[ard]

First off, thank you fellow Pelicans for offering great suggestions.

Rather than multi-quote all responses I will try respond to a few items that came up - no disrespect to the posters.

Time

• @seahawk asked how much time I have: I am allowing myself about 14 hours departing from near Walnut Creek in the SF East Bay at 0600 and hoping to get to El Segundo around 2000. I don't know whether heading west to San Francisco to start the trip is in the cards. Also in the way back I will be under a tighter time constraint (~ 8 hours), therefore I am more inclined to take the "rural detour" routes on the way down.
• @look 171 I am not sure whether that time constraint eliminates some or all county / back roads.

Routes

• @look 171 suggested G16. I have taken G16 from Greenfield to Carmel and it is indeed a great road.
• Has anyone driven Parkfield Grade / Parkfield Coalinga Road recently and can report on road conditions? It connects Hwy 198 to the Hwy 41 and Hwy 46 junction (the "James Dean Memorial junction")? If it is drivable in a 911 I'd take that and connect to Hwy 33 by going east on Hwy 46. If not I'd either take Hwy 198 east to Coalinga and catch Hwy 33 there or take Hwy 198 west, join 101, and go back east at the Hwy 58 junction.

Thanks again