Sunday, October 14, 2012

Bobcat Miwok like an ewok



I wish I could go biking on Endor. That planet in Star Wars is probably a paradise for mountain bikers! But last Friday I was not in space, fortunately I was on the earth, biking like crazy. With my uncle we went to Tennessee Valley in the Marin headlands, just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Take the 101 north and then exit 445B. Follow Shoreline hwy and turn left onto Tennessee Valley Road (if you crossed a small bridge, you went too far). Follow Tennessee Valley Road until you find the parking lot next to some stables.

Bobcat Miwok does not have any easy road to warm up, so I would recommend biking around the parking lot until you’re warm. Once warm, take the Old Springs Trail which can be tricky to find because you have to go in between the stables. On that trail you’ll see horses, but watch out where you put your wheels!  Poop is pretty common there.  The trail is uphill and a little technical.  The beginning has logs perpendicular to the road which can easily break your speed.  So, you should try to bike on the edge of the trail if you can. The rest of the trail is made up of loose soil with some pathways made out of logs.

Miwok Trail
At the top of Old Spring Trail, turn right onto Miwok Trail, a fast downhill with an excellent descent. Visibility is also very good and not technical at all.  The only thing that can be dangerous is the layer of loose small sand gravel on top of the compact soil, so it can get slippery.

Once you get down to the bottom, before turning left onto Bobcat Trail, I recommend taking a detour and continuing straight to the Rodeo Lagoon. There is a beach down there with an absolutely amazing view.  It’s breath taking!  The dark sand, the waves crashing on the rocks and no sound at all, it feels like you are in another part of the world!

After that mesmerizing detour, you can return to Bobcat Trail and then turn right. This trail is a long, progressive fire road up hill. There is nothing technical or difficult… it’s just long.  Towards the top of the hill, you will come to an intersection.  Keep right and follow the main road until you arrive at a wonderful view of Sausalito and the North Bay.

From there, take the path on the right: Marincello Trail. This trail leads downhill back to the parking lot. It’s similar to the Miwok Trail in its composition and can, therefore, be slippery.  The trail is steep, so be careful not to touch your brakes when you get to the parking lot, they could be hot! 


Length    5/10
Difficulty 5/10
Scenery 9/10

 
Well I hope you enjoyed this tour… I’m not sure where I’ll be biking next!

2 comments:

  1. Wow! It's amazing that you can find trails like that just outside of San Francisco. I need to start biking in places like this.

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  2. Yeah, the North Bay is an awesome place to go biking! This trail is not so difficult, it builds up your stamina... you should try

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