If You Like - Coastal California - page 49

Scenic Drives
Drop the convertible top and step on it! California's coastal routes deliver surreally beauti-
ful ocean vistas and serpentine cliff-side stretches.
Pacific Coast Highway SoCal's stretch of Hwy 1 famously hopscotches between beach
towns in Orange County.
Avenue of the Giants Roll through groves of redwood trees in NorCal's Humboldt Red-
woods State Park.
17-Mile Drive Postcard Pacific vistas beckon all along this private toll road around the
Monterey Peninsula.
Big Sur Twist and turn atop dizzying sea cliffs along Hwy 1 on the bucolic Central Coast.
San Diego's North County Cruise lazily alongside the Pacific past funky beach towns and
famous surf spots.
Aquariums & Zoos
California is chockablock with futuristic theme parks and other family-friendly attractions
to keep kids entertained for days, but for many, it's the local wildlife that are the real stars.
Monterey Bay Aquarium Watch otters play at feeding time, touch tide-pool critters and get
chills as sharks swim by.
San Diego Zoo In leafy Balboa Park, California's best zoo exhibits over 800 different spe-
cies from around the world.
San Diego Zoo Safari Park Take a safari-style tram tour through an 'open-range' zoo where
giraffes and lions roam.
Aquarium of the Pacific Meet coastal California's denizens of the deep at Long Beach, just
south of LA.
Los Angeles Zoo Originally a refuge for retired circus animals, this conservation-minded
zoo inhabits Griffith Park.
Marine Mammal Center Marin County's wildlife hospital and oceanic education center has
unbeatable eco-credentials.