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17 December 2012

Biking the California Desert

By Mitchell Sussman


If you are an outdoor enthusiast, there is one activity the California desert is made for..... biking.

The city of Palm Springs is a city that was created with biking in mind. There are miles of rolling desert roads along with well-marked city routes and rugged single-track trails that wait to be explored.

Local biking groups welcome visitors to their weekly rides, and tour companies' offer fully supported guided rides. I would be amiss if I didn't mention the famed annual Tour de Palm Springs that is held each year to celebrate the two-wheel sport with rides and races.

The city has designated a number of biking routes around the city, utilizing the paved paths, highway bicycle lanes that curve and stretch, calm neighborhood streets, and extra wide sidewalks that all are there to allow the rider an opportunity to discover and enjoy the city as well as get a fruitful workout.

The Las Palmas Route loops around downtown Palm Springs, passing scenic historic buildings, famed inns, luxurious and old-time restaurants, a plethora of shops and the well-known Desert Museum giving the uninitiated an excellent chance to see some of the city's most popular land markers.

The Heritage Trail offers a shorter ride that carried me thru the back route of the downtown, snuggled up next to the mountain side. The 13-mile Citywide Tour travels from the south end of town near Indian Canyons, past the Palm Springs Airport, through neighborhoods to the North Canyon district and back along the foot of the San Jacinto Mountains.

The Tahquitz Creek Loop is 3 1/2 miles long as it begins were Palm Canyon Drive and Tahquitz Canyon meet and then leads all through Cathedral City and Rancho Mirage. The Canyon Country Loop is a 4 mile trek through country club residential areas on the south side of town.

The mountains, deserts, and canyons surrounding Palm Springs offer a variety of mountain biking opportunity that include some steep mountain climbs and breath-taking descents, single-track rides along canyon ridges and if that isn't enough, there is some muscle-busting pedaling through sand and loose rock all there for your benefit.

The mountain bike trails stretch throughout the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains, but be forewarned that bikes are prohibited in designated wilderness areas, in the Indian Canyons, and along the Pacific Coast Trail.

As you can see, there are a lots of different biking experiences to choose from on your next trip to Palm Spring and the California desert resort cities.




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