Info needed re climbs out of Bishop

Can anyone direct me to a website that lists the road bike climbs in and around Bishop?

I'll be there 9/30 to 10/4, staying near Lake Sabrina.

I was thinking of doing the road along Lower Rock Creek on day one to sort of ease in to the elevation. I can't find where it hooks up with the Upper Rock Creek road even though I see references to it on the biker sites. Does anyone know?

My b.f. wnats to start with Whitney on the way up. Whaduya think?

 

hey lois- the road from lone pine (3700 ft.) to whitney portal (8100) is about 13 miles and gets very little traffic, especially this time of the year. i think it would be a pretty fun ride. and the portal store is a great place to hang out and have lunch. have fun.

and if you haven't already, be sure to check out the galen rowell photography gallery in bishop--incredible.

 

No idea where to ride, but be sure to grab breakfast at Jack's - really good chicken fried steak, and the best hash browns I've ever had (buttery goodness!)

 

I think if you go here you'll find some info on basically every road climb out of Bishop on the profile/map page.

everestchallenge.com

Hope it helps!

 

Not quite sure about a website listing them all out but this book has all of them. http://www.usacyclingclimbing.com/

Additionally here are few from Geoladders.

http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=16323
http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=20304
http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=14975
http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=24635
http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=24635
http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=24707

And you also have Horseshoe Meadows and Onion Valley.

My understanding is that Onion Valleys the hardest then, Whitney Portal, Lastly Horseshoe Meadows then throw the rest in after those three.

Good Luck, I'm waiting till a little later in the season before I bag them.

 

I think it was on this board. I read that the road right out of Tom's Place and 395 to be the highest paved road in the US.

 

www.Bikely.com
www.Mapmyride.com

I'm having a senior moment and can't remember the best one though.

 

Maybe so either way it is so worth the drive, the road ends at Mosquito Flats and with a 2 mile hike gives you big bang for the buck. Bring your fishing pole. Because that road punches back in so deep into the mountains it is a big jumping off spot into the High Sierras Hikes.

Dean

 

If you're trying to get to Rock Creek Rd from Lower Rock Creek Rd, you'll need to get on the 395 for a bit. Link.

 

The Everest Challenge website has 6 grindy climbs w/ Maps in and around Bishop/Lone Pine. Enjoy. http://www.everestchallenge.com/

 

A few of the guys from my road club did this. One who isn't a racer but is very fast on the climbs would of taken third place in Cat 1 but because he's not registered with USACycling he won first place in the open catagory. I'm very seriously considering doing this next year.

 

you can ride directly out of bishop to south lake or lake sabrina. can't remember name of hwy but its very easy to find. I prefer this over the road out of big pine up to big pine flats. driven up to rock creek lake but never road it. looks like a good one. the pie at 'pie in the sky cafe' is out of this world.

 

Thank you so much for your advice and links. I don't know why I had such a hard time locating the info on my own.

I'm going to use this "adventure" to help me decide if, when I get a new bike, I should get a triple. I'm riding with a compact now but I read an article in Road Bike Action that said that the only reason us mere mortals ride with doubles is due to foolish pride and the desire to do what the Tour guys do. My friends who ride with triples, some of whom can drop me in a nano second, swear by them. On the other hand, I noticed that the new compact bikes have casettes that are 11-28 rather than the 12-27 that I have so, perhaps that's enough?

 

Sweatpea,
For all but the steepest climbs, a compact with a 12/27 should be fine. However, a 28 would be a tad nicer.

As others suggested, the ride up from Bishop to South Lake should be really nice. Although there's typically not much traffic, you'll want to go at a time when you can avoid it as much as possible. Toward the end of the road near the parking lot, it does get a little steep, but it's relatively short.

dstepper, I think I have photos of that exact same area! Yes, great fishing!

 

Did the Rock Creek Route and lake Sabrina earlier this summer. Great ride but the pavement on Upper Rock Creek is pretty bad near 395. Listed as #20 of the hardest climbs in the U.S.

http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=24635

Lake Sabrina is good also. Good pavement. Super fast on the way down. #25 on the list of hardest in the U.S.

http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=24707

 

I did the Everest Challenge a few years ago with a compact crankset (34) and a 12-17. I would have happily exchanged my sweet carbon ride for a 1978 steel Gitane with friction shifters and a triple at the end of each day. But that's just me.

 

You should also check out the eastsidevelo.com website. They usually have group rides in the Mammoth/Bishop area posted on their calendar. It usually takes place earlier in the summer, but they also organize the Pie Ride. The ride starts in Mammoth, goes up and down the roads to McGee Creek and Convict Lake, and then goes up Upper Rock Creek Road to Mosquito Flats (the parking lot by Rock Creek at 10,000 feet). The reward for that pain is all of the pie you can eat from Rock Creek Resort.

 

It really depends just how low you want to go. A 34T small ring compact with a 12-27 cassette is very close to a triple's 30T granny on a 12-25 cassette. Sheldon Brown's calculator is still available if you want to experiment with "what if's.

 

I'm back. This is what I did:

Wednesday- Lone Pine to Whitney Portal, 12.5 miles up, 4500'(?) elev, up to 15% grade. Anyone know the average grade? Doug, the store was nice and the proprietor forced me to go 20 yards farther to see the waterfall. That was hard.

Thursday- We decided to save ourselves for more climbing by doing 45 miles in the valley with the Warm Springs, Line Road loop and the Round Valley to Lower Rock Creek out and back.

Friday- We started in Bishop and rode to Lake Sabrina, 18 miles up, 5000' gain to 9200' elevation with 3 short 18% climbs at the very end.

Saturday- Up at 5:30 a.m. Snowing. My b.f. catches a 1.5 pounder in the stream just as the sky starts to get light. Then we drive to Bishop, sit in the Pizza Parlor and my b.f. watches UCLA lose while I complete the Saturday crossword puzzle. First time! Completing the puzzle that is. I can think of better things to do.

Sunday- Wake up to snow. Drive home.

I want to go back and do Bishop to South Lake, Lower and Upper Rock Creek and White Mountain. The very biggest problem I had was with the downhills. The roads were steep and so rough it was hard to see and the brake levers on my bike are so far out that I can only use them by holding onto the hoods with my first knuckle and pressing the top two-thirds of the lever. The 35 minute return down Whitney Portal was so painful that I had to stop 4 times. On Wednesday I opted for a shuttle ride down to Bishop (we were staying at Lake Sabrina) to avoid what should have been an E ticket ride. I am either going to have to put a flat handlebar on my bike or add a set of brake levers ala cycle cross riders. Why can't the bike parts manufacturers make levers for smaller hands?

Anyway. Thanks to everyone for you advice. I used all of it.

 

You saw some beautiful country. When I see roadies out there I am not envious, they are working. I am really a mtn biker. What a great trip, any photos?

Dean, you told the secret of Little Lake Valley, the only thing that keeps the crowds down is that there is no parking. One of my favorite places in the sierras