Route from Danville area to CSU East Bay?
 

I'm living in Antioch and want to start riding to CSU East Bay (Formerly known as Cal State Hayward) sometimes. I can get from Antioch to Danville, but I'm not sure the best way to ride to CSUEB from there.

I know many of you are bold, confident riders. I'm less comfortable on narrow roads fighting with lots auto traffic, so I'm looking for way in (perhaps some back roads) that don't include coming up Carlos Bee Bl. and 238.

Can you suggest a route?

Thanks!

I guess I should ask about Crow Canyon and Norris Canyon. Has anyone biked these roads>

I've only biked on Norris from Crow Canyon heading eastbound, and on a weekend. Shoulder was plenty wide on CC, however, I still get the heebee-jeebee's riding on Crow Canyon, even on a early weekend morning. That may just be me.

That hill on Norris going Westbound would get the body warmed up. As I remember, there does not seem to be any shoulder on Norris, and me thinks on a morning commute day, that's not good.

As for heading westbound on Crow Canyon, I haven't a clue either. So I'll just be quiet and let someone else with better knowledge try to help you.

Ok, there you go. All finished.

BR

I would have no problem doing Norris/Crow on a weekend, and have. Several times recently, even. I don't think I'd have the stomach for the Crow Canyon part on a commute morning, though - too much fast traffic and enough places with not enough room. And I've heard too many morning traffic reports on KCBS involving crashes at the CC/Coldwater stoplight.

Once you hit Danville, I think heading to Dublin (either on San Ramon Valley Blvd or via the Iron Horse trail) and then over Dublin Canyon on the I-580 frontage road would be safer, albeit a little longer. You'd still have lots of fast traffic, but you'd also have non-stop good shoulders. If you use SRV Blvd, be careful going over the I-580 freeway overpass.

If you use the Iron Horse, you can cross under the freeway at the Dublin-Pleasanton BART station and then pick your way to Dublin Canyon on relatively safe streets. If you use Las Positas instead of Stoneridge to I-680, you won't even have to deal with freeway on- and off-ramps.

In any event, Dublin Canyon would dump you into the east end of Castro Valley. From there, you can pick your way to CSU without having to fight with Foothill, Mission or Carlos Bee. I can't tell you street names because it's been some time since I wandered around that neck of the woods, but Yahoo maps or Google maps should show you the way.

So I guess you've decided to humiliate me even more the next time we ride together, huh? :p

bikingshearer, thanks. I was wondering about that frontage road. If I did that it looks like I'd then go Old Dublin Rd to Five Canyons Rd, to Oakes and then to Campus Drive.

I'll have to drive it and see how it looks. Campus Dr isn't pretty, but I woudn't be on it long.

I don't think this campus gave bikes much of a thought.

That frontage road is the famous Dublin Grade - an incredibly consistent grade, a little steeper going west than it is going east, I think. If you are heading west after lunchtime on it, beware the headwinds - it can make that 5-ish % grade feel like 10%! I use this road as part of loop including Niles Canyon and Palomares if I don't feel like dealing with the Crow Canyon traffic.

It is a great road to ride on, though, just because the shoulders are so wide (at least once you start climbing - it's a bit inconsistent on the flat part for the first half mile or so). If you hit it at rush hour, you can wave to all those commuters stuck in their cars on 580 - they'll basically be parked. To get to the Dublin Grade, head south on San Ramon Valley Blvd, and take the 1st right immediately after crossing I-580. The I-580 intersection can be pretty ugly - no real bike lane, just the shoulder and the far right lane becomes a right turn only onto the freeway. The 2nd lane to the right can also turn or go straight, so you really have to pay attention to those cars, particularly during rush hour.

I haven't tried it in a while, but there's also a frontage road to the north of 580 - basically an extension of Dublin Blvd. Right after the construction gate about halfway up the hill (which was locked the last time I tried it, but has been open other days) there is a new bike path that goes under i-580 and connects with the Dublin Grade on the south side. It's worked some days, but not others, but once the construction is done this will be a very handy way to avoid that ugly intersection with 580.

JB

Edit: Another option would be to jump on the Lafayette Moraga trail just past of Walnut Creek (trailhead is at the end of Olympic, I think), take that to Canyon Rd in Moraga, then left on Pinehurst to Redwood. This would be a beautiful ride, and while there's some hills, none of them are killers. I do not know if that would be longer or shorter than going through Danville/San Ramon/Dublin.

Are you changing schools/jobs?

I'm on sabbatical and working on my masters in multimedia this semester at CSUEastBay. I'll return to teaching at Los Medanos College next semester.

I drove the route I was looking at between the freeway and CSUEB and holy smokes, I may have to find a different way or give up. It's an amazing climb way up to above CSU the a drop down. I could ride it, but not ride it then spend a day at school.

The frontage road on the north side of 580 that JB mentioned is now open (no more construction gate) and is a good way to avoid crossing 580 on SRV Blvd to the Foothill-Dublin Grade intersection. Just east of Castro Valley is Five Canyons Parkway. You can take that to Fairview Ave and ride along the ridge to Hayward Blvd which drops down to the CSU campus. Nice route with some good climbing.

-Glenn

That's Dublin Bl. Google maps doesn't show it connecting to Dublin Canyon.

I drove Five Canyons Parkway. Holy smokes it's steep!

Yes, Dublin Blvd is open and it connects with Schaefer Ranch Road. Schaefer Ranch goes under the 580 freeway and connects to the Dublin Grade (Dublin Canyon) on the west side of the summit. Check out mapquest.com. The maps on that site show the new road. The Dublin Blvd/Schaefer Ranch route is a bit steeper and climbs higher than the Dublin Grade route (but that's a good thing, right? :))

-Glenn

OK! Dublin BL connects to Dublin Canyon. Now I just have to figure out Castro Valley to the campus.
I looked at Five Canyons, but it is really long and has a bunch of 13%+ grades.

I'm going to drive a different way today and see how I'd feel on my bike there.