Which California state route is commonly called the Pacific Coast Highway?

California State Route 1 is the state route commonly called the Pacific Coast Highway.

Usually abbreviated PCH, SR 1 follows much of California’s Pacific shoreline between Dana Point in Orange County and Leggett in Mendocino County. It covers roughly 656 miles and is celebrated for dramatic coastal scenery, beaches, cliffs, and landmarks such as Big Sur and the Bixby Creek Bridge.

The name is not used uniformly along the entire route. Different sections are also called the Cabrillo Highway, Shoreline Highway, or Coast Highway. California officially designated the southern segment as Pacific Coast Highway in 1959, and local usage extended the familiar name across other coastal stretches.

Travelers often confuse SR 1 with U.S. Route 101, which also follows California’s coast and overlaps SR 1 in places. The famous road number associated with California’s Pacific Coast Highway is State Route 1.