Dav,
I never rode that route, but a little farther north, route 299 heads west out of Redding (where I grew up) to the Pacific coast. It goes through old gold mining towns with some really interesting places to poke around. The Chinese Joss House in Weaverville is not to be missed. And the road is spectacular, up and over the Trinity Alps, with breathtaking dropoffs down to the white-water river far below. The road is fast 2-lane, with lots of up-and-down, and challenging curves. Lots of log-trucks, too.
Farther north yet, Rt. 138 from near Crater Lake, also heads west, and again has some great scenery. Not a lot of traffic, either. I did this with my brother two years ago, and the only drawback was we were riding into the sun late in the day.
Steve