Upcoming road trip-need advice (NW Calif.)

[L.A. Brian]

The last portion of the state that I've yet to cover is the mountainous northwest portion in between US 101 and I-5. From either Eureka or Redding, I'll take Highway 299 into the mountains. I'll eventually end up at a town on Highway 96 called Happy Camp that's not far from the Oregon border (from there, I'll take a small road north into Oregon and move on). How I get to Happy Camp is the issue. I can take Highway 96 on the western side of the mountain range and drive north directly to it. I can also take Highway 3 on the eastern slopes, bypass Trinity Lake, straddle I-5 for awhile, and then take Highway 96 west to the town. I've also noticed that there are a couple of smaller roads that crosscut the areas in between 96 and 3.

Anyone knowledgable of the area that could point me to the most scenic route?

 

[NoBonus]

Anything involving I-5 in NW Cal cannot be that scenic (except around Shasta Lake and Weed). I would think the weather and scenery might be a little nicer on the western side, but I would bet the roads are twisty as heck. To be honest, I cannot remember which road we drove to get to Happy Camp, maybe someone else can give some input.

 

[L.A. Brian]

If I took the time to straddle I-5 on Hwy 3 and see stuff I've already driven by previously, it'd be under the assumption that the drive westbound on Hwy 96 between I-5 and Happy Camp was damn good. As it stands now, I'm more inclined to take Hwy 299 out of Redding, go up to Trinity Lake to camp (it's the only place I see on the map in that area with standard camping facilities), go back down to 299 and drive it west until I hit 96. Then I go north to Happy Camp and into Oregon and a land with better beer and cheaper gas prices. Doing that route would allow me to see a good chunk of an area that I've never seen before.

And I don't mind the windy roads as I've mapped out plenty of them to drive on beyond there. The only time it sucks is when I wake up before or during sunrise and am driving those roads with a bright early-morning sun shining on me. It's a good recipe for motion sickness.