Big Basin Redwoods state park

Big Basin Redwoods state park

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	Big Basin Redwoods state park
Location:	California - Bay Area
Nearest Town:	Saratoga
Directions to Trailhead:	From Saratoga, take highway 9 towards Skyline Blvd (Hwy 35). Cross highway 35 and continue on Hwy 9 until intersection with Hwy 236. Turn right onto 236 and proceed until intersection with China Grade Road. This is trailhead, park near the intersection.
Trail Description:	[I recommend to proceed to the park headquarter to buy a map and either drive back to start from China Grade, or start from park headquarters and ride to China Grade. You are doing a loop so you will do this section either at the beginning of the ride, or at the end.] Turn right on China Grade (uphill) and pedal about 3 miles on the pavement. (After about 2 miles there is a post to the right of the road with maps on it, take one and continue on the road. This is not a complete map and often the case is empty, so don’t count on it.) Turn left on the gate that says “Johansen” and ride the fast fire road. Take left on the next fork and ride the Middle Ridge trail. It’s a grate downhill section. On the next gate, take right turn and immediately left to stay on Middle Ridge trail. Continue with Middle Ridge until you hit Hihn Hammond. At this point you can either proceed with Hihn Hammond uphill to the overlook, and than go back (it's ~1.5 miles one way). Or, continue downhill towards the headquarters. Take Hwy 236 back to your car. Along the ride I could see many singletraks; however, none of which is legal. If more riders will come to ride here, maybe they will open some for us. This is a great place to ride in a very hot day since the redwood forest keeps the temperatures cool.
Trail Length:	15.3 (including the overlook)
Trail Type:	Fire Roads
Skill Level:	Intermediate
Submitted By:	Dave

Aaron from San Francisco Date: June 7, 2002 Trail Ridden: Ridden Once
Recommended Route: don't bother Other recommended trails in the same area: soquel, skeggs, napa
Review: this is not a ride, this is a waste of your time..	Overall Rating:

Bill from San Jose Date: January 24, 2002 Trail Ridden: Every few months
Recommended Route: I have ridden the Gazos Creek / Johansen / Middle Ridge route (counter clockwise) from the Park HQ Other recommended trails in the same area: I want to try others there. Not very many mt bikers out at Big Basin and the hikers stay mostly on the hike trails so it's mostly very quiet, just you and your buddies. It's not technical but the views and exercise is well worth the drive.
Review: Fire roads, not too technical. A few things to watch out for on Middle Ridge are a sand wash at the bottom of a sandstone downhill, a few rutted places and a fallen tree around a blind corner about 2/3 way on Middle Ridge. Storms make for interesting surprises, there, too. Gazos is tame, you climb up Johansen and then down Middle about 13 miles round trip. I like it 'cause of the redwood trees, sand bars, waterfalls, views and such. It's forest riding in most places with open areas of sandstone. Can be ridden on a hardtail, but F/S is more fun	Overall Rating: