Help me plan my road trip :: Calgary - Vancouver - San Fran - Sandiego - Vegas - Home

[yohan4ws]

Whats up beyond,

I'm planning a road trip .. just want to hit the highway and drive, I have a 4 day weekend spanning Mar 25 through 28 so I'm going to leave on March 24 and plan to return April 3. (11days)

So, I'm asking if anybodys game for tagging along or if anybody can give suggestions on sites to see. As far as traffic violations, I've heard so long as you pay the ticket (accross the border) you don't receive demerits on your record in Calgary .. this true?


It's going to be a LOT of driving, heres my plan so far ::

Thursday March 24 : Depart Calgary 6AM
Destination: Vancouver BC. ETA 5 or 6pm (12hours driving) Depending on the highway conditions. I'm hoping to meetup with some Vancouverpreludeclub.com members and maybe have a mini Prelude meet. I really want to check out the night life and club scene in Van. Can't stay out too too late though, need sleep for another big day of driving.

Sleeping at (TBA)

Friday March 25 : Depart Vancouver 9am
Destination: 6pm Coos Bay, Oregon (9-10hours driving)
I heard Coos Bay is a cool little surf town on the coast. I'll be taking highway 101, its a big longer than I5 but I want the scenary and windy roads. Majority of this trip will be spent going directly down the west coast from Vancouver forward. Coos Bay, I want to go surfing for a couple of hours before I head on down to San Fran .. this is where my trip isn't quite planned .. Temperature says +12 degrees high is the regular for April 1, probably too chilly to do some surfing, we'll see..

Sleeping at (TBA)

** Not entirely planned from here **

Saturday March 26: Depart Coos bay.
Destination: ?San Francisco? I'm hitting a couple of the message boards (bayareaprelude.com preludeonline.com socalprelude.com) to help me finalize the rest of the trip.

Sunday - check out Norcal, napa, golden gate bridge?
Monday - A bit more sight seeing, .. not sure where, gotta get some surfing in somewhere .. maybe socal, maybe tomorrow..
Tuesday, goto Socal. see beverly hills, la, hollywood?
Wednesday, Long beach, Orange County, San Diego
Thursday VEGAS BABY!
Friday VEGAS BABY! - goto grand canyon?
Saturday - NV / Grand Canyon to somewhere between there and home.. (North Lip)
Sunday - Last stretch home.

I'll just edit this post as I get more details ....

Any thoughts? Anybody wanting to tag along?

[buh_buh]

if you don't go until LFW I'll go haha.

[bol]

Be careful around Revelstoke in BC. I go to/from Vancouver a few times a year and only ever run into RCMP there.

[Primer_Drift]

Sounds like a fun trip! Be careful between Kamloops and Hope (#5 paytoll highway) the cops wait at the tolls and pull people over for absolutely nothing, give tickets for everything, and generally are in great moods because of all the money they are raking in. I wouldnt recommend the #1 all the way to Van unless the roads are in excellent condition - if they are though, thats the way to go for some amazing scenery + twisty mountain roads(takes longer though).

[yohan4ws]

buh_buh, when is LFW? the biggest reason I'm scheduleing this trip is because I have a 4 day weekend I can take advantage of. Whats to stop me from doing this AND doing LFW ?? then when I check LFW I'll know people :D

primer_drift: what do you recommend for taking to Vancouver then ?? Id love to save time, I've been through the mountains a lot to shuswap etc. Twisty roads are great but I'm not exactly going at prime time ...

I've been using mapquest to chart out all of my trip so far ... just a b** getting to to work on the 101 because it keeps wanting to use I5 ... (once in USA that is)

[buh_buh]

I think sometime in May or June? I think it might be in Vegas this year, so it would be worth it to check it out!;)

[thinmyster]

yah im thinking of going on a road trip to vegas but not till the weather warms up alot so let me know how it goes!:thumbsup:

[sputnik]

Why not skip Vancouver and just go straight to Oregon through the US? Doesnt seem that you will be doing much in Vancouver anyways.

:dunno:

[yohan4ws]

I dont want to do the mainland, I want to drive along the coast.. highway 101 is the main plan. I'd save time but ... yaaawn .. boring. I'll be driving back up through the mainland on the way home, should be good.

[thinmyster]

and some good mountain routes :thumbsup: travelled them amanyatimes :thumbsup:

[yohan4ws]

thinmyster: Tell me some good scenic routes to drive and places I should visit along my travels. One place I know in Oregon is the sea lion caves .. gotta take pics of them crazy seals.

[Primer_Drift]

Originally posted by yohan4ws
what do you recommend for taking to Vancouver then ?? Id love to save time, I've been through the mountains a lot to shuswap etc. Twisty roads are great but I'm not exactly going at prime time ...


To save some time, just take the #5 at kamloops. Just be sure you have all your documents in order. I assume your car is pretty clean, so it shouldn't be a problem - just watch your speed through there :D

[thinmyster]

ill try and post up when i remember id have to bust out a map

[Ben]

I have done this exact trip, however it was reversed.

Calgary > Yellowstone > Phoenix > Vegas > San Diego, Tiajuana > Disney Land > then up the cost on US101 which RULES! > Portland > Seattle > Ferry to Victoria > Tofino > Nanaimo Ferry to Vancouver > Penticton > Calgary.

17 Days, 12000km.


The thing about the US101 is that between june and September it's POACKED with people in slow ass RV's which 100% ruins the whole driving experience. Nothing like seeing the sign that says "S next 20 Miles" and being stuck behind a 50 foot RV going 30 miles under the limit.


As for fastest way to Vancouver. (less than 1000km)

Made the trip in just under 8 hours this summer going highway1, Banff > Golden > Revelstoke > Salmon Arm > Kamloops > Merrit > Hope > Vancouver.

We were going rather fast tho.

This is IMO the best way to go...however I highly suggest trying to get into Vancouver at any time OTHER than between 2pm and 7 pm, as the highway is bumper to bumper for about 30km.

[nismodrifter]

highway 101 = crazy scenery, possibly the best drive EVAR:thumbsup:

[sillyd]

Dude, good plan! I've been wanting to do a road trip like that for years. If you want a tail, i'm in.

[SneakyNeek]

wait till august and go to seema in vegas

[buh_buh]

SEMA is invite only

[yohan4ws]

sillyd, PM me if you're serious about this. we'll have to catch a beer in town first though for sure so we know we wont be hatin on eachother.

sneaky: I wish I could get an invite to Sema , I'd so do both ... going ot vegas.. 2 days there, or go 2ppl 1 car and do it in the ful 23 hours one stretch.

[quiksilver_182]

How much this trip going to cost (on ave) I have been planning on taking a long trip but can't figure out the cost's and what not.

[rmk]

you should think about getting one of the stickers with both american and canadian flags together and stick it on your bumper.

[yohan4ws]

Originally posted by rmk
you should think about getting one of the stickers with both american and canadian flags together and stick it on your bumper.

:confused: :confused: uhh ..

costwise i havent priced it out .. say 40bux every 6hours of driving ... a tank of gas .. depending on where i go that can fluctuate.. so , say 120 to van, 160 to san fran/napa and driving around, another probably 220 by the time im down in socal, then up to vegas is only 3hours then another 23 hours home say about 160 .. so this totals up to: $660 CDN .. with fluctuations .. which isnt bad.

Then theres food, places to crash (I'm bringing a sleeping bag foamy and tent just in case I want to crash at a campground or sum'n). I haven't budgeted anything, all I know is I have enough .. gonna be a good time!

[hockeybronx]

Sounds like a kick-ass road trip!

When you are in San Francisco make sure to check out Alcatraz as well... it's for sure worth it:thumbsup:

[7thgenvic]

i've driven to oregon a couple of times from van! and the best thing to do is head down to portland and then to the coast from there! you really can't go to fast on the coast roads and it takes a LONGGG TIME to get around from city to city if you doing that route!

[Altezza]

Sounds like a fun trip. On you way home, the trip is pretty nice until you hit Salt Lake City. After that, it's boring as hell. Bring good music, and have tons of snacks and water for that leg of the trip. At times you'll drive quite a while before even seeing a gas station, a place to eat, or stay.

[Jerms]

man that'll be a killer trip for sure... how many people do you have going with you??

[yohan4ws]

So far its just me, one person inquired about tagging along but I'm plannin on driving my car solo.

I'm actually tonight going to try to map out some gas stations etc. Keep the advice coming guys, I appreciate it!

I got the mp3 player going and I'm going to be burning friends CD's and shit, gonna need a LOT of tuneage!!

I think I'll buy / return another digital camera for the trip as well, one thats quick to take to bars etc. High quality isnt needed what with such shitty light conditions I just need somethin more pocketable than my Nikon.

Once again, Thurs Mar 24 - Sunday April 3 is my anticipated plan!

[hjr]

sounds like fun, but i would plan for a couple more days so that you can enjoy the places you go to. 11 days isnt that much. the last couple days with the canyon and driving might be a bit tight. should should be able to get some route planning help at http://mappoint.msn.com/. its like mapquest but a bit better i think.

[yohan4ws]

Thanks HJR, I've already ruled out the grand Canyon.

The schedule above seems to hold steady, I'm going to get in touch with some of the socalprelude.com and bayareaprelude.com members and see if I can arrange a hotel party on the beach, should be grand!

I'm getting very very excited!

[yohan4ws]

I've lined up free accomodations for myself in Costa Mesa 5minutes away from the beach, buddies roommates are surfers and make boards so hopefully I can get some surfing in. RAWK!

I'm leaving next thursday at 7am so if anybody was interesting in tagging along best be letting me know now. I'm not sure where I'm going to stop first, I think I might go past seattle so I can beat the next day's rush hour .. Then I'm going to goto maybe Coos Bay to party and sleep for the night ...

After that, bay area (SanFran etc.) california .. check the golden gate bridge, some photo ops etc.

Maybe 2 days there, then costa mesa, I'lll eave on Friday or Saturday, goto vegas and spend some of Sunday there... then I'm driving home and planning to arrive in Calgary Monday or Tuesday ..hurray!


I'm sooo excited, I can't wait! countdown beings .. t minus 7 days ... :burnout:

[yohan4ws]

Here's the rest of my schedule ::

Day1 : Thursday March 24 Depart Calgary, destination: Seattle .. or somewhere south of it to crash for the night. I'll be crossing the border south of Abbotsford, BC.

Day2 : Friday March 25 Get to highway 101, the whole premice of my road trip and cruise down, check the sea lion caves and do some other site seeing along the coast .. anybody else have any suggestions for things to see in Oregon ? I'll stay at Gold Beach in Oregon .. it'll be chilly but oh well, I hear theres a place that you can walk out on the beach on rocks and its like you're in the middle of the ocean when you walk as far as you can if you look straight ahead. It'll be night by the time I get there and really want to enjoy this so thats my tentative stay. It's 8 hours of driving, and more time sight seeing ... then again, I want to party so maybe gold beach can wait ... whats a good party town in south oregon ?

Day3 : Saturday March 26 Cali Time!! I'll be cruisin down 101 s'more and going into NoCali, I want to drive through a tree ... I should look into that, somewhere in the redwood forest .. I had an invitation from a guy here to go paintball on the 27th but haven't heard back from him .. so I don't know if that'll happen ... I want a prelude meet in Bay Area on this day!! 7-8 hours of driving.

Day4 :
Sight seeing! hurray! All day Sunday the 27th ..and a prelude meet, if there hasnt been one yesterday. I'll depart to go South of LA when I'm done and maybe stay the night somewhee and start early the next day to get there .. 7-8 hours if I take the coast highway ( #1 ? ), not sure I will though ..

Day 5 : I'll be in Costa Mesa one oway or another today .. it's Monday the 28th and I have 7 days left to get home .. party time w/ Lucke and MidnKight and whoever else ... SoCal Prelude meet?

Day 6 : Tuesday the 29th : I want to do sight seeing shopping and try and get in some surfing, I'll bring my rollerblades and try my game at some cali hunnies on the beach.

Day 7 : Wednesday the 30th : S'more party time. There's speak of a rave in Beverly Hlls, I'm down for that so maybe I'll take a drive to Las Vegas instead of hitting it on my way home. Whose coming to Vegas ??

Day 8 : Thursday 31st ... Viva las vegas ? and back to Costa Mesa Friday for this party in Bev Hills .. yea that sounds about right.

Day 9 : Friday April 1 ... Back to costa mesa, party time.

Day 10 : April 2 .. nurse a hangover ? ..

Day 11 : April 3 .. Sunday - time to go home to Calgary .. Drive as far as I can in a day, There is a hostel in Driggs Idaho .. maybe to cross another state I'll pass the wyoming border and then go back and sleep. (12-14hours?)

Day 12 : April 4 Leave driggs.. pass through whitefish and hit a wicked highway drive to get back into Canada ... its not the common highway, I took it back in 2k2 in my 85 lude before I got my car now, it ruled. Let's see how 4ws, vtec and 3300lbs of me and my junk can master the road. (12-14hours?)

April 5 .. back at work :(