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San Clemente Century
Description
This is a strict out and back to San Clemente, the southern-most city in Orange County.
San Diego is a very large county - so unless you want to ride to Mexico, this is the shortest
way out of the county. Unfortunately, after 9/11 cyclists are no longer allowed to ride across
Camp Pendleton (a Marine base) which forces part of the ride on I-5. However, once off of I-5 there
are fairly well-paved roads with no vehicular traffic, besides the occasional Marine tank! This ride
isn't especially difficult topographically, but it is often windy near the ocean which makes this ride
more difficult.
If you simply want to ride to Orange County and back, the round trip will be under 161 km (100 miles).
To make the ride a century, you'll need to ride a bit more north in San Clemente on El Camino Real. The
map and topographical profile is for the northward part of the ride only. Since it is an out-and back,
just reverse the directions.
Update May 2005 Cyclists can now again ride through Camp Pendleton.
According to the
official Camp Pendleton website, cyclists can cross the
base M-F 9am to 3pm, weekends 7am to 5pm. You will need a photo ID and should ride in single file
across the base following the bike route signs. The directions below still apply, just substitute the
freeway portion with the base bike path. Additionally, the directions are good to know if you get
caught on one side of the base after the time cutoff.
The map starts at piece #1, and goes bottom to top (northward), all the way to map #4.
There is a bit of overlap from one piece to another.
Difficulty Hard
Duration 5.5-6 hrs
Distance 161 km / 100 miles
Climbing 897 m / 2943 ft
Note: The distances are only approximate. The map is from 1975 and I had to guess
where the route went on campus which affects the whole route and calculated distances.
0.0 KM Start at the campus bike shop.
1.77 KM Head north on North Torrey Pines Rd. at the corner
with Genesee. You're going to stay on this road (with various names) for quite a while.
8.5 KM Enter Del Mar.
10.64 KM Remeber to stay left and *not* ride on Jimmy Durante
Rd.
12.41 KM Enter Solana Beach.
16.7 KM Enter Cardiff-by-the-Sea.
18.8 KM Enter Encinitas.
~22 KM Enter Leucadia.
24.6 KM Enter Carlsbad.
29.12 KM Stay straight and go under the overpass, do *not* go towards Palomar Airport Road.
35.35 KM Enter Oceanside.
35.59 KM As soon as you enter Oceanside, you'll turn left onto Eaton. It's the first left turn
you can make in Oceanside.
35.8 KM Turn right onto Broadway St. at the railroad tracks.
36.45 KM Turn left onto Cassidy St. and cross the railroad tracks.
36.62 KM Turn right onto South Pacific Street.
39.34 KM Pass the house where Kelly McGinnis from "Top Gun" romanced Tom Cruise. It's on the east side
of the road at the transition of South Pacific St. to North Pacific St. It is a
tourist attraction!
39.86 KM Follow the jog in the road, keeping your direction northward (the ocean on your left...)
40.87 KM Turn right onto Harbor Drive South at the beach.
41.48 KM After passing the touristy restaurants,
turn right onto Santa Fe Av. and head up the steep, short hill.
41.58 KM Turn right onto Harbor drive, towards the freeway. Pass under the freeway
and find your way over to the left at the freeway onramp. The road is wide and the speed limit high, so be careful!
42.5 KM Enter the freeway, I-5 North. While on the freeway, remember to be very aware. The road is covered
by lots of detritis. Each time a big-rig passes, its draft sucks you towards the road. Stay as far to the right as you can, and
maybe even ride single-file. The freeway is probably safer than a regular road because drivers have defined lanes to follow, and there is no
possibility of someone turning left in front of you. However the potential for a very serious accident exists.
50.21 KM Exit the freeway at the rest stop, and ride through the parking lot back onto the freeway.
54.34 KM Exit the freeway at the Las Pulgas (Spanish for "the fleas") exit. Turn right onto Las Pulgas.
54.88 KM Turn left before the train tracks following the bike route signs.
This long, straight, and wide road was used for Harrier
jump jets.
57.33 KM Pass under the freeway. Beware of tracked vehicles! A couple kilometers after the tunnel,
you'll enter one of the longest parking lots ever, in San Onofre State Beach.
66.9 KM Pass the San Onofre Nuclear Power plant.
69.8 KM The road will pass over I-5. Before it does take the bike path that goes to the left, behind
the fence. This is the old coast highway.
71.26 KM At the end of the bike path, turn left and follow the road that fronts the freeway. There
is a pedestrian/bike freeway overpass that has a convenience shop next to it on the east side of the freeway. If you want to
continue your ride, continue north on this road until you hit El Camino Real, and follow it as far as you want to go.
Heading Back Remember on your way back to get off the freeway at the rest stop. There are signs
reminding you to get off the freeway at Harbor Dr. in Oceanside. The rest of the trip is exactly as you came.
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