Cycle the Uncrowded Country Roads of Northern California's Scott Valley

By Joanne Steele

One of Northern California's best cycling locations is the little known Scott Valley. Bicyclists can explore uncrowded roads with spectacular views of mountains, rivers and pastoral valleys. Sequestered from the bustle of the Interstate 5 corridor, riders in Scott Valley may see deer crossing the road ahead of them, witness salmon jumping during the fall upstream migration or get lost in the rustle and splash of unfettered rivers.

A two-hour drive north of Redding, California and west of Interstate 5, the Scott Valley is home to small towns, country roads and sweeping vistas. This tiny valley is tucked between a number of mountain ranges, including the Marble, Scott and Salmon Mountains and provides access to routes along three Wild and Scenic Rivers, including the Klamath, the second longest in California. The Scott Valley has a history packed with gold rush lore and a legacy of logging. With the Gold Rush long put to bed and the timber industry fading, the country roads are becoming a cyclist's heaven.
The Valley's small towns, Fort Jones, Etna and Callahan, provide access to a variety of routes for riders of all levels. Within the Valley, country roads meander past fields of alfalfa and wild rice while river and mountain rides lead out of the valley along paved roads that used to rumble with the constant passing of log trucks. These roads now see little traffic except cyclists, hikers traveling to trailheads for the Marble Mountain and Russian Wilderness Areas and the Pacific Crest Trail, and river rafters seeking the big water of the Cal Salmon.

Click visitsiskiyou.org for more Scott Valley cycling information.

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