Originally Posted by
bikeme
Good point, lol! I'm near SART in AH/YL but am happy to ride west on whatever street needed to get to a beach-bound one.
Since there's no real direct street route you could just ride down the SART. Its clear of debris, campers, and stoplights, so a nice (if somewhat boring) 20+ mile ride to the river's outlet and the HB/NB city border. Three miles north to the HB Pier, about the same (with more traffic and crowded streets) down to the NB Pier. And you'll have the onshore breeze at your back when you go back inland.
Most of the streets going from AH/YL to the beach cities are just a continuous stream of stoplights and traffic, I'd just skip those unless it really early in the morning or you're a glutton for that kind of punishment. There are some pavement routes through Tustin/North Irvine/East Orange/Lake Forest/South OC down to the south OC beaches, but those can get crowded with vehicles and are loaded with stoplights, too