It’s taken me awhile, but part three of my “Road Trippin'” series is finally here!

In this post, I’ll be covering day two of our trip:

Eureka, CA → Paso Robles, CA

We left Eureka with a goal to make it to Southern California by the end of the day, while also taking time to see a few landmarks, like the Golden Gate Bridge.

Here’s the route we took:

We planned for day two’s drive to be a bit shorter to allow us to sight see a bit. We checked out of the hotel at around 9 am, ate breakfast at a McDonald’s near our hotel, then headed for our first stop: Ukiah, CA. There, we stopped for gas and lunch. Then we headed to San Francisco to see the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.

Our stop at the Golden Gate Bridge took about an hour. Then, we headed to our next stop: Gilroy, CA, where we filled up with gas and got dinner. After that, it was on to our stop for the night. We had originally planned to try to make it to Santa Rosa, CA but ended up stopping in Paso Robles, CA instead.

—

Recommendations

Gas Stations/Travel Centers:

• Chevron – 605 E Perkins St, Ukiah, CA 95482
• Chevron – 401 Leavesley Rd, Gilroy, CA 95020

Food:

• McDonald’s – 115 N Orchard Ave, Ukiah, CA 95482
• Chipotle – 596 E Perkins St, Ukiah, CA 95482
• In-N-Out – 641 Leavesley Rd, Gilroy, CA 95020
• Wendy’s – 393 E 10th St, Gilroy, CA 95020

Hotels:

• La Quinta Inn & Suites – 2615 Buena Vista Dr, Paso Robles, CA 93446 (free wi-fi, free breakfast, pet friendly)
• Holiday Inn Express & Suites – 2455 Riverside Ave, Paso Robles, CA 93446 (free wi-fi, free breakfast, dog friendly)
• Best Western Plus – 1135 24th St, Paso Robles, CA 93446 (free wi-fi, discounted breakfast coupons, no pets allowed)

*We stayed at La Quinta Inn & Suites and it was an amazing hotel. The entire area was so nice and there seemed to be a lot to do, but we didn’t have to time to explore.

Things to See & Do:

• Golden Gate Bridge & Alcatraz Island
  • The bridge has a toll, and if you don’t stop to pay the toll, you will likely get a nice bill in the mail from them. The toll fee was less than $10, so it wasn’t bad at all, but toll rates are set to increase on July 1st, 2018.
  • This is a very popular tourist spot. Be prepared to have trouble finding parking and to pay a parking fee for your time spent viewing the bridge.
  • The bridge has a visitor’s center with parking, a café, and a gift shop. The visitor’s center also has lots of exhibits to see. There are also free walking tours offered on Thursdays and Sundays (more info here)
  • There are a few walking paths around the visitor’s center, one goes up to the bridge and allows you to walk across. Another goes down to the water and offers a great view of the bay and Alcatraz Island.
  • Alcatraz Island is accessible by ferry and tours of the prison (now a museum) are offered.
• Lombard Street
• Eberle Winery
• Adelaida Vineyards & Winery

Suggestions

• Try to get everything done in one stop (eating, restroom break, getting gas). It will definitely make the trip go a lot smoother.
• Don’t make hotel reservations ahead of time. Road trips can have lots of unexpected delays, so wait until you’re close to your nightly stop before booking your room for the night.
• If you plan to stop and do tours of Alcatraz, make reservations ahead of time, but be sure to account for the trip there plus about an hour in case there are any delays getting there.
• Keep in mind that the Golden Gate Bridge has a toll, so if you don’t stop to pay the fee as you cross, you will get a bill in the mail.
• The route goes down through “wine country” so there will be lots of opportunities to stop and taste some of the delicious wines produced in the area.

Stay tuned for part four, where I’ll cover our trip from Paso Robles, CA to Tucson, AZ!