'tis a pity the trip is OW as you could be missing some spectacular scenery.

I recommend a few days in the L.A. area for beaches, then head inland to Yosemite and CA 49 to --- Downieville or Auburn or even to CA 49 at its northern terminus). From there, head back out to Napa/Sonoma along the Feather River (CA 70?) and then to the coast, up US 101 (ideally from S.F. to where it cuts inland). May want to go up to Ukiah/Eureka until you get to southern Oregon and the oregon Dunes, cut inland to Crater Lake (work arond getting a place to stay at Crater Lake Lodge if you can). From there, you can go inland to go north (nice arid country with lots of ancient volcanic features), and cross back to the coast on US 20 (North Cascades highway) to Burlington and up I-5 to Vancouver (or go up Chuckanut drive for more coastal scenery).