Pacific Coast Bike Tour

The "LA to LA" ride: Los Altos to Los Angeles.

Day 1 · Saturday, September 5

Los Altos → Santa Cruz

Distance
44.8mi72.1km
Elevation gain
2597ft792m
Elevation loss
2720ft829m
Max elevation
1624ft495m
Los Altos → Santa Cruz Switch basemap (elevation / vegetation / plain) top-right; click any point for Google Maps, Apple Maps or Street View.
Download GPX — Day 1 Open in Google Maps Open in Apple Maps

The day at a glance

Starts across the Santa Clara Valley, orchard country until the 1960s and built over since, then climbs into the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA — one of California's oldest, and among its coolest and steepest, worked by small producers scattered through the redwoods rather than in open blocks of vineyard.

Worth looking up for

  • Leaves Los Altos through the Santa Cruz Mountains — the redwood miles are the shadiest of the whole trip at 18%.
  • Descends to the coast at Santa Cruz; Capitola is a short detour off the end.

What to watch for

  • The one sustained climb is mi 22.5–24.8, 639 ft at 5.3%. It comes when legs are fresh but it is the day's crux.

Towns along the way

  1. 1 Mountain View 1.2 mi off
  2. 4 Loyola Corners
  3. 8 Cupertino 0.5 mi off
  4. 12 Saratoga 0.5 mi off
  5. 16 Los Gatos
  6. 24 Redwood Estates
  7. 27 Summit
  8. 31 Summit Woods
  9. 34 Fidel Ranch 1.5 mi off
  10. 41 Capitola 0.9 mi off
  11. 44 Santa Cruz 0.6 mi off

Stops along the way

Mapped in OpenStreetMap and carried in the GPX as waypoints, so they show on a head unit too. Distances are miles from the start. Tap a name for Google Maps, or the arrow for Apple Maps. Not verified on the ground — opening hours and whether a tap actually runs are anyone’s guess.

Water 7

Shops & markets 7

Food & coffee 5

Tasting rooms & bars 4

Parks 2

Restrooms 5

Historic 2