We meet at the lower parking lot of the Mt. Soledad Veteran’s Memorial, at 9 am PROMPTLY. There are no gas stations or bathrooms, so please take care of that before arriving. Bring your masks. Below are the instructions, we will also have printed directions at the meetup.
The route is 27 miles, and with gatherups will probably take about 2 hours, depending on how many cars show up.
Preliminary route instructions (detailed route instructions will be published hopefully on Wednesday):
Navigation Warning: This route includes city streets with stoplights, traffic, multiple turns, etc. If you think you will just follow someone and won't have to know where you are going, you are DOOMED! It is almost a certainty we will get split up at times. Read the below directions, follow them on a map or Google Maps, know the route IN ADVANCE. Bring someone who can be a navigator if you are not a 'map person'!
Much of this follows Jim Everett's 2016 Mini Meet West route so may be familiar to some. Thanks Jim!
First leg: Mt Soledad Veteran's Memorial to Vacation Isle in Mission Bay: We will leave the Memorial and head down Mt. Soledad via La Jolla Secnic to Pacific Beach. There we will follow Turquoise St until it becomes Foothill Blvd, then Ingraham St. and go south on that through P.B. to Mission Bay. After the first bridge, we will be on Vacation Isle and will turn RIGHT at the stoplight, then an immediate LEFT (before the checkpoint for the hotel) and go gatherup at the parking lot to the East of the Model Boat Basin. (see map).
Second leg: Vacation Isle to Spanish Landing Park: We will continue South on Ingraham to the three-way split between Sea World Drive-Sunset Cliffs-Bonita Cove. Take the MIDDLE exit for Sunset Cliffs (see picture). That will cross the San Diego River. Over the river, move to the LEFT to position yourself for the Nimitz Blvd split. On Nimitz Blvd, we will cruise through the Point Loma area, through the Rosecrans St intersection until the Tee with Harbor Drive. Go LEFT on Harbor Drive, to the Spanish Landing Park (second stoplight), then turn RIGHT into the parking lot. This will be your last opportunity for a bathroom break, so use it if you need it!
Third Leg: Spanish Landing to Coronado. Stay in the right hand lanes while we continue down Harbor Drive past the Airport, past Solar Turbines, past the Maritime Museum, past the USS Midway, past the Convention Center, and on down past downtown until we reach Cesar Chavez Parkway just before going under the Coronado Bridge. Turn LEFT onto Cesar Chavez for four blocks until the onramp for Coronado/CA-75. We will go up and over the bridge into Coronado. Once past the old toll booths, move to the left hand lane when safe to prepare for the intersection with Orange Ave. Turn LEFT onto Orange Ave. We will go South on Orange through Coronado, past the Hotel Del, and turn LEFT on Glorietta Blvd just BEFORE the stoplight. If you miss that turn, head down the road a quarter or half mile to a light where you can make a u-turn and come back to Glorietta Blvd. WARNING: there are twelve speed bumps we will be bouncing over on Glorietta Blvd! There we will have the third and last gatherup!
Fourth Leg: Coronado to Balboa Park. Continue after the gatherup (if you make it!) on Glorietta Blvd back to the Coronado Bridge. Right onto the bridge onramp and carefully! merge with the traffic heading back to San Diego. Go up and over the bridge, and after the top of the bridge, move into the CENTER LANE to position yourself for the exit to I-5 North. We will be on I-5 North for about half a mile to EXIT 15B. Take that exit and keep LEFT to go to B Street (NOT to the right for Zoo/Park/Pershing Rd). Go LEFT onto B Street, the go three blocks (past San Diego City College) to Park Blvd. Go RIGHT onto Park Blvd, over I-5 to the stoplight at President's Way. Turn LEFT onto Presidents Way, then LEFT into the first parking lot for our celebration of the parade! Yay, we are DONE!