The Alpe d'Huez of the US

Cycling San Diego’s Extraordinary Palomar Mountain -- A Top 50 US Bike Climb.

Ride 12.4 miles gaining 4,580’ to elevation 5,513’ at 6.9% average grade.

The Palomar Mountain Climb is a tale of two climbs.  The first 5.0 miles (from the start to the turnoff from Highway 76 to South Grade Road) are highway riding, bordering on unpleasant, although the shoulder and roadway surface for the majority of this stretch are good.  Traffic whizzes by fairly fast, but we have had no real close calls in our five times up the mountain.  During the first five miles you gain 1,585 feet of elevation at an average grade of 6.3%.

An uninspiring start, but don’t despair -- it gets better, much better!

At five miles in, the fun begins!

Many unobstructed views through the second half of the South Grade hairpins.

Mile markers lead us up the mountain.

Where you get your money's worth on Palomar is from the mile five turn off -- from here on this is a truly magnificent climb.  By our count there are 18 continuous radius switchbacks (some report 21) which are of interest ascending, and of challenge and excitement descending.  

It’s all about the switchbacks on Palomar.

The vegetation and landscape are generally uninspiring: your typical Southern California high desert with mostly dry grass, rock, and desert shrubs.  Thankfully, the views back towards the Pauma Valley as you ascend the second half of the climb are scenic and of interest.

View south towards Mexico as seen from higher section of our climb.

The traditional end to this climb is at the intersection of Palomar Mountain Road (South Grade Road) and East Grade Road, at the 11.7 mile mark (gaining 4,185 feet at 6.8% grade to this point).

Traditional finish.

However, by turning right at the intersection of East and South Grade Road, then turning left in 0.2 miles onto Crestline Road and then riding to its summit, you gain an extra 0.7 miles and 238 feet of climbing (there is a 7.1% grade over this last stretch).

Take a left on Crestline at the firehouse.

Tippy Top. 

​Points of Interest:

This San Diego County road bike climb enters Cleveland National Forest at mile 9.4.  This 460,000 acre national forest was established as such in 1908 by Teddy Roosevelt and named after Grover Cleveland.

Jilberto's Taco Shop at the start of the climb is a decent spot for lunch at the end of the descent.  Nearby is a store for provisions.  At the top of the climb (turn left at the intersection of East and South Grade) you’ll find the Palomar Mountain General Store as well as Mother's Kitchen, a nice cafe with great pastries and pie.  Additionally, 4.8 miles (800 feet climbing to and 451 feet back) from the General Store along Canfield Road takes us to the Palomar Observatory, a popular tourist destination operated by Caltech.  

Continue on to the Observatory.     

Be sure to get there early, or you’ll be stopped short of the observatory.  But . . .

. . . there are some advantages to being late on the mountain!

Stop for a well balanced meal at Mother’s Kitchen.

Breakfast at Mother’s Kitchen. In my defense, “balanced” is an ambiguous term.

After a long ride back down the hill, don’t forget Jilberto’s!

TOUR OF CALIFORNIA

Stage 8 2009 Tour of California

Palomar Mountain South Grade Road

Stage won by Frank Schleck (LUX); Levi Leipheimer (USA) wins ToC.

• 2009 -- Stage 8 (final stage):

• Rancho Bernardo > Escondido; South Grade Road (hairpins) approach;
• 100.4 miles, 9,493’;
•  Stage winner:  Frank Schleck (LUX).  
  

• 2013 -- Stage 1:

• Escondido > Escondido; East Grade Road approach;
• 102.4 miles, 7,915’;
•  Stage winner:  Lieuwe Westra (NED).

2013 Tour of California -- Mount Palomar descent South Grade Road

Photo:  Palomar Mountain News, Francisco Valdovinos article.

2013 Stage 1 winner Lieuwe Westra (NED); 4:31’33”

Temperatures rose to 105℉ in the Pauma Valley that day.

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Steepest ¼ mile begins at mile 1.4 (8.6%) and steepest mile at 7/10 mile (8.2%)

Safety Tip: 

Because of its incredible switchbacks and continuous radius curves, Palomar is a major attraction to motorcyclists.  Many touring motorcyclists make the trek to the top and they are wonderful and not of concern to cyclists.  However, there are many racing motorcyclists (full leathers, knee and elbow pads, etc.) that bomb up the seven miles of South Grade Road from Highway 76 to the intersection of South and East Grade Roads very fast, hugging corners as they go -- they can literally be heard for miles ascending the mountain.  This is not a complaint, just an observation.  For the cyclists, it is very important to stay as close to the far right as you can, particularly on right turns/switchbacks, as this is where the racing motorcyclists are most likely to be in your line and on your butt!  Since we can easily hear the motorcyclists for some time before they are upon us, we have plenty of time to get to the far right for safety’s sake.

Nearby Top 100 Rides:  

Mt Palomar is a bit of an outlier climb.  The closest Top 100 Climb to Palomar is the Highway 38 Valley of Falls climb, located 76 miles north.

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