Southern California - Hills / mountains?

Hi, I live in the Bay Area but will be going to UC San Diego in the fall. Are there any good/steep hills or mountains around the area? Thanks

Oh yes :)

http://www.epictrain.com/Palomar_Mountain.html

George and I just spent a weekend doing repeats on Palomar Mountain. On Monday we climbed Mt. Laguna (Old Sunrise Hwy) from near Lake Cuyamaca, dropped down to Pine Valley, then went over and climbed Kitchen Creek Rd. which is a partially closed road (to cars, motorcycles) climb that goes back up to just below the summit of Mt. Laguna.

There is some great climbing here. :) We need to blog and we have tons of pictures of the climbs. I'll post them when they're uploaded to flickr.

Thank you, I am glad to hear this

Brandy, would you say there are other climbs that are easier for hill n00bs than palomar mtn? Perhaps something with a shallower grade? Put it this way, I can barely do 1/2 of SART without being incredibly winded.

There are tons of climbs along the I-15 corridor north of Escondido, plus several leading to, and near Ramona.

There are tons of climbs along the I-15 corridor north of Escondido, plus several leading to, and near Ramona.

Would you say that's easier than palomar mountain? Also how do I find these climbs? Any specific website which outlines some paths and their characteristics (length, grade, ease, etc)?

Much easier. Palomar is about 3X as much elevation gain as any other climb in the area.

Here's a good resource to start with. http://www.fullcommitment.com/Nav.aspx/Page=/PageManager/Default.aspx/PageID=1356173

Click on the climbs of North County tab on the upper right.

Much easier. Palomar is about 3X as much elevation gain as any other climb in the area.

Here's a good resource to start with. http://www.fullcommitment.com/Nav.aspx/Page=/PageManager/Default.aspx/PageID=1356173

Click on the climbs of North County tab on the upper right.

That's really helpful, do they have anything like that for Orange County?

Brandy, would you say there are other climbs that are easier for hill n00bs than palomar mtn? Perhaps something with a shallower grade? Put it this way, I can barely do 1/2 of SART without being incredibly winded.

Definitely. If you're just beginning to climb you could start out with easier hills before you take on a mountain. :)

George has some local climbs listed on his site. http://epictrain.com/My_Favorite_Climbs.html We're hoping to add to it more in the future.

Have you done Santiago Canyon? If you start at Tustin Marketplace, you have a good climb up Jamboree and then the canyon rolls and rolls and rolls. From Santiago Canyon, you can also climb Silverado Canyon, which is a pretty gentle climb.

Brandy, what would you say is the hardest climbing in the San Diego area? I want to see how it compares to the Bay Area.

Brandy, what would you say is the hardest climbing in the San Diego area? I want to see how it compares to the Bay Area.

That would be the infamous Palomar Mountain Road (http://www.epictrain.com/Palomar_Mountain.html)... 4241' of climb, 11.7 miles (7.1% average grade, not including the flats)

Brandy, would you say there are other climbs that are easier for hill n00bs than palomar mtn? Perhaps something with a shallower grade? Put it this way, I can barely do 1/2 of SART without being incredibly winded.

Dood, you live in Yorba Linda, you have some nice climbs right in your back yard. I ride there all the time and get at least 100ft/mile. Have you ever climbed Hidden Hills? That's a 800 foot climb in less than 2 miles, It's similar to a 2 mile section of the Baldy Ski lift climb.

Dood, you live in Yorba Linda, you have some nice climbs right in your back yard. I ride there all the time and get at least 100ft/mile. Have you ever climbed Hidden Hills? That's a 800 foot climb in less than 2 miles, It's similar to a 2 mile section of the Baldy Ski lift climb.

My street is a 16% grade over 0.25 miles... I STRUGGLE to get up the thing when I finish my laps around East Lake. The nice thing about East Lake is that each lap is EXACTLY 1 mile, so it's awesome for training/recovery... but it gets boring fast as you see the same scenery every mile.

I remember the days I used to drive my car down esperanza rd/hidden hils rd for fun. I cant believe I didnt think of that. I'll use that as training for hills until i'm confident enough to do the bigger mountain climbs.

My street is a 16% grade over 0.25 miles... I STRUGGLE to get up the thing when I finish my laps around East Lake. The nice thing about East Lake is that each lap is EXACTLY 1 mile, so it's awesome for training/recovery... but it gets boring fast as you see the same scenery every mile.

I remember the days I used to drive my car down esperanza rd/hidden hils rd for fun. I cant believe I didnt think of that. I'll use that as training for hills until i'm confident enough to do the bigger mountain climbs.

I have a training ride that goes through Yorba Linda and Anaheim Hills that is 50 miles with 5,000 feet of climbing. It's a nice warm up for going to GMR/Baldy.

Would you mind posting or PMing me the route information? I'd like to start using that route to gauge and increase my endurance/stamina. Thanks. :D

50 miles and 5,000 feet of climbing, that's only 1.89% average grade.... that doesnt seem too hard :D

50 miles and 5,000 feet of climbing, that's only 1.89% average grade.... that doesnt seem too hard :D

See: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=308385

The route slip is in Excel format in the first thread. If you want I will ride it with you sometime. PM me if you want to go.

Awesome, i'll try riding it on my own first as I probably will not hit ANYTHING close to your 14mph average.

First I gotta finish my custom bike build, i'll make this route her maiden voyage. :D

See: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=308385

The route slip is in Excel format in the first thread. If you want I will ride it with you sometime. PM me if you want to go.

I put the route into bikely for the ability to see the route on a map.

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Tour-de-Yorba-Linda-Anaheim-Hills

Looks like a pretty fun roller coaster ride too:

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=79145&stc=1&d=1219305541

My street is a 16% grade over 0.25 miles... I STRUGGLE to get up the thing when I finish my laps around East Lake.
I'd probably drive to the bottom of my street to do a ride if I lived at the top of a 16% grade. I actually plan my routes so most of them end in a slight descent for an easy cool down.

Hi, I live in the Bay Area but will be going to UC San Diego in the fall. Are there any good/steep hills or mountains around the area? Thanks

You dont have to go anywhere. Just do repeats on Torrey Pines right next to UCSD.