SMA DEPARTED AN IFR ARPT FOR ANOTHER IFR ARPT ONLY 8 MILES AWAY. EXPECTED RECEIVING TWR TO GIVE IMMEDIATE STRAIGHT IN APCH. BECAME DISORIENTED WHEN TOLD TO HOLD OUTSIDE THE ZONE.

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I NEEDED TO FLY MY ACFT TO SAN CARLOS (SQL) FOR ITS ANNUAL INSPECTION. THE WX WAS UP AND DOWN AT PAO AND SQL. ABOUT XA30 I WENT TO PAO AND STARTED ENG. WHEN I GOT THE ATIS I FOUND THE VIS HAD DROPPED TO 1 1/4 MI. THE GND CTLR SAID IT HAD DROPPED IN THE LAST 20 MINS OR SO AND DID NOT LOOK GOOD ON RWY HDG. I SHUT DOWN AND WENT HOME. I CAME BACK TO PAO ABOUT XC00. THE WX LOOKED BETTER. BEFORE LEAVING HOME I GOT THE COMPUTER WX WHICH SHOWED PAO AT 1/2 MI VIS. I CALLED THE PAO TWR BY PHONE AND THEY SAID IT WAS 2 MI. THE ATIS WAS CALLING IT 1 1/2 MI VIS. BY THE TIME I GOT TO THE ARPT AND GOT THE ENG STARTED THE ATIS WAS RPTING IT ABOUT 2 1/2 I BELIEVE. SQL WAS 2 1/4. I TOLD THE GND CTLR I WANTED A SVFR TO SQL AND ASKED HIM TO COORDINATE WITH SQL SO THEY WOULD KNOW I WAS COMING. GOT THE CLRNC OUT OF PAO CTL ZONE 3 MI NW OF PAO; TO MAINTAIN SVFR CONDITIONS AT OR BELOW 1200'. I VERIFIED WITH THE LCL CTLR (TWR) THAT THEY HAD COORDINATED WITH SQL AND TOOK OFF. I CLBED TO 1100' AND WAS TOLD TO CONTACT SQL ON 119.0. I DID SO AND THE CTLR (WOMAN'S VOICE) GOT CONFUSED ABOUT THE CALL SIGN. WHEN SHE GOT IT STRAIGHT; SHE SAID FOR ME TO REMAIN OUTSIDE THE CTL ZONE TO THE E. THESE ARPTS ARE 8 STATUTE MI APART WITH ONLY 2 MI BTWN THEIR CTL ZONE (3 MI RADIUS). THE ATIS ADJOIN EACH OTHER. THE VIS WAS POOR; 1 1/2 MI. I COULD NOT BE SURE OF MY POS DUE TO THE GND OBSCURATION. I ASKED HER IS SHE WANTED ME TO DO A 360; BELIEVING THAT THE CTLR HAD COORDINATED AND SHE HAD ME ON RADAR. SHE JUST SAID TO STAY OUT OF CTL ZONE AND EXPECT DELAY. I CIRCLED TO THE RIGHT TRYING TO LOOP THE SHORELINE IN SIGHT. I WAS CONCERNED ABOUT BEING EITHER IN PAO OR SQL CTL ZONE DUE TO MY INABILITY TO GET A PRECISE LOCATION. SHE ASKED ME IF I WAS AT THE SALT PILE. I TOLD HER I WAS NOT THERE YET; BELIEVING I WAS STILL SE OF IT. CTLR RPTED OTHER TFC. I COULD NOT SEE IT AND BEGAN A LEFT TURN TO BETTER TRY TO PICK IT UP VISUALLY; INFORMING THE CTLR. THE OTHER TFC ADVISED TWR OF VFR CONDITIONS AND THE CTLR CLRED ME TO ENTER THE SQL CTL ZONE SVFR AND FINALLY CLRED ME TO LAND. I PICKED UP THE SQL RWY 30 LESS THAN 1 MI FROM THE APCH END. AN UNEVENTFUL LNDG WAS MADE. I HAVE FLOWN FOR YRS; IFR; IN ALL KINDS OF WX. YET THIS WAS ONE OF MY MOST UNCOMFORTABLE MOMENTS. HAD I KNOWN THE TWRS WOULD NOT COORDINATE MY ARR I WOULD NOT HAVE TAKEN OFF. RECONSTRUCTING MY FLT I BELIEVE I WAS IN THE AREA BTWN THE 2 CTL ZONES; BUT I WAS NOT CERTAIN OF IT IN FLT. DUE TO THE PROX OF THESE ARPTS; THE CONDUCT OF FLT BTWN THEM IN LOWERED VIS CONDITIONS NEEDS TO BE WELL COORDINATED BTWN THE ATC FACS AND THE FLT CREW. THIS WAS NOT!