SF Bay Area - Best driving roads for a Sunday morning blast?

[wjk_glynn]

Added...

• DesmoSD & david's recommendation:
  • Winters, up around Lake Berryessa to Hwy-29, back down to Angwin - https://goo.gl/maps/AicGhLze7gD2

[wjk_glynn]

Matt Farah recently reviewed an Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio as part of his signature 'One Take' series.

He normally does his reviews down in SoCal, but this one was mostly on Hwy-9 (between Hwy-35 and Hwy-236).

Karl.

[1mang]

Here's another good route to add to the Mines Rd. which adds Del Puerto Canyon Rd. to I-5. You can daisy chain it however you like. Some bumpy areas but generally enjoyable and secluded. You will feel like you are not in California.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/1619...d37.360178!3e0

[wjk_glynn]

Originally Posted by 1mang

Here's another good route to add to the Mines Rd. which adds Del Puerto Canyon Rd. to I-5...

Thanks. I've added it to the top post.

Karl.

[1mang]

Here's a website that organizes driving tours for those who are interested. You can see what routes they take so you can drive on your own if you like.

http://www.raddrives.com/

Kinda cool to have a poor man's Gumball Rally...

Thanks for keeping original post up to date!

[wjk_glynn]

Originally Posted by 1mang

Here's a website that organizes driving tours for those who are interested. You can see what routes they take so you can drive on your own if you like.

http://www.raddrives.com/

Thanks. I've captured it plus another recommendation...

Others' Recommendations

• iphilips' recommendation:
  • Diablo Grande Pkwy back out to I-5 - https://goo.gl/maps/5vLJSed6rc32 (~7 miles)

Other Websites

• Road Adventures
  • As recommended by 1mang on 1addicts

Karl.

[snub-nose 28]

Originally Posted by spxxx

Well Laguna Seca is a good start... lol

Alpine Road is an amazing hill climb type of road. Not super smooth but amazing views and switch backs. Might go for a drive today.

There are the early morning blasts to Alices. There are cars and coffee via back-roads. There are the socal Smokin' Tire pattern, and alike. All are wrong time, wrong place and 'discovered'.

Serious drive in your SF backyard? This then, the 275GTB four-cam long-nose 'barn find' among rare Engineered-Just-for-The-Drive ribbons: Naciemiento-Fergusson Rd.

Fuel in King City. Not much else there (south from SJ on 101). Head sw out toward Fort Hunter-Liggett. It meets NF there, and go west, young man, go west.

Avoid weekend eves during camping season. In any case: It's a "stay far away from this route" in the campers route companion publications.

Simply the best out-and-back in Cali. Enjoy. Oh, leave the Vanquish and Stradale at home.

Burgers, no adult beverages, at Nepenthe obviously.

[wjk_glynn]

Originally Posted by snub-nose 28

...the 275GTB four-cam long-nose 'barn find' among rare Engineered-Just-for-The-Drive ribbons: Naciemiento-Fergusson Rd.

Fuel in King City. Not much else there (south from SJ on 101). Head sw out toward Fort Hunter-Liggett. It meets NF there, and go west, young man, go west.

Appreciate the specifics, here's a URL for that route (~24 miles) - https://goo.gl/maps/X9LUPQJVcDx

Let me know if I've made a mistake.

Originally Posted by snub-nose 28

Burgers, no adult beverages, at Nepenthe obviously.

Are you then recommending heading north up to Big Sur, to 'refuel' at https://www.nepenthe.com/ ?

Thanks.

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Thread's been kinda quite for a little while. Does anyone have any new roads to recommend adding to the list?

Thanks.

Karl.

PS: And now for a completely unnecessary & gratuitous pic from my Sunday morning run on Hwy-9 (earlier today)...

[wjk_glynn]

Added the Bolinas to Mt. Tamalpais recommendation under the Rennlist section as follows...

• david's recommendations:
  • From Point Reyes Station to Sea Ranch (via Hwy-1), and then east to Geyserville - https://goo.gl/maps/yJvGwZtwdHR2 (~122 miles!)
  • From Bolinas to Mt. Tamalpais - https://goo.gl/maps/spfWExeSKqS2 (~10 miles)
    • Note that david does add some qualifying comments in post #95

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

I've re-organized the top post to group the roads by region as follows. I think it helps with readability...

• North Bay
• East Bay
• South Bay / Santa Clara County
• Santa Cruz Mountains & County
• Peninsula / San Mateo County
• Points further South & East of the SF Bay Area

Additionally added the following new recommendation:

North Bay

• Calistoga to Clear Lake via Hwy-29 - https://goo.gl/maps/13JRMjQYF5m (~36 miles)
  • Recommended by archizzzz

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Added the following to the top post...

North Bay

• Need for Speed movie sequence from Ukiah to the Point Arena Lighthouse - https://goo.gl/maps/NYT7XCLQGeH2 (~48 miles)
  • Recommended by phuonger

East Bay

• Redwood Road - https://goo.gl/maps/F8sEXuf7bYs (~11 miles)
  • Recommended by derbo
• Pinehurst Road - https://goo.gl/maps/Qb16dsU6KWs (~7 miles)
  • Recommended by derbo
• Palomares Road - https://goo.gl/maps/oLnnD4MwbHS2 (~10 miles)
  • Recommended by iturbo_bmw
• The Bear Creek / San Pablo Dam loop near Berkeley / Orinda - https://goo.gl/maps/dNfc7GhHS8A2 (~19 miles)
  • Recommended by wyatth

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

I've added the following to the top post.

North Bay

• From Point Reyes Station out to Limantour Beach - https://goo.gl/maps/YtHLWei8Evn (~9 miles)
  • Recommended by TheBruce

Separately...

I noticed a few roads that were recommended in this old Reddit thread that haven't been mentioned here to date:

South Bay / Santa Clara County

• Stevens Canyon Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/FVUtWXhDdaq (~6 miles)

Santa Cruz Mountains & County

• Mt. Madonna Rd / Summit Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/NWhomhaBSGL2 (~26 miles)

East Bay

• Calaveras Rd - (the road is closed at the time of writing, can't generate a Google map URL)
• Niles Canyon Rd. - https://goo.gl/maps/HPan27K5r532 (~7 miles)
• Marsh Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/EziVuVrLo5H2 (~7 miles)
• Wildcat Canyon Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/1SBbCxDCT4u (~4 miles)
• Grizzly Peak Blvd - https://goo.gl/maps/uWMSc1Lepaz (~5 miles)
• Skyline Blvd - https://goo.gl/maps/aTGh3thLPsS2 (~12 miles)

Does anyone here have any feedback/advice on the above from that Reddit thread?

Thanks.

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Came across this one earlier today...

Santa Cruz Mountains & County

• Soquel San Jose Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/NAPo78oLx6B2 (~10 miles)
  • The road itself is quite nice (good surface, nice flowing corners in a number of places)
  • Downside is that there's more residential along it than I like

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Added the following to the top post...

East Bay

• Calaveras Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/FoigDtGTUaT2 (road closed at the time of writing, can't generate a proper Google Maps URL)
  • Recommended by derbo, with additional comments here
• Altamont Pass Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/u8oVjC7oeYk (~8 miles)
  • Recommended by ylk1
• Patterson Pass Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/6si4Hpijfov (~9 miles)
  • Recommended by ylk1
• Tesla Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/wfuJeXuA7d22 (~16 miles)
  • Recommended by ylk1

Santa Cruz Mountains & County

• Felton Empire Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/fHcAcU1Wo4y (~3 miles)
  • Recommended by ylk1
• Run up from Hwy-1 to Bonny Doon, over to Felton, up Hwy-9 to Saratoga - https://goo.gl/maps/7RMCUFudtYT2 (~41 miles)
  • Recommended by ylk1

Points further away from the SF Bay Area

• North
  • CA-36 & CA-3, west of Platina - https://goo.gl/maps/sQ1jGtbEFEG2 (~52 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1
  • Piercy to Rockport (north of Fort Bragg) - https://goo.gl/maps/zwkrWDTMk1P2 (~29 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1
  • Longvale to Dos Rios - https://goo.gl/maps/XJY5FK5xSNL2 (~16 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1
• East
  • Parts of the CA-49 Golden Chain Highway
    • Coulterville to Bagby - https://goo.gl/maps/oQUSDvrhMXr (~10 miles)
      • Recommended by ylk1
    • Downieville to Sattley - https://goo.gl/maps/GZSxTA7HVjE2 (~31 miles)
      • Recommended by ylk1
  • CA-89 in the Eastern Sierra - https://goo.gl/maps/LsmpDkpF6av (~17 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1
  • Pine Creek Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/aEAAZR6VzMP2 (~7 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1, and shown in Motortrend's Ferrari GTC4 Lusso video - YouTube
  • Zurich to Deep Springs on CA-168 - https://goo.gl/maps/fdwieXPsdZM2 (~25 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1
• South
  • Ventucopa to Ojai on CA-33 - https://goo.gl/maps/aAJisLRkW1K2 (~46 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1, noting that it's "Probably the single best road in California"
    • Also featured on Jalopnik's "This Is America’s Greatest Secret Road" - YouTube
  • Horseshoe meadow Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/aXFcwoxMKF32 (~8 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1, and mentioned in Everyday Driver's midship shootout - YouTube
  • 9 Mile canyon Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/UrecnyPzKNJ2 (~9 miles)
    • Recommended by ylk1

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Updated the top post with feedback/editorial from niacin and mrjonger as follows...

North Bay

• Roads leading out to Point Reyes Lighthouse in Marin - https://goo.gl/maps/QBwcx4kcnV62
  • Two options were recommended by Reborn996:
    • Option #1 - Hwy-1 from Mill Valley, then Sir Francis Drake Blvd. to the lighthouse - https://goo.gl/maps/N4A3pNgiJFQ2 (~44 miles)
    • Option #2 - From the outskirts of Lagunitas, take Sir Francis Drake Blvd. to the lighthouse - https://goo.gl/maps/y1q4VjgB7dr (~29 miles)
  • mrjonger notes there's a nice spot for photos at the Cypress Tree Tunnel: https://goo.gl/maps/AY3mjUjsi7B2
• From Point Reyes Station to Sea Ranch (via Hwy-1), and then east to Geyserville - https://goo.gl/maps/yJvGwZtwdHR2 (~122 miles!)
  • Recommended by david
  • mrjonger also recommends the Tomales to Stinson Beach part of this route
  • However niacin has noted (and confirmed by mrjonger as of late-September 2018) that the stretch from south of Valley Ford Road and north of Fallon is down to a single lane with a timed stoplight and is slow to get through: https://goo.gl/maps/jgr7iaxbdtH2
• Roads to perhaps avoid...
  • Marshall Petaluma Rd between Marshall and Hicks Valley Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/Qrdxkxf8r492 (~11 miles)
    • mrjonger recommends against this route because it's too bumpy

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Added the following to the top post...

Points further away from the SF Bay Area

• South
  • Motor Trend's test route for their annual Best Driver's Car competition - https://goo.gl/maps/wWNWqRG5j672 (~4.2 miles)
    • Motor Trend runs an annual Best Driver's Car competition: https://www.motortrend.com/awards/best-drivers-car/
    • Since 2015, the test includes running the cars on a closed portion of Hwy-198 with the help of the CHP
    • This test route is part of 1mang's recommendation of Hollister to Coalinga (see above)
    • Here's where they stage the cars for the uphill run: Street View

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

I updated the top post as follows.

#1 - Added Sensr215's note to the following...

North Bay

• Roads leading out to Point Reyes Lighthouse in Marin - https://goo.gl/maps/QBwcx4kcnV62
  • Two options were recommended by Reborn996:
    • Option #1 - Hwy-1 from Mill Valley, then Sir Francis Drake Blvd. to the lighthouse - https://goo.gl/maps/N4A3pNgiJFQ2 (~44 miles)
    • Option #2 - From the outskirts of Lagunitas, take Sir Francis Drake Blvd. to the lighthouse - https://goo.gl/maps/y1q4VjgB7dr (~29 miles)
  • mrjonger notes there's a nice spot for photos at the Cypress Tree Tunnel: https://goo.gl/maps/AY3mjUjsi7B2
    • Though Sensr215 notes the road out to the Cyprus Tree Tunnel is very rough - just a heads up...

#2 - Added Archimedes recommendation about SR58...

Points further away from the SF Bay Area

• South
  • SR58, from McKittrick to Santa Margarita - https://goo.gl/maps/mgGUZR7VThK2 (~70 miles)
    • Recommended by Archimedes
    • There's even a Wiki page about that road: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cali...State_Route_58

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Added...

North Bay

• Lucas Valley Rd. from 101 over to Nicasio Valley Rd. - https://goo.gl/maps/v1zXytn8DUS2 (~10 miles)
  • Recommended by david
  • He had specific notes and recommendations, so best to read his post for more details

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Earlier today I finally got to drive some of the Marin roads recommended in this thread as part of a PCA GGR fun run to The Racers Group.

https://goo.gl/maps/qWAkSpSe2wS2 (~67-miles)

Starting at a Safeway in San Rafael, the first leg took us west along Lucas Valley Rd. to Nicasio Valley Rd., up to Pt. Reyes - Petaluma Rd., west again to Shoreline / Hwy-1, up to the community of Marshall. Nice roads, good surfaces, and lots of scenery. Because we left at 9:30 am we did encounter typical traffic, and there's not an insignificant amount of residential in parts along the way. But I'd imagine a crack-of-dawn run would be great.

The second leg took us inland on Marshall-Petaluma Rd. over to Chileno Valley Rd., then up to Tomales Rd. Here the road surfaces were quite a bit rougher, but not horrible. The upside was far less traffic, so the cars could be given free rein.

Tomales Rd. took us over to Petaluma where The Racers Group is located. There we met Kevin Buckler, got a shop tour & tech talk, had lunch, did a little wine tasting - a very nice way to spend a Saturday.

Karl.

[wjk_glynn]

Added...

East Bay

• Skyline Blvd (Oakland), from Golf Links Rd to Redwood Rd - https://goo.gl/maps/7PitaMKwXRnaL5vA6 (~5 miles)
  • Recommended by Two718s noting "it's a fun, albeit short, run, from Golf Links Road to Redwood Road. Maybe 3.5 miles but lots of smooth curves and great views. The only issue are the many driveways leading to the road. But early on a weekend morning, or mid-day on a weekday, it's usually deserted."

[dtla1]

Thanks a ton for this! I just moved up here from LA where the Malibu area at 6:30-7:30AM on the weekends where my norm, as well as the very occasional trip up to Hwy 33 (I grew up and have family close to 33). Did some quick research a couple weeks ago and found your thread on rennlist, good to see you've been updating here as well.

I need to drive some of these at the ax crack of dawn now. I did Hwy 9 up from Santa Cruz to San Jose a few weekends back, but it was at about 2PM on a Saturday so a lot more traffic than I'm used to but not horrible.

Thanks again!