Port Costa on Velodromedary

Port Costa ride #9?

Sun, 28 Feb 2016 01:02:19 +0000

I’ve been riding a variant on this 30-mile loop once or twice a year for 6 or 7 years and it never gets old. From Pleasant Hill or Walnut Creek BART along off-road canalside trails, then up the long but not steep uphill of McEwen between rolling hills of flowers and cows, down to the quirky Port Costa for a picnic and drink among pallets, potholes, and old theatre signs outside the Warehouse Cafe, then back along the twist, car-free Carquinez Scenic Drive along Carquinez Strait:

Port Costa Ride #8ish

Mon, 23 Feb 2015 01:52:00 +0000

I’ve done this general ride too many times to remember over the years. This was an especially good day of it– lush green hills instead of the usual dead grass, sunny but not too hot, a children’s lemonade stand, a group of friends, a picnic and some British beer at The Warehouse, and my first time riding on Carquinez Scenic Drive since its renovation (though to be honest, I sort of miss its previous painted, crumbling-into-the-bay state and the 50 feet of hillside dirt path you used to need to traverse).

Martinez, Port Costa, Refineries, Richmond

Sat, 23 Mar 2013 04:23:00 +0000

I’m finally posting a map and photos from a ride organized by Robin a month back– about 50 miles from Walnut Creek BART to Martinez, along Carquinez Scenic drive to Port Costa (a common spring destination, for me), then past refineries out to Pinole Point Park and down to Richmond:

Port Costa + Picnic recap

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 06:47:00 +0000

Today was my 4th or 5th Port Costa / Carquinez Scenic Drive ride over the past four years and it was a good one (and with no flats or infected bee stings). Seven of us met up at Pleasant Hill BART and headed out for a late afternoon casual-pace 29-mile ride and picnic.

For variety, we took what looked like a side path along Alhambra– but it rapidly rose above the road and turned into a rough dirt path.

Riding back from Port Costa.

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 05:32:00 +0000

Riding back from Port Costa.

Port Costa Ride: photos

Mon, 24 May 2010 04:58:00 +0000

Port Costa Ride: photos

Port Costa #3 debrief

Mon, 24 May 2010 04:37:00 +0000

The ride today was both a great success and a collection of minor disasters.

On the up side:

Eight people, including a few people who hadn’t been riding in a while.
A casual-pace 29-mile ride, with successful climbs of many winding hills and a few thousand feet of elevation gain. People got tired of me saying “I think this is the last hill.”
Port Costa was not at all sleepy– there were 100-200 motorcyclists (of the Harley / leather / chaps persuasion), a live band, and more loud-exhaust bikes rolling in every few minutes. It was a scene.
We’d heard “the motorcyclists are taking over the Warehouse kitchen for the day” and it felt like a private party, so we weren’t sure we’d be able to get food… but they encouraged us to help ourselves to the spaghetti, salad, and bread, for free!
A few interesting (and also large, and strong) beers.
All in all, about everything I wanted out of the post-birthday ride, thanks everyone.

On the down side, members of the group experienced:

Four more photos from last weekend's ride, courtesy DR (and I'm trying out the new Tumblr slideshow feature)

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 01:24:00 +0000

Four more photos from last weekend’s ride, courtesy DR (and I’m trying out the new Tumblr slideshow feature)

Flowers along McEwen Rd

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 00:14:00 +0000

Flowers along McEwen Rd

On the ride

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 00:07:00 +0000

On the ride

Port Costa Ride

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 23:45:00 +0000

Four of us met up for this ride. 29.2 miles, 2:45 active riding time, about 4:30 total including a break for lunch and a beer in Port Costa, a stop to photograph miniature horses(!), and so on. Lots of scenic, rolling hills, and not much traffic.

Approximate route: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2924086

I’ll post a few photos shortly.

2010 rides

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 06:34:00 +0000

I’ve been on some individual rides with people (including a few 20-mile SF circuits involving Trouble Coffee), but it’s been a while since I’ve been on a group ride.

But… weather permitting, Port Costa/Martinez loop in the east bay again a week from Saturday (that is, on 3/6).

I’m open to votes on whether to do it the “standard” direction (several miles of long gradual uphill and then a steep shorter decent on a 17% grade on McEwen), or the opposite, the direction we accidentally did it last time (sorry, helen and matt!).

benicia bridge

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:16:00 +0000

benicia bridge

rolling hills

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:10:00 +0000

rolling hills

so many flowers

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:07:00 +0000

so many flowers

graveyard

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:06:00 +0000

graveyard

video: biking through a tunnel

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:00:00 +0000

video: biking through a tunnel

Port Costa debrief

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 20:54:00 +0000

Three of us met up on Saturday for a nice East Bay ride, from Pleasant Hill to Martinez and Port Costa, in a loop. We did a hybrid of a ride in the SF Short Bike Rides book (in particular, warm-up riding on the Iron Horse and Contra Costa Canal trails – paved, off-road meandering along a canal for miles, flat with mild rises and dips), and a loop recommended by Max C. This is more or less the route we took: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2937679 . My cycle odometer says it was about 34 miles total– there was a lot of small-scale twisting and turning that doesn’t show up on that map (it was about 19.5 miles out, and 14.5 miles back). The ride along Carquinez Scenic Drive was fantastic, up through an old graveyard, and then along a twisty cracked/filled/painted pavement road closed to cars with great views of the Carquinez Strait and the Benicia Bridge. We saw turkeys, deer, huge butterflies, and wildflowers. Port Costa was a tiny little town, with some friendly dogs outside Sparky’s, a new motorcycle shop under construction, blackberries just ripening along the train tracks, and The Warehouse – a huge bar with hundreds of beers, a gigantic stuffed polar bear, and really mediocre sandwiches and shrimp cocktails (they do weekend BBQ, but only on Sundays, we found out). Then coming back, we climbed McEwen (a painfully steep mile and a half, see the elevation at Mile 18 on the map above– I’ve since learned that most people do the loop in the opposite direction), but were then able to coast and ride along a gradual, curving downhill for about 6 miles. That was perhaps my favorite part of the ride. Smooth pavement, gradually winding turns, riding between rolling hills covered brown (I mean, “gold”) grass, warm sun with a slightly cool breeze, and almost zero traffic. I’ll put up another few photos after this.

Passed the ghost bike for mark pendleton :(

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:52:00 +0000

Passed the ghost bike for mark pendleton :(

On the way to Port Costa

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 21:17:00 +0000

On the way to Port Costa

Port Costa this Saturday?

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 04:12:00 +0000

Okay, after several failed attempts to organize this ride, let’s give it a try: This Saturday, 10:30, Walnut Creek BART. About a 35-mile round trip, moderate hills, taking us to Martinez, Port Costa, and maybe the John Muir house. Some notes from Short Bike Rides San Francisco: “This mellow, mosey-along kind of ride offers highly scenic views of Mt. Diablo and the Easy Bay Hills as well as of the Carquinez Straits and the tiny and ancient hamlet of Port Costa. I don’t know which is the bigger treat: riding the eroded and unrepaired Carquinez Scenic Road, which is closed to cars, or shooting the bull with the locals at the Warehouse, an immense, historic bar [side note: has 200+ beers, and might have a BBQ running] in Port Costa right out of a country-music video. Then, of course, there’s the John Muir House to be visited, charming downtown Martinez to peruse, and the uncrowded multiuse paths of Contra Costa Country to check out.” And a few other excerpts: “You’ll find yourself climbing through a beautiful and very Spanish-looking old graveyard”, “postcard views of Carquinez Straits […] Forty percent of the land area of California drains its runoff water through these straits.”

Next Ride: Port Costa

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 18:00:00 +0000

[edit: cancelled due to rain, but to happen some time this spring]

This Sunday, 10:30, Pleasent Hill BART. About a 35-mile round trip, moderate hills, to Martinez, Port Costa, and maybe the John Muir house. Postponed to another week if weather is bad– check in with me . Some notes from Short Bike Rides San Francisco: “This mellow, mosey-along kind of ride offers highly scenic views of Mt. Diablo and the Easy Bay Hills as well as of the Carquinez Straits and the tiny and ancient hamlet of Port Costa. I don’t know which is the bigger treat: riding the eroded and unrepaired Carquinez Scenic Road, which is closed to cars, or shooting the bull with the locals at the Warehouse, an immense, historic bar [side note: has 200+ beers] in Port Costa right out of a country-music video. Then, of course, there’s the John Muir House to be visited, charming downtown Martinez to peruse, and the uncrowded multiuse paths of Contra Costa Country to check out.” And a few other excerpts: “You’ll find yourself climbing through a beautiful and very Spanish-looking old graveyard”, “postcard views of Carquinez Straits […] Forty percent of the land area of California drains its runoff water through these straits.”