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In 2 weeks I will be moving to San Luis Obispo from Orange County. Anyone know of good hiking in the area or nearby? What's the easiest way to get to the eastern Sierra from there?

Hey catalyst81, welcome to SLO. I live a little north of town, near Paso Robles.

"Good" hiking in or around SLO is a bit subjective, but it can be found. The Las Padres NF is also popular and not too far of a drive.

Getting to the east side of the Sierra is a bit of a haul, especialy from SLO since it is nearly midway bewteen the two primary highways that lead east, hwy 46 and hwy 166.

I've found that the quickest route is 46 east to hwy 99, south to hwy 178, then across the mountain to hwy 14 (then north to 395).

From SLO it would appear from a map as though taking 166 to 99 to 58 to 14 would be about equal in time to the route I take, but I'd still bet heading north from SLO on 101 to 46 east would be quicker. YMMV.

Thanks a lot! I'll actually be in Atascadero, so not too far from you.

Ah, good deal. Don't hesitate to contact me if I can help with anything.

Bishop Peak is a surprisingly pleasant hike ...

http://www.summitpost.org/mountain/rock/184644/bishop-peak.html

But when I'm in the area, I usually head for the excellent trails along the beach.

Hey guys,
My mom and her husband are thinking of moving to Atascadero, or very close, as my brother just moved there. They want to rent something, have a very limited income, and they've looked and haven't found very much they like; except my mom's husband, who found an apt. in some senior living place, but it's very small. Too many details here, I know. But, the point is, anyone know of someplace that's halfway cheap and pleasant, perhaps a small yard, some amenities, pool or otherwise, senior center or otherwise, small house, etc. etc. that I might suggest to them?

Thanks in advance, and sorry for all the boring details.

Ps. That Bishop peak looks pretty cool.

The best part about SLO is that there are random trails all over the place near or in town...great for trail running and dayhiking. My favorites...

(1) Anything in Montana de Oro.
(2) The Irish Hills. Trailheads off Perfumo Canyon Rd. and Madonna Rd.
(3) East/West Cuesta Ridge trails. Park at the top of Cuesta grade along the 101.
(4) Cerro Alto. Trailhead off the 41 between Atascadero and Morro Bay.

For longer hikes and weekend trips, the Silver Peak wilderness (check out the Cruikshank Trail) is only about 30 minutes north of Cambria. Big Sur is an hour beyond that.

The best way to get to the Eastside from SLO is to go 101N, 46E, 99S, 58E, 14N, 395N. I made that commute twice a week for two summers. It takes me between 5.5 and 6 hours to get to Bishop.

Oh yeah, and Bishop Peak is cool, but the trail usually looks like this all the way from the bottom to the top:

I really enjoyed a quick trip in Montana de Oro State Park this past Feb. I didn't know anything about it prior to stopping by - but after an awesome day I definitely have it on my list of places to visit again.

labgloves wrote:I really enjoyed a quick trip in Montana de Oro State Park this past Feb. I didn't know anything about it prior to stopping by - but after an awesome day I definitely have it on my list of places to visit again.

Montana de Oro State Park is one of my favorite places. Go at low tide to see all the strange creatures in the tide pools, but keep an eye out for critters like this too:

http://www.summitpost.org/image/648552/442727/bobcat.html