OT: Places NOT to ride right now due to crowds or crazy drivers?

[Nathan Dushman]

I've been trying to do 20-30 miles every few days, mix of loops around the city and some headlands dirt. Most of my rides have been before 9:30am and while I've had to pass maybe two people at less than 6 ft on the trails, in general it's felt quite safe and isolated. I'm thinking about venturing further north or south on roads, towards Muir Beach or Pacifica, but have seen comments online about crazy drivers on isolated curvy roads in the East Bay. Anyone had problems with this along the coast? For dirt trails, anyone had issues with crowds?

[Reeve Dunne]

I have had relatively good luck looking for dirt in the city with Mt Sutro Open space and golden gate park (with the exception of the panhandle which has been crowded at all times). I also rode through lands end and the presidio just before sunset last night without any trouble.

I've did some riding a few weeks ago on Tam and San Bruno (before the closed it) and the roads and parking areas were crowded (I rode there), but the trails were generally OK. Interested in hearing other peoples experiences.

[Kurt Wallace Martin]

I"m trying to do off-times like afternoon week days. The panhandle is to be avoided, as are trails in GGP near entrances and attractions - pedestrians.

headlands seems good, great highway - not a trail but better than usual, bernal, sutru, presidio is ok.

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[Darrin Ward]

yeah accidentally went through the panhandle tuesday afternoon on the beautiful day.

wow what a shitshow of people out riding.

really wish the fell lane that was shutdown over the weekend for a few hours by sfmrta (?) lasted longer.

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[Peter Colosi]

I live in Marin and have ridden on trails and roads most days of the week at all times. I haven’t experienced any negative driving and there are far fewer cars on roads than normal. Trails are pretty crowded especially ones near trail heads from late morning through early evening. Getting out from 0600-0800 is light enough out and minimizes interactions, but by 8 there are a lot of people out. Trails not near trail heads like the north side of tam are barren. I’m a big fan of going up rrg and doing the rock spring-laurel dell loop. 

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[Davide Italiano]

On Fri, Apr 17, 2020 at 9:22 AM Nathan Dushman <n...@abtech.org> wrote:
>
> I've been trying to do 20-30 miles every few days, mix of loops around the city and some headlands dirt. Most of my rides have been before 9:30am and while I've had to pass maybe two people at less than 6 ft on the trails, in general it's felt quite safe and isolated. I'm thinking about venturing further north or south on roads, towards Muir Beach or Pacifica, but have seen comments online about crazy drivers on isolated curvy roads in the East Bay. Anyone had problems with this along the coast? For dirt trails, anyone had issues with crowds?
>

If you plan to ride south, Milagra had just a couple of hikers when I
did it (last Wed/Sat). Sweeney ridge trail was actually fairly crowded
so I had to pull down the face mask. Baquiano was empty.
POTA had several groups of careless mountain bikers, YMMV. I wasn't
bothered one bit by cars or traffic except when I got back on Portola
where people were driving like maniacs.

--
D

[Rob]

On Friday, April 17, 2020 at 10:34:43 AM UTC-7, Darrin wrote:

yeah accidentally went through the panhandle tuesday afternoon on the beautiful day.

wow what a shitshow of people out riding.

really wish the fell lane that was shutdown over the weekend for a few hours by sfmrta (?) lasted longer.

once the bike lane ends on fell i just continue and take the lane. traffic is usually light enough when i'm there -- either around 7:45ish or 2ish in the afternoon. getting to divis at the start of the green wave one can get the green on masonic with a strong effort, 20ish mph i think. i haven't had problems with motorists on that stretch since the shelter in place. i usually skip going through the park and take stanyan then various streets parallel to aguello, depending on how i hit the light on geary, then left on jackson to the presidio. on the way home follow the same path but take oak. it can be busy with kids, families, later in the day on jackson / cherry.

stables loop hasn't been that bad though coastal can be busy. i haven't been on trails north of tenn valley road since the shelter in place. been up to stinson / CdP loop once or twice but it was raining and no one was out.

[Patrick Kitto]

only Rob skips the park for the Stanyan Wall and brushes it off like 'who wouldnt?'

I've been in the headlands a couple times a week with Hawk, typically around 11-1 and it has been pretty vacant since the parking lots were closed. Just this week they closed Conzulman to cars, which was super rad. now at McCulloch and Bunker there is a maze of barricades which could be navigated by residents/park staff, but very clearly says 'go away' to tourists.

Tomorrow I plan to heads for Muir Beach on a Headlands Traverse, leaving the city at dawn. I'll report back as to how crowded the trails are

FWIW motorists have been off the charts in my neck of the woods: numerous instances of people leaning on the horn cus the car in front of them was going 20 instead of 40 in a 25mph zone, many of the interesctions are full of the remnants of some hooning, and a dude in an Audi tried to kill me with his car (leaned on his horn when I was taking the lane passed the cliff house at 30mph, crossed the double yellow to pass me on the second half of the descent, then when I caught up to him at the stop sign and congratulated him on beating me to the stop he attempted to ram me into the barricades closing the parking lot, then floored it down to run the red at Fulton. fun times) 

If you head out on a butter lap at any time of day, I'd say be pretty cautious when you near the beach at a minimum.

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[John French]

I’ve been doing city rides in the late evening. There’s almost nobody out, either in cars, on bikes, or on foot. If you have good lights, I highly recommend it. Out near the beach is especially low traffic at night and a large stretch of Great Highway is closed to cars right now. Twin Peaks is also closed to cars. Golden Gate park has been nearly empty.

-John

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[Patrick Ryan]

Looks like they are working on closing some streets to traffic to give more room to pedestrian/cyclists. It will probably look a lot like the Sunday Streets in the park which I find to be a mixed bag for cycling (no cars, but tons of pedestrians wandering aimlessly through the street). https://www.sfmta.com/blog/slow-streets-program-help-social-distancing

Just this week they closed Conzulman to cars, which was super rad. now at McCulloch and Bunker there is a maze of barricades which could be navigated by residents/park staff, but very clearly says 'go away' to tourists.

With Conzelman closed to cars it's possible* to climb the backside of Hawk Hill. If you like your hill repeats on "shuffle" you can try a Hawk Hill Hat-trick, climbing the three paved routes to the top (front-side, back-side, McCullough).

*DISCLAIMER: Use extreme caution if attempting to climb the backside of Hawk Hill.  Even though there are no cars, cyclists are not expecting a bike coming back up and tend to "enjoy" that descent.  A cyclist v. cyclist at that speed would be very unpleasant. There is plenty of room for multiple passing bikes but be aware of visibility and definitely don't weave back and forth on the steep bits. Also, you are technically going the wrong way on a one-way road, so ride at your own risk. Beyond the legality/safety of the backside climb, it is also STEEP especially at the end (like 20%). Bring fresh legs and all your climbing gears (34T cog recommended).

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[Thomas Roessler]

On Tue, Apr 21, 2020 at 11:12 Patrick Ryan <prya...@gmail.com> wrote:

Looks like they are working on closing some streets to traffic to give more room to pedestrian/cyclists. It will probably look a lot like the Sunday Streets in the park which I find to be a mixed bag for cycling (no cars, but tons of pedestrians wandering aimlessly through the street). https://www.sfmta.com/blog/slow-streets-program-help-social-distancing

Just this week they closed Conzulman to cars, which was super rad. now at McCulloch and Bunker there is a maze of barricades which could be navigated by residents/park staff, but very clearly says 'go away' to tourists.

With Conzelman closed to cars it's possible* to climb the backside of Hawk Hill. If you like your hill repeats on "shuffle" you can try a Hawk Hill Hat-trick, climbing the three paved routes to the top (front-side, back-side, McCullough).

*DISCLAIMER: Use extreme caution if attempting to climb the backside of Hawk Hill.  Even though there are no cars, cyclists are not expecting a bike coming back up and tend to "enjoy" that descent.  A cyclist v. cyclist at that speed would be very unpleasant. There is plenty of room for multiple passing bikes but be aware of visibility and definitely don't weave back and forth on the steep bits. Also, you are technically going the wrong way on a one-way road, so ride at your own risk. Beyond the legality/safety of the backside climb, it is also STEEP especially at the end (like 20%). Bring fresh legs and all your climbing gears (34T cog recommended).

I think that disclaimer is best summarized as “really, don’t” - that road is narrow, and bikers going downhill really wont expect an uphill bicycle coming their way, in particular at those speeds. 

On Friday, April 17, 2020 at 7:20:11 PM UTC-7, Patrick Kitto wrote:

only Rob skips the park for the Stanyan Wall and brushes it off like 'who wouldnt?'

I've been in the headlands a couple times a week with Hawk, typically around 11-1 and it has been pretty vacant since the parking lots were closed. Just this week they closed Conzulman to cars, which was super rad. now at McCulloch and Bunker there is a maze of barricades which could be navigated by residents/park staff, but very clearly says 'go away' to tourists.

Tomorrow I plan to heads for Muir Beach on a Headlands Traverse, leaving the city at dawn. I'll report back as to how crowded the trails are

FWIW motorists have been off the charts in my neck of the woods: numerous instances of people leaning on the horn cus the car in front of them was going 20 instead of 40 in a 25mph zone, many of the interesctions are full of the remnants of some hooning, and a dude in an Audi tried to kill me with his car (leaned on his horn when I was taking the lane passed the cliff house at 30mph, crossed the double yellow to pass me on the second half of the descent, then when I caught up to him at the stop sign and congratulated him on beating me to the stop he attempted to ram me into the barricades closing the parking lot, then floored it down to run the red at Fulton. fun times) 

If you head out on a butter lap at any time of day, I'd say be pretty cautious when you near the beach at a minimum.

On Fri, Apr 17, 2020 at 4:02 PM 'Rob' via SF2G <sf...@googlegroups.com> wrote:

On Friday, April 17, 2020 at 10:34:43 AM UTC-7, Darrin wrote:

yeah accidentally went through the panhandle tuesday afternoon on the beautiful day.

wow what a shitshow of people out riding.

really wish the fell lane that was shutdown over the weekend for a few hours by sfmrta (?) lasted longer.

once the bike lane ends on fell i just continue and take the lane. traffic is usually light enough when i'm there -- either around 7:45ish or 2ish in the afternoon. getting to divis at the start of the green wave one can get the green on masonic with a strong effort, 20ish mph i think. i haven't had problems with motorists on that stretch since the shelter in place. i usually skip going through the park and take stanyan then various streets parallel to aguello, depending on how i hit the light on geary, then left on jackson to the presidio. on the way home follow the same path but take oak. it can be busy with kids, families, later in the day on jackson / cherry.

stables loop hasn't been that bad though coastal can be busy. i haven't been on trails north of tenn valley road since the shelter in place. been up to stinson / CdP loop once or twice but it was raining and no one was out.

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Thomas Roessler  (@roessler)

[Maxence Nachury]

Please do not go up the backside of Hawk. The top section is steep and there are a lot of beginners on bikes these days.

Not a good place for a head-on collision and now is definitely not a good time.

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[Christine Ryan]

Plus one to that!!

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[Kieran]

I had a close call a couple months back when someone was paperboy-ing up the backside of Hawk. Not a good feeling. 

Next time this happens I might consider hitting the brakes, safely moving my bike off to the side of the road, walking up the hill (clack, clack, clack), gently describing the dangerous situation they created, and then toss their bike off the cliff ;)

[Ted Lesher_]

haha oh man, glad you are okay. 1000% agree, do not ride the wrong way up a one way, very steep, blind corner filled downhill with a massive cliff off the edge. What could possibly go wrong? :-)

[Pat]

Apologies for the unsafe suggestion. Thinking about this more, that climb is a terrible idea for a bunch of reasons.

I had originally noticed the segment with times from a couple dozen SF2G riders on Strava during the government shutdown last year.  A Strava segment is definitely not a reason to try this (or any unsafe route).  There are plenty of dangerous segments that are best left unridden (like the Crystal Springs Dam flyover on I-280 that has resulted in multiple tickets).

That disclaimer should really just say "Seriously don't do this"

[Nathan Dushman]

Looks  like I should stick with going north from SF:
"Exceeding the five-mile radius from your home in order to go to the beach is not the only way to attract police attention in San Mateo County. Bicyclists riding on Route 1 and other highways have been stopped and issued warnings." https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Cops-order-900-off-San-Mateo-County-beaches-15216038.php

[Andrew Stadler]

Wow, I didn't realize San Mateo County extends as far north as it does. This is so stupid, I'm a heck of a lot less likely to catch and/or infect someone going over Mt San Bruno or even Colmaway than I am while squeezed into the bike lane across the GGB.

I guess the stock answer needs to be "I'm on my way to Walgreens, officer".

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[Matthew Hiller]

The restriction only applies to San Mateo county residents. If you're an SF County resident doing a through ride to Santa Clara and/or Santa Cruz counties, you're golden, oddly.

On Wednesday, April 22, 2020 at 12:20:24 AM UTC-4, Andy Stadler wrote:

Wow, I didn't realize San Mateo County extends as far north as it does. This is so stupid, I'm a heck of a lot less likely to catch and/or infect someone going over Mt San Bruno or even Colmaway than I am while squeezed into the bike lane across the GGB.

I guess the stock answer needs to be "I'm on my way to Walgreens, officer".

On Tue, Apr 21, 2020 at 9:11 PM Nathan Dushman <n...@abtech.org> wrote:

Looks  like I should stick with going north from SF:
"Exceeding the five-mile radius from your home in order to go to the beach is not the only way to attract police attention in San Mateo County. Bicyclists riding on Route 1 and other highways have been stopped and issued warnings." https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Cops-order-900-off-San-Mateo-County-beaches-15216038.php

On Friday, April 17, 2020 at 10:56:08 AM UTC-7, Davide Italiano wrote:

If you plan to ride south, Milagra had just a couple of hikers when I
did it (last Wed/Sat). Sweeney ridge trail was actually fairly crowded
so I had to pull down the face mask. Baquiano was empty.
POTA had several groups of careless mountain bikers, YMMV. I wasn't
bothered one bit by cars or traffic except when I got back on Portola
where people were driving like maniacs.

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[Matthew Hiller]

Though perhaps you don't want to have to speak to the local cops about it and risk an interaction with a police force member who by their very jobs has a much broader close-interaction social graph than you do.

[George Lumpkin]

So are folks biking across the GGB? I'd love to be heading up to the headlands, but I have been skeptical about riding over the bridge with the narrow bike path.

[Davide Italiano]

On Thu, Apr 23, 2020 at 1:55 PM George Lumpkin <george....@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> So are folks biking across the GGB? I'd love to be heading up to the headlands, but I have been skeptical about riding over the bridge with the narrow bike path.
>

I prefer weekdays. Tuesday 1PM the bridge was really empty and so were
Conzelman/Bobcat et similia.
During the weekend the bridge was relatively crowded, I wouldn't
necessarily recommend.

--
Davide

[Rob]

On Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 1:55:36 PM UTC-7, George Lumpkin wrote:

So are folks biking across the GGB? I'd love to be heading up to the headlands, but I have been skeptical about riding over the bridge with the narrow bike path.

i crossed the bridge today around 12:10 and again at 1:40 for a stables loop in the headlands. not that many people on the bridge and it was breezy.

[Patrick Kitto]

Ive been crossing the bridge 1-3 times per week since SIP started, exclusively on weekdays and midday. Its been very open, and no conflicts. Most crossings are less than a half down pedestrians and 1-3 bikes encountered.

I can speak for weekends, but I don't think there is any cause for concern for a weekday headlands ride. Once ac ross the bridge my rides have stayed quite solitary. 

Days I stay city side I have a lot more consistent encounters, and in GGP they are a lot closer in proximity than when I'm in the headlands. Unfortunately Hawk is really only up for crossing the bridge a couple of times a week, and I don't really ride solo anymore. speeds are much slower down, but when I get on the spin bike and can see pedal output, looks like my FTP is significantly improved.

-P

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[Scott Crosby]

is that 280 segment still there? god help me, I love it.

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[Patrick Kitto]

Who has gotten tickets up there? and how much did they cost?

I know Colijny has mentioned having a couple chats with CHP, but I had not heard of any actual citations. 

I've done the flyover a handful of times while a dam was closed, but was never stopped  by CHP.

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[Pat]

As I recall, there was a prophetic YOLO in the ride call. 

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/sf2g/f3ClpNBVTCU/discussion

The ride and segment in question were mentioned in reference to a petition to allow bikes on that section of 280.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/sf2g/Hz1dKBbr-RE/SECZf-rHbxUJ

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