Ride Bike! Orinda through Moraga, up Pinehurst

See the Google map for this route.

For all routes

Take BART to the Orinda station. From Orinda BART station, take Moraga Way southbound (you have to loop around the station a bit, follow the signs). Moraga Way is commercial for a couple blocks, then is wooded and residential, with a decent shoulder and a basically well-behaved stream of traffic. The only thing to watch out for is cars coming out of the blind driveways. Moraga Way slopes slightly uphill for most of its length; it's not steep but it can be tiring. Don't push too hard, especially if you plan to do one of the intermediate or advanced rides.

After about 6 km, Moraga Way descends into a business district in Moraga, then ends at Moraga Road.

For easy route

Turn left. Moraga Road is basically flat and commercial, with a wide shoulder. After about 4km, turn right at the fork with Saint Mary's Road. Saint Mary's Road is a mostly rural road that goes past Saint Mary's College and has a reasonably fun descent into Lafayette. The road curves around to the left, and ends at a T intersection with Moraga Road; turn right on Moraga Road. Moraga Road is wide and busy; take it about two blocks to its intersection with Mount Diablo Boulevard, then turn left. (You may need to use the pedestrian crossing).

Turn right on Happy Valley Road in 3 blocks. The Lafayette BART station will be on your right. Total riding is about 15 kilometers.

For intermediate/advanced routes

At the intersection of Moraga Way and Canyon, turn right onto Canyon. Canyon is residential for the first km, then rolling and wooded until it ends at Pinehurst after 3 km. Turn right on Pinehurst.

Pinehurst is wooded and pretty (see above, left). It slopes gradually uphill until you pass the city of Canyon (which consists of a post office), then becomes twistier and steeper. The steepest part is the hairpin (above, right); if you get past there, you'll probably be OK. After 6 km and a fairly significant climb it ends at Skyline Boulevard.

For intermediate route

Turn right on Skyline Boulevard (look at the street signs, the intersection is confusing).

Skyline is a residential road populated by ex-Berkeley liberals who have sold out and made a million bucks. It's wide and there's little traffic. If there are no clouds there will likely be some stunning views of the bay--if there are clouds it's likely you will be in them. There's a short climb leading up to Grizzly Peak Boulevard, 3 km down the road. If you continue straight, you'll wind up on Tunnel Road, which descends into the Rockridge area. After about 5 km of descent, the road will end at an unmarked T intersection; turn left. After you go around a bend, take a right turn to go over the freeway, and then a right turn again on the other side; this will put you on Old Tunnel Road, a fast, mostly straight descent into north Oakland. Old Tunnel Road ends at a strange intersection with Broadway; turn left on Broadway. Broadway can have heavy traffic, but it shouldn't be too bad on Sunday afternoon. It has a fast, straight descent soon after we get on it, then it continues slightly downhill. After about 3 kilometers, College Ave will be on your right; turn right and take College back to Berkeley. Total riding is about 25 kilometers.

If you want a slightly longer ride, turn right on Grizzly Peak. Grizzly Peak is similar to Skyline; picturesque, rolling, and lightly trafficked (except by bicycles). It's mostly flat until Claremont Avenue; you can descend on Claremont and then take College back to campus, or continue on Grizzly Peak. Several of our participants have eaten it on Claremont; be careful. If you continue on Grizzly Peak, you will have a long but not particularly steep climb, then a nice descent to either Centennial (which will bring you out just above Memorial Stadium) or Euclid. Centennial is a little too fast for my taste, but it's direct. Euclid has been recently repaved and is a decent descent except for the traffic. Total riding is 25-35 kilometers.

For advanced route

Turn left on Skyline Boulevard (see above for description). Skyline climbs for about 2 km, then rolls for a bit, then has a fun descent for another klick. After about 6 km total, it intersects with Redwood Road. Turn left on Redwood Road.

Redwood Road is wooded, rural, and beautiful. There's practically no traffic. It descends softly for about 3 km, then climbs for another couple (there's one fairly steep section but it's not too bad). It then descends for about 5 km to Willow Park. The descent is not that fast but the pavement is decent and there's only one turn that requires braking. After Willow Park there's a short, somewhat steep climb into Castro Valley. After the climb, there's an equally steep descent, and after the bottom we turn right on Seven Hills Road.

Seven Hills Road is sort of a novelty; it really does have 7 hills, although only the first and last are significant. There's not much traffic. It ends after 2 km at Lake Chabot Road. Turn right on Lake Chabot. Lake Chabot is a wide road with moderate traffic; it starts out semi-residential, but soon moves into Anthony Chabot Regional Park, where it overlooks Lake Chabot. There's a snack bar if you need any food. There's a multi-use path along the lake shore; it usually has lots of walkers, joggers, and dogs, so be careful. (If you prefer, you can just stay on Lake Chabot Road but it's not nearly as pretty). We stay on the path as it parallels the lake; after we cross over the dam, bear to the left and down a steep hill with poor pavement. Turn right to exit the park, then bear left when you're through the gate; there's a short climb, then we turn right on Estudillo Road. It descends into San Leandro and crosses under the freeway; stay on it for about 2km, then turn left on Bancroft. After three blocks, turn right on Dolores. After 1 km, the San Leandro BART station will be on your right. Total riding is about 50 km.

Last updated 10/26/07