Driving from SF to Bandon (101 vs I-5)

[Mayor94]

Hey Everyone,

 

I am driving from San Francisco (Daly City to be exact) up to Bandon Dunes on Saturday. It was a last minute impulse decision, and I will be driving solo. For those who have made the drive from SF, would you recommend the scenic route 101 or keeping it simple with I-5? I have to make the drive in one shot and will not be able to stop overnight. I have never made the drive up 101, so the idea of taking that beautiful drive is certainly intriguing. 

 

Thanks for your help. I can't wait to make my first trip to Bandon!

[ayc25]

Recommend taking the more straightforward route going I-5. Solo driving 8.5 hours+ without a night's rest is tough, so you wanna make it as easy on yourself as possible. Maybe you can take 101 down when you get home and perhaps won't be as stressed with time constraints.

[duffer987]

Take 101 up and I5 back. I've done it a fair few times in 1 go and sure it's a bit of a haul, but the excitement of Bandon keeps you going and the coastline is gorgeous in spots. Coming back sucks, it just does, so might as well take I5.

Being in Daly City you'll only have to cross one bridge that way instead of 2 on your way up and if you are leaving early on Saturday, I'd dare to call it an easy drive ,especially with the weather.

 

I'm about to do my 3rd 15.5hr drive from the East Bay to Canada on Sunday, so my point of reference has been skewered into thinking Bandon is a breeze now 😉

 

[Chanceman]

I drove both ways on 101 and recommend it. You could do it solo in one day but you might need a few stops to refresh. Lots to see in redwood country and then the ocean to top it off. OP does this mean you will arrive at Bandon late in the day? Wouldn’t it be better and cheaper to stop overnight somewhere close then drive in early next day?

[Abh159]

Are you leaving super early Saturday and planning to play that day or just driving that day and playing starting Sunday?

 

If it's the former, then go with the quickest route (if it's dark for part of the drive then you won't be able to appreciate the views anyway). If it's the former then go the scenic way. 

[Mayor94]

Thanks for the replies! I am definitely leaning toward taking 101, as I can't hit the road until about 11 AM and won't be playing golf that day. The entire trip itinerary is pretty wild, and planning did not even begin until Sunday night (5 days ago). I love reading the Bandon trip reports on this forum so I'll post my plans below.

 

I am currently visiting my dad in Wilmington NC, but I flew here from SFO three weeks ago. My golf clubs are with me right now. I called Bandon on Sunday to see if they had availability for a single player this weekend, and they did! I impulsively pulled the trigger. My buddy in Chicago was so pumped about my decision that he decided to jump in. He booked a flight to Portland for Saturday, and is grabbing a rental car and getting there late in the afternoon to play the Preserve. He has to leave to fly back to Chicago after our first round on Monday. We were able to get a room at the Inn both Saturday and Sunday night, and I can't believe how flexible the folks at Bandon were to help us get this done so quickly. They are so friendly and it seemed like they were going out of their way to help us pull off this logistical feat. Here is my itinerary:

 

Saturday

5:23 AM flight from Wilmington to Charlotte

CLT to SFO, land at 9:56 AM Pacific (upgraded to first class for $160! This might pay dividends later in the day) 

Grab my clubs from baggage claim, take the BART train to Daly City Station (12 minute ride), pick up my car and hit the road.

Absolute best case: I get into Bandon around 7:30-8 pm and have enough daylight to check out Punchbowl.

 

Sunday

7 AM at Old Macdonald (first group out!)

12:10 PM at Pacific Dunes

Hopefully a third round at Bandon Dunes after that with as many holes as possible

 

Monday:

Work a half day remotely from my laptop from 5-9 AM

11:10 AM at Bandon Trails

4:40 PM at Sheep Ranch (solo)

Go crash at an airbnb for the rest of the week near Coos Bay where I will be working remotely.

 

I am lucky to be a remote worker, so even though my golf trip looks jam packed and rushed, I plan to stay near Bandon the rest of the week and buy a $10 practice facility pass one day after work. I may even play the Preserve one day next week since I won't have time Sunday or Monday.

 

 

[duffer987]

16 minutes ago, Mayor94 said:

Thanks for the replies! I am definitely leaning toward taking 101, as I can't hit the road until about 11 AM and won't be playing golf that day. The entire trip itinerary is pretty wild, and planning did not even begin until Sunday night (5 days ago). I love reading the Bandon trip reports on this forum so I'll post my plans below.

 

I am currently visiting my dad in Wilmington NC, but I flew here from SFO three weeks ago. My golf clubs are with me right now. I called Bandon on Sunday to see if they had availability for a single player this weekend, and they did! I impulsively pulled the trigger. My buddy in Chicago was so pumped about my decision that he decided to jump in. He booked a flight to Portland for Saturday, and is grabbing a rental car and getting there late in the afternoon to play the Preserve. He has to leave to fly back to Chicago after our first round on Monday. We were able to get a room at the Inn both Saturday and Sunday night, and I can't believe how flexible the folks at Bandon were to help us get this done so quickly. They are so friendly and it seemed like they were going out of their way to help us pull off this logistical feat. Here is my itinerary:

 

Saturday

5:23 AM flight from Wilmington to Charlotte

CLT to SFO, land at 9:56 AM Pacific (upgraded to first class for $160! This might pay dividends later in the day) 

Grab my clubs from baggage claim, take the BART train to Daly City Station (12 minute ride), pick up my car and hit the road.

Absolute best case: I get into Bandon around 7:30-8 pm and have enough daylight to check out Punchbowl.

 

Sunday

7 AM at Old Macdonald (first group out!)

12:10 PM at Pacific Dunes

Hopefully a third round at Bandon Dunes after that with as many holes as possible

 

Monday:

Work a half day remotely from my laptop from 5-9 AM

11:10 AM at Bandon Trails

4:40 PM at Sheep Ranch (solo)

Go crash at an airbnb for the rest of the week near Coos Bay where I will be working remotely.

 

I am lucky to be a remote worker, so even though my golf trip looks jam packed and rushed, I plan to stay near Bandon the rest of the week and buy a $10 practice facility pass one day after work. I may even play the Preserve one day next week since I won't have time Sunday or Monday.

 

 

Love it! Great job getting all that sorted 🙂

Definitely 101 then, as you'll be able to make a reasonably leisurely day of it. Being able to drive in daylight and good weather the whole way makes all the difference and makes it easy.

Obviously it will likely be a bit slow through Ukiah/Willits with daytrippers being out, but once past that all the vineyards and the routes out to Mendicino are pretty much done.

[4Eyes]

101 has a lot of road construction and maintenance going on right now. I would absolutely take I-5. See:  https://roads.dot.ca.gov/roadscell.php

 

[CPD]

How long does this drive take realistically. Google maps says 8hrs or 8.5hrs depending on route. I have a Saturday 3:40p tee time. Thinking if I left at 5:30a and budget 9 hours then I should be alright. I’ll be driving with a buddy so we can switch off driving. 

[doc52]

8 hours ago, CPD said:

How long does this drive take realistically. Google maps says 8hrs or 8.5hrs depending on route. I have a Saturday 3:40p tee time. Thinking if I left at 5:30a and budget 9 hours then I should be alright. I’ll be driving with a buddy so we can switch off driving. 

I'd give yourself at least another 30 min. just to be safe. Then again, I probably would leave Friday afternoon to avoid driving and playing in the same day. 

[JB85]

+1 for 101

 

I do the drive from SF pretty regularly, always in one shot and often solo (most recently a couple weeks ago). With 1 stop in Eureka, which is about half way, the quickest I’ve made it is about 7:45. With a couple stops and average delays on the road work detailed below, 8 - 8:15 is a good estimate. In my experiences, I5 is about 20 minutes longer and a much more dull drive. You also run the risk of heavy traffic on 80 leaving the city / Berkeley.

 

The first half of the drive up to Eureka you’re basically working your way out to the ocean. The second half winds through redwoods and then in and out along the ocean with lots of great views.

 

There are two potential negatives on the 101 route. First, cell service is spotty for a much of the drive between towns, so plan accordingly if you stream music, podcasts, etc to your phone.

 

Second is road work. As mentioned in the thread, there are a few spots where 101 goes down to 1 lane. Most of those slow downs are pretty quick to clear. The one larger spot with potential delays is between Klamath and Crescent City where there was a landslide a few years back. If you’re driving on Saturday you won’t deal with active work so the wait shouldn’t be too long unless there’s unusually heavy traffic.

 

Have a great trip!

Edited May 8 by JB85

[pdxhak]

It also depends where you get on 101. If you get stuck behind campers and RVs you are going to regret the decision. The scenery is amazing though and worth the drive if you have time. If it were me and I really wanted to take 101 for the experience, I'd take I-5 on the way up to ensure arriving at Bandon on time and not feeling rushed and 101 on the way home.

[shackmangolf]

101 on a saturday seems brutal.