Recommended campsites along the Cali coastal highway?

[01E350AZ]

Originally Posted by Dogmobile

North Beach at Pismo is a nice campground and not likely to be too crowded in Jan. Its just a short walk from the beach, but the best part is the vast numbers of Monarch butterflies who winter in the adjacent eucalyptus grove and often come over to the campground to hang out. I think you will be happy there.

San Simeon SP is another good campground if its on your route. I am not as much of a fan of the state park campgrounds near Morro Bay as they are too cramped for my taste, but some people like Montana de Oro, mostly for the hiking.

You can camp on the beach at Oceano Dunes if you have 4WD and don't mind the OHV crowd.

My wife and I love Pismo! That's where I'd stay heading down the CA coast.

[Ocsmb]

Ballpark quick glance at the map Pismo is halfway between SF and SD.

[blupaddler]

There's some good boon docking ones just East on the 166 as you go South from Santa Maria. Can't remember the names though... Watch out for speed traps in Santa Maria too, cops love that section.

Also, check out Davey Brown campsite, its in the Los Padres National Forest, north of Los Olivios.

There are also some primitive sites along Big Sur, just go East up Nacimento Ferguson Rd, and the top head south. Google earth it...

And like others mentioned, Refugio and El Capitan north of Santa Barbara are nice.

[chromisdesigns]

Originally Posted by Warnerd9

Our family is planning on leaving Salt Lake to go visit family in San Francisco then onto San Diego. We were hoping to find a nice place to camp by the coast for one night. We'll be traveling down HWY 1 and it will be in late January.

Any recommendations would be appreciated. We are trying to split the trip between SF and SD into two days and camp somewhere in the middle. We were thinking about North Beach Campground near Pismo Beach. Thanks for your help!

Carpinteria has a beach campground, about 6 hours south of SFO, with a lunch stop. Just past Santa Barbara. Makes for a nice short day into SD the next morning.

[mikracer]

I just camped at Refugio and it was a pretty nice site. Beer was expensive at the store, but the wood was very reasonable ($6/bundle).

The site is literally on the beach. Google map it and see just how close the beach is to the nearest campsite. I don't think you'll have much of a problem booking sites for January.

[rob_gendreau]

That's a LONG drive, especially if you hit LA traffic. I'd try to get as far south on day one as possible; at least near Santa Barbera.

[Warnerd9]

Yes it will be a long drive. We're going to end up in the Pismo Beach area. I've got to spread out the drive a bit, so not quite to Santa Barbara but close enough, I'm an early riser. Thanks for everyone's help.

[Ocsmb]

Incredible cinnamon rolls at Old West Cinnamon rolls and about 15 min south in Nippomo my favorite stop when I'm in the area Jocko's Steakhouse. Don't you love that name Rustic lil place in a tiny town with great steaks.

[mikracer]

SF to Pismo should only take about 4 hours. I would leave SF around 9 or 10am to avoid traffic and it should be pretty smooth sailing all the way down.

If you want to end up in the Central Coast area, you have your choice of Montana De Oro, Morro Bay, Pismo, Lopez Lake, Santa Margarita, and Avila. I live in San Luis Obispo but I haven't camped in any of these spots in many many years.

Send me a PM when you make your way down here and I can tell you some good places to eat. As Ocsmb mentioned above, Jocko's is the best steakhouse around, but its a 15-20 min drive south.

[BogusBlake]

Originally Posted by mikracer

Jocko's is the best steakhouse around

Sure is, but can you pee in a waterfall there...?

Originally Posted by Ocsmb

Incredible cinnamon rolls at Old West Cinnamon rolls

And mighty decent chowder-filled breadbowls at Splash Cafe around the corner.