Coleman Valley Road
Occidental / Sonoma Coast · near Occidental / Bodega Bay · North Coast
Road Cycling
At a glance
- Distance
- medium
- Best season
- Spring & fall; foggy and cool on the coast; can be wet in winter
What is here
- Scenery
- coast
- Amenities
- Redwoods opening to the open coast · Sweeping Pacific ridgetop views · Levi's GranFondo signature climb · Quiet, remote Sonoma backroad
- Best for
- A breathtaking hidden coastal climb
- Features
- One of the most beautiful roads in cycling · Redwoods to roaring-Pacific ridge · Signature Levi's GranFondo climb · Quiet, wild Sonoma coast
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Narrow, remote one-lane road — watch for cars · Steep pitches; wind & fog on the ridge · No services — carry water, food, layers · Damp/slick surface in coastal weather
- Beginner friendly
- No
Road Cycling detail
- Ride types
- coastal · climb
- Road
- quiet
- Climbing
- 4
- Ride notes
- Widely called one of the most beautiful roads in cycling — a climb out of Occidental through redwoods and mossy forest that suddenly breaks out onto open coastal ridgetop with the roaring Pacific spread out below, the signature climb of Levi's GranFondo
- Stats note
- ~3–4 mi climb from Occidental; redwoods to open coastal ridge; big Pacific views
- Seasonal
- No
- Intl tip
- Regularly named one of the most beautiful roads in cycling — a climb from Occidental that starts in cool redwood forest and suddenly breaks out onto open coastal ridgetop with the whole roaring Pacific spread out below. The signature climb of Levi's GranFondo, beloved by locals but unknown to most — a true hidden gem. Narrow, remote, foggy, and windy with steep pitches and no services: carry water, food, and layers, watch for cars, descend the exposed road with care. On a clear day, magical.
- Nickname
- Redwoods that suddenly open onto the roaring Pacific — cycling's most beautiful reveal
The guide
Coleman Valley Road, climbing out of the little town of Occidental toward the Sonoma coast, is regularly named one of the most …
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Coleman Valley Road — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 38.37, -123.02