Hi Mountain Lookout Road
(Cones off Hi Mountain Road)
If you like long climbs on fire road, this is a good one for you. A side trip to the historic Pozo Saloon for lunch, and great views from the top are excellent rewards for your efforts.
From San Luis Obispo, take highway 101 south to Grand Avenue in Arroyo Grande. Exit on Grand and turn left through the village of Arroyo Grande (cool town). Pas through the village and continue until you reach Lopez Lake Road. Stay on Lopez Lake Road until you reach the lake. Just before you reach the park entrance, turn right on Hi Mountain Road. The road will turn to dirt. Park here.
It is very difficult to get off course on this ride…just stay on the road. At first the road rolls gently though oak covered hills. After a brief climb, you will drop down to the creek level of the road. You will make several crossings (dry in the summer and fall) throughout the ride.
At about the five mile mark the road will climb steeply. The climb is short, but challenging. You will eventually reach a four way intersection at the 7 mile mark.
If you continue straight (downhill), you will be headed towards the town of Pozo. You will find a great place to have lunch and a cold beer there. It is only about a two mile ride from “The Cross”, and the climb back up is minor. Just stay straight and head past the Ranger station. When you hot pavement,cross the street and have fun. Check out the link to the Pozo Saloon on the front page.
If you turn right you’ll wish you hadn’t. This is the Garcia Ridge Trail, which is basically a ORV road. You will find this ride in the guide books, but I don’t recommend it.
Turning left you will climb another two miles to the Condor Lookout. This used to be the old fire lookout, but since then it is used to monitor the condors that were introduced to this are a few years back. On the way up you will pass a great place for lunch. There is shaded campground with tables, fire pits, and a restroom just off to your right. Continue straight up for an extra mile until you reach a Y. You’ll see a gate to the left. Pass through and ride up to t he lookout at the nine mile mark.
You can keep going from here if you’d like. Refer to the Rinconada Trail for the description of the ride from this point on. You can also access this ride from Pozo, which is described in the Rinconada Trail description as well. If you want to head back to the car, just turn your bike around and coast most of the way back, give or take a hill or two. This out and back ends at 18.5 miles.
