# Where to ride in the SF and Bay Area



## mykol77 (Aug 1, 2011)

Hi All!

I will be in the SF bay area next month and I was wondering if anyone can suggest ride routes with good sceneries of easy to moderate difficulty. Around 20+ miles would be ok as I'm planning to ride after work. Strava or Garmin links would be great. Thanks!


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## bayAreaDude (Apr 13, 2012)

There are so many that it would be a waste to start listing them without knowing where you're staying in the bay area.


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## mykol77 (Aug 1, 2011)

bayAreaDude said:


> There are so many that it would be a waste to start listing them without knowing where you're staying in the bay area.


I will be working around Bush St. in San Francisco but will drive to any good spot to start my ride, as long as it's daylight permitting.


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## Roarau (Jul 3, 2012)

Paradise Loop is a good starting point. Slightly longer than you requested, but you can shorten it down by riding from the Presidio, hoping on a ferry or changing the route up just a little bit.

Gorgeous ride! 

Sorry, I cannot post links. If you Google "Paradise Loop Strava", you can't miss it!


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## slow.climber (Nov 25, 2010)

I think that the closest match is to cross the Golden Gate bridge and ride in the Marin Headlands.

You can find that ride, and many more here,

http://www.bikely.com/listpaths/by/BuenosAires


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## 29ernb (May 8, 2012)

my vote is for golden gate and marin headlands. nice ride and beautiful scenery


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

I will be up there on the 22nd of July. 

Planning on doing this ride: Map It Pronto - Mount Tam Figure Eight

A ride posted by another member here. 

I just hope it's for road bikes, and not rocky trails for mtn bikes? Can someone from up north confirm that this is for road bikes? Thanks.


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## slow.climber (Nov 25, 2010)

Yeah, that's all open public roads. No MTBing on that ride.

IMO, the eastern part of that loop (between Mill Valley and Fairfax) is dull. But I suppose you've got no choice if you want to do both Alpine Lake and Stinson Beach. At the very least I'd take E.Blithedale out of Mill Valley (i.e. skip Miller->Camino Alto).

Just wondering but why not ride to the top of Mt. Tam?


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

slow.climber said:


> *Yeah, that's all open public roads*. No MTBing on that ride.
> 
> IMO, the eastern part of that loop (between Mill Valley and Fairfax) is dull. But I suppose you've got no choice if you want to do both Alpine Lake and Stinson Beach. At the very least I'd take E.Blithedale out of Mill Valley (i.e. skip Miller->Camino Alto).
> 
> *Just wondering but why not ride to the top of Mt. Tam?*


@ slow.climber: Thanks for the info. Would love to go to the top. I am not from around the area so don't know anything about this route. I just wanted to get in a training ride before the Giro d' Italia Gran Fondo in Pasadena on the 22nd....83 miles with 10,000'+ of climbing. Hence, I was hoping to get in around 50-60 miles with at least 5000' of climbing. 

So yes, can anyone else chime in on the elevation of this route?


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## slow.climber (Nov 25, 2010)

An out-and-back from San Francisco to the summit of Mt. Tam is 50 miles and about 3500'.

This covers part of the route that you linked to. It goes up from Mill Valley, to Panoramic, to PanToll Road, but then you turn right onto Ridge Crest and ride it to the top. Here's a map of the route,

Golden Gate Bridge to Mt. Tamalpais (by BuenosAires) at Bikely.com

on the way back, hit the Marin Headlands and ride up Hawk Hill (another 800 feet). 

San Francisco -> Hawk Hill Marin Headlands at Bikely.com

There's a 5 mile loop that takes you from the summit of Hawk Hill, down to sea level and back up to the top. The scenery on that loop is some of the best in the Bay Area.

Lots of locals train on Hawk Hill. The climb up McCullough is a favorite. It's scenic, very quite, and average 8.5% over 0.9 miles (McCullough Road between Bunker Road and Conzelman). If you finish out the climb up Conzelman you add another 200 feet over 1/2 a mile (about 7%),

Some people just ride the loop a few times. I've met people training for the Death Ride who figure 12 times around the loop is a good routine. I met some guys training from the Mt. Diablo challenge doing interval work on McCullough carrying 20 lbs of weights in their packs.

If you're bored with that part of the loop you can add Old Bunker Road up from the parking lot at the beach (north east end of Rodeo Lagoon), up past Battery Townsley, and back down to the intersection of Bunker/Mitchell Road.

That's a nasty little 300' climb that hits hard and then a pleasant descent. There are 3 or 4 very short sections of gravel on the descent. It's no problem at all for road bikes. You'll see roadies there every day.


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

slow.climber said:


> An out-and-back from San Francisco to the summit of Mt. Tam is 50 miles and about 3500'.
> 
> This covers part of the route that you linked to. It goes up from Mill Valley, to Panoramic, to PanToll Road, but then you turn right onto Ridge Crest and ride it to the top. Here's a map of the route,
> 
> ...


Thank you! Will study these routes more and try to come up with something with at least 5000' climbing. I just like knowing the route so that I don't have to stop so much to figure out which way or what to do next....takes away from the ride IMO.


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## slow.climber (Nov 25, 2010)

Cni2i said:


> Thank you! Will study these routes more and try to come up with something with at least 5000' climbing. I just like knowing the route so that I don't have to stop so much to figure out which way or what to do next....takes away from the ride IMO.


Glad to help.

Just finished an out-and-back to Mt. Tam.

Typical SF summer weather.

Solid fog with strong cross winds on the GGB. Plenty cold even with two layers.

It was plenty warm once the climbing started. And by the time I got to Panoramic Hwy, it was even warmer. I stopped at the rest stop just before Pan Toll Road and dumped several bottles of very cold water over my head.

Pan Toll was hot, and the horse flys were a joy, Ridgecrest was even hotter. Dumped several more bottles of cold water over my nead at the summit.

The views from Pan Toll on up almost make up for the horse flys


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

slow.climber said:


> Glad to help.
> 
> Just finished an out-and-back to Mt. Tam.
> 
> ...


Awesome. Thanks for the report....especially the weather. Didn't really know what to expect. 

In socal today, my edge 500 recorded 102.5 degrees. So, I am not too concerned about the heat, but the cold....yes. 

What's the weather looking like for this weekend? San Francisco and Marin County? Was planning on just wearing one base layer, a jersey, and a wind vest (maybe arm and knee warmers?!?!). In Socal right now, I just wear my jersey....even when starting out at 7 am.


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## slow.climber (Nov 25, 2010)

Cni2i said:


> Awesome. Thanks for the report....especially the weather. Didn't really know what to expect.
> 
> In socal today, my edge 500 recorded 102.5 degrees. So, I am not too concerned about the heat, but the cold....yes.
> 
> What's the weather looking like for this weekend? San Francisco and Marin County? Was planning on just wearing one base layer, a jersey, and a wind vest (maybe arm and knee warmers?!?!). In Socal right now, I just wear my jersey....even when starting out at 7 am.


Forcast is for cooling starting tomorrow and into the weekend.

Forcast for my neighborhood (between GGB and the ocean) is for no change. But I'm thinking it may get less foggy and the wind may die down.

I say that because I just checked Mill Valley. Peaked at 95 today; that's unusual.

I knew that it was too hot for me but I'm having trouble believing that it was 95. I can easily believe that it was at least 95 on the climb but is should be cooler down in the valley (closer to the bay).

You probably know this but the hotter it gets in land the colder it gets in SF. The hot air raises and that draws the cold fog from off shore. So a cooling trend in land means less fog and less wind in SF. That means warmer in SF.

FWIW, at some points on the climb, the breeze felt hot to my skin, and I was already over heated.

Forecast for Mill Valley starting tomorrow and through the week end is for cooling -- 75, partly cloudy, fog in the mornings. That's more typical for early July.


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## mikeyp123 (Mar 9, 2007)

SF July is usually pretty crappy with the fog. It'll be covering the Presidio and the bridge most mornings. Once you're across it'll be much warmer. I usually have a very light sleeveless base layer, jersey and arm warmers when heading out in the AM. No need for knee warmers. Strip off the arm warmers when across the bridge in Marin. Wind is a bit ridiculous later in the day. I prefer the AM. If the fog is brutal, drive across the bridge, park in the lot behind Mike's Bikes, start your ride from there.


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

mikeyp123 said:


> SF July is usually pretty crappy with the fog. It'll be covering the Presidio and the bridge most mornings. Once you're across it'll be much warmer. I usually have a very light sleeveless base layer, jersey and arm warmers when heading out in the AM. No need for knee warmers. Strip off the arm warmers when across the bridge in Marin. Wind is a bit ridiculous later in the day. I prefer the AM. If the fog is brutal, drive across the bridge, park in the lot behind Mike's Bikes, start your ride from there.


Good tips. Agreed on probably driving into Marin County if too foggy. I guessing may just have to do some hill repeats to get the miles and climbing I am hoping for. 

May try a few of the notorious 7 hells ( hill climbs) of SF on Monday too, if traffic around those areas is not too heavy. 

Man, getting excited about the trip. 

Thanks for the feedbacks.


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

Btw: any local clubs riding out to Marin county this Sunday?


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## slow.climber (Nov 25, 2010)

Cni2i said:


> Good tips. Agreed on probably driving into Marin County if too foggy. I guessing may just have to do some hill repeats to get the miles and climbing I am hoping for...


Typically the fog is very localized at this time of year. It will cover the far western part of the city, the western part of the Headlands, and most of the Golden Gate.

Some times we ride south to Woodside. The first 4-5 miles are foggy then it's bright, clear, and then hot. Woodside will be in the upper 80's to lower 90's. From Woodside, climb up Kings Mountain (1700' climb) and it will drop 15 degrees,

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/San-Francisco-to-Woodside

You'll need to do a minor detour around the construction at the Crystal Springs Dam.

1. At mile 25, turn left on to Crystal Springs Road.

2. At the bottom of the hill, turn right on to Polhemus Road.
Ride Polhemus to the top of the hill.

3. Turn Right on to the bike path and ride that to the end (Canada Road)


The bike path starts at the traffic light where Polhemus Raod crosses over the Hwy-280.


If the weather looks good you can continue down Tunitas Creek out to the beach. 

Or you can ride south on Skyline and descend Old La Honda,

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Kings-Mountain-Old-La-Honda-Loop

Or you can ride north on Skyline, descend on Hwy-92 and loop back to Woodside on Canada Rd.

Stop at Robert's Market (corner of Canada Road and Woodside Road) for fuel or to fill your bottles on the west side of the store.

If you're going to drive to Woodside, you can park in the lots at the Town Hall (corner of Woodside Road and Whiskey Hill Road).


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## thatdrewguy (Aug 7, 2009)

Ok so this is a Marin Bikes video that I came across today, but it pretty much follows the route from the bike path to Alpine Dam. Gives a good preview of the scenery you'd get on the ride.
Marin Bikes 2012 Verona on Vimeo


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

thatdrewguy said:


> Ok so this is a Marin Bikes video that I came across today, but it pretty much follows the route from the bike path to Alpine Dam. Gives a good preview of the scenery you'd get on the ride.
> Marin Bikes 2012 Verona on Vimeo


Man, got me all excited about the ride this weekend! Great video. Thanks for sharing. 

Probably wishful thinking, but are the roads usually that empty?


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

Hey guys. Thanks for all the tips and suggestions. 

Yesterday, ,my bro and I ended up doing 75 miles with right about 6000 ft of climbing. It was a beautiful day in Marin County!! You guys have a beautiful "backyard". The scenary was second to none and the switchbacks and 7 sisters were great. The view above the clouds on the 7 sisters was amazing. The descents were adrenaline pumping as well. Almost overcooked a couple of turns 

I am definitely coming back up in the very near future. 

Only bad thing: the traffic heading back to the GGB pay both from Marin County

Thanks again!


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## thatdrewguy (Aug 7, 2009)

Cni2i said:


> The scenary was second to none and the switchbacks and 7 sisters were great. The view above the clouds on the 7 sisters was amazing.


I bet this stretch of road on Bolinas-Fairfax to W. Ridgecrest you probably only encountered maybe 6 cars total. And that's cars both going in your direction and from the opposing. At least I hope that was the case as usually there isn't that much traffic there.


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## philipw33 (Jan 29, 2012)

mikeyp123 said:


> park in the lot behind Mike's Bikes, start your ride from there.


are you referring to the dirt path behind the building? 
thanks


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## mikeyp123 (Mar 9, 2007)

philipw33 said:


> are you referring to the dirt path behind the building?
> thanks


There's a dirt lot back there. Look for the cyclists unloading their bikes. It can get full. Another option is a commuter lot under the raised portion of the 101, just a bit north of there.


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## Cni2i (Jun 28, 2010)

thatdrewguy said:


> I bet this stretch of road on Bolinas-Fairfax to W. Ridgecrest you probably only encountered maybe 6 cars total. And that's cars both going in your direction and from the opposing. At least I hope that was the case as usually there isn't that much traffic there.


U'r absolutely correct. It was sooooo nice being able to climb up that stretch with very little traffic. A blessing


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## howdoesseanroll (Mar 27, 2012)

Cni2i said:


> Only bad thing: the traffic heading back to the GGB pay both from Marin County


next time leave from Golden Gate Park, you'll miss traffic, get more miles logged and you can play "tourist bowling" on the way back from Marin :thumbsup:


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