Adventure: Pozo Saloon and Pozo Road

A few weeks back we decided to head down to Pozo Saloon east of Santa Margarita for some lunch and possible Jeep adventure afterwards. We’ve been to the saloon several times over the years and love it. Here’s a blurb from their website:

“Experience California as it was in the 1800s. The historic Pozo Saloon, in the town of Pozo, has been a San Luis Obispo County landmark since 1858. It is also one of the finest and most authentic examples of how the west used to be. With its rustic, cozy interior and surrounding countryside, the Pozo Saloon continues to offer locals and the curious traveler the hospitality and frontier friendliness of a bygone day. We are one of the premier concert venues on the Central Coast with lineups that have included Willie Nelson, Dwight Yoakam, Snoop Dogg, Brantley Gilbert, The Black Crowes, Lynyrd Skynyrd and many more.”

This is another one of those places where I wish the walls could talk. So much history. You can check out some photos in the slideshow below but I neglected to get any shots from the inside. Next time. As for the food, I just got a simple cheeseburger with home fries. Annie had a tri-tip salad and Sammy got a grilled cheese with home fries.

We dig the food. It’s backyard BBQ style. Known for their fire grilled meat and certainly good portions of food. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. We sat out in the back under the trees enjoying the view. A must-go in SLO County. Now…time for a Jeep adventure.

We headed east on Pozo Road and stayed on that for quite some time. I truly can’t tell you where all we were because, to be honest, we were lost for about an hour. We reach some of the highest peaks that I’ve seen locally. King of the world type of thing. You can check out photos of those views in the slideshow below.

We stayed on the “easy” dirt roads even though there were many off shoots that the Jeep Rubicon would have loved. I will confess, Annie egged me on to go up this one little short section which I have no photos of…sadly. It had some serious incline and to throw myself under the bus…it scared the crap out of me. Meaning, I was white knuckle driving and my heart rate was through the roof.

That said…it was really fun!

If you’re in to taking adventurous drives around SLO County put this one on your list. BUT, be more prepared than we were. Get maps of the area so you know where you are and where you’re going. I think the photos say it all. The views were absolutely stunning. We want to go back in the spring when everything is green…if it ever rains here again.

Cheers!