Monterey Travel Forum

Hi,

My wife and I are going to California in three weeks to spend 3 days at Yosemite, 1 at Sequoia and then drive to the coast. We will ovenight in Monterey.

How is the best and most scenic way to get from Sequoia N P to Highway 1? I am going to take highway 198 to Visalia. I would like to cut basically West from there until I hit the coast. Should I be concerned abou the size of the mountains in that area? Are they tough to get through?

We are going on a Monterey Bay Whale Watch boat. Is that experience worth my time? I am thinking it would be.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Mike In Iowa

198 to 101 to Salinas. The mountains up there is not to high. Costal Mountain, but the 198 is windy on the west side but should not be a problem for most vehicles.

Whale watching there is great IF its the right time. Sorry I forgot what the good time to watch, the website you booked the boat tour should have a calendar chart. There is a new thing there where sharks hunt in a pack to prey on the baby whales.

198 is probably not what you want to do. It is a very windy road and effectivly ends at the 101 so you can not take it all the way to the coast. If you are looking to get to Monterey in a short time, you would want to take 198 to 99 North and then cross over on 152. It is longer in miles, but because they are better roads it will be quicker.

If you want to take the Scenic Hwy 1 into Montery you should go 198 to 99 South and take 46 over to the coast. From there you can take Hwy 1 North into Monterey. This is very scenic but it will take you an entire day to go this route.

I've driven 152, but not 198 so I'm no expert...

As Southofla said 152 is faster but you will miss Highway 1. If you do take this route, you will enjoy some nice scenery at San Luis Reservoir, and I would recommend stopping at Mission San Jaun Bautista in the town of the same name near Hollister.

Another option for hitting Hwy 1 that I've read about and been wanting to try is to take 198 to Jolon/Fort Hunter Liggett then follow Nacimiento-Ferguson Road about 25 miles over the Santa Lucia Mountains to Hwy 1. This is supposed to be a beautiful route, though I'm sure slow with lots of switchbacks. However, it puts you on Highway 1 near Limekiln State Park, just over an hour south of Monterey. Overall, this route is more scenic than 152 and should be shorter than taking 46. This route also takes you near Hearst's Hacienda and Mission San Antonio de Padua. Just be aware that this route crosses an army base, so you will have to show IDs and vehicle registration, but it should be open to the public.

This Fodors article discusses the route across Fort Hunter Liggett via Nacimiento-Ferguson Road: http://www.fodors.com/wire/archives/001336.cfm
And another: http://www.roadtripusa.com/routes/pacificcoast/california/pac_lucia.html