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PCH in Malibu area?

Old 08-05-22, 02:56 AM
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bikeme
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PCH in Malibu area?

I'm going to be on the West Side next week and am planning to do a ride starting near Will Rogers State beach north on PCH 20-25 miles or so then turn around and ride back to Will Rogers. If I decide to make it longer and do some climbing and descending up a canyon, what ones are my best choice to climb as well as descend? I don't need to go up and the same one, happy to get to the one to descend via a street up on the ridge (if there are any) or in the Valley. Thanks!
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Old 08-05-22, 10:16 AM
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diphthong
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two semi-recent threads on riding pch in the area you propose. pch from just north of chautauqua/entrada to topanga canyon rd (ca hwy 27) is a stretch of a few
miles. fast, plentiful traffic with the occasional shoulder but plenty of debris. this is covered in the two threads below.

https://www.bikeforums.net/southern-...ca-malibu.html

https://www.bikeforums.net/southern-...ers-beach.html

recommendation? try to wake up earlier, drive over to the point dume area and start from there. pch in that area is quite a bit
more mellow and actually enjoyable. could never say that about the will rogers sb-topanga canyon stretch...in either direction.
many of the best roadie climbs/descents in the santa monica mountains (sammos) are closer to point dume area anyway. for a first
foray into that area, i would suggest (option 1) heading west/left from point dume on pch and hang a right on mulholland (mully). one of the
easier grades/climbs and also one of the least trafficked. only one of two out of the saddle moments plus it connects you with a few great
route choices. once topping out on mully, you can hang a left for more climbing up little sycamore which eventually turns into yerba buena
and deposits you (imho) into the prettiest part of the whole mountain range. yerba buena is undulating for a spell but then a fun descent back down to
pch. that's recommended as is (option 2) just continuing on mully which climbs a few hundred more feet past the decker rd turnoff on your right and continues
to the ca hwy 23/mully junction. hang a right here and stay on mully, go past the llama farm and head east to kanan dume rd. hang a right on kanan dume
rd but keep an eye out for latigo canyon rd on your left...it comes up fast. latigo canyon has a pretty stiff half-mile climb on this end but oh man, is it worth it when
you see the mother of all socal descents before you. a little more climbing (nothing serious) and then the fun begins. once to the bottom, hang a right on pch
and you're back at point dume in no time. either option 1 or 2 (and there are plenty more) are a must do but these (imho) give you a really good primer on the area and are both great bang for the buck. either option will net you approx 40 miles and 4,000+ ft el gain.

feel free to ask about any of the climbs/descents in the range. from the ocean side, easiest are encinal canyon and mully. hardest are
las flores, deer creek, decker (ca hwy 23), corral creek. latigo canyon isn't really steep, it's just 9 miles or so long. topanga canyon rd
(ca hwy 27) has a stiff section but isn't too bad...carries quite a bit of traffic tho as do kanan dume and malibu canyon rd (by pepperdine university).
most riders avoid the latter two given how busy they are.

Last edited by diphthong; 08-05-22 at 10:24 AM.
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Old 08-05-22, 01:09 PM
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bikeme
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Originally Posted by ooga-booga
two semi-recent threads on riding pch in the area you propose. pch from just north of chautauqua/entrada to topanga canyon rd (ca hwy 27) is a stretch of a few
miles. fast, plentiful traffic with the occasional shoulder but plenty of debris. this is covered in the two threads below.

https://www.bikeforums.net/southern-...ca-malibu.html

https://www.bikeforums.net/southern-...ers-beach.html

recommendation? try to wake up earlier, drive over to the point dume area and start from there. pch in that area is quite a bit
more mellow and actually enjoyable. could never say that about the will rogers sb-topanga canyon stretch...in either direction.
many of the best roadie climbs/descents in the santa monica mountains (sammos) are closer to point dume area anyway. for a first
foray into that area, i would suggest (option 1) heading west/left from point dume on pch and hang a right on mulholland (mully). one of the
easier grades/climbs and also one of the least trafficked. only one of two out of the saddle moments plus it connects you with a few great
route choices. once topping out on mully, you can hang a left for more climbing up little sycamore which eventually turns into yerba buena
and deposits you (imho) into the prettiest part of the whole mountain range. yerba buena is undulating for a spell but then a fun descent back down to
pch. that's recommended as is (option 2) just continuing on mully which climbs a few hundred more feet past the decker rd turnoff on your right and continues
to the ca hwy 23/mully junction. hang a right here and stay on mully, go past the llama farm and head east to kanan dume rd. hang a right on kanan dume
rd but keep an eye out for latigo canyon rd on your left...it comes up fast. latigo canyon has a pretty stiff half-mile climb on this end but oh man, is it worth it when
you see the mother of all socal descents before you. a little more climbing (nothing serious) and then the fun begins. once to the bottom, hang a right on pch
and you're back at point dume in no time. either option 1 or 2 (and there are plenty more) are a must do but these (imho) give you a really good primer on the area and are both great bang for the buck. either option will net you approx 40 miles and 4,000+ ft el gain.

feel free to ask about any of the climbs/descents in the range. from the ocean side, easiest are encinal canyon and mully. hardest are
las flores, deer creek, decker (ca hwy 23), corral creek. latigo canyon isn't really steep, it's just 9 miles or so long. topanga canyon rd
(ca hwy 27) has a stiff section but isn't too bad...carries quite a bit of traffic tho as do kanan dume and malibu canyon rd (by pepperdine university).
most riders avoid the latter two given how busy they are.
Super info!! Thank you. I was looking at google maps and yes, I see that most climbs folks talk about/do are north of where I was proposing. I've driven from Oxnard south to Sunset Blvd. awhile back and do remember the good PCH stuff was on the northern end. Thanks again!
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Old 08-06-22, 11:09 PM
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the entire stunt, piuma, cold canyon, mully, fern wood, old topanga canyon (old t), topanga canyon, tuna canyon, saddle peak and scheuren roads complex is pretty developed,
concentrated and painfully compact on the east end. fairly simple matter to park in the hamlet of topanga and just go wild with a climbfest if you're decently into climbing. very little flat in that
eastern end tho but it is closer to west side la. pch in that area is much busier but offers plenty of places to grab grub and grog as does topanga and calabasas (nearby on the valley side).
there is more traffic on the roads on the east end. on this east end, weekends are good before 10:30am. non-holiday weekdays are good before 7:45am and between 9:30am-2pm.

Last edited by diphthong; 08-13-22 at 11:23 PM.
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