Zen Mountain Biking - San Diego County

Florida Canyon

Balboa Park/Florida Canyon. A surprisingly extensive network of trails will whisk you through San Diego's urban scene as well as right through the heart of San Diego's most beautiful public park, Balboa Park, where one can stop to have a cup of joe or just pop off the bike to take in the floral delights found in the extensive rose garden. Conveniently located just to the east of downtown San Diego, Florida Canyon is the perfect ride if you are lodging downtown and don't have a car or just have a limited amount of time and don't want to spend it driving around. You won't believe that these fun and winding trails exist so close to downtown, where you can take in park views and see the skyscrapers of San Diego's burgeoning skyline at the same time. We can even skirt through some of San Diego's most charming historic neighborhoods if desired, all within the span of 2 hours. This route makes for a beautiful sunset ride and takes the rider near the World Famous San Diego Zoo, Navy Medical Center, the Velodrome and Morley Field. It will also give you a good overview of the park and it's many museums, in case you want to return later for a couple hours of culture.

Lake Hodges. Recently reopened after the fires of October 2007, this is one of San Diego's most popular trails for bikers, hikers and joggers. It extends from the I-15, eastward along the Del Dios Highway (though the highway is nowhere to be seen or heard from the trail!) until it merges about 6 miles at the quaint little Mexican Restaurant, Hermandez Hideway (www.hernandezhideaway.com), where it is often nice to take in an enchilada or two before returning to the trail.

Peñasquitos Preserve aka "PQ" This ride features generally level terrain, an historic ranch house, and a beautiful waterfall! There is a more intermediate/advanced route up on "the mesas" for those who are looking to do some climbing. Very centrally located in the heart of Rancho Peñasquitos. A ride at "PQ" will generally be between 8 and 14 miles round-trip, lasting between 1.5 hours and up to 3.0 hours. The beginner route, in the canyon with the waterfall as a destination, is good for kids and adults. This ride also makes a nice sunset ride, since very frequently hot air balloons that take off from a nearby golf course, like to hover...

Spring Canyon. A winding gradual climb north of Mission Trails Regional Park on the north side of Highway 52. Kind of rocky; lots of twists and turns. This out and back will thrill you with speed on the way back, when you'll realize how much you've actually been climbing. A good beginner to intermediate ride. Gets the blood pumping for sure. About 7 miles round trip. It is possible to take this ride up a notch and come back through Oak Canyon, which runs parallel to Sring Canyon. Oak features some challenging switchbacks and a couple short, very steep climbs as the grand finale.

Big Laguna Trail

BLT. Big Laguna Trail, or BLT, is really a network of single track trails that circles a (sometimes) lake and marshy meadow. Only an hour from San Diego, you will be surprised by the alpine envirnonment. In April and May, the meadow is covered in knee-high yellow flowers, which is a breathtaking sight and makes a camera absolutely mandatory. The trails are mostly gentle, with a few technical rocky and/or rooty sections. One of the most picturesque rides in the County, with open meadows full of flowers and a lovely lake to circumnavigate! Everyone loves a ride through BLT!

Cuyamaca. Many trails form a network offering infinite possibilities, from mild to somewhat grueling. Site of the Annual Poker Ride, this fabulous trail will test your lungs and awe your senses. Easy to do between 10 and 18 miles out here. Spectacular scenery abounds. Cuyamaca is about a 45 minute to one hour drive from San Diego.

Anderson Truck Trail

Anderson Truck Trail. This popular East County route within the Cleveland National Forest is a scenic lung buster on the way up and offers beautiful views of the El Capitan Reservoir. It's about a 13-mile out n' back with an elevation gain of 1,700 feet. The climbing is generally what makes this ride tough, not the terrain. It generally offers very good traction, though it can be rutty after spring rains. A fit intermediate of moderate techinical abilities could easily handle this ride, but it is fun for the advanced rider as well, especially if we make a detour to a particular section that free riders salivate over.

Cowles Mountain. This is generally a slow grind up "the tallest peak" in San Diego City Limits. If you love to climb and are somewhat sado-masichistic, this is your ride. There are a couple options on the ascent. The first is slogging up a fairly steep fire road all the way to the top, then adding on Pyle's Peak if you're legs and lungs aren't too fried. The other is ascending up the technically daunting "Barker Way" trail, with its 200-odd water bars and chunky-monkey switchbacks.

I prefer the slow grind up the fire road, thereby saving the reward of Barker Way for the descent, which can be quite delightful, though a bit hair-raising in spots, due mostly to jagged and unforgiving terrain. Of all the rides with the exception of parts of Noble Canyon, the Barker Way segment can be quite intimidating in parts and body armor would not be out of place if you tend to want to "bomb it." There are lots of blind corners, however, and plenty of hikers on weekends, so this ride is best tackled on a weekday. There is a nearby donut shop called Mary's that beckons on the way home. After this ride, believe me, you've earned one...or a dozen!

Daley Ranch. Just north of Escondido, near the Blue Sky Ecological Preserve and Dixon Lake, Daley Ranch ranch offers lots of meandering trails incorporating many kinds of terrain, from rocks to sand and everything in between. A very popular North County mountain biking destination with over 3,000 acres. Most rides will be between 1.5 to three hours, 8 to 14 miles. Beautiful vistas abound and the sweet singletrack beckons!

Elfin Forest. This picturesque ride destination is located in North San Diego County in the coastal mountains between Encinitas and Escondido. The ride feels similar to Cowles due to the initial grueling climb to the summit. The difference lies in that once at the top, Elfin Forest offers plenty of rolling or somewhat level trails to explore, while Cowles Mountain basically forces you to turn around and go down as soon as you've busted your butt to get to the top. Expect to spend between 2 - 3 hours riding a variety of trails and terrains. The view from the top, on a clear day, is nothing short of breathtaking, with the Pacific visible in all her blue splendor. The flora and fauna at the top offer kind of a "high chaparral" feel and I've never seen so many century plants blooming at once that there are here.

Mission Trails, with 52-loop and e-ticket and/or the Fortunas. The right combination of trails definitely puts Mission Trails into the realm of the advanced. Great place to practice your riding on rough, rocky, frequently rutty technical terrain. You will definitely "feel the burn" after a couple loops of the advanced portion of the park.

Noble Canyon. One of IMBA's revered "Epic" rides and the "Crown Jewel" of rides on Southern California and quite possibly, the entire Southwest, it's hard to beat Noble Canyon for beauty, variety of trails, challenge and just general "awesomeness!" It's definitely a minimum 4 or 5 hour experience at just under 18 miles (though it can be up to 24 with certain optional loops) and 3,000 vertical feet of climbing. You will go from pines to prickly pear and experience all the ecological diversity in between. You will need a Camelback and some energy gel plus a sandwich or power bar on this one. A ride through Noble will be a day you'll never forget.

Sycamore Canyon with Martha’s Grove and "the new switchbacks." This popular route offers a chance to ride the dirt from Santee to Poway and back, for a round-trip ride of about 18 miles. The new switchbacks that were added in late 2007 bump up the aerobic and scenic potential of the ride into the stratosphere! Once the demanding but do-able switchbacks are conquered, one can ride at least a mile along a mountain ridgetop which offers stunning panoramic views to the valley below.

After riding along the ridge, it's time to drop down the descending switchbacks on the east side of the mountain down into some sandy, rocky oak groves that offer a fair amount of shade and plenty of water crossings to boot. It is common to see deer and coyote here, lurking in the shade near the site of the old Gooden Ranch. After riding past the old windmill, we continue our venture north, riding past the newly rebuilt ranger station to circumvent the top of a small peak known as Martha's Grove.

This trail around the peak is hard packed and though steep in sections, offers a great panorama of where you've been–and where you're going again shortly. There are a couple very technical rocky descents for the stout of heart. The rangers tell many a tale of helicopter evacuations of mountain bikers from this portion of the ride who were not on their game, so be warned. Once we start descending again, we'll head back toward Santee on the east side of the oak grove and ranger station for variety. You will be tired, and very satisfied when you've logged nearly 19 miles when we get back to the parking area off Mast Blvd.