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LA closed road

Old 05-27-19, 08:53 PM
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h2ocowboy
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LA closed road

I read in the past about a old road that was closed in LA ,that can be cycled . It was used in the 1940's . Anyone know info. on it ?
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Old 05-27-19, 09:38 PM
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I'll have a stab at this - Dirt Mulholland Drive perhaps?
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Old 05-27-19, 10:22 PM
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ca hwy 39 north of azusa (near pasadena) between crystal lake and ca hwy 2 (angeles crest highway-aka ach) in the san gabriel mountains/angeles national forest.
signed as closed to all traffic including peds and cyclists but i've done it 5-6x's and in both directions. it's approx 5 miles closed off to auto traffic. there is always
rockfall on the road plus plenty of little divots from said rockfall. heading north/uphill, it's not an issue as you're at altitude and it's a deceptive grade. the divots and rocks on the road
are a bigger problem heading downhill as it's easy to hit 35+ mph within seconds. don't be surprised to see the caltrans snowplows working that stretch moving rocks.
have never had any issues cycling through the area in regards to "trespassing." it's gorgeous up there with great views and a must-do for every capable socal cyclist
at least once. road surface is generally decent and paved the entire way but some mixed blah spots here and there. ***edit-rode this up and down in may...there is a section
of pavement broken up/washed out at approx the halfway point. the section is approx 30 yards long. rode it both ways on 23's w/o dismounting-end edit***
just ride your brakes heading downhill and you'll be fine.
i think this road got closed in 1938 or so after the crazy rains that year but the state somewhat maintains it as an obvious fire/evacuation road. not an inexpensive endeavor.

Last edited by diphthong; 06-26-19 at 12:44 PM.
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Old 05-28-19, 05:56 AM
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Thanks that's what I was thinking of .
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Old 05-28-19, 11:00 AM
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I remember reading about another road, but cannot recall any of the details. There might be another. Sorry.

Parts of Griffith Park is closed to cars, but I doubt that's the road you are looking for.

ooga-booga, is that a pic of me in the first image?
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Old 05-28-19, 11:00 AM
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if you just want to sample that stretch, there’s a decent amount of car parking on either end. i think you’ll need one of those $5 usfs adventure day passes to potentially avoid a pricier usfs citation for
not having one. lift your bike over the giant gate and clamber over, go around or thru and you’re off and running.
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Old 05-28-19, 11:03 AM
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Originally Posted by Tycho Brahe
I remember reading about another road, but cannot recall any of the details. There might be another. Sorry.

Parts of Griffith Park is closed to cars, but I doubt that's the road you are looking for.

ooga-booga, is that a pic of me in the first image?
haha yes it is. didn’t come out as clear as i had hoped. that was a fun day. hoping to do something similar soon. thanks for the pic of me descending.

this one, farther west on ach, came out better. post #1906 .:

https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycl...photos-77.html

Last edited by diphthong; 06-06-19 at 01:38 AM.
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Old 05-28-19, 04:37 PM
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there's also this but it's just north of santa clarita so a little drive from la. definitely worthy as well. the closed to autos part is north of templin hwy.

https://www.bikeforums.net/southern-...dge-route.html
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Old 05-29-19, 08:08 AM
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Thank you for the info. will look into these with google maps/sat.
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Old 05-29-19, 11:57 AM
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Originally Posted by ooga-booga
there's also this but it's just north of santa clarita so a little drive from la. definitely worthy as well. the closed to autos part is north of templin hwy.

https://www.bikeforums.net/southern-...dge-route.html
That is the road I was thinking about. Would love to try it out. Doable on slicks?
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Old 05-29-19, 12:26 PM
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doable on slicks? yes, but there are some dirt sections. don't remember anything too soupy. i think i walked a small (50 yards or less) section farther north on the old ridge route.
i did it on 23's in my usual, hardheaded way. everyone else will want 28's or bigger. it's already warm out there and about to get really toasty.
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Old 05-30-19, 02:47 PM
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Interesting, I thought about doing some camping on the Old Ridge Road a long time ago but never got around to it. Is that a feasible idea? Start at the bottom, ride up, camp, then ride back down the next day?
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Old 05-31-19, 01:21 AM
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i think so. there are way more “campable” areas on the north end. more shade and a little less ridgeline exposure/less wind. there is some shade here and there but nothing truly substantial till old ridge route has nearly hit the mesa view/pine canyon intersection about two miles south of ca hwy 138.

not aware of any potable water along the old ridge route so there’s that. it’s also a total fire zone so fires of any kind-including small camping stoves/burners-would be very very unadvised and probably illegal. if you can pull off low-impact, stealth camping, you’ll probably be okay.
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