Palo Alto, CA

A group will be in Palo Alto for a wedding next month......we need to get in a long (6 hours or so)
ride midweek and are looking for route suggestions. I've been told that a nice ride is an out and
back to Santa Cruz, doing some climbing on the way back. Does anyone have any specific route
suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

 

Go to http://www.chainreaction.com/

At the bottom of the page, there is a great list of rides in the area. Santa Cruz is a nice
ride(approx 120 miles total-probably longer than six hours)...I've done it several times. However,
you have to go over the mountain and back, which is about 2,000 feet of climbing each way, so make
sure everyone is up for that (I've seen some people seriously bonk climbing that after 100 miles).
In addition, there's often a nice little headwind on Hwy 1 on the way back, so riding in a decent
size pack is definitely helpful so you can paceline it.

Zac

"Frank Tantillo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> A group will be in Palo Alto for a wedding next month......we need to get
in
> a long (6 hours or so) ride midweek and are looking for route suggestions. I've been told that a
> nice ride is an out and back to Santa Cruz, doing
some
> climbing on the way back. Does anyone have any specific route
suggestions?
>
> Thanks in advance.

 

"Frank Tantillo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> A group will be in Palo Alto for a wedding next month......we need to get
in
> a long (6 hours or so) ride midweek and are looking for route suggestions. I've been told that a
> nice ride is an out and back to Santa Cruz, doing
some
> climbing on the way back. Does anyone have any specific route
suggestions?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
>

From Palo Alto, a better ride (less traffic) might be a trip over the hill to Half Moon Bay /
San Gregorio.

-T

 

Zac Nesper <[email protected]> wrote:
> Go to http://www.chainreaction.com/

> At the bottom of the page, there is a great list of rides in the area. Santa Cruz is a nice
> ride(approx 120 miles total-probably longer than six hours)...I've done it several times. However,
> you have to go over the mountain and back, which is about 2,000 feet of climbing each way, so make
> sure everyone is up for that (I've seen some people seriously bonk climbing that after 100 miles).
> In addition, there's often a nice little headwind on Hwy 1 on the way back, so riding in a decent
> size pack is definitely helpful so you can paceline it.

Or don't ride back on Highway 1.

Find a Krebs map to check out routes, for example:

Climb something like Old La Honda, Kings Mountain or Page Mill to Skyline (Hwy 35). Skyline to West
Alpine Rd at Skyline/Page Mill. Descend West Alpine, L on Pescadero Rd, refuel in Pescadero (or
start on Hwy 84, L on Stage Rd to Pescadero). Cloverdale Rd or Pescadero Rd to Hwy 1. South on Hwy 1
to Santa Cruz. Lunch in Santa Cruz.

"Easy" way back: Mission St, L on River, Hwy 9 through Boulder Creek (narrow, traffic) and climb to
Skyline, L on Skyline to return. Not so easy: Mission St, L on Market, turns into Branciforte, L on
Granite Creek, cross over highway in Scotts Valley, Glenwood Drive to Mountain Charlie, climb Mtn
Charlie to Summit, L on Summit, Summit-Bear Creek-Skyline. This is probably over 6 hours.

> "Frank Tantillo" <[email protected]> wrote:
> > A group will be in Palo Alto for a wedding next month......we need to get in a long (6 hours or
> > so) ride midweek and are looking for route suggestions. I've been told that a nice ride is an
> > out and back to Santa Cruz, doing some climbing on the way back. Does anyone have any specific
> > route suggestions?

 

"Tom Schulenburg" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> "Frank Tantillo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > A group will be in Palo Alto for a wedding next month......we need to get
> in
> > a long (6 hours or so) ride midweek and are looking for route suggestions. I've been told that a
> > nice ride is an out and back to Santa Cruz, doing
> some
> > climbing on the way back. Does anyone have any specific route
> suggestions?
> >
> > Thanks in advance.
> >
> >
>
> From Palo Alto, a better ride (less traffic) might be a trip over the hill to Half Moon Bay / San
> Gregorio.
>
> -T

Tom is right. Overall, there are quite a few possibilities. I've listed some of the most popular
ones below.

http://www.chainreaction.com/tunitasloop.htm http://www.chainreaction.com/turkeyday.htm
http://www.chainreaction.com/bigloop.htm

Ride Overview:

http://www.chainreaction.com/rides.htm