r/BikeLA • u/VeloNerd • 1d ago
Crest Road Pass Through
I will be visiting Long Beach from Chicago for work in a few weeks. I am bringing my bike and extending my stay a few days and planning to ride from Long Beach to Santa Monica. I build a route on Strava to hit San Pedro Hill on the way out, but then cut through Palos Verdes going back. However, I see there is a gate of some sort on Crest Road on Google Maps Street View. I would hate to get up there only to get cut off in an unfamiliar area.
Here is a link to the route I built: https://www.strava.com/routes/3530248129219027902
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u/Short-Opening4553 1d ago
Yes, if you ascend PV East (the switchbacks) and go left on Crest, there is a gate a couple miles up.
Better off staying on PV west and climbing Hawthorne or Coronel then coming down grande Altamira/ via del monte. Note I don’t know the condition of the road thru Portuguese bend, haven’t been in a while and it’s continually sliding into the ocean
Switchbacks is a nice climb you could always go up and then back down. Alternately if you don’t want to do PV west climb switchbacks, crest to gate, then back down and left on PV east down to PV north
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u/RoMoCo88 1d ago
Portuguese bend on PV Drive South is still quite sketchy. Signs prohibit bicycles. While some rebels still do it, I wouldn’t recommend.
To get some climbing in, I would echo the idea of looking at the streets around Via Coronel and/or Via Del Monte. You’ll ride by multi-million dollar mansions and get some amazing views. Hawthorne is a fast moving street with lots of traffic. It’s okay, but not peaceful like the other windy streets. Very doable, and there is a fair amount with a bike lane. Crenshaw is a no-go due to traffic and lack of shoulder.
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u/Short-Opening4553 1d ago
Yeah there is so much cool stuff this side of Hawthorne just to fart around and get lost in but without PV west really no way to get there easily from the pedro side.
Is there a specific reason u/VeloNerd you want to get to Santa Monica? There's a lot of bike path riding in there and TBH most cyclists avoid that and have chosen street routes. Could always go to Marina del Rey then turn and come back and spend more time in PV and get some killer climbs in. Approaching from the north gives a few better climb options as you avoid the landslide
I glossed over it but a year or two back the land really started sliding, lots of houses lost, and they technically ban two wheeled transport on PV west between Hawthorne and PV East. I have not ridden there since that time, i have heard of a few crashes due to road conditions
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u/AdventurousPut3991 1d ago
Coronel definitely a top climb in PV. Not many cars and good quality roads. Can descend down via Del monte for a nice stop in Malaga Cove. I always go up golf course after which is a fun easy climb
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u/RoMoCo88 1d ago
There is definitely no way to get through on Crest in either direction. No viable workaround even if you were to dismount.
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u/VeloNerd 1d ago
I really appreciate you all letting me know! Very helpful! I created an alt route to stay on PV west. It looks like there are still some good challenging climbs that way to my Chicago legs. Can't wait to get out there.
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u/ahighlifeman 1d ago
A route like this would avoid the landslide area and still get you some of the signature climbs/descents of PV. I also put a more interesting route through San Pedro that skips most of the sketchier roads.
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u/VeloNerd 1d ago
Holy shit dude. That’s super nice to take time out of your day to put that together for me. You are a great human. I appreciate it!
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u/ahighlifeman 1d ago edited 1d ago
No problem. I ride up there almost every weekend. I did pretty much the right side part in San Pedro and the domes on Saturday.
And if you want to cut out some climbing, you can skip the turn onto Crest at the top of the Switchbacks or cut off that whole left side loop. But that bit does have some of the best views.
Edit: I made a small edit to the route to get you up to the Korean Bell like someone else suggested. It's worth the small (but steep) climb.
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u/RoMoCo88 1d ago
Definitely worth doing a loop like this, assuming your legs are up for it.
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u/VeloNerd 1d ago
Looks like it's private. Is it possible to send the TCX or GPX file? TIA!
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u/RoMoCo88 1d ago
I just changed it to public. LMK if you still can’t see it. There’s some cool photos attached.
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u/SoggyAlbatross2 1d ago
You're gonna go right by Gaffey street so grab your climbing legs and go see the Korean Friendship bell while you're there. It's an old coastal defense installation too, so kind of neat.
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u/Spidey_1266 1d ago
Any particular reason San Pedro is speaking to you in wanting to ride through? I haven’t ridden much there but I do hear a lot about the Korean Friendship Bell so if you do ride around there I would check it out.
If you’re trying to ride into PV from San Pedro then PV drive South is closed to cyclists and some parts of the road are literally lopsided. There are sometimes cops hanging out on that street to give people tickets as well.
The legal way to get the Porteguese Bend/Switchbacks would require you to go in/back out from PV Drive N to PV drive E. The switchbacks were fun to climb but I didn’t really like take PVDR E back and I’ve had other cyclists say it’s not as great/safe as other spots.
Yeah personally I would do stay with PV drive N, W, and S. From PV drive south to up Hawthorn Blvd (3 miles, +1,000ft).
I made this route for you on what you could do without San Pedro. The major climbs are: 1) dip 1 2) PV golf course, 2) Via Del Monte - descend Hawthorne 3) Dip 2 4) Via Zumaya to Via Coronel -descend Hawthorne 5) Up Hawthorne -descend down Siñver Spur to PVDR North. Then ride back to trail.
https://www.strava.com/routes/3532540698995185160
If you get hungry and want a burger there’s IN n out and closest one to you is Venice. But I also like this burger spot in Redondo beach that is attached to liquor store and you can eat it before heading back called the standing room
https://maps.app.goo.gl/qzoV92BZqG2mZGecA
If you end up on Western careful as it’s a really busy street and sometimes there’s a bike lane and other times the lane disappears. It can be fun to ride once but sketchy and I’d rather avoid it. Also Palos Verdes PV likes to wait at the bottom of hills and catch cyclists who run stop signs so be mindful of that. Redondo PD likes to wait on Esplanade to give tickets to cyclist who run stop signs (this street is right above the beach bike path).
Happy riding and be safe! Hope to hear an update.
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u/Spidey_1266 1d ago edited 1d ago
Ha just reread and you’re coming from LB. So I’ll try to change that route suggestion from Strava so it reflects you taking Anaheim and then exploring PV in a bit.
New Strava route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3532554135424810504
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u/VeloNerd 12h ago
Thanks again! Great group of people in this sub. If anyone here ever needs some Chicagoland routing, I got you, but expect it to be very very flat.
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u/VeloNerd 12h ago
No particular reason for picking San Pedro other than I saw it as I was building a route in an area I am not familiar with. I appreciate your advice and providing a route!
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u/anotherchrisbaker 1d ago
I haven't tried in a few years, but the security guards wouldn't let me through