old coast road

I drove on this road on January 2014 and February 2015. Both times were beautiful and fun!! It is peaceful! It is a road less traveled.First: I am an Los Angeles driver and I love to drive. Both times I took this road were with my 07 Honda CRV. I took the road starting at Bixby Bridge and then the other way around starting around Molera State Park. I LOVED IT! I love the trees, the creek, and the views! Second: my recommendations - 1) There are small hills - begin at Bixby Bridge NOT Molera. There seems to be more downhill coming from Bixby Bridge. My CRV was not happy going up so many hills when I took the Molera entrance. 2) It is not a heavy traffic road - in January I saw 3 other cars. In February I saw plus 15 cars - some parts of the roads are a little narrow but I managed to pass all the cars with no problem 3) This is a dirt road - make sure you have good tires. Some spots are very bumpy. The majority of cars I saw were 4 wheel drive SUVs and pick up trucks. I also saw an Xterra. My car is not 4 wheel drive and I saw other CRVs. Keep this in mind if you have a smaller car. 4) My favorite spot is within the first 30minutes coming from Bixby Bridge where the creek begins and trees are clustered together. The road is a bit wider and It's a great spot to get out, walk, and take photos. So, roll down your windows, take the road slowly, have your copilate take pictures, stop and park when you can, and enjoy nature. PS - respect the private properties. You will pass a lot of private homes.

We have been going to Big Sur for years and always wanted to check out the 10 mile Old Coast Road. Several years ago we started the journey and quickly realized our car was not up for the task and turned around. We recently bought a 4X4, and on our last trip we finally made the trek. What a great excursion it was. Redwoods, ocean views from a few spots, beautiful creek and wildlife. Although a 4X4 is not required a vehicle with some ground clearance is. Do not drive anything delicate. The ruts in this road can be jarring. We came from the south at Molera State Park and ended at Bixby Bridge. Only encountered a few vehicles along the way. Take a lunch and enjoy one of the wonderful spots along the way.

It is 75 miles from San Simeon to Big Sur. Very steep and hair pin turns. They have improved it over the years but it is still knarley.

We enjoyed the Old Coast Road. Ten miles of typical dirt Co. Road. Some quiet secluded travel. Driving thru some redwood groves and other back road lands. I can not recommend this road to any low profile car. Quite a bit of rain washout from our wet December. We were in a Jeep Grand Cherokee, no issues. Again, we enjoyed the ride. Just make sure you get north to Carmel before sunset. Highway 1 locked up completely after the sunset crowd started for home!

We drove the Old Coast Road in good weather, and I would advise you not to take it if it's raining. It's mostly a one lane path, and not very well maintained. Top speed is about 15 miles an hour. The scenery is mainly forest with big hills on both sides. There is no ocean view at all, but the adventure part of it makes the drive worth while. I doubt that we will do it again...

This route is a must. Amazing views of white water and open ocean. Most spectacular driving south. Breathtaking and plenty of spots to pull ocw and just be amazed.

The Old Coast Road was the original route for travelers between Monterey and Big Sur prior to Highway 1 being built and linking the two areas in the 1930's. Without strapping on a backpack, it's the best way to explore the Big Sur back country from the convenience of your vehicle.The Old Coast Road can be access at two locations along Highway 1; at Bixby Creek Bridge and just across from the entrance of Andrew Molera State Park, farther to the south. Cars can travel in either direction. The length of the road is about 10 miles.From the Bixby Creek Bridge, immediately turn east onto the dirt road and you're on your way. As the road crests just below the ridge, you get a great view of the world famous Bixby Creek Bridge to the west. The road then descends steeply and crosses Bixby Creek. Then, a long gradual uphill through the narrowing canyon alongside a small creek near the top. At the top of this canyon is the worst part of the road; a short and very narrow section that looks like it could fall away at any time. After cresting the ridge and coming out into the sunlight, there is wonderful views of the surrounding hills and the ocean off to the west. The limestone strewn road then descends steeply again with several sharp corners. The first views of Pico Blanco, the limestone mountain, can be seen from this section. At the bottom of decent, the road crosses the Little Sur River and enters a fern filled Redwood forest. Resist the temptation to check out the river here because the areas on both sides of the road is private property.The road then climbs again eventually coming out of the forest cresting the ridge after crossing a cattle guard. There is a trail head along this section of the road about 1/2 up from the river bottom that takes you down to the river and into the Los Padres Forest. A wide spot in the road with a gate in the fence marks this spot. At the top of the ridge there is a fantastic view of Pico Blanco and the Pacific down below. The road then makes its final decent exiting on Highway 1 just across from the entrance to Andrew Molera State Park.The road is entirely dirt and can be narrow and steep. Although not designated as a 4WD road, you may want to keep the low slung sedans on the Highway. The County maintained road can be impassable in wet weather so be forewarned. This road affords great views of the Bixby Creek Bridge, the Little Sur River, Pico Blanco, the Pacific, and the Point Sur Lighthouse. Spring is the best time of year to travel this route but really anytime of year will give you a great Big Sur back county experience.

We had been to Big Sur several times and finally got to visiting the Od Coast Road, which was the only way up and down the coast before the state finished building Highway 1. It was basically used by wagons to move goods and people although it is drivable. And it runs along the crest of the mountains. So spectacular views are everywhere.

The drive on old coast road was great. There are better views of Bixby Bridge from this road. The redwood trees are beautiful. It took about 2 hours to drive it but we stopped a lot. I didn't find the drive to be dangerous at all. We were in a four wheel drive jeep wrangler. I wouldn't recommend in small car...the car being open was part of what made it so great.

The Big Sur section of the PCH highway is by far the best part.Fantastic cliff vistas and tight, winding roads make for a very engaging drive with magnificent views. The roads are nowhere near as bad as some people on here have made it seem and any car will be able to manage the drive - it certainly isn't rough or unsafe - and even if you take it at a slow pace there are plenty of turn-offs for you to pull over and let traffic pass.If you are short on time - skip the rest of the PCH and just do the big sur part!

Cool winds, scenic views, lovely spots for picnic. Old coast road was an exhilarating drive! Some good motels and eat outs as well.

We drove from San Francisco to Santa Barbra and took the scenic route and it was awesome yes the roads are windy put the views are spectacular, there are lots of places to stop and enjoy the view we took a few sandwiches and just enjoyed the experience would defiantly recommend.

We saw the high ranking Trip Advisor reviews (#6 out of 15 Big Sur attractions), and sufficiently forewarned it was tough on the car, decided to go for it... and almost immediately regretted it.This is a steep, rocky, pothole-lined road and other than a nice vista of Bixby Bridge and a few fun moments in redwood forest, the views were mediocre at best. One car traveling too fast around a bend nearly careened into us, and another nearly backed off the cliff trying to make way for us to pass. Not to mention the myriad of rocks that crunched and popped under our wheels as we drove over them--all the while praying we wouldn't get a flat tire. One previous reviewer actually got a flat tire.Overall, most of the time our teeth were too clenched and our muscles too tense to enjoy the all too brief enjoyable moments. Too much risk and work for way too little reward. Much better vistas can be had along the 1, so I'd recommend you give Old Coast Road a skip. We wish we had.

I read about this road on Trip Advisor and it was as much fun as expected. I was warned not to take it by the residents if it had recently rained. Fortunately, it was dry, a little bit rough at times, but a fun adventure. You see such a wide variety of topography: forests, hillsides, ranches, and ocean views. The Old coast Road goes from the Bixby Bridge to Andrew Molera. It was a fun adventure in which you never seemed to know what could be around the corner.

This is probably one of my favorite places I've visited in the USA, heck probably even the world. I remember standing mountainside with the wind at my back looking out over the Pacific Ocean and thinking "I have seen the most beautiful place on this planet." This "off-roading" experience is so worth your time!!