Last Updated on November 4, 2024
I don’t know why, but I always seem to forget just how much I like California. My last visit wasn’t even that long ago – I spent a few days in Santa Monica last spring – but I’d forgotten again that every time I am here, I have an amazing time.
While I despise driving in L.A. (the massive highways and the traffic are just too much for me), I love driving along the coast. And so it was easy to pick the highlight of my time here (so far): a drive down the Pacific Coast Highway into Orange County. I drove the entire length of the PCH in 2010, starting in San Francisco, all the way down to San Diego, and to this day it is one of my favorite drives in the U.S.. I was stoked that I got to drive a stretch of it again last week.
When I drove the PCH the first time, I had just started blogging, and didn’t travel with a ‘blogger mind’ yet, meaning I wasn’t looking for scenic spots to stop at to take pictures, cute shops and cafes to recommend to my readers, or take the ridiculous amount of photos I am taking these days (because, you never know what you might need fifty different shots of seagulls for).
And the worst part: I put my SD card when it was full in the pocket of my jacket without storing the photos on it on my laptop or an external hard drive first. Of course I lost the damn card, and with it, hundreds of photos from our time in L.A. and along the PCH. Which is why the article in which we shared our Top Five Stops Along The Pacific Coast Highway From L.A. To Laguna Beach doesn’t have any photos, except for a mediocre iPhone shot of Venice Beach.
I was happy to be able to retake some of the photos I lost back in 2010, and – score! – with a much better camera than I had six years ago (check out these photos from our drive on the PCH and you’ll see what I mean – looking at these photos makes me cringe now!). Maybe I can finally fill that article with some pictures and update the information – and add some gems to it, like Huntington Beach, which was among my favorite stops on my road trip last week.. I am not sure how we completely ignored it the first time around.
While some things in the towns along the way changed – new coffee shops, new breweries, new restaurants – what hasn’t changed is the incredible natural beauty of Southern California. Driving along the Pacific reminded me once again just how much I like it here.
Have you been to California? What’s your favorite place?
Kathryn Burnell
Tuesday 13th of September 2016
We stayed at Huntington's Beach about 6 weeks ago when we went to Orange County for a long weekend. It was our first visit to the area and we like the it too. Part of the attraction was being able avoid some of the LA highways.