Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
can catch the San Jose light rail to downtown San Jose. The route also goes to the Santa
Clara Caltrain station. Fares for buses (except express lines) and light-rail trains are $2 for
a single ride and $6 for a day pass.
The main San Jose light-rail line runs 20 miles north-south from the city center. Head-
ing south gets you as far as Almaden and Santa Teresa. The northern route runs to the
Civic Center, the airport and Tasman, where it connects with another line that heads west
past Great America to downtown Mountain View.
San Francisco to Half Moon Bay
One of the real surprises of the Bay Area is how fast the urban landscape disappears along
the rugged and largely undeveloped coast. The 70-mile stretch of coastal Hwy 1 from San
Francisco to Santa Cruz is one of the most beautiful motorways anywhere. For the most
part a winding two-lane blacktop, it passes small farmstands and beach after beach, many
of them little sandy coves hidden from the highway. Most beaches along Hwy 1 are buf-
feted by wild and unpredictable surf, making them more suitable for sunbathing (weather
permitting) than swimming. The state beaches along the coast don't charge an access fee,
but parking can cost a few dollars.
A cluster of isolated and supremely scenic HI hostels, at Point Montara (22 miles south
of San Francisco) and Pigeon Point (36 miles), make this an interesting route for cyclists,
though narrow Hwy 1 itself can be stressful, if not downright dangerous, for the inexperi-
enced.
Pacifica & Devil's Slide
Pacifica and Point San Pedro, 15 miles from downtown San Francisco, signal the end of
the urban sprawl. South of Pacifica is Devil's Slide, a gorgeous coastal cliff area now by-
passed by a car tunnel, though hikers and cyclists can sightsee on the adjacent
Devil's
Slide Coastal Trail
, a paved 1.3-mile section of old Hwy 1.
In Pacifica, collecting a suntan or catching a wave are the main attractions at
Rockaway
Beach
and the more popular
Pacifica State Beach
(also known as Linda Mar Beach; per
car $3), where the nearby
Nor-Cal Surf Shop
( 650-738-9283; 5440 Coast Hwy;
9am-6pm Sun-Fri, 8am-6pm Sat)
rents surfboards ($19 per day) and wet suits ($16.50).
