Cycling Dawson Saddle - the hardest bike climb in Southern California. All the cycling data and info you'll need to climb

The climb up to Dawson Saddle is an epic ride, but one which should only be attempted with company. You'll compete for space on the road up to the Crystal Lake turn-off, then have zero traffic as you cover the middle closed section. ACH from Hwy 39 up to Dawson Saddle may also be closed. The road surface is worst on the closed portion, but one should watch for rocks and pine cones on ACH. The scenery is spectacular, offering views of winding roads and hairpin turns, forests, and sheer drops. Make sure you have all your flat repair kit with you: it's a LONG way to get help. In summary, Dawson isn't as steep as the climb to the Mount Baldy ski lifts, but the 23+ miles of constant climbing will wear one down. A true bucket list climb!

This is an amazing climb that is absolutely worth doing. The road condition excluding the closed section is very good, the closed section isn't so bad - I didn't need to dismount at all on my slick clincher 28s and many sections had me wondering why it was closed at all. Just avoid the rocks! Traffic up to Crystal Lake isn't too bad at all, although you will encounter loud motorcycles. Didn't run into any issues with road closure enforcement, but I've heard it's occasionally an issue.

17 october 2022 update. do not recommend lower part of this road on weekend due to street racing and drifters. edison working on power lines during the week. upper section looks to be recently cleared of boulders, but there is a constant rain of small rocks. i rode it on a salsa cutthroat with 2.2 tires, so the upper sections were no problem.

Dawson Saddle is the king of SoCal climbs and worth traveling for. Traffic isn't great before the road closure but its tolerable. The road surface is bad and some sections are worse than others but do not worry, the ascent and descent on this section are a blast with great views.

Summited Dawson Saddle via Closed hwy 39 on 4-9-22. Road is in terrible condition with slides everywhere above Crystal Lake and Angeles Crest HWY East which remains closed and I walked the bike a lot. Got a flat on the way down and used my last supplies to repair it. Sort of dangerous area between Zero cell phone reception and closed roads. I wouldn't recommend it until the road is repaired.

Closure enforcement on CA-39 is mixed. If SoCal Ed is working on power lines or the road, they post guards and keep people out. Conversely, I've been riding up and passed a CHP vehicle, we waved at eachother. There is wildlife to be seen. On one ride, I saw a bighorn sheep on the mountainside above the road. He kicked a boulder down at me!

The road up to the turn for Crystal Lake is in good quality, some mild traffic, but overall very few cars. Once you pass the gate, the road surface worsens, and there are scattered rocks on the road, potholes, and occasional large road defects. We saw zero people, animals, or vehicles going either way past the gate. There is a 50ft segment I walked my bike through chunky rocks / gravel (easy to do in road shoes), my buddy just rode over on his tubeless road setup. Views are amazing, climb is very challenging, definitely my favorite in SoCal. Descending back through the closed section was not challenging or unsafe, but take it slow to avoid large rocks / potholes.