Specialized : Riders Club

Sean McLaughlin's Journal

A (cyclo) Cross Henry Coe

posted by dv8sean at 11:57 AM on November 12, 2007

Region:: San Francisco South Bay Area
Location:: Morgan Hill, CA
Country:: United States of America
Ride Type:: Road + MTB
Nearest Zipcode:: 95037

Ride Description

You don't necessarily need to drive to Henry Coe State Park to get some quality time on the dirt. Starting from Morgan Hill or Gilroy, the 40-mile loop is challenging but not a death march.

On Saturday, 10-Nov-07, we did this ride in the clockwise direction in under five hours elapsed time, including pit stops and photo ops, without ever pushing too hard. I've done the same ride on both mtn and now a cyclo-cross bike. The CX bike made the pavement more enjoyable and the trails more challenging.

Route description:

1. Ride from Morgan Hill up East Dunne Ave to Henry Coe State Park headquarters. This is a 13-mile paved climb that comes in three parts for a total elevation gain of about 3,000 feet. The climb has spectacular views of the Santa Clara Valley.

2. Stop at Coe HQ to refill water bottles and get psyched for wheels hitting dirt.

3. Ride the fire road from HQ to Manzanita Point campground.

4. Descend from Manzanita Point to China Hole. Primo singletrack that's fun on both a CX bike and MTB. Watch out for those tricky switchbacks!

5. Cross China Hole to climb out singletrack on the other side. The first couple hundred yards near the bottom are the most difficult. The climb gets easier as you ascend, to the point that you're pretty well flying near the top.

6. China Hole climb ends at the fire road at near Mahoney Meadows. Proceed to the right and prepare for a 3-step climb to get to Coit Road.

7(a). Turn right at Coit Road and bomb the fire road to the Gilroy Hot Springs park entrance (exit).
-or-
7(b). Go up Coit Road to enjoy one of the many singletrack descents.

8. Exit Henry Coe Park on Gilroy Hot Springs Road, which turns into Roop Road, which dumps you back into the valley just north of Gilroy.

9. Ride rural roads north back to Morgan Hill.

10. Enjoy beverage of choice (I choose the malt-hops variety) and marvel at the magnitude of your accomplishment.