[JBH]

I might be headed out to Petaluma CA for 5 weeks in January. I wanted to try and get some riding in while I was out there and would like to get some feedback. #1 How are the trails out there? #2 Is it better to rent a bike or go ahead and ship my own? I would probably only be able to ride weekends and maybe evenings during the week. I won't really have a rental car to myself, so I am going to be pretty limited. Any feedback would be great. Thanks

 

[Orvan]

Annadel State Park in Santa Rosa (North-northwest of Petaluma) is prolly the best place nearby. Man, I miss that place. Rough, singletracks and no Marinites.

 

[JBH]

Thanks for the reply. That seems to be the best place from what I've been able to gather. Hope to make it up there as much as I can. Do you know how long of a drive it is from Petaluma? Thanks

 

[bushwacker]

From P-town, you can be at a good parking spot in 35 minutes or so.

Park at Howarth Park, along Summerfield road in Santa Rosa. It's a city of Santa Rosa park. It connects to Spring Lake a Sonoma County regional park.
That connects to Annadel, a state park.

Do not park on Channel drive, even though that is where everyone will tell you to park, unless you have a beater vehicle with nothing to steal inside.
We go by weekly and count how many new piles of busted window glass there is in that parking lot...

NEVER EVER park at the Lawndale parking lot.

January will be sloppy. Stay off of Two Quarry, and Ridge Trail. The rest should be fairly good, except Rough Go. It turns into a small creek in the winter, but it still rideable.

 

[JBH]

Thanks again for the info. I am sure it will be quite different than what I am use to in the North East.