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Originally Posted by kevin chipperfield
Thanks for the invite. I am planning on travelling in Jan 2010 though. I figured that if a person veers towards the coast to bypass the passes in N. California then all should be OK. December is a little early for me I think. Ideas?
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If you're set on that time of the year just head towards the coast as quickly as possible. But one never knows what the passes will be like, you may luck out. Once you're on the coast, from Astoria, Oregon, heading south you should be OK for avoiding snow and ice. But do expect lots of rain and possible strong winds.
When I went down in early March I passed the flashing warning signs just north of Eureka. "Winter conditions, snow and ice" it said ...or something to that effect. That applied to the last "escape route" to the coast before siskyu pass. Luckily I took the one before that near Roseville, which had the lowest elevation gain, according to the nice people at the Eureka tourist information centre. I wasn't about to chance the pass when I learned that the freezing level had dropped to about 1000 feet below the Siskyu pass elevation. Don't forget that I-5 sits in a valley and there is a little mountain range between it and the coast.
Don't let any of this stop you. Just be aware that you're travelling during an iffy time of the year. To play it safe you could just pick a nice stretch of two days and gun it towards Cannon Beach, Oregon and then follow the coast. If nothing else, it's a beautiful area.
...Michelle
www.scrabblebiker.com
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