Northern California - Reload this Page Driving from Seattle to NJ mid-May with bike, where should I ride?
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sneekyjesus
03-01-09, 06:32 PM
I'm thinking of driving through Washington, Oregon, North Cali, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, then either gunning it to N. Carolina or just heading straight back to NJ. Anyone in some of these states have some opinions on rides that shouldn't be missed?
dbikingman
03-01-09, 07:44 PM
If you are coming into Washington along I-90 into Spokane area I would recommend the following ride. http://friendsofcdatrails.org/our_map.html It is a pretty flat ride with like a 2% grade for most of it, it is an old rail line. Depending on how much time you want to ride and where in Washington you plan on traveling I may be able to point out some other rides.
sneekyjesus
03-02-09, 05:11 AM
I'm looking for 40-80 mile rides, not over 4k-5k feet of climbing preferably. Scenic, tough and fun would be my main goals
It's on my own to-do list, but rides up and around Mt Tamalpais (Mt Tam) in Marin county apparently have some of the most scenic roads in the bay area - you might want to post something asking about favourite routes in the forum, or perhaps one of my NorCal bretheren will suggest something here?
Honestly, it's tough to nail down one or two good rides in the bay area as there are so many options. As an east bay guy, I've gotta say Mount Diablo is well worth the effort - ~11miles and 3300ft of climbing or so. Views are spectacular and the roads are very well maintained and relatively lightly travelled.
BlastRadius
03-02-09, 09:43 AM
I second a ride from San Francisco, across the Golden Gate Bridge, up and over Mt. Tamalpais, and back to SF. It's about 57 miles (IIRC) and definitely scenic and fun.
How much time do you have? Coming to California is WAY out of your way. Unless you have lots of time, the epic riding and amazing scenery in my opinion will be in the Rockies (especially Montana, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado). The problem is that the big mountains may still have snow that time of year (especially up north). If you are tight on time, you might want to take a more direct route to give you more time riding and less time on the freeway. If you have a month, then by all means come to California and we can show you tons of great rides. There is some great riding to do along the way, especially Crater Lake National Park (check in advance- the roads may be closed that early in the season) and Lassen Volcanic National Park (same advice re road conditions). I hear that the coastal redwoods/lost coast regions are amazing as well. If you can, a stop in Bend, Oregon would also be amazing for riding, hiking, skiing, kayaking, etc.
In any case, have a great trip and let us know how it goes!