San Diego County's Ten Everest-Friendly Steep Climbs

In recent years many cycling challenges have caught avid cyclists' imagination. From setting a goal to ride a metric century (100 km or miles), a proper century, completing one or many of the strenuous organized rides like the Belgian Waffle Ride or Unbound Gravel or even the Race Across America (RAAM), but perhaps none seem as doable as well as undoable at the same time as completing an everest. 

George Vargas and Lori Hoechlin (in pink REV kits) are San Diego County's everest king and queen.

Everesting, of course, refers to the practice of repeatedly climbing the same hill until one has reached the elevation gain equal to the height of Mt Everest (8,848 m or 29,029ft) on a single ride. It is a fantastic feat of endurance and stamina, and typically takes the upward of 8 hrs to complete.

For a stretch of a road to be everesting-friendly, for me, it should be steep enough to enable significant elevation gain per repeat, but not so steep that you can't repeat it enough times to complete the ride. It should also be relatively safe traffic-wise and not very technical on the descent (so you wouldn't end up killing yourself riding down in a zombic state), and, unless you have a SAG support car with toilet facility, has easy access to a restroom and drinking water/food. 

If you are looking for a suitable climb to everest on in San Diego County, here are ten good candidates to consider. 

Cabrillo Rd (Tidepool Hill)

1. Cabrillo Rd (Tidepool) in Cabrillo National Park (entry fee/park pass required to use): [1.6 miles/ 302ft: 97 repeats] 

Restrooms & water available at the visitor center, and also at the first tidepool parking at the bottom of the hill. This spot stays nice and cool even during the summer months, being right next to the ocean. Automobile traffic is very light and generally slow moving. It is, however, short, and requires almost a hundred repeats to get to the requisite 29029 ft of elevation gain for everesting. 

Oh, there is a handful of days each year when entry fee is waived at all national parks including Cabrillo. Find them at Cabrillo National Park website.

2. N Torrey Pines Rd (Outside) from Torrey Pines State Beach entrance to NU System Driveway traffic light: [3.2 miles/415 ft: 70 repeats]

Restrooms & water available at Torrey Pines State Beach parking lot (no fee for bikes to enter). 

Before northbound (downhill) cycling on Torrey Pines Park Service Road (Inside) was banned in 2014, I would have suggested Torrey Pines Inside instead as the steeper average gradient there wouldn't require so many repeats (and the climb would be quite less boring and hot, being more exposed to the ocean breeze). But since we can't ride down inside the park anymore, the outside road is the better option for your quads. Do be careful crossing the road at the bottom of the descent, as there is no traffic light and there are many distracted drivers there looking more for a parking spot than for bicycle traffic!

N Torrey Pines Rd at Torrey Pines State Beach.

3. Fanuel/Cardeno Dr from Tourmaline St to Via Cabrera in Pacific Beach: [3.6 miles/521 ft: 56 repeats] 

Restrooms & water available at Fanuel Park on the south end of Fanuel (at Mission Bay Boardwalk). You could do the whole length of Fanuel/Cardeno Dr and start at Fanuel Park, of course, but that adds many more traffic lights (and not much more climbing). The Mormon church parking lot at Tourmaline would make a good turn around point. I would also turn around at Via Cabrera instead of going all the way to the top at La Jolla Scenic Dr intersection for ease of turning (traffic is generally light on Cardeno Dr but more robust on La Jolla Scenic Dr).

Cardeno Dr

Nautilus St climb.

4. Nautilus St from Fay Ave to La Jolla Scenic Dr in La Jolla: [3.1 miles/ 465ft: 63 repeats]

Restrooms & water available at Coggan Family Aquatic Complex on the NW corner of Fay Ave at Nautilus. On the descent I would take the right at W Muirlands Dr to Fay Ave instead of staying on Nautilus for an easier turn-around back up the hill. 

5. Alto Dr from Lemon Ave to Mt Helix Nature Theater in La Mesa: [3.6 miles/ 715 ft: 41 repeats] 

Port-a-toilet and water available at Mt Helix Nature Theater. Park at the Nature Theater on top and descend down. There is a temptation to take a left turn right after the bridge over Mt Helix Dr's uphill lane and go against traffic for a short stretch to get to Alto Dr on the descent, but I would really caution against it. That sort of riding there gets more hazardous as you tire, and any accident there would really set back bikes - local residents relation. Please descend carefully on Alto Dr as it is very narrow and has many blind driveways, and the local folks like to come out and walk their hill. Expect people behind blind turns and stuff and don't rip down Alto Dr (don't be that person to convince the locals to get speed bumps installed on that lovely lane). 

Alto Dr climb and descent on Mt Helix.

Alto Dr on Mt Helix

6. Mission Gorge Rd - Golfcrest in San Carlos: [3.6 miles/433 ft: 67 repeat + continue to Ruane St]

Restrooms & water available at Cowles Mountain Trailhead at the top of the climb. 

I would do this in a clockwise loop rather than out-and-back, to descend down Jackson Dr and just keep on turning right without having to cross any road. Traffic is generally pretty light, though it does get quite hot in this neighborhood during the summer months.

Mission Gorge Rd climbing to Golfcrest Dr.

7. Honey Springs Rd from Hollenbeck Canyon Trailhead to Barber Mountain Rd in Jamul: [6.8 miles/ 1856ft: 16 repeats]  

There is a port-a-toilet at Hollenbeck Canyon Trailhead staging area at the bottom of the climb, and a potable water spigot on the uphill side of the building (close to the stone bench) of Deerhorn Valley CDF fire station just past Jacob's red barn after Deerhorn Valley Rd turn off. 

Honey Springs Rd

Deerhorn Valley CDF Fire Station water tap.

Honey Springs Rd is not recommended during the summer and early fall months due to excessive heat and when there is a wildfire closer than 10 miles from it (it being the lone paved escape route for Deerhorn Valley, Bratton Valley, and Mother Grundy communities). 

8. S Twin Oaks Valley Rd from Village Dr to Ledge St traffic light just past the fire station in San Marcos: [3.6 miles/ 683ft: 43 repeats]

Restrooms & water available at Lakeview Trailhead Staging Area at Double Peak School traffic light.

I would make the bottom of this something of a loop, so that you would start from the roundabout where Village Dr meets Santa Barbara Dr and head east, turning right with the hill onto Sunstone, and then right up the hill on S Twin Oaks Valley Rd and climb to Ledge St, using the traffic light there to turn back down the hill on S Twin Oaks Valley Rd, turning right on S Village near the bottom of the descent and follow the road around the block to cross S Twin Oaks Valley Rd again. There you could either the left-turn back up the hill (or you could even go straight on Village across the intersection and then turn left at the Santa Barbara Dr roundabout and recommence the loop. 

Lakeview Trailhead Staging Area restrooms & water.

9. San Elijo Rd from S Melrose Dr to Ledge St traffic light (fire station) in San Marcos: [3 miles/ 884 ft: 33 repeats]

Restrooms & water available at San Elijo Park (just down the hill from Schoolhouse Way). Like S Twin Oaks Valley Rd, this is a busy thoroughfare although with a consistent bike lane. When school is in expect heavy traffic at school rush hours... along with the usual rush hours. Both S Twin Oaks Valley Rd and San Elijo Rd are better for riding on weekends.

San Elijo Rd climbing through San Elijo Hills.

10. Palomar South Grade Rd (S6) from Oak Knolls Campground driveway to the intersection with Palomar East Grade Rd (S7) on Palomar Mountain: [13.1 miles/2493 ft: 12 repeats or 11 repeats and continue to around mile marker 46.6]. 

Restrooms and water available at Oak Knolls Campground and at Mother's Kitchen Restaurant at the top of the climb. 

Palomar South Grade (S6) Rd.

Palomar South Grade Rd is not recommended on weekends and holidays due to sport-motorcycles and boaters traffic. It is also not recommended during the summer and early fall months due to excessive heat (and persistent and super pesky horse flies between 2000 and 5000 ft elevation markers). 

There are 3 cattle grates on Palomar South Grade Rd.

This is the longest and most consistent climbing road on the list. From the first curve after Oak Knolls Campground all the way to the top the road constantly climbs at 6-9% grade in a series of wiggly curves. That makes it a favorite for local riders aiming to achieve an everest within San Diego County. 

Of course, you could extend this to include Hwy 76 from Jilberto's Taco Shop where Hwy 76 meets Valley Center Rd and only have to do 7 repeats to attain the everest, but Hwy 76 is not all that safe to ride that many times on (especially when fatigued) in a day. You'd be running east-west on it's iffy shoulder (rumble-stripped when there is one) with both sunrise and sunset (blind drivers hours)... That is just not healthy.

San Diego Steepies Series:

Hardest Climbs in San Diego's North County 

San Diego's Rite of Passage Climbs 

San Diego's Steepest Sub-Miler Short Climbs

North County's Rite of Passage Climbs 

North County's Steep Climbs 

North County's Steepest Paved Climbs

Are bicycles allowed on the freeways?

• Did I just see someone bicycling on the freeway shoulder? Is that even allowed?? 

Well, if you were driving on specific stretches of some freeways, you probably did! 

Generally, bicycles and pedestrians are not allowed on the freeway, except for specific one-exit stretches where there is no reasonable surface street connecting point A to point B that a road bike can safely use.

These bike-legal stretches of the freeways are always only one-exit in length, and bikes are required to exit onto any rest area and to re-enter the freeway on the far side, so as to not cross any freeway access ramp. 

• How do you know which stretches of freeway are bike-legal?

If you are already driving on the freeway, you likely won't notice the bike-legal bits until it's almost over (there would be a little white sign on the right side of the freeway telling bicycles to exit, like the one in the last photo on this post). If you are entering the freeway at the start of a bike-legal stretch, the little white sign an the entrance of the on-ramp will not have 'bicycles' on its prohibited list. 

Above is the usual sign you see entering a freeway on-ramp.

This is the sign you see entering a bike-legal stretch of a freeway. Note the absence of 'bicycles' on the prohibited list.

Just to clarify, class I and class II E-bikes are also allowed where regular pedal bikes are. 

• In San Diego County, the designated bikeable stretches of the freeways are:

1. I-5 shoulder between Las Pulgas Rd (Camp Pendleton) and Oceanside Harbor Dr (and sometimes, between Basilone Dr and Las Pulgas Rd). 

This is due to USMC Camp Pendleton being an active military base. There is a designated bike route thru Camp P, but it requires a base access pass that is only available to US Citizens and Residents (how to apply for a Camp Pendleton base bike pass). And, even with the base pass, base access may also be suspended with little or no notice due to military activities. The I-5 shoulder between Las Pulgas Rd and Harbor Dr in Oceanside is therefore always bike-legal (except during construction/maintenance work on the freeway, in which case Caltrans will usually provide a shuttle service). 

2. I-15 shoulder between Via Rancho/Bear Valley Pkwy in Escondido and W Bernardo/Pomerado Rd in Rancho Bernardo (across San Dieguito River). There is a pedestrian/bicycle bridge running parallel to the west of I-15 accessible from Sunset Dr in Escondido and W Bernardo Dr in Rancho Bernardo, but it lies in the San Dieguito River Preserve, the north side of the bridge is a dirt trail and is closed at night between sunset and sunrise.

3. I-8 shoulder between E Willow Rd in Alpine/Viejas and Hwy 79/Japatul Valley Rd in Descanso. The only other ways to travel between Alpine and Descanso are the dirt Viejas Grade Rd and Tavern - Japatul Rd - Japatul Valley Rd. Both of which add significantly more climbing and/or distance. 

Please note that Caltrans is working on I-8 from the Vista Point rest area just east of E Willow Rd exit and on east for 10 miles starting in August 2022. This reduces eastbound lane to one travel lane, and no bicycles are allowed (a shuttle service for bikes needing to travel between E Willow and Hwy 79/Japatul Valley Rd, but you have to call, with likely significant wait time). More info at Caltrans. This only affects eastbound travel.

4. I-805 between Main St/Auto Park Dr and Palm Ave (Otay Valley). 

5. I-125 (South Bay Expressway) between Birch Rd (Otay Ranch) and Otay Mesa Rd (Otay Mesa).      

• The I-5 shoulder between Sorrento Valley Rd and Genessee Rd used to be bike-legal until a few years ago when the separated bikeway (a segment of the North Coast Corridor Bikeway) opened. Now bicycles are no longer allowed on that stretch of the freeway.  
•   
• In Imperial County to our east: 
• I-8 between In-Ko-Pah Rd. (Imperial County Line) and Junction with SR-98.
• I-8 between Imperial Hwy and Dunaway Rd.
• I-8 between Gordon’s Well Rd. and Ogilby Rd.
• I-8 between Sidewinder Rd. and SR-188/Araz Rd.

Heading west on I-8 from Japatul Rd to E Willow Rd.

Bikes must exit the freeway at any rest area (and re-enter on the far side), and off-ramp. No crossing of freeway access ramp allowed.

Most cyclists are really not keen on riding on these freeway shoulders at all. Sure, the shoulders are usually roomy and relatively clean, but the discomfort of having cars zoom by at 60+ mph just a few feet away quite offsets for it. A few of these freeway shoulders are also not good for riding during wind events (the bridge over the Sweetwater River on I-8 and the long bridge over the Otay River Valley on I-805 and Hwy 125 come to mind). 

If you see someone riding a bicycle on these stretches of freeway, they're doing it mostly out of necessity. Please be kind. They'll be taking the next exit off the freeway anyhow. 

San Marcos Mountain Tower

There are a few distinctive local hills in San Diego's North County between the Pacific Coast and I-15, and north of the San Dieguito River (Lake Hodges and on west to San Dieguito Lagoon) that are dead useful for orientation purpose whenever you get turned around on a bike ride and can no longer tell where you are and where you are headed. One of these striking looking hills that look different from different angles is San Marcos Mountain, particularly if seen from Vista proper (from WSW looking ENE at the mountain), with the steep zigzag of the very private Catalina Ave etched to its western face. 

The tantalizing Catalina Ave is, however, private and tripple-gated so tightly that even an amoeba would find it hard to squeeze through. The only viable route up to the San Marcos Mtn tower is the southern assault up Hardell Ln from Buena Creek Rd. 

Hardell Ln branches into three after the last house. Take the middle branch.

Past the gate, be sure to stay either on the road or on the trail to the right of it. 

I used to range into the Hollyberry neighborhood via a dirt trail approach from the south, over the Santa Fe Hills (from Borden Rd & Las Posas Rd) for a car-less gravel-bike-friendly ride with good deer and coyote sighting opportunities. A new subdivision is being constructed there, however, and the trail is currently fenced off.... hopefully just temporarily. (I have hope.. since this is in the City of San Marcos, and San Marcos has been pretty consistently awesome about putting in hike/bike-able trails whenever they build a new subdivision. If only I could convince the mayor of San Marcos to come and mayor next door Vista as well). 

There are almost always a few locals out walking the lanes in the Hollyberry neighborhood, and they are always a joy to stop and fraternize with. People are so much friendlier on foot and on bike than they are in a car. We are all going to get somewhere, and we are going to actually enjoy the process of getting somewhere... together!

 

Stay right at the Y-junction and head up the mountain.

 

Anyhow, going on past the car gate, there is a short firm dirt section before the tarmac returns as the lane meanders up to the saddle of the San Marcos Mountain. The area to the left of the road is strictly private. To the right a single-track trail runs along with the road for a while before veering off to take a more bushy way up to the radio tower complex (hiking boots- and full-suspension mountain bikes- friendly. Gravel bike... not so much). 

 

The big gate at the saddle with a narrow opening on the right side.

At the saddle, the fence gate to the tower complex is usually closed, but there is a narrow opening on the right for hikers to squeeze thru. If the gate is open when you head up, be sure to assume that it had closed when you head back down... and ride at a speed that would allow you to safely stop! 

This is an out-and-back ride, so be sure to scout the downhill conditions while you're going up. 

After the gate, the road climbs at around 6% toward the tower and then makes a sharp left with a gradient hike to around 8-12% and doesn't let up until after the next right curve. The view is pretty fantastic. 

Approaching the KGMG-FM Oceanside radio towers, with 360 view of San Diego's North County. It is amazing how analgesic the wide open vista is. 

There is a use trail to the proper summit block where the American flag is, but the actual benchmark is on the top of the rock cropping, and you'd have to do some bouldering to acquire the actual summit. It's worth hiking a bit onto the narrow ridge to have a look around. For all the energy you spent and all the suffering you endured to get up to the hard earned view, you might as well take the time to enjoy the reward. That... is my excuse for loitering, and I'm sticking with it.

Here are some views from the various side streets around the southern shoulder of San Marcos Mountain.

And a few video from the steepie-rich neighborhood. 

Camino de las Lomas.

El Paso Alto down to Hardell Ln. 

Hardell Ln to the radio tower complex.

This is San Diego's North County, my friends. No climb, no view!