My wife and I will be visiting the Monterey-Pacific Grove area soon. We are thinking of renting a tandem for a couple of afternoon cruises along the ocean. Looks like they have several shops that rent. We will be leaving the fancy bike gear at home and just using running shoes and, if we can get them, toe clips. Does anyone have a favorite trail, cafe, bike rental shop etc? Thanks.

Ride 17 Mile Drive over to Carmel. You'll have to stop and register at the entrance and pay a small fee; at least that was the situation a few years ago when I rode it.

The 17 mile ride is beautiful, but start your ride at the warf and ride towards Pacific Grove, I think that's actually where the trail ends and from there on you are road-side, be very careful though, lots of motor-turists looking at the breathtaking views and not paying much attention to cyclist. Have fun.

It's funny cause my wife and I are actually visiting Monterey this saturday.

Check and recheck your brakes before you ride down the highway on the 17 mile ride by the golf course and head west down to the ocean going pass the language institute. That hill is quite steap and rim brakes may have a heat buildup problem.

huh? what hill? Ok, there are some hills, but I don't remember anything serious.

There was no fee either (rode through this spring), but the gate guard really wants you to use the bike lane not the car lane.

True, no serious hills and no fees at the gate "NEITHER". Oh, and dress accordingly, the weather changes dramatically in that area, wear layers; don't stop at "BIRD ROCK" it reeks, my wife and I call it "CACA ROCK"; oh, and the clam chowder sucks in Monterey; Don't eat at the wharf, it's a rip-off; Kool-Kat cigar Co = awesome (good coffee too!); The Monterey Aquarium is overrated but definetly worth the visit, it's like going to NY and not visiting the Statue of Liberty, as cheezey as that is.

Ok, you made me get out mapquest. Been a bit, so blame faulty memory or brain fart.

The section I am talking about is heading west on Sunset Drive from Forest to Asilomar. Mostly between 17 mile drive and Asilomar Ave. There a train overpass, or waterway overpass, you ride under and then there's a bit of a sharp curvy downhill. Beautiful ride, but good and steep. Can't be more exact in placement as map quest does not have contour lines.

17-Mile Dr. is a bit funny. Since it's a private property they open and close it to bicycles on a whim. You originally signed up and apparently paid a small fee. In the last 14 years I've never paid a fee though. And when you approach the north entrance you go on the sidewalk and there is a little stand with a sign-up sheet on it. When they are out of sign-up sheets you just ride through. Last year when I arrived they weren't allowing bicycles at all. Sometimes they allow them only on weekdays and at other times only on weekends and holidays. But that one time was the only time they didn't let me in.

Follow the Red Lines and it will take you all the way to the South Entrance which will lead you to Carmel. At the split between the 17-Mile Dr. and the South Entrance road there are signs but you have to keep looking for them if you intend to do the 17-Mile Dr. instead of going to Carmel.

The roads are NARROW over some of these areas so be polite to drivers to keep the Drive open to others.

There is a little commercial area with a deli about 3 miles before the South Entrance turn-off.

The actual 17-Mile Dr. turns uphill near the South Entrance and climbs for a couple of miles. When you reach the Freeway Gate entrance you turn left and climb another 1/4 mile. and then turn right. This leads you around the hilltop and eventually back out onto the ocean side again.

There are two outlooks that are rather spectacular when the weather is clear as it normally is between 11 and 3.

Be CAUSIOUS on the downhill from this point. There are right angle turns and the incline is enough for you to get well over 50 on a tandem.

Be sure and stop to see the Lone Cypress along the ocean. This is the tree which is the symbol of Monterey. It's about 10 miles in I think.

Also there is a road that goes up the Carmel Valley for a long way. There is moderate to heavy traffic over the first half and then after the town of Carmel Valley it gets a great deal lighter. You could follow this road all the way to King City I believe if you wanted to do a century. But the valley is pretty scenic.

Thanks everyone for the info--it was very helpful.

I'm a little late to this thread, but I can't help but comment.

I rode into Pebble Beach today (actually yesterday, since it's 2:30am) and they didn't even bother to have us stop. I take it that they do sometimes want you to sign in, but the literature I've seen always says entry is free for bikes, though there is a toll for cars. Sometimes they close Pebble Beach to tourists (usually around big events, like the ProAm), and that may also include bicycles (not sure).

The suggestion to start out at the wharf was a pretty good one. I do a loop around the north/northwest side of the peninsula as part of most of my daily rides. Starting at the wharf puts you on the rec. path, which is a pretty nice bike path, but it will likely be crowded with joggers and other cyclists and loiterers if you're planning on visiting during a weekend. The path does end in P.G. and you'll make a right and ride along the ocean for a few miles to the northwest tip of the peninsula, and then it will turn southwest. Eventually, this road (which will be sunset, by this point) turns inland (and up hill a bit) and you'll make a right, if you want to take 17-mile drive through Pebble Beach.

The weather does not really change drastically here (in fact, its pretty much the same, all year ... cool and damp), but layers is certainly a good idea as the wind coming off the ocean can make it pretty cold, but get a hill or some houses between you and the ocean and it can suddenly feel a lot warmer. It's rare for our temperatures to deviate outside our usual 55-70 degrees.

The rec. path takes you right past the aquarium, if that's something you're interested in. My personal suggestion is that you skip it unless you're going to devote a good half-day to walking through it, it's not very good as a "quick" attraction. And if you're only here for a couple days or so, you might want to skip it altogether.

If you time your ride to end in Carmel, you have a pretty good selection of upscale restaurants to choose from. My personal suggestion is Anton and Michel, which is in the Court of Fountains, around Ocean and Seventh. I believe they have a website, which Google should be able to help you locate.

As for bike rental shops ... I don't rent here, so I don't know who rents what or what their rates are like, but I do know that there are several rental shops. The "North County" map linked from this page (it's a PDF) shows the location of rental shops (yellow) as well as bike stores (blue). I suggest you call the ones in P.G. and Monterey (and maybe the ones in Marina, Seaside and Carmel, if you don't mind driving a bit) to check prices and equipment.
https://www.tamcmonterey.org/prog_bike/bike_map.html

Not to be rude, but I think you're still a little confused. There is a bit of a hill in that area. I think it's about 400 feet, according to the topographical maps I've looked at, from the top of Sunset (which is, indeed, at Forest) down to Asilomar Beach, but it is a fairly straight path, with a bike lane (and plenty of unused parking pavement) for most of the way down. I ride this in the opposite direction most days.

The things you described (overhead rail bridge, twisty descent) sound like highway 68 (also called Holman Highway) going the other direction (Sunset is also 68). CA-68 from the top of PG (around Prescott Avenue) down to CA-1 is the only road I can think of around here with a rail bridge that goes over your head, and it is also a pretty fast descent with more than a few sharp curves.

No offense taken, at all.

I'm not sure exactly where the roadway is. It's been over 8 years ago. Now I'm curious, as if back in area, will want to drive around and find it. We stayed at the Beachcomer and rode from Asilomar along the coast to either Prescott in PG or Pacific in Monterey. Definitely did not go as far as Hwy 1. Rode in southerly direction until reached 68 and then headed back to Asilomar. I didn't have a spare tube, etc. so it was a long walk back to Asilomar area. It was a fast descent and I was uncomfortable dropping at 30-35 mph, so I was riding the brakes. Now I know it was a bad idea, then I didn't have a clue.