Vehicles travel along U.S. Highway 101 just outside of Eureka. Many folks travel out of town for the holidays. Locally, there are several options to consider. (Ruth Schneider/The Times-Standard)
Living behind the Redwood Curtain makes most holiday visits a trek. Traveling out of the county to visit family or friends can be a day-long adventure no matter what mode of transportation is used.
Those who plan to visit family or friends for the holidays have the typical options available for travel — planes, trains (sort of), automobiles and buses.
With inflation, those modes of transportation are bound to cost more than last year. Humboldt County gasoline prices are hovering around $5 to $5.50 per gallon for the past several weeks.
A GasBuddy analyst believes that prices will go down as the holiday approaches.
“More Americans are planning on hitting the road for the Thanksgiving holiday this year, and it’s no wonder why,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. “Average gas prices have plummeted in all 50 states in the weeks ahead of Thanksgiving, with $2.99 prices spreading like wildfire just in time for the start of the holiday season. Drivers will be saving over half a billion dollars from Wednesday through Sunday compared to what they spent last Thanksgiving with the national average at its lowest since January.”
The GasBuddy website notes that the West Coast has some of the highest fuel prices in the country. Much lower prices — some under $3 per gallon — are available in many southern states.
Vehicles
Hopping in the car and driving to visit family and friends for the holidays is a popular option. And potentially lower gas prices might be a deciding factor.
Additionally, there will be limited work on local highways during the week of Thanksgiving. Caltrans crews will be working Monday and Tuesday, but more operations are suspended between Wednesday and Friday, according to Myles Cochrane, a spokesperson for District 1.
“Crews will respond to emergencies and there may be some areas where one-way traffic control will be necessary,” he added.
While state routes 299 and 36 will be relatively clear, state route 199 near the Oregon border is still recovering from wildfires that started in August.
“Wildfire repairs are only scheduled for Monday and Tuesday during Thanksgiving week,” Cochrane said in an email. “Weekday work hours in the area have been reduced to 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (as this work previously ended at 5 p.m.). Travelers in this area are still advised to expect up to one-hour delays during work hours and minimal delays outside of those hours and on weekends.”
Cochrane noted the best way drivers can plan ahead for road hazards and construction is to check the QuickMap app or go to https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/. Caltrans District 1, which includes Humboldt County, also posts news on social media accounts at https://twitter.com/CaltransDist1 and https://www.facebook.com/CaltransD1.
Flights
Flying out of town is one of the quickest ways to travel and in the past few years, the Humboldt County airport in McKinleyville has vastly expanded its destination list.
Two airlines serve Humboldt County — United Airlines and Avelo Airlines. United flies to Denver, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Avelo goes to Burbank and Las Vegas.
Cody Roggatz, Humboldt County’s aviation director, noted there are “dozens of connections” at the hubs served by United and Avelo.
He said there is an increase in travelers around the holidays.
“We do encourage folks to get there early because there certainly will be more travelers,” Roggatz said. “So just getting around and getting settled in and ready for your journey is what we encourage everybody to do. Also, when you’re connecting at those larger airports, just try to move efficiently to your next gate, if possible, as there will be more people packing into those airports as well.”
He suggested arriving at the airport an hour to an hour and a half before the scheduled departure time.
Winter weather can put a wrench into travel plans. Fog is often a culprit of delayed flights in Humboldt County and connections in San Francisco. Roggatz said that the United app can notify travelers of weather-related delays. Avelo does not have an app, but its customer service can be reached at 346-616-9500.
Amtrak
While Amtrak is mainly known for its train lines, those do not operate in Humboldt County. But there are Amtrak buses that can take travelers to the closest train connection in Martinez, in the East Bay area.
A bus from downtown Eureka to Marinez can cost around $37 and takes roughly 6 to 8 hours. The Amtrak website is advertising 15% discounts for students.
From Martinez, travelers can connect with trains going north, south and east. The Coast Starlight is a popular route along the West Coast between Seattle and Los Angeles and features over a dozen stops in between.
Greyhound
Greyhound bus lines are one way to trek out of town, but the trips are substantially longer than it would take for a car to make a trip.
There are stops in Arcata, Eureka and Garberville that provide options for a county that covers roughly 4,000 square miles.
The prices of Greyhound fares vary, but some locations cost roughly the same as a tank of gas to get to the prospective destinations. For example, a one-way trip to San Francisco from Eureka on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving costs around $47. The drive takes more than 7 hours. A round-trip ticket to Los Angeles is in the neighborhood of $400 and one way takes anywhere from 20 to 35 hours, depending on the route.
Greyhound also tacks on a nearly $4 service fee on all transactions.
For more information on Greyhound, go to https://www.greyhound.com/.
