Downieville Loop, Downieville, CA | 34.18mi, 5013ft
Growing up racing mountain bikes, I have heard about Downieville and the Downieville classic almost my entire life. So as soon as we moved to Nevada and learned that Downieville is only 1.5 hours away, we knew we had to go check it out.
The route we followed: highway, Gold Valley Road, Butcher Ranch Trail, Second Divide, First Divide
I was super grateful for the hardtail on the ~2:45 hour climb and Justin was never happier to have his e-bike.
I was cooked by the time we finished the climb! The temperature gradient from town to the summit was around 30 degrees (F).
One of the coolest observations from the climb, was the moss level on the trees. I assume the moss was as high as it was on all of the trees due to last year’s crazy snow levels.
The ride down was amazing but I totally understand why people call these trails “tire eaters”. The tech sections were sharp, but the flow sections were smooth and the dirt was perfect.
We took Second Divide down to First Divide even though the recommended route is Third Divide. In the future, I’d probably do Third Divide instead; Second Divide has amazing flowy switch backs, but the climb out is a bit technical and hike-a-bike-y in sections.
Look at the big trees!
- Total time: 5:01:32
- Moving time: 4:25:32
- Total ascent: 5013 ft (1528 m)
- Total distance: 34.18 mi (55.00 km)