Best MonthsApr – Jun, Sep – Oct
Drive Time (SF–LA)~6 hours
Signature RouteHighway 1
Time ZonePacific (PT)
Route Guide
Highway 1 and the desert, back to back
California's trick is that you can string together three completely different climates in one loop: foggy coastline, Mediterranean wine country, and high desert — often in the same week.
- 01Highway 1, Big Sur. Drive it early morning before the fog burns off and the pullouts fill up.
- 02Joshua Tree. Enter from the north gate at sunrise; the boulders cast the best shadows before 9am.
- 03Highway 395. The eastern Sierra route — skip it if snow has closed Tioga Pass (usually closed Nov–May).
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