Nowadays, the best therapy is a car ride adventure. Exactly what we’ve been doing since the COVID-19 closures. We spent the weekend cruising SoCal Orange County Pacific Coast Highway in a Soul Red 2020 Mazda CX-9 Signature.

Mazda provided Golden Woofs a 2020 Mazda CX-9 Signature to test drive in exchange for sharing experience about the vehicle. Golden Woofs only shares information we feel is relevant and useful to our readers.

Awesome Stops on Pacific Coast Highway to Take Your Dog

Pacific Coast Highway, also known as California State Route 1 or PCH, s one of America’s most famous highways (second to Route 66). Many visitors to Southern California take PCH because of the scenic views of the ocean.

Huntington Beach, CA
Surf City Huntington Beach is known for its long 8.5 miles of beach which is excellent for surfing. Huntington Beach is dog friendly and the 1.5 miles of dog beach is visited by SoCal residents and tourists. KB loves it but due to COVID-19, we just went for a quick stroll in downtown Huntington Beach Main St, the anchor pathway to the must-visit iconic Huntington Beach Pier.

The 2020 Mazda CX-9 Signature is very spacious. The CX-9 is a seven-seater; where the rear seats can be folded down (enough room for two big suitcases or large dog carrier). KORU BEAR had an option to say at the back but he is most comfortable just to be on the second row back seat. He enjoyed a relaxing 13 minutes drive (6.3. miles) to Balboa.

Balboa: Newport Beach, CA
We drove to the historic and scenic 3-mile stretch known as Peninsula and visited the white sand beach. Balboa is known as a hidden fun gem for dogs. It’s charming to take a stroll along the waterfront.

The vibrant color Soul Red Crystal of the Mazda CX-9 stands out, especially on a cloudy morning. We receive lots of compliments. Mazda debuted the body color Soul Red Crystal last 2016 to symbolize its KODO—Soul of Motion design.

Crystal Cove
One of our favorite SoCal Orange County PCH scenic drives is when it opens up to Crystal Cove with the view of State Beach. It was a smooth 9minute drive (4.4 miles) to Laguna Beach, CA.

One of our favorite feature is Mazda’s windshield-projected Active Driving Display; a heads-up display that provides relevant driving information such as speed, navigation, direction and more.

Laguna Beach, CA
We stopped at dog-friendly Heisler Park. The oceanfront view is awesome and walked around the park for 2 miles.

Definitely during this pandemic, Heisler Park is a great place to visit; you can certainly keep your social distancing with its wide open space.

Dana Point, CA
From Laguna Beach, it’s a 8-mile drive to Dana Point – a scenic town and known for being a whale-watching mecca. We visited the mile Bluff Top Trail with amazing view of Dana Point Harbor.

The weather on our PCH scenic drive ended up to be sunny with mild wind. We found a hidden spot to enjoy a view of Orange County.

The new Mazda CX-9 is built with your comfort in mind with great headroom. We folded down the third-row seats and created more than 70 cubic feet of space. It was awesome to just chill and utilize the trunk space.

The 2020 Mazda CX-9 recently earned a Top Safety Pick+ from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). To learn more about Mazda CX-9, call your local Mazda dealership. Many dealerships are now offering “no-touch test-drives” and home delivery.