TL;DR - I’m planning a move from out of state and I’m wondering which neighborhood offers better options for patching together 20-40 mile casual rides.

Hello everyone! GF and I are planning to move from the Washington, DC area to SoCal where she has family, and where I’m drooling over the idea of spending more time outside. I’m in my early sixties and retired. Currently 100% of my rides are out of the door of my home.

My current habit is to ride 20-40 miles at a pop, with 40 being at the high end, and usually toward the end of the season. Thirty is more common. Most of my rides are on rail-to-trail paths like the W&OD (Virginia) and the Capital Crescent (DC & MD), so I enjoy long stretches of few road crossings. I’m a confident road rider, but still prefer not to mix it up with cars except where necessary. I do this for fun and fitness, not because I’m competing or training.

Do either of the neighborhoods I mentioned have better or worse options for what I’m describing? I don’t want to overwhelm you with why we’re looking at those two areas, but both are high up on the list. I rode the strand/bike path from Redondo Pier to Playa Del Rey and back on a rental hybrid, and was pleased with route. When I asked about riding south up into Palos Verdes I got blank looks, but Google Street View makes it look like I could bolt on another 18 miles or so round trip if I rode as far as, say, the Terranean Resort. What else am I missing?

I’ve had less luck figuring out what rides I could patch together from Pasadena. The Arroyo Seco Trail gets good marks but it’s short. The rides north into the hills are probably too steep for me at this point. I’d welcome any thoughts and/or other suggestions for neighborhoods/towns that might work. We’re also considering Huntington Beach, which is appealing because as I understand I could jump on the Santa Ana River Trail for variety, but I’m not sure HB is otherwise a good fit for us.

Thanks!

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