Category Archives: Bicycling

Bicycling, Orange County, San Diego County, US 101

San Juan Capistrano Ride – Saturday, January 30, 2011

Leave a comment

I haven’t gone on a long bike ride in a while. I felt I needed to, and really wanted to. A nice ride up the coast would be fun, and allow for a train return. So, I decided to set San Juan Capistrano as my goal. It seemed “easy” enough. The ride would be 70 miles in length and without many large hills.  Originally, I was going to do a more narrative description of the ride. However, as I wore one of my skinsuits, which have no pockets, so I didn’t bring a camera… I’ll just do a shorter summary.

The ride started off fairly nice. The weather was decent, a bit warmer than I had thought it would be. When I passed through UCSD, there was some sort of a protest or rally going on. People with signs… couldn’t really tell. I was busy with my ride. In the Torrey Pines area, there was a golf tournament going on which made for heavier than normal traffic, until Torrey Pines Grade. After that, the ride was much more relaxed. Del Mar and Solana Beach were fairly light, but traffic got heavier again near Cardiff.

Overall, I seemed to be seeing more cyclists on the road than I usually do. Most of them were going southbound. Some were alone, others were in groups. I left all those groups behind though, once I got into Encinitas. I decided to take a different way through town, going to the west instead of staying on 101. It was a good choice. I stayed off of US 101 from Swami’s to within a couple of blocks of La Costa Ave. No traffic, few stops, nice road. It was so much better than the 101. The trouble, Neptune Ave is one-way northbound. So… southbound I still have to take 101. I made it through Carlsbad fairly quickly, which was nice. It tends to get busy on nice days such as this. After the turn towards Pacific St, I stopped for a short break. While there, quite a few more cyclists past me. It was a really busy day. Who could blame them, the weather was great! It was also getting closer to decision time for me – go through the military base or take I-5. I got to the point I had to decide… still wasn’t sure. After a minute, I decided to take I-5. Why not? It had a nice wide shoulder, good paving, and had less steep grades. It worked out nicely. Because of the traffic, I had a fairly steady tailwind pushing me north. I took another short break at the rest stop, had some soda and a candy bar.

Finally heading north again, the tailwind continued to push me along, well, at least help me along. Reaching the Las Pulgas exit was good. I was glad to leave the freeway behind, and now ride the old US 101 expressway. In keeping with my old highway theme, I stayed on the old northbound lanes, instead of the “bike path” which follows the old southbound lanes. Some of the northbound side has a few weeds, and isn’t really the place you’d take a road bike. All the more roadway for me! Getting through the parking lot for San Onofre State Beach was nice and quiet too.  Near the San Onofre Overhead, I noticed that the roadway had new markings. Sharrows had now been painted northbound; a bike lane had been painted southbound. It seems the State had restriped the roadway, allowing more room for bicycles, specifically southbound. It was a great sight to see.

There were less surfers in wetsuits than I had hoped for near Trestles, but there will be more next time I’m sure. After doing a bit of searching beforehand, and riding through last time, I had found a rather nice western bypass of San Clemente. It is well signed and marked on the south end. Once you get to the north end, things change. Signage becomes poor, as do road markings. I still found my way through, always a different route each time. I’ll figure it out eventually! After getting through all that, it was time for some fun along the cliffs. From San Clemente to Dana Point, the roadway has a nice shoulder, with bike lanes. The roadway is usually in good shape, and the winds this time were to my favor. I managed to pass through relatively quickly, keeping a pace somewhere around 20mph most of the way.

At Dana Point, US 101 turns inland. The scenic portion was done, and it was more a city street here. There was, however, one short section of original concrete that I got to ride, right near I-5. Further north, the roadway varies from wide to narrow, bike lane to none. Overall, it still wasn’t bad. I enjoyed the ride into San Juan Capistrano. I reached the train station about 1:45, far earlier than I had anticipated. I finished with an average speed of 18.5 mph, quite fast for me. It was very enjoyable. I would highly recommend the route I took, but would need a better one through the north end of San Clemente.

Bicycling, Cyclocross, Kitchen Creek, Mt Laguna, Pine Creek, San Diego County, Sunrise Highway

Mt Laguna Loop Ride – Now with Snow! – Sunday, January 3, 2011

Leave a comment

I had wanted to go for a nice bike ride up in the mountains. It had been a while since the last time up there.  About a week before, I had posted on sdbikecommuter.com about the ride, asking if anyone wanted to go along. One did reply, Sigurd, from San Diego. He came over at about 8:30 am and picked me up. The drive out was fairly nice, though seeing ice alongside the freeway was a bit disconcerting.  Still, I wore plenty of warm clothes and was planning for it to be cold.

Arriving in Pine Valley, we parked the car behind Major’s Diner, got our stuff together, and headed out. We started by heading east on Old Highway 80, cold at first, but warmed up after the climb up to Laguna Summit. On the way down the summit, we passed the border checkpoint, which had two nasty speed bumps sitting across the roadway. I managed to bypass them in the dirt, Sigurd rolled right around them.  It was otherwise a nice descent into the valley by Buckman Springs.  We only encountered light winds, so the ride across the valley was pretty good. As Sigurd hadn’t been through here before, I pointed out various things, including Kitchen Creek. Hwy 80 crosses Kitchen Creek a couple of miles west of Kitchen Creek Road. Another short hill later, we finally made the turn onto Kitchen Creek Road. The weather was still good, even with the ice in the shadowed areas. We saw only one car as we made our way up the road, which is about average. After the first hill, we finally descended into the canyon of Kitchen Creek. It had a fair amount of water in it, enough to make the ride up the canyon quite pleasant.

A different day, but a nice view up Kitchen Creek Canyon.
A different day, but a nice view up Kitchen Creek Canyon.

As we gained elevation, we started to see more snow in the shadows. We also found some ice across the roadway just before the gate. We avoided it, but it gave us more to be cautious about for the rest of the ride.  After the gate, the fun part of the road begins. For the next few miles, there would be no cars, just the road and us. The views up the canyon were quite nice, with some small cascades visible along the canyon floor. We also had noticed that we had a slight tailwind, helpful for climbing hills such as this one.  The higher we climbed, the more snow we found. At a few points, snow had completely covered the roadway. It was fun to ride through, with my new fenders I didn’t worry about getting splashed or wet. Temperatures also were dropping, but that was to be expected. They were forecast to be in the 30’s at the top of the mountain. After passing the upper gate, we finally reached the pine forest.  Most of the climbing was behind us now, with only a couple of short climbs ahead to the top. Before reaching Sunrise Highway, we saw many others that had come up to play in the snow. One group had asked us if we were cold, we said no, and were almost too warm! We had climbed up the mountain on our bikes after all.

Cascades down in the canyon.
Cascades down in the canyon.
Sigurd, with his Cannondale.
Sigurd, with his Cannondale.
Up the canyon, more climbing to go.
Up the canyon, more climbing to go.
Nice section of Kitchen Creek Road.
Nice section of Kitchen Creek Road.
Just a bit of snow... more would follow.
Just a bit of snow… more would follow.
Ever higher, we pause to check out the view toward San Diego.
Ever higher, we pause to check out the view toward San Diego.
More snow, still on Kitchen Creek.
More snow, still on Kitchen Creek.
Now covered in snow... no ice here thankfully.
Now covered in snow… no ice here thankfully.
Just rolling along...
Just rolling along…
Shasta in the snow. Not the first time, but the first with the fenders.
Shasta in the snow. Not the first time, but the first with the fenders.

Finally reaching Sunrise Highway, the nice empty roadway we had been riding was replaced with a road with snow piles as a shoulder. It wasn’t too much an issue, traffic was still light. It just made things a bit more interesting at times. The snow looked to be about three to four inches deep around this area. We briefly crested at 6000’ near the Wooded Hill turnoff and then descended into the Mt Laguna community. It was about the coldest I’d felt so far on the ride. Brrr! We made it to the Mt Laguna Store, got some snacks, and took a short break on the porch. Before we had arrived, someone had apparently had some trouble with the snow or ice, as their car was lodged against the stop sign at Los Huecos Road. Their attempts to free the car gave us at least some “entertainment” while we snacked.  Eventually, a few others came along and helped push them along. The stop sign was at least still standing after they left. After we were done, we went over to the visitor’s center next door, which was having some problems. The water in the restrooms had frozen, but the water in the drinking fountain had not. Yes, even in San Diego County, the pipes can freeze. Well, after we took care of what we needed there, it was time to get on the road. A few hundred feet down the road, we turned off to a nice vista point above the Imperial Valley. It looked so warm, and we were so cold. After we got back onto Sunrise Highway, it would be a couple of miles of downhill riding. Now, we had been mostly climbing so far, keeping us warm. Heading downhill was a different story. It felt a whole lot colder now. My feet and hands were feeling quite numb by the end. I stopped at the Noble Canyon trailhead to try to warm up a bit, it helped. As we dropped in elevation, the temperatures were at least rising. The amount of snow had diminished as well. With all the snow and ice we’d seen so far, I was getting a bit nervous about our next road, Pine Creek Road.

Mt Laguna, lots of snow here and close to 6000'.
Mt Laguna, lots of snow here and close to 6000′.

Just about a half mile past the Noble Canyon trailhead, we turned onto Pine Creek Road. So far, the road looked alright. As we went further down, we encountered more mud and more snow. The worst section for both, especially mud, was around the Noble Canyon trail crossings. Still, it wasn’t that bad and we made it through without much trouble. We encountered only a few vehicles on the way down. We made one final stop at the tree above the steepest descent. Sigurd was having some trouble with his brakes, and it was a good place to regroup.  While we were stopped, a truck with a bunch of downhill mountain bikes past us. We’d seen a lot of bike tracks on the Noble Canyon trail, so we assumed they had been riding it. It wasn’t a good idea, as the trail was really muddy, and riding it like that can cause damage to the trail.

Small pool, iced over.
Small pool, iced over.
All wrapped up in my gear, I'm mostly warm.
All wrapped up in my gear, I’m mostly warm.
Down Pine Creek Road.
Down Pine Creek Road.
One of my favorite stops along Pine Creek, view is westerly toward Cuyamaca Peak.
One of my favorite stops along Pine Creek, view is westerly toward Cuyamaca Peak.

After descending the steep part, the road heads into a narrow canyon, which is lined with oak trees. It was very nice and didn’t have the ice problem I thought it would. The ride the rest of the way down was quite pleasant, with no additional roadway problems. After we left the Forest, we turned off of Pine Creek Road, into a residential area on the east side of Pine Valley. Taking this road instead of going to Hwy 80 would save us a bit of riding, and had lighter traffic. After a few miles, we got back to the car. Overall, it was a good ride. We had lots of fun. The ride finished with just shy of 40 miles, about 4500′ of climb, and a 10.5 mph average. Sigurd got to see some new roads and I got another ride around Mt Laguna. There will be more rides up there as it is a fun place to go.

Bicycling, Cyclocross, Highways, Oceanside, San Diego, San Diego County, US 101

10k miles – At Last!

Leave a comment

It finally happened. On Saturday, my bicycle officially rolled past 10,000 miles. I wanted to make the ride a fun ride, so I went for a ride up the coast to Oceanside. It was a simple 40 mile ride with decent weather. Overall, it was a fun ride. I hit the 10k mark on Gilman Dr, just north of I-5. Rather nice, an old alignment of US 101, complete with old curbing. Could have been a more scenic spot, but at least it wasn’t AT I-5 as it was looking like it was going to be. All told, about 5,000 miles were just biking around, 4000 were commuting, and 1000 were touring. Not bad for a two year run. I wonder what the next 10,000 will hold?

At 10,000 miles, the main odometer stops reading in tenths.
At 10,000 miles, the main odometer stops reading in tenths.
View from the handlebars, on Gilman Dr.
View from the handlebars, on Gilman Dr.
Gilman Dr, old US 101, just north of I-5.
Gilman Dr, old US 101, just north of I-5.
A big smile for the occasion!
A big smile for the occasion!
Top of Torrey Pines Grade, clear skies ahead.
Top of Torrey Pines Grade, clear skies ahead.
End of the ride in Oceanside. Still all geared up.
End of the ride in Oceanside. Still all geared up.
Bicycling, Culver City, Highways, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, Metro Expo Line, Pacific Electric, Railroads, Santa Monica, Sharrow, SR-26, US 66, Venice

Making Tracks for the Westside

2 Comments

In 2011, the newest Metro Rail line in Los Angeles will open. Running from downtown Los Angeles at 7th St/Metro Center station, to Culver City at Venice Blvd / Robertson Blvd, it will be the first new line to open since the Metro Gold Line in 2003. This bike ride was to follow that from Culver City to Santa Monica Blvd. I wanted to see what was left of the old Pacific Electric line, and photograph it. It also made for a nice bike ride. The Metro Expo Line (no color for it yet) was set to open this year, but numerous delays changed that.

The line west of Culver City, however, has been a bit more of a challenge. The section from Culver City to Sepulveda Blvd has been the most contentious of them all. A small group of people in the Cheviot Hills, where the rail line will run, have fought the construction of the line for so many reasons. None are valid reasons, as they are just plain silly from the start. One of their biggest complaints, as seen in the sign pictured, is that kids and trains don’t mix. Now… to that I agree. They don’t. Kids shouldn’t be playing on active tracks, much for the same reasons they shouldn’t on any one of the major thoroughfares in the area. It should be simple, teach the kids to not play in front of trains, but to hold up a major rail line for it? They take the stance of “build it right, or don’t build at all”. All or nothing is a rather poor way of doing things. Kind of sad really, but hey, the line will get built despite them.  Yeah!

Looks like the cars just pile up every time a train comes by?
Looks like the cars just pile up every time a train comes by?
They don't mix, but they can try to blend! Sorry for the blur.
They don’t mix, but they can try to blend! Sorry for the blur.

Now, back to the bike ride! So, after doing a bit of research using Google Maps and Street View, I found free parking right near the old Helms Bakery. Perfect, right near where I wanted to start. After parking and getting the bike ready, it was time to go. The weather was fairly decent, though a bit on the cooler side near the beach. I started off heading to Venice Blvd, then onto Exposition Blvd. Just before National Blvd, I saw the first tracks of the day. The first thing I noticed was the bonds between the rail segments. These were original Pacific Electric tracks from the 1920’s. I took some photos, and moved on. Heading west from here, I went under the 10, then headed west through the Cheviot Hills area – remember them?  Well, ignoring them and their silly signs, this is the best section of the whole line, certainly the most scenic. About halfway through the big cut here, there is a pedestrian bridge. It makes a great place to get photos, and will be a good place to watch the trains in 2015.

West towards National Blvd.
West towards National Blvd.
Rail bonding. Rails are from the 1920's.
Rail bonding. Rails are from the 1920’s.
Looking northwest from the bridge. This the the deep cut through the Cheviot Hills.
Looking northwest from the bridge. This the the deep cut through the Cheviot Hills.

After that, the next major hurdle was Overland Ave. There were some remains of a crossing signal there, so I got some photos. The rails were cut at the crossing, but were still there on both sides. After Westwood Blvd, I got a different idea. There was plenty of dirt between the rails, and no plants. As railroad tracks usually have lots of thorns around them, I was a bit leery of doing this. I still did it anyway. After all, it is a cross bike, gotta ride dirt at some point! It was pretty smooth overall, with some muddy spots. Just beyond Military Ave, the tracks ended, for a while. The east switch for Home Junction still remained, but after that, no more tracks. At Sepulveda Blvd, only the guard rail for a crossing arm remained. From here west, there wasn’t as much to see. I was surprised to see the tracks still in place, along with the remains of the west switch for Home Junction, at the edge of a parking lot west of Sawtelle Blvd. They just paved right up to the north rail.

At Westwood Blvd.
At Westwood Blvd.
A ready made bike path? Certainly plenty of space for double track.
A ready made bike path? Certainly plenty of space for double track.
Crossing at Military Ave.
Crossing at Military Ave.
One of the few crossings with rails still intact.
One of the few crossings with rails still intact.
Eastern switch at Home Junction. Expo Line continues straight ahead.
Eastern switch at Home Junction. Expo Line continues straight ahead.
Western switch at Home Junction. I-405 is in the distance. Expo Line is to the right.
Western switch at Home Junction. I-405 is in the distance. Expo Line is to the right.

After Pico Blvd, Exposition Blvd picked up again. This time, even less remained of the tracks. From what I could tell, they had been pulled up long ago. No trace remained at the road crossings, only the occasional crossing signal or pole remained. At Centinela Ave, it was time to go over to Olympic Blvd. This ride isn’t about the PE after all! Olympic Blvd is an old State Highway, former Route 26. West of Centinela, the roadway turns into a four lane divided roadway, complete with concrete. I had only driven the roadway before, so this would be a good opportunity to find a date stamp on the concrete.

1948 date stamp on Olympic Blvd.
1948 date stamp on Olympic Blvd.

Just after Cloverfield Blvd, I found two things I had been looking for. The rail line crossed Olympic here, with the rails still in place, and there was a date stamp in the concrete. The stamp was from 1948, a bit earlier than I had thought, as I saw a 1958 stamp in a curb just before Cloverfield Blvd. I continued down Olympic Blvd as far as Lincoln Ave. Why that far? Well, that intersection, or at least the modern equivalent (the 10 freeway has modified things around there), was the west end of US 66. US 66, the Mother Road, ending at such a bland location? Yes. It never ended at Ocean, never mind what the signs may say.  It always ended at the intersection of Lincoln Ave and Olympic Blvd. This intersection was formerly the junction of US 101A, SR-26, and US 66. The last two ended here, the first continued north to Malibu and Oxnard. After making some zigs and zags through central Santa Monica, I made it to Ocean Ave. Finally, the coast! It was a good place to take a break, enjoy the view from the cliffs, and figure out my next move.

At Barrington Ave.
At Barrington Ave.
East on Olympic. Nice landscaped median and concrete roadway.
East on Olympic. Nice landscaped median and concrete roadway.
Expo Line crossing Olympic. Note the gutters on the rails in the median.
Expo Line crossing Olympic. Note the gutters on the rails in the median.
My bike at the Palisades.
My bike at the Palisades.
Fog finally clearing. Note the abandoned and eroded path.
Fog finally clearing. Note the abandoned and eroded path.
Sort of correct, Santa Monica is the end, just not Santa Monica Blvd and Ocean Ave.
Sort of correct, Santa Monica is the end, just not Santa Monica Blvd and Ocean Ave.

I decided it was time to take some photos. There was a plaque for Will Rogers, and a sign stating it ended here. As stated before, it didn’t. Once I had taken my photos of the Will Rogers Highway plaque, I headed on south.  It was time to hit Venice and see what remnants of the Pacific Electric I could find.  I followed Ocean Blvd down until I could connect to the beach path. It wasn’t a busy beach day, so taking the path wasn’t a bad idea. Before I got to the beach, I found some reminders of why I like to ride there – SURFERS! Yes, it is always a good day for a ride here.  The trouble with the path is sand. Lots of sand. It is a beach path after all! It wouldn’t be so much trouble, if it weren’t for the very sharp curvy nature of too many sections of the beach path. Seems to go out of its way to put curves in places there should be none. Just gotta take it slow. After I got as far south as central Venice, I left the path. As it turned out, I was right at Venice Blvd.

Will Rogers Highway, nice place for a plaque.
Will Rogers Highway, nice place for a plaque.
Tracks at Broadway St in Venice. Yes, the PE lives on!
Tracks at Broadway St in Venice. Yes, the PE lives on!

I took Pacific Avenue for a while, looking for traces of the PE. I found some, a building that had loops for hanging the overhead wire.  After a while, I moved over to Main St, and followed it to the south end of Santa Monica. I was searching for a train station, but did not find it. Next time perhaps, when I remember to bring the address! No matter, I headed back south, following 2nd St this time, which eventually turns into Electric Avenue (yes, I did rock down to…. Electric Avenue, but I didn’t take it higher.) This follows another PE line, with some tracks still extant. There were two small sections of track, at Broadway St and Westminster St. I got my photos, and headed onto Abbott Kinney Blvd, which has sharrows. I took it just for that reason.

After roaming through Venice, it was time to get back to the car. No rush, but I decided to take the shortest route – Venice Blvd. The roadway is wide, with overall decent paving, and bike lanes both directions. Winds, the seemingly slight downhill, and my energy at that point in the ride seemed to meet. I kept a decent pace down the road, averaging about 26 mph, sometimes up to 30 mph. Not bad, I thought, as I noticed I was keeping up with traffic. With that, the ride took less time than I had thought it might, and I got back to the car just shy of two hours later than I started. Overall, a fun ride. I saw most of what I set out to see, with few problems.  The future of Los Angeles, it seems, lies in its past. Where there were trains before, there will be again. Instead of building a city as they did, they’ll keep it moving.

Bicycling

Milestones…

Everyone has goals, or at least should. Some are big, some small. At this point in the year, I have two for bicycling. My first, doubtful I’ll complete it, is to do another 100 mile ride this year. I don’t have to, just want to. With my weekend plans as they are for the remainder of December, it doesn’t look good. The second goal, however, will be attained. My cyclocross bike is nearing a milestone, with emphasis on the mile. For the first time, the odometer on the bike will read over 10,000 miles. It would have already gotten there, but I’ve been using my road bike instead on my commutes. At present, it is at 9911 miles. I’ll be riding the bike more on my commutes, and putting the 10,000th mile on a fun ride, the weekend of Christmas.

I do plan a sort of mini-celebration. Perhaps a nice glass of Moscato D’Asti would be in order? The bigger milestone is for myself, I’ve never ridden that much, ever. I never set out to do this, it just happened. It may be small for others, but a big deal for me.

When I look back at what records I have on the mileage, I can’t seem to figure how it got so high. Only about 4000 miles are commute miles, another 1000 on tours. That leaves 5000 miles just riding around, mostly around San Diego County. All of those miles have been since October 20, 2008, the day I bought the bike. I guess I really do ride a lot!