Great Places to Ride

[rwalterk]

I decided to make a sticky topic of all the great roads/destinations/routes we like to ride since the one we tend to do the most is out of commission for a while (get well soon ACH).  I was thinking it would be a nice reference for those looking for new roads to try.  I'll start off with the roads I happen to know and have ridden (which isn't much); please feel free to post up your favorite rides with a one-line blurb and I'll update the list as we go.  


Ojai / Los Padres National Forest
Hwy 33 - rivals Angeles Crest Highway, incredible variety of terrain & elevation changes, nice long ride
Hwy 150 - east of Ojai is scenic but not too twisty; west of ojai wraps nicely around Lake Casitas
Cerro Noroeste - arguably the best moto road in all of southern California, remote (plan your gas stops well)

Central California
Hwy 58 between the 33 and 101 - "just awesome" according to Jim and April

Santa Barbara North to San Luis Obispo
Hwy 154 - easy winding road, nice scenic route from Santa Barbara to Solvang area
Hwy 1 between Pismo Beach and Lompoc - lazy but scenic
Hwy 166 from Cuyama to the 101 - lazy, winding, scenic

Santa Clarita/Castaic
San Francisquito Canyon - twisty at the south end, easy and winding the rest of the way
Bouquet Canyon - very twisty and tricky, sometimes full of hikers/day campers, can be dangerous
Spunky Canyon - very tight, twisty and technical, almost empty but watch for bicyclists
Elizabeth Lake Road - easy and winding, scenic
The Rock Inn - on Elizabeth Lake Road, not-too-bad greasy food, big breakfasts

Malibu
Mulholland Hwy east from Sierra Creek Rd - twisty and flowing until Las Virgenes Rd; lazy and winding east of Las Virgenes
Mulholland Hwy between Sierra Creek Rd and Kanan Rd - "the snake" is super tight, twisty and full of squids (and cops)
Latigo Canyon - narrow, tight, twisty, technical and long
Piuma/Stunt/Schueren loop - decent twisties without the crowds, watch for driveways in some parts
The Rock Store - super crowded weekend warrior biker hangout on Mulholland (the food sucks)

Palos Verdes Peninsula
PV Drive South from 25th/Harbor north to PCH on the other end -
Switchbacks that are sometimes heavily patrolled but well worth the diversion: http://tinyurl.com/ry34kw

Orange County
Ortega Highway - the OC's favorite, twisty but sometimes congested, can be dangerous
Hell's Kitchen - famous biker eatery on Ortega Highway

Palomar Mountain Area, East San Diego County
South Grade Road aka Palomar - legendary tight uphill switchbacks for knee draggers; lots of crashes
East Grade Road - flowing twisty road with a great view of Lake Henshaw
Mother's Kitchen - vegetarian restaurant and bakery at the top of South Grade Road

San Gabriel Valley
Hwy 39 aka Azusa Canyon - nice flowing twisty road heading into the San Gabriels
East Fork Road - narrow windy connector from 39 to Glendora Mountain Road
Glendora Mountain Road aka GMR - tight, narrow, twisty
Glendora Ridge Road aka GRR - narrow twisty road with great views but no painted centerline; stay alert
Mt. Baldy Lodge - mountain lodge restaurant; not bad (site of the famous spilled bloody mary incident)

Big Bear Lake Area
Hwy 38 - gorgeous, long, flowing twisty road through the San Bernadino Forest and north end of the lake (and not very busy)
Hwy 18 between Running Springs and Big Bear Lake - scenic, slow and very twisty, can get congested
Hwy 18 between Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs aka Rim of the World Hwy - beautiful flowing twisties, unbelievable views

[Beefmaster_Mark]

Great post Ray!  I can't contribute anything except that the ride around the Palos Verdes peninsula is nice and very scenic.  Not that exciting, personally I don't really speed around up there because there are cops.

Palos Verdes Peninsula
PV Drive South from 25th/Harbor north to PCH on the other end.
Switchbacks that are sometimes heavily patrolled but well worth the diversion: http://tinyurl.com/ry34kw

[rwalterk]

Thanks Mark, I added the route.  I'll have to give that road a shot sometime.