San Diego to Frazier Park

Contributer: Steven Peltier (07-02-2007)
Distance: 300 mi.

Our journey from San Diego to Monterey began with a bit of superslab action up I5, around downtown LA and on to Thousand Oaks via the 101N. After spending an hour negotiating gridlock, we pulled in for a gas stop and stretch break at Westlake Blvd. Of course we were happy to break the monotony of stop and go freeway traffic, but with a few minutes rest we were eager to move on. As we crested the hill coming down into Ventura we were greeted with the welcome fragrance of strawberries fields. This was clearly a sign of good things to come. Once past Ventura we hopped on the 33 to Ojai. Immediately, the boredom of the freeway began to become a memory and we could begin to see mountains that we would soon be traversing on our way to Frazier Park. At Ojai, we stretched our legs again before jumping back on the 33 (Maricopa Hwy). The next hour of riding was nothing short of magnificent. The 33 essentially winds its way roughly 5000 feet up into the mountains across the Los Padres National Forest. The road is incredibly winding with constant elevation gains, awesome views, and mountain passes that seem as if they were surgically cut out of the rocks. Rather than continuing on the 33 we connected with Lockwood Valley Road, where we headed east onto Frazier Park. Well into Lockwood the terrain changed to more dense forest, and the road became noticeably dirty as we got closer to our destination (nothing crazy but enough washout gravel to make things interesting). As we entered Frazier Park, we could see the remnants of a recent forest fire. It looked as if we had only missed it by about a week. Once past Frazier Park, we back tracked a mile or so south on I5 to spend the night at a hotel in Gorman. Overall a great first day. Since our hotel was essentially right on the grapevine, we were a bit concerned with the exposure of our bikes right on freeway. Nothing a good scarecrow perched in the hotel window wouldn't fix. Check our pics to meet "Mr. Nolan," named after the helmet he wore that night as he watched over our rides.

Read more from Sunday Morning Rides at Laguna Seca (USMotoGP 2007)