Tunitas Creek - Quintessential NorCal ride

Prologue:  

Dear Velos,

My thanks to Steelrider for organizing today's ride from Woodside - it got me out to do one of my most favorite rides.

I mentioned the ride to several non-Velos; two were interested, one, decided to come. But he was planning on meeting the guy who built his custom titanium bike, (http://ntpbikes.com/), so we met up at the Woodside Elementary School (a better place to park on Sunday as they have a real bathroom that is open) at 8:30. A whole bunch of riders showed up, planning to do a local ride. Most of us migrated to the parking lot where the Velos were gathering; only 2 were interested in doing the Pescadero loop with us.

We all left together but regrettably Angel, Dan and I didn't see the pack of Velos again after getting somewhat ahead on Old La Honda - we did wait at the top for a while but decided to press on. The three of us did the loop, fighting the strong gusts of wind on Stage Rd and Rt 1, although we were insulated from the winds up Tunitas Creek. We finished back in Woodside at 2PM.

So, although we didn't see much of the rest of the Velos, thanks again for making this lovely ride happen.

-Bill

The 4 trailing Velos (Fred, Robin, Paul and myself) also had a great ride. The ascent up Old La Honda Rd. to Skyline was a steady grind through the towering redwood forest, and the descent from Skyline to La Honda was a bit chilly.  Paul was ahead on the downhill and missed the turn onto Pescadero Creek Rd. The remaining 3 of us managed to contact him, and then meandered up and over Pescadero Crk. Rd, and into Pescadero for lunch at The Country Bakery. The sun came out as we descended into Pescadero and we appreciated the warmth and the blue sky.  Paul arrived shortly, having accumulated an extra 4 miles and 700 ft of ascent.  We had a fine 2 course lunch, sandwiches from the deli, followed by pastries (chocolate and raspberry croissants) generously provided by Fred.  The chocolate croissant was especially good, just the right amount of smooth, dark chocolate filling.  And, it is worth noting that the Bakery has also installed a 'fixit' public bike repair stand like the one shown below, out in back near their picnic area (nice!)

 

After lunch we proceeded North on Stage Road, into the stiff wind, and up and over two small climbs.  Along the way we had great views of the green hills, white capped ocean, grazing sheep, amazing large pigs, and some old tractors.  

At the North end of Stage Road, we made a right turn onto Hwy 1, and descended for a couple of miles to Tunitas Creek Road.  This was a white-knuckle ride downhill, into a fierce, buffeting wind, with fabulous scenery ahead, speeding cars along side, and various rocks and branches littering the shoulder -  terrifying and exhilarating!

Fortunately, the narrow bridge at the bottom of the descent, just before the turn onto Tunitas Creek, was a bit sheltered from the wind, and the cars were relatively considerate, so the bridge (usually the scariest part) was comparatively benign.  We took a right turn on Tunitas Creek Road, enjoying the quiet, less intense, pastoral environment.

 We stopped and lingered for awhile at the Bike Hut before starting back toward Woodside.

( http://blog.sfgate.com/bicycle/2014/06/03/the-bike-hut-a-long-way-from-anywhere-a-haven-for-bicyclists/ ).  

After that, it was just the beautiful ride up through the redwood forest along Tunitas Creek.  The creek is running strong, with lots of cascades, and Mother Nature is on the move.  While the road was clear, we saw several big redwoods either freshly down or leaning on their neighbors, and numerous fresh rockfalls, some with sizable boulders.  After the 7 mile climb up Tunitas Creek, the descent on Kings Grade was COLD.  Staying on the brakes was essential, but we successfully negotiated the tight turns, and returned to Woodside much later than Bill and his two buddies. 

Ride summary:  50 miles, 5700 ft of ascent, 2 major climbs, 1 exhilarating/terrifying experience.