BootsnAll Travel Community

As part of my RTW trip, I am planning on doing a week from San Francisco to LA via Big Sur (Highway1).
There are a lot of camping places on this segment and I was wondering if it would be worth camping as there don't seem to be many hostels.
I won't have a tent with me so are these available at the sites?

Part of a bicycle trip I did included the stretch you mentioned, highway 1 between San Francisco and LA, and I camped most of the way (I stayed at the lighthouse hostel just north of Santa Cruz, which I really recommend, and another hostel in Huntington Beach near LA, which I don't remember that well.) There are definitely lots of campgrounds. Once you get south of Big Sur it starts getting more built up, and then the campgrounds are more the kind that are conveniently near the road rather than the kind that are in beautiful places. However, they are very cheap (only a few dollars if you arrive by bicycle!) and with southern California weather sleeping outside is always nice. I don't think that any of them rent out tents, but I could be wrong--maybe Big Sur if anywhere.

Depending upon the time of year, you won't need a tent. We are currently in a drought.

South of Big Sur I usually camp at Plaskett Creek campground. I would rather camp at Kirk Creek, which is just up the road. Both of those are USFS. Kirk Creek Campground is always full when I try. The State park at San Simeon has more than their share of very annoying raccoons, by the way.

There are some unusually cool youth hostels farther up the coast; adjacent to lighthouses!

yeah, it'd be fairly unlikely to find a campground that would rent you a tent for the night. good to sleep under the stars though, or even pick up a cheap tent for 40 us dollars at a k-mart. you'll be driving i take it? i have always used the mst bus #22 between monterey and big sur. very convenient now, runs twice a day since memorial day now. you can sleep anywhere you want really, if you are careful about it and don't make a fire.

I love Big Sur and have car camped quite a bit in the area over the years. Camping is the way to go, but nobody rents tents ... Depending on where you are, it can get foggy and damp at night in the summer.

I used to do a lot of day trips in Big Sur when I lived at the south end of the area. But now I usually stay at Pfeiffer Big Sur campground. Pfeiffer has a restaurant and is also close to Ripplewood.

If you are going to stay a few days along that area of the coast you might want to work your way down the road. All of the campgrounds have some aspect to them that is worth the stay, whether it's the hiking trails, the view, or the landscape. I also like Limekiln State Beach which has camp sites on the beach and in the redwoods.

If you aren't going to have *any* equipment with you, you might want to stay somewhere like Treebones or Deetjen's if you can afford it. Deetjen's has a great breakfast. If you are addicted to coffee or breakfast, it would be a good idea to stay somewhere close to food because there is a lot of empty space on that road.

Ripplewood, Deetjen's, and the Big Sur Bakery Cafe are all great places to start the day.

One thing you don't want to do is pull over by the side of the road to sleep. For one thing it's kind of dangerous. The other is that the Big Sur police are not that friendly and they will harrass you in the middle of the night.

http://sf.artist-at-large.com/tag/big-sur/

When heading south towards Big Sur, remember to stock up with provisions at the Safeway in Carmel Valley. Especially wine. You'll need plenty of wine.

Oh yes, there is a Whole Foods and a Trader Joe's in Monterey as well. Maybe the TJ's is in Pacific Grove ... Anyway you should check out the locations as if you are going to keep your expenses at a minimum it is good to hit the stores before going south of Carmel.

There is also a TJ's in Santa Cruz.

there's a trader joe's right near the transit hub in monterey, right across the street in fact. used to be a safeway, but not anymore. i've stocked up there for big sur, plus there's a little grocery/liquor store run by a japanese couple just off the main square closer to the waterfront where you can find all sorts of international food. i forget the name of this little place, but i found it much more practical than tj's for booze and food.