Southern California Bicycle trails

(Long Beach harbor bike trail near dusk)

There are a number of scenic bicycle trails in the Los Angeles area. Most of these trails are along the Pacific oceanfront, along the various LA river beds or within several parks. The scenery varies widely with location, season and time of day. I occasionally bring along a camera to record some of the more interesting sights. Trails are generally in North West to South East order. Number of dashes following name is my evaluation of the trail, 5 is best.

Beach trails

South Bay bike trail ---- A 22 mile long trail extending from Santa Monica to Torrance, with interesting beaches, piers and people.
Palos Verdes ---- Upscale and beautiful surroundings.
Long Beach bike trail ---- Photos along the various Long Beach bike trails, much of it at night.
Huntington Beach bike trail ----- Classic California surf beach.
Newport / Balboa bike trail --- Several piers and beaches.

River trails

Ventura River ---- A scenic trail that passes through a nature preserve and an old oil field
Ballona creek - A trail of grafitti and rust.
LA River and Rio Hondo bike trails -- A trail that passes primarily through industrial and lower economic areas. Best traveled during the day.
San Gabriel River bike trail ---- A 38 mile long scenic trail that starts at the base of the San Gabriel mountain range and heads south to the Pacific Ocean.
Coyote Creek trail - Primarily boring industrial and residential areas. At least it's flat and uncrowded.
Santa Ana River bike trail ---- This 30 mile long trail starts near Prado Dam and follows the Santa Ana riverbed south to the Pacific Ocean .
San Diego Creek ----- A 10 mile long trail that starts in Irvine and continues southward through the very scenic Upper Newport Bay ecological area.

Mountain bike trails

Mount Lowe --- Some nice views of the Los Angeles basin.
Mount Disappointment ---- A short but steep trail to an old Nike missile site.
San Gabriel River West Fork ----- A scenic river trail in the San Gabriel mountain Range that goes to the Cogswell Dam and beyond.
Chino Hills ---- 65 miles of trails in 13,000 acres.

Other information

Bike trail hazards --

Links to other web sites

OCTA -- Orange county bike trail map [very detailed]
MTA -- Los Angeles county bike trail map [very detailed]
Labikepaths.com -- LA and Orange County bike trails

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