip
- Seattle to San Diego road trip – main article
- Day 1: Sea-Tac to Seattle
- Day 2: Seattle to Port Angeles
- Day 3: Port Angeles to Astoria
- Day 4: Astoria to Florence
- Day 5: Florence to Crescent City
- Day 6: Crescent City to Fortuna
- Day 7, 8 and 9: Fortuna to Napa
- Day 10 and 11: Napa to San Francisco
- Day 12: San Francisco to Monterey
- Day 13: Monterey to King City
- Day 14: King City to San Luis Obispo
- Day 15: San Luis Obispo to Carpinteria
- Day 16-17-18: Carpinteria to Los Angeles
- Day 19-20: Los Angeles to San Diego
You May Also Like
Route 66 – The ultimate American road trip
Day 13: Kingman AZ to Barstow CA
