Hands down better than the tail of the dragon. there are many roads in NC, AR, Mo, etc than can be strung together to make epic rides but Hiway 1 as 1 long stretch is absolutely amazing. Throw in the other roads mentioned above and you have some long days of riding with big grin and many curves and elevation changes.

 

Here is another road in the same general area of northern California that rivals all those dragons.

http://www.sundaymorningrides.com/road/7920642/

I got to ride this again today heading west from 101 to the PCH. Coming the other way at one point were perhaps maybe 80 HD baggers divided into five or six groups, spaced a minute apart. My riding buddy thought this was some HOG chapter's target run where other HOG chapters take part and it is a fundraiser.

The road itself goes from totally modern to fairly primitive but paved road. It is pretty deserted, too. Some slow corners but otherwise quintessential California coastal mountains.

 

Looks like a good ride but for me I've to deal with the bay area to get that part which will cancel off the fun before it even starts.

 

I don't understand the problem. It is easy to avoid the Bay Area when traveling from the San Joaquin Valley CA to the road I mentioned. If it is the traffic in the Bay Area, which I admit is usually heavy, why not route yourself north through the valley and then west to avoid Bay Area traffic?

 

A trip down Hwy 1 for me probably ends at Bodega Bay unless I can figure out a good way to bypass the Bay Area. Sure would like to ride Big Sur, but hate city traffic.

 

Easy. Just stay on Highway 1 all the way down until you hit Morro Bay.

 

To avoid the Bay Area totally you would have to go far out of your way. I can take you through San Francisco with a minimum of traffic.

You can ride Highway 1 down as far as Mill Valley, then you need to go on 101 over the GG Bridge. If you stay in the extreme right lane at the toll plaza, about 100 feet past the toll plaza make a right turn. After a short left you make another right on Lincoln and that takes you out of the Presidio. What you can do then is to hug the coast line of SF. You wind up going through one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the country, and then just keep hugging the coast. It will take you past the front of the Palace of the Legion of Honor (an art museum). Stay along the coast and you'll go past Lands End, the defunct Sutro Baths and Ocean Beach. Take that until you can't possibly go any further and then eventually you'll wind up in Pacifica where you pick up Highway 1 again all the way to Socal.

 

Thanks for the info. I'm more of two-lane highway guy, so city and freeway traffic makes me a little twitchy. Looks doable. Best time to go over GGB?

 

Going south the heaviest traffic over the bridge is in the morning. There is now a moveable barrier in the middle of the bridge so they can open or close a lane in either direction fairly easily. I sometimes hit traffic on the bridge on Sunday afternoons returning from a ride. Regardless, the traffic over the GG Bridge is not as bad as any of the other bridges.

There are no toll takers on the bridge. When going over the bridge (and remember to be in the extreme right lane), you are suppose to go to the GG Bridge web site and pay the toll. Locals have a transponder. But Architect went over last year and said he never paid and never got an envelope in the mail. So you take your chances if you don't pay the toll online.

One last thing. If you want some spectacular pics with your bike in the foreground, get off at the very last exit 200 yards before the bridge, Alexander Avenue. You take the exit and immediately make a left and go up a small hill. You can see the hill from 101. That is where you can get spectacular pics. If you go on that road to the end, about a mile, you get a great view and pics of the Golden Gate.