Rocky Canyon & Halcon Rds. - #RockyCanyon&HalconRds.

Socal - San Luis Obispo County - Atascadero NickNames: #RockyCanyon&HalconRds.

Take Hwy 101 north from LA, or south from S.F. to Atascadero, mid way between the two metropoli about 220 miles from both. Turn off Hwy 101 at Santa Barbara Rd. exit; go east to El Camino Real; cross over and continue one block to Viejo Camino. Turn left, drive ½ to ¾ miles to Paloma Creek Park parking, and park. There are playing fields and restrooms. Ride back half block to Halcon Rd, and at left only, turn; go to RR, cross over, then over dirt river road (if not washed out) up to quarry gate. You may pass through the right side for bicyles, if gate is closed, continuing up dirt road through quarry, and beyond to narrow mountain trail. Go up and over and continue on mountaintop trails. You will enjoy the views, and the native flora & fauna, and wild life. If you wish you can continue on into the country with road bikes. Or, just before the quarry gate, turn onto Rocky Canyon Rd. for a touring bike ride along the Templeton River Rd, and on into the country over Hwy 41 to Creston and beyond. There are eating facilities, a nice old western rest stop in Creston. You may ride Hwys 41 & 229 out of Creston for a nice wild flower tour, after all the winter rains, for a fragrant springtime show of scents and colorful California flowers. After bike rides, you may return the same way, back down the mountain trail through the quarry and across the dirt river road, or the Hwy 41 downhill to Templeton and Rocky Canyon Rds to the dirt river Halcon Rd., across RR, to paved Halcon Rd., and Paloma Creek Park on Viejo Camino Rd., south to Santa Barbara Rd, and right turn; cross over El Camino Real to Hwy 101 back over west, about two country blocks.
PS 4-24-98 The Salinas River is low enough after the rains to cross over the rebuilt dirt gravel-rock truck road.

8 Review(s)Login

• Trail UpdateRocky Canyon October 2011-This trail is in pretty bad condition and its only gonna get worse through winter. I would not ever take a hardtail on this trail a softail is almost a must have. I can blaze down it in 4:57 with is respectable time for being carefull not to fall off the ledges and get drenched in water. Its a short trail up and down you can easily do it in 30-45 mins. But its riding on the road to get there that takes the longest. Lots of fun to go out after the rains. Good luck
  Eagleflyer1 a 15 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a Rocky mountain element from Atascadero

  Posted:10/12/2011

• Trail UpdateRocky Canyon 2005 Winter Update-This is my local trail and it provides great exercise and can be ridden after work in the winter. If bikers thought the trail was rutted before, they should see it now. The 30"+ rains of 2005 have really scoured the trail and both creeks are swollen to capacity. At this point in time the trail really lives up to it's name. The earthen dam accross the Salinas has now washed out twice. The quarry is a mess and the wet decomposed granite is tough on the bike. I enjoy the challenge of the new trail but I usually creep accross the creeks on the way up because soaking feet in the winter is not that great on the way down. This trail produces some warm and sunny conditions in the winter and downright blazing during the summer when rides are limited to morning or evening. The trail usually gets easier over the summer when mountain and illegal mini dirt bikes wear in a new trail. Over the years I have seen more and more riders, but you can still find a lot of solitude on any given day. It's a beautiful little trail and I only wish the single track was four times as long.
  Ride rating: Intermediate
  Ride distance: .9 Elevation change:
  DH a 47 year old Die-hard Enthusiast riding a Voodoo Canzo Aluminum from Atascadero

  Posted:02/26/2005

• Trail UpdateRocky Canyon Trail - Rockiest-More details on the RC trail can be found thru my web page. Suffice it to say that, tho I have biked it for several years, it has become increasingly difficult to navigate like some of life's challenges, not necessarily due to older age, but the conditions of the trail are more difficult like the more serious situations we meet on the path of life. We cannot, by ourselves alone, control everything. You need the keys of power to change things!
  Ride rating: Advanced
  Ride distance: 0.9 miles Elevation change: 850' to 1425'
  Singletrack=30% Dirt Road=30% Paved Path=40%
  Chief Joseph Flys Like the Wind a 57 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a Dual Suspension 1997 DiamondBack Racing aluminum from Bike View Heaven URL: Messages 2004

  Posted:08/16/2004

• Trail UpdateRockiest Rocky Canyon Trail-I have fallen over two-three times on this trail recently. It's just more rocky, rutted and washed out than ever! It is a challenging short and sweet climb from 1000' in the mid-quarry up to the summit at 1425'. It's a great practice ride and quiet most of the time - a great get-away!
  CJ a Cross-Country Rider riding a DBR'97 dual suspension from Bike View Heaven Country URL: Rocky Canyon pics - story

  Posted:04/10/2004

• Trail UpdateMoonlit Rocky Canyon Trail-Rising, Setting, and Skipping along the hills and thru the trees

  It was one of the most perfect moonlit mountain bike rides that I have ever biked, especially on my favorite Rocky Canyon Trail. I was ramping up the trail over half way to the top when I first viewed the large glint of moonlight peeking at the top of the hills. I stopped to watch it rise just above the hill. It was glorius. Biking up a little further, the Moon set behind the hill as the trail was ascending towards that hill across the canyon. Then, as the trail turned, the Moon rose again a second time. It was really kewl. The time was 8:06 p.m. PDT, on September 1, 2001.

  For awhile at the trail-top-turn-around the Moon bathed me in her silvery light and cast my shadow. It was really beautiful with some reddish twilight from the sunset o'er the horizon to the West above the Santa Lucia Range, our coastal mountains.

  On my bike descent the long silver rays of moonlight swathed the trail in between shadows and my own silhouette. The Moon set and rose again several more times for me in this almost surrealistic experience. I have never seen the Moon rise and set about 5 times in a half hour. As I biked to the lower half the shade was dark so I had to walk my bike over one gully. The hills seem much higher down lower as the trail descends to the bottom of the canyon. Up higher the trail is elevated more above the canyon stream bed so the rising moon or Sun shines more towards the top. The canyon broadens out higher up as well so the walls of the hills are further apart letting more light shine.

  As a finale the quarry wall was bathed in moonlight illuminating the rock crunching machinery that looks like some alien monster long-legged spider in the moonlight. The Moon skipped playfully through the Digger Pines and the Blue and Live Oak trees as it appeared to ride along with me. It continued that, even across the river setting again behind the oak forested hills along Halcon Road skipping tea
  Ride rating: Advanced
  Ride distance: Elevation change: 834' to approx.1400'
  Bike View Heaven™ Bike Shangri-la™ Visitors! a Eternal year old Cross-Country Rider riding a DiamondBack Racing'97 V-Link 3.1 Dual Suspension from San Luis Obispo County URL: Bike View Heaven™ Bike Shangri-la™

  Posted:12/13/2001

• Trail UpdateRocky Canyon October 2001-The new double vehicle gate to Rocky Canyon quarry now has a tall open gate for bikes, horses and hikers on the left as you approach from the intersection of Rocky Cny and Halcon Roads near the Happy Valley Ranch driveway on the NE side of the Salinas River.The late 2001 Winter March rain of 5" really tore up some of the single track leaving wider double gullies to bike across, through and around. Also, some late summer riders on motocycles or other larger treaded tires have torn up the rocks and track even more. Although on my last ride a few days ago it was not as bad as before. But there are more loose rocks and sand to bike over, through and around. It is really a Rocky Canyon!
  Ride rating: Advanced
  Chief Joseph Flys Like The Wind™ a 10000 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a DiamondBack Racing '97 V Link 3.1 from My Bike Shangri-la URL: Mountain and Road Ride Photo albums with slideshows

  Posted:10/23/2001

• Trail UpdateRocky Canyon Trail At Dusk Moon.-Rocky Canyon January 1, 2001.MountainBike Riders 2001... January 1, 2001: Wow! I biked up my favorite local Rocky Canyon Trail at dusk into the pale new Moonlight and starry, planet filled sky with a cool canyon breeze... Biking as always from home in the center of town, going across the new Salinas River bridge and along Templeton and Rocky Canyon Roads biking, yelling out New Years greetings to one road biker with his smiling mother following him in a SUV, and to a few rural homeowners, there was a gorgeous panoramic Sunset with clouds of pinkish-red all around the sky but especially towards the south and east in the direction I was riding. It has been several months since I last biked the trail. A small herd of five deer got scared into running as I biked past. I really wanted to bike Rocky Canyon Trail on December 31, but after planting flower seeds I just became too tired. Up the quarry road I greeted three walkers with a cheery Happy New Year, while one was talking on a cell phone, acknowledging my greeting with a smile. He looked like Gordon, the road biker dude I met at Long's. Again, I was thankful to God that there is a portable chemical toilet in the quarry from which I could see Jupiter and Saturn over the pyramid hill. As I biked again further thru the quarry a fox ran across the road to the streambed. I only see foxes in the quarry. It must be their home. As I was approaching the fire road at the top of the quarry a chilly canyon breeze came down at me. Brrrr. But I was wearing layered bikewear, with extra warmers in my backpack just in case of colder night temps. The streambed was wet so I decided to walk on the rocks across the mud. At the beginning of the single track after the second stream crossing, I looked up to see the beautiful celestial ecliptic filled with Venus on the southwest, the New Moon almost overhead, Saturn, Jupiter and the constellation of Taurus in the east above the Pine covered hill that was so still and quiet. The wind had died down
  Ride rating: Intermediate
  Ride distance: Elevation change: 600' or more
  Bike View Heaven™ Bike Shangri-la™ Visitors! a Eternal year old Cross-Country Rider riding a Diamond Back Racing'97 3.1 V-Link 1997, from Space URL: Rocky Canyon January 1, 2001

  Posted:01/02/2001

• Trail UpdateRocky Canyon Trail-It's actually much shorter than I thot, and would make a good quick morning/evening ride for bikers passing through/staying overnight, and locals use it. I get most of my exercise just ridin' to the trail on paved streets. I can downhill it, in 5'32" on the single track, with lots of rocks, sand, two stream crossings. To date, June 20, 1998, I have seen a hen turkey with three chicks, a doe deer, a young lil' skunk, young rabbits, and a gray fox seen mostly in the evening. Most native flowering shrubs are in full bloom at this time. It's been so cool, that the snakes must be hibernating; none seen yet. Some poison oak along the single track.
  Singletrack=20% Dirt Road=20% Paved Path=60% Truck Trail=20%
  C.J. a Cross-Country Rider riding a Diamond Back Racing'97 V Link 3.1, dual suspension from Atascadero, California URL:Rocky Canyon Trail

  Posted:06/21/1998