Highway 1 closure tested one traveler’s flexibility
Michelle Carlen knows about roadblocks.
She started her job as president of Central Coast Tourism Council at about the same time an enormous landslide closed part of the California Central Coast’s main tourist attraction, the iconic stretch of U.S. Highway 1 that winds along the coastline from Ventura to Santa Cruz. For her, it was an on-thejob crash course in crisis management. But the lessons she learned also made her a better traveler, and they can do the same for you.
“The drive along Highway 1 is the travel experience itself,” says Carlen, who heads the nonprofit regional tourism marketing organization funded by Visit California, the state’s tourism group. “And the road closure definitely changed the experience for travelers.”
More than 10 million motorists make the drive along the coastline every year, stopping along the pullouts to take photos. A seven-mile stretch of Highway 1 near Mud Creek, just north of Hearst Castle, closed in May 2017, after heavy rains triggered a rockslide that buried the road. Officials had planned to reopen the road in September but fasttracked the opening to July to allow summer travelers to take advantage of the new road.
It’s hard to find an analogy for the Central Coast’s dilemma, but it felt a lot like coming to New York to find the Empire State Building closed indefinitely. During the 18-month blockage, California’s central coast lost at least $500 million in tourism spending.
“It was a difficult time for us,” says Carlen. But she’s grateful for the closure, too. Thanks to the obstacles, travelers experienced other regions around the closure. The immovable roadblock on Highway 1 taught Carlen about workarounds, adequate preparation and the importance of seeing new things.
Be flexible
“A block isn’t always a block,” she says. “It creates opportunities.”
Carlen says she discovered that philosophy also applied to her personal travels. Take airport security lines, which are long at almost every terminal. Well, it turns out there’s a workaround. She found that few people look beyond the closest TSA checkpoint to their airline check-in or airport entry when there often is a less busy terminal and smaller security lines in other areas. “Be flexible,” she advises. She always goes a different direction than the crowds, doubling back to another terminal to minimize wait time.
Be over-prepared
“Plan ahead even more than you think you have to,” Carlen says.
Highway 1 demands a certain level of over-preparedness. If you’re thinking of driving up the road, she advises downloading such apps as Gas Buddy and AAA Mobile to find gas stations before your trip. It’s a lesson she learned once when she almost ran out of fuel.
““And pack snacks, because you never know where you’ll find the next food stop,” she says.
Not so fast
“Often, these obstacles create an environment that wouldn’t normally exist,” she says.
“You might end up chatting with the person standing near you at the airport, or sharing a conversation with a local business owner of the town you are visiting that could lead you to a secret spot that you didn’t come across when you completed your research for your trip plan.”
Highway 1 taught Carlen about patience, preparedness and perseverance, and made her a smarter traveler.
More tips for a Highway 1 trip
❚ Always stay on the trail. Slippery cliffs and plunging gorges punctuate a bucket-list road trip like Highway 1. If you pull over, stay on the marked trail. And watch yourself when taking a selfie near the drop-off. ❚ Find a good photo app. Carlen recommends Really Good Photospots (https://photospots.app/), which shows you the best locations for taking a photo along the way.
Christopher Elliott is a consumer advocate. Contact him at chris@elliott.org or visit elliott.org.