curbtender

That stop near the bottom of El Toyonal can be a challenge. I regularly see riders coming off of Wildcat when I drive through. Not firsthand but they say it's not a problem.

genejockey 

Hwy 84 is still closed at Portola. 84 is, I think, most riders preferred descent from 35 - wider and less technical than either OLH or Kings Mtn. It looks like it will be closed for quite some time.

bikingshearer 

Yeah, that looks like more than a bunny-hop's worth. It also looks like months, not days or weeks, worth of fix. Maybe double-digit months.

cthenn

So are drivers using OLH as the alternative? That road is barely wide enough for 2 bikes in places...put commuting traffic on it, and that's nightmare city!

genejockey 

Dunno. I don't see a lot of cars at OLH and Portola, nor have I seen a lot of cars on Kings Mtn between 84 and Tripp, so maybe they're 1) not going there at all, or 2) taking 92, where I DO see a lot of traffic.

Korina

sanmateoclimber

I went up OLH on 4/8, and there are signs at the bottom cautioning cyclists against taking it. There's no road damage, and they certainly aren't discouraging motorists, so I assume they're just trying to reduce the bike traffic because of increased car traffic, given that 84 is out. And indeed there was more car traffic than normal, but nothing unmanageable at around noon on a Saturday. But maybe half a mile from the top they've installed a traffic light to make the road one-way, alternating directions, for the final handful of blind corners. The signs at that light very specifically spelled out something along the lines of "we are using cameras and we will definitely ticket cyclists who blow past this light." I had to wait like five or six minutes at that light, so it was fortunate that the guy who came up behind me was blasting some good Zeppelin tunes.

Anyway heads up that car traffic is increased on OLH, and presumably will be for however long it takes to get 84 repaired. I assume this applies to Kings Mountain too, though I haven't actually ridden it yet this spring (slow start to my season for various reasons.) And if you set out to put in a good PR effort on OLH, there is a good chance your dreams will be crushed by a red light just a couple minutes from glory.

If anybody has or comes across any info about the repair timeframe for 84 I'm all ears. Same with Stage road-- I wasn't aware of that until I finally read through this thread just now and saw Terry's heartbreaker of a picture-- I love that stretch of road and need it back in my life!

bikingshearer 

FWIW, a dozen of us on loaded bikes (for credit-card touring) made it through Stage Road on April 3 with no problems. The way through is narrow (see the photo) and the drop-off severe, but concentrate on where you want to ride (not on what you want to avoid) and you will get through without problem. I'm pretty risk-averse, and I had no trouble doing it. If all else fails, walk that short section. The barricades are definitely not bike-proof and I don't think they were meant to be. (For those who have not seen the details, this slide out is just short of the top of the San Gregario (southern) side of the southernmost of the two climbs between San Gregorio and Pescadero. If you are riding north to south, you get a good view of the underside of he slide from the lower part of he climb. It's impressive.

betabob

Anyone have any recent updates on Redwood Road? As of last week there was still that imposing double fence/barrier on the Oakland side (Marciel gate), so not sure if any progress has been made towards fixing the slide and/or if cyclists have been able to get through that section pretty easily from the Castro Valley side.

cthenn

Great post, thanks for the info! I don't ride over that way too often, but I really do love going over there. Guess I'll take some time off, not worth the long drive if I'm going to be on a narrow road with even more car traffic and a 5-minute traffic signal to deal with!

genejockey 

Further Peninsula closures:

• Sawyer Camp Trail is closed from the dam North to Burlingame indefinitely. Apparently the storms either cause or revealed instability in the subsoil under the trail in many places.
• Ralston Trail is closed till July for PG&E work. So if you're riding from San Mateo, there only way to get to Canada Rd is via Crystal Springs.

cthenn

Reviving this old thread, I'm wondering if anyone has been on Redwood Rd through CV lately, and how it is with the closures? Does it look like any work has been started? Still passable by bikes?

spdntrxi

last I heard there is an 8ft fence that extends all the way down and across the metal guard rail on the CV side. The fence overhang the damaged area.(risky drop) The other side has similar 8ft fence, but you can get around.

betabob

With the recent rash of bike thefts in that area I’d be pretty nervous about riding that section of road anyway…

cthenn

well that's actually why I asked. I would ride it from the CV side and turn around at the top.

genejockey 

Rt 84 in is still closed at Portola. Supposedly, it will reopen with traffic controls (i.e. a one lane section with lights at each end) in late July, and fully reopen in October.

Unsurprisingly, with 84 closed, car traffic on Old La Honda and Kings Mountain roads has increased dramatically. I don't think I'll be conquering the Santa Cruz Mountains this year.

cthenn

I always thought I'd hate to live on OLH, it's a goat path with zero visibility. Passing even 1 bike has to be difficult in a car.

genejockey 

When I started riding it 25 years ago, nobody descended on it because the surface was crap. The last few years, I see a lot more descenders, but also more vehicles in both directions. Yikes! And that's BEFORE the closure of 84!