Explore the best rated trails in Bear Valley, CA, whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Al Tahoe Bike Trail and Lake Tahoe Boulevard Bike Path . With more than 16 trails covering 99 miles you're bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Road from the El Dorado Station of the El Dorado Western Railroad 4560 Oriental St, El Dorado, CA 95623 to the Camino end of the trail. This is a well paved trail that winds through the hills climbing most of the way to Camino but is a thrill on the return downhill to the trail head. A couple of places to be careful crossing streets and a short section through old town Placerville. There are only a few bathrooms so take advantage as needed. Bring water. Mostly foot traffic with only a few bikes. Watch for wildlife. We saw a doe with twin fawns.
The Class I bike path (paved) starts, in the west end, in the town of El Dorado. It has some "rolling" sections which are short but can challenge a novice rider. From the west turn left on Oriental St, stay left for a short distance to the parking area at the El Dorado Station.
From there the paved trail starts. It crosses Blanchard Rd (uncontrolled crossing), then Forni Rd (controlled crossing with a button to trigger light). You will soon come to Missouri Flat Rd, at the point the trail ends you must get across the 4-lane road + suicide lane. You can see a parking area across the road to the right, the traffic can be heavy and 40mph+. The safest crossing is travelling along the sidewalk to the light near Walmart, then continue on the sidewalk to the parking area, which is where the paved trail continues.
In approx. 100 yards you will see a bike park with a composite track, and has a nice bathroom! After a short climb you will descend to the Weber Creek wooden bridge, hit this at 20+mph on a road bike, it's smoother as you glide over the rather rough wood (they have replaced maybe 30% with smoother wood, need to do the other 70%!!!). After the bridge crossing you will climb a steady 2% grade to a portion that parallels Forni Rd, after you cross Forni Rd you come to a section Dedicated to fallen El Dorado Co Sheriff's Deputy Brian “Ish” Ishmael, RIP!
At the end of this section you will need to ride east on Main St, travelling through downtown Placerville. The traffic is usually heavy, but speeds are low, if you keep your pace up, you can keep up with traffic (please watch for cars pulling out or opening doors!). At the first stop SIGN (not light) turn left on Bedford St, and then a quick right (maybe 30 yards) before Hwy 50 to connect with the trail again.
You will reach the "Placerville Station" bus depot. Directly across Mosquito Rd is the continuation of the trail. Nearly 2 miles on the trail you will come to Jacquier Rd, take a left on this road, then turn right to the El Dorado Trail parking lot, the trail continues from there for 3.5 miles and 580 feet to the end of the paved portion. This is a fairly steady 3% grade with not much relief, so novice bikers may find this a bit of a challenge. Directly across from the end of the paved portion is an unpaved trail for a mile that ends near Hwy 50. I have ridden it on a road bike w/o too much trouble. You can also turn left at the end of the paved portion onto Halcon Rd (10 to 11% grade!), then left on Camino Hills Dr, then left on Vista Tierra, right on Camino Heights Dr, just before 50 make a right on Pondorado Rd this Hwy 50 frontage road will take you to a fairly new round-a-bout and underpass. This will open up a lot of road riding in the Apple Hill area. Narrow roads and some steep hills (10+% grades) and moderate traffic, so ride with day flashing front and rear lights (some areas are in deep woods, so its darkish even in the day). As a local, and have ridden the area many times, I avoid the area Late Sept through Mid Nov. Traffic is really busy and people tend to get lost or frustrated.
For non-road riders (dirt) I have ridden west on the unpaved trail (single track) on a road bike. It was fun until it wasn't! The slide out and low speed fall hitting a rock with my knee wasn't worth the previous mile of fun, trust me! I chalk this up to a complete lack of judgement, especially since I had another set of wider gravel rims with mounted small knobby tires.
This is an easy scenic trail for the whole family. There are markers along the way giving some history as well as remaining iron on the ground. Campground on the east end of trail if you want to camp out
Loved this all paved trail! Both great for bikers and hikers! Several beautiful bridges to cross and medium level ability on mountain bikes as there are a few good hills. Gets your heart running!!
I love this trail! Clean with beautiful scenery. Porta potty throughout the trail. Sound of the River is calming.
Had my wife drop me off behind Walmart and took the ED trail for the first time to Shingle Springs. I hit record on my Strava app but didn't hit start until I was well into the trip. Darn. No stats this time.
Riding a FS MTB and it had rained about 2 days previously so the weeds weeds were growing in the sun. Super cool to see weeds almost cover the trail. What was left was just a line in the fox tails designating the trail in some spots hiding any rocky, rutted out surprises. There was also some mush and it made me wonder if I was really following the trail into deep water but I was committed.
Absolutely loved the ride and the trail but it was over too soon. Need to expand my use of the trail up and down.
I ride mountain bikes, and not full suspension...the trail from Folsom to Latrobe, or Latrobe to Folsom, is garbage, for me, on a bicycle. Maybe if I was on a horse, or a dirtbike, or on full squish mountain bike, it would be OK, but the section from Folsom to Latrobe is ugly and very bumpy.
From Latrobe to Shingle Springs, or Shingle Springs to Latrobe, this trail is a lot of fun. Keep an eye out for the single track switching sides of the railroad as it is very frustrating to be off trail. There is a huge difference between the single track and the "trail" along the tracks. Ride the single track. The intimidating uphills are short and very manageable once you get going up (or down) them.
From Shingle Springs to Placerville, or Placerville to Shingle Springs, the trail is good. Not great, but good. There are sections that are fantastic and sections that leave a bit to be desired. Some of the single track climbs are tough. Be prepared to walk some if you are not a very good mountain bike rider. Even then, I hit a few wet roots or leaves or rocks and the rear tire just gives out with moisture, cold and steepness. Once you get to cross the road by Walmart, the opportunity for dirt reduces. It is there, you just have to keep a constant eye out for it. And if you do not run tubeless, don't go off road between Placerville and Diamond Springs as there are a ton of thorns just waiting for your tires...
This 36 (72) mile trail has a lot of potential and it is fun to ride up and back from Folsom to Placerville and back. Great training and the elevation is just under 4000' total so it makes it possible to hold good speed. A little too much tarmac and getting battered for the last 5-7 miles into Folsom is no bueno.
This is a fun and accesible trail for the family, the view at the end is lovely.
I enjoy this trail. I actually start on alt Lake Tahoe Blvd And follow the South Lake Tahoe trail all the way to the end of this trail. There are many other side roads like fallen leaf campground.
When you experience this trail you first need to realize it is actually about 37 miles long but is longer than that to Folsom or to Tahoe (Epic Trail System). That said, the El Dorado Trail is a "trifecta of trails" with rail, earthen trail and Class I bike path under construction. This is the goal of the entire corridor to the El Dorado County line BECAUSE it is the goal of the organization that manages it, the SPTC JPA.
The El Dorado Trail or Gem of the Western Sierras, is a rough, somewhat untamed trail testament to the folks who built it and many with legacy family members in the area. In fact, many with less than 75 years in the are do not know about the EDT. Come out and ride the rail now in Shingle Springs in the depot at Sam's Town Cyclery or rent bikes to ride the earthen trail. You can also ride the rail in El Dorado and soon they will have a Class I (ADA approved) bike path along with improved earthen trail.
The Placerville Trail (Missouri Flat to Camino) is great with some nice views and the tressle bridge over Weber Creek. However, watch out for cars and homeless in Placerville. Making way out of Placerville you can get to Camino with a little bit of a climb (estimate 600').
In the next few years projects will start to build the Class I trail next to the rail and hopefully we will see connects to Cameron Park, El Dorado Hills and Folsom.
Oh yeah, wildlife are plenty on the EDT having seen over the years many deer, fox, skunk and even a mountain lion!
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