LA's SECRET Gravel Truck Trails

[@sagehiker]

I have flown into LAX and noticed the ribbons of roads all around the LA Basin and assumed they were fire roads and utility corridors. It is also amazing how public land survived the settlement of California.

[@ttiwehde]

Great coverage of the fire roads that I used to drive in my VW bug back in the 70s, Definitely had a 420 moment with my buddies up there.

[@ericpmoss]

Those bolted in bags are the best idea! It saves the paint, reduces the seams, and reduces sway.

[@paullucas7570]

Great riding video, thank you, Russ & Laura! Love the tidbits of historical content, too... Well done - AGAIN!!

[@ackthet]

This is EXACTLY why I want a gravel bike.

[@jerkydoo]

I live in Sunland and will ve doing these routes! Thank you for sharing

[@y1d2d3a4m5]

I laughingly find myself wondering at times whether Russ is truly enjoying himself at times. Lol. There is a love/hate relationship for most of us with climbing no doubt. His signature laugh feels like a mix of a confirmation of glee and a exasperated desire to cry. Lol. Such is a lengthy relationship with cycling perhaps. ✌💛

[@michaelgobbi5370]

Sometimes when you're doing an activity, it feels like a lot of work. But when you think about it later it gives you a sense of accomplishment.

[@CNNLA]

Bee keepers used to place colonies out on the slopes spring every year. Always tried to slow down going downhill past them. Many hidden trails in there, and yeah, right on the edge of the city!

[@robinheil]

I've been wanting to visit LA for a while now, and your vids make me ever more excited for it!

[@marktroup2978]

I lived out there for 15 years and never saw a tenth of this stuff. This was before the bikebug bit me though. If you’re flying back out from LAX, do yourself a big favor and stop for lunch at Rinaldi’s on Main Street in El Segundo.

[@wavefanatic7384]

If you are still in LA SFV area, you might want to give May Canyon TKTR a try. It's an unkept paved road behind a park in Sylmar. Very challenging 6 mile climb, plus the climbing just get there. It connects up with Little Tujunga to go back to were you guys where I assume you are staying.

[@mikeschiller6728]

Lots of great rides in the San Gabe's and plenty of historical sites. Ask Hugh about Mt. Lowe trail. We rode up the old railway bed to the site of a historic hotel

[@richardharker2775]

I got one of those squishy seat post things and loved it. Waited a year and a half for it. Loved it for three weeks until wifey wanted to try it. Now I can't get it back. She says she loves me a little more now.

[@stillshunter]

That looked less like a coyote than the last video. 😜 Nice work guys. Happy trails 👍🏼

[@mattgti86]

Thx. Good vid. I rock the San Gabriel Mountains mostly. Did a little bit on the Verdugos. Working on a new frankenbike that would be perfect to explore out where you just went. Very helpful. Thx again!

[@clytngrn]

That was fun. Thanks for sharing. 😀

[@hardmtnbiker]

So many trails to explore in those foothills above Sunland-Tujunga. I usually ride the La Tuna trails since I know them but those trails you rode can go on and on if you want to get all the way back into the Angeles National Forest.

[@WheelersAtLarge]

Nice one! Great views are a bonus too...

[@sabergo1]

Looks like a fun ride in great weather. I rode for the first time with the redshift shockstop seatpost today. It took a minute to get used to, but it was really effective. Looking forward to your review.

[@brianmaldonado3723]

Thank you. I was with you in spirit!

[@mbiraside]

Nice to see you huys having a good time. Nice trails. Nice to see Hugh rockin the jones bar.

[@Scohen415]

I had been eyeing these roads to try and take a back roads route all the way to Mt Gleason! I thought that these would be able to ride but wasn't sure since they haven't been used enough to show up on heatmaps. Really like this video showing what the situation is! Being a local if you could video all of my neighborhood gravel routes I would appreciate it. Haha.

[@jellyfishsalad5926]

You can try reviewing them with Google earth...

[@cujomtb250]

That looked like a really cool route. Nice find.

[@Solamint1]

Beautiful riding out there. I miss it so much.

[@dmoxon11]

Bossa nova quick cut with the helicopter was a noice touch. My Skykomish river ride in WA today, was just a touch colder, but epic view. I'm planning to ride SoCal at some point, but you all should explore Western WA more (so I can get routes from you). Loving the videos.

[@billmillen29]

Do clouds even exist in California? A great ride. Thanks for sharing.

[@randallrupp8925]

Awesome, I love these hidden gem rides

[@pauldc779]

Great route love the soundtrack too

[@RuezgaDaniel]

Hey Russ, you might want to check out "Rocky Peak Park" near Simi Valley. There are some nice dirt trails and the area looks really cool (almost like being on Mars). Lots of climbing though!

[@TOCycleCommuter]

It's so neat watching this series. Great to see you putting your bikes through the paces and showing what can be ridden and seen. It's also nice to see what's possible close to major cities. Are any of these trails you're doing realistically accessible by riding a bike there, or are these all places one would need to drive to?

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

Rode to this one. It was .6 miles from our homestay.

[@TOCycleCommuter]

@@PathLessPedaledTV That's amazing. I got excited and wrote the comment before watching all the way through. Here in Toronto, we have some nice trails through the valleys that go through the city, that I only started exploring last autumn. I think it's fantastic that you are showing what is possible so close to such a big city.

[@BluecollarBackcountry]

Even tomato plants need to be harvested. Bahahaha Sweet ride you guys.

[@cccorlew]

Love this, but you should toss in an overview map. I had no idea where this is and Googled a bunch to find where you are.

[@austinshoupe3003]

That’s often by design on these adventure videos. The locals don’t want every and their mom swarming their hidden treasures.

[@leqin]

Apparantly #GCNmoney were stalking you and Laura around LA Russ :.) They didn't pay ET a visit though.

[@TOCycleCommuter]

They even went to Golden Saddle haha

[@MattBeindorff]

I see you inspired spandex loving GCN! Apparently you have more in common than you would think!

[@jellyfishsalad5926]

You'd better watch out gcn don't steal all your ideas!

[@jimmyzbike]

Bonus Dirt haha lol Rus you kill me!!!

[@trailladymtb7700]

You should ride So.Cal Thousand Oaks trails.

[@gravelewok8284]

Did Hugh have a Jones bar on his bike?

[@mccarnickle]

Have you ever been to Granada Hills? So many options here

[@AJMacDonaldJr]

Awesome! 😃

[@ReddingMusicals]

Great video!

[@macmurfy2jka]

Making my bike jealous

[@steezyautoclub3752]

Looks so fun

[@Excaliburt]

Nice video. I live in that area. I notice that you know the percent grade on the hills you climb. How do you get that information?

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

GPS.

[@jansunda8155]

I wish to have something similar home. In Prague it is too much to wish this.

[@TheStarkmojo]

Hugh and Hugh can stop forest fires!

[@markreams3192]

Which oval chain ring do you have! I put absolute black rings on my road bike. I don’t know if they made faster but they do make pedaling smoother. There were some rough sections of dirt and rocks. Do you think that trail would be more suited for a hard tail mountain bike?

[@bikelanez7376]

Great video 👍😃

[@kenyanettingham1818]

What handle bars are on the Crust?

[@NoFrictionZone]

You guys go down on the hoods?? Oh man, I would be terrified LOL - I always use the drops. :)

[@sabergo1]

I was thinking the same!

[@FreyjaAnd]

Can you remind me what gearing you're running on those bikes?

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

38t ring to 11-50t cassette.

[@edenuccio3690]

Upper tujunga is seldom traveled but definitely not a secret

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

Seldom traveled not as catchy as secret :)

[@edenuccio3690]

Path Less Pedaled but truthful

[@foureyedgeek]

Hey Russ, who makes your cycling cap?

[@pingpongballz5998]

Any saddle setback with the suspension seatpost, Russ?

[@brasstinmancrazy]

When will we see Lora's review on her BreadWinner? Looking forward to an oval ring review from you. Keep up the great work, love the frequent vids

[@jellyfishsalad5926]

They look like they might be fire trails? Ie access for fire fighting trucks?

[@Kyrodan022]

what cycle computer you using?

[@walterkasper467]

Would 43mm tires be ok on the trail your were on

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

They would do most of it pretty well.

[@simonbartolomeo8548]

Very cool. Looks similar to the riding we have here in Colombia. Lots of climbing on a mixture of super chunky dirt, busted up old concrete roads etc. With all the negativity that LA and California has gotten over the years, nice to see some positivity and a good display of riding for a change.

[@craigjohnson9875]

truck trails? we always called them fire roads.

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

Its how they're labeled on the map.

[@mikeschiller6728]

Truck trails were created for fire suppression, so same as fire roads. Most in the San Gabriel s were built by CCC in the 30s and 40s

[@wallacedavidg]

@@mikeschiller6728 - You are right. The Lower Monroe Truck Trail was built to give access to a mine (very near the Glendora Mountain Road). It may have doubled as a fire break but it's original purpose was for economic reasons. There are a bunch of 'truck trails' in Orange County. Indian Truck Trail, Santiago Truck Trail and Harding Truck Trail to name a few.

[@rkeil3145]

@@PathLessPedaledTV It's a so-cal thing I think, just like we add "the" to freeway numbers.

[@mikeschiller6728]

I doubt that it's only in SoCal. The USGS put the words on topo maps in the '30's and forward

[@CraigSotelo]

Great video but was wondering if you have these trails on Strava or Trailforks so we can ride them as well?

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

Rwgps link in the description.

[@CraigSotelo]

Path Less Pedaled just saw that sorry and thank you.

[@carolleenkelmann3829]

Isn't this hog farm/ once hippy community now where the Griffiths Observatory area is and part of the national park there in the hills close to LA City? 🇦🇺 👋

[@PathLessPedaledTV]

No. Different hill.

[@gamby16a]

"Quixote" 😜

[@jeffreyrule8143]

👊👊👊

[@matthiasmitu]

👍

[@iWillbike]

#lasucksforcycling

[@willherron5158]

keeeeyoteeeee

[@jacobmelendez5567]

100th comment

[@dorigirl7122]

8:30 last known sighting of Kobe.

[@mikeynaziri]

a-HAHAHA rip Kobe

[@ScoutJoe]

really?

[@bradstephenson219]

7 you

[@dennisdownes9319]

Great video!