Sweetwater Trail
| Technical Level: |
Intermediate |
| Strenuous Level: |
Beginner plus |
| Altitude Gain: |
Minimal -- Up and Down a lot, but no major altitude change |
| The Ride: |
3 miles one way 6 miles total |
| Where: |
Salmon Falls Road north east of Folsom. |
| When: |
All year, but its really hot in the summer |
To get There:
Map
marking Trail Head
From Sacramento: Take Highway 50 East towards Lake Tahoe to Folsom
Blvd. Head North East on Folsom Blvd. towards Folsom for about a
mile. Turn Right (East) on Blue Ravine Road. Continue on Blue
Ravine several miles to Salmon Falls Road in Eldorado Hills (Note that
Blue Ravine turns into GreenValley road at the Albertson's shopping center).
Salmon Falls road is the first left after Fransisco Road. Take Salmon
Falls road about 5 miles to the American River. You will pass a sign
on your left pointing to the Folsom Lake SRA, and immediately after this
sign, you will see the bridge crossing the south fork of the American River.
Just before the bridge on the left is free parking in the dirt. There
are 3 paved parking lots near the bridge but they cost $2. Sweetwater
is on the opposite side of the river as Salmon
Falls Trail. It is on the South West side of the bridge
and starts from the Folsom Lake SRA parking lot, so you have to go back
up the road a little from the free dirt parking lot (or you can park for
$2 right next to the trail head). The trail starts on the side
of the parking lot furthest from the river. There is a sign marking
it.
The Ride
This ride makes a great after work ride! It is fairly short, but
very technical. There are a couple parts that even good riders will
be challenged by (I can uni it all, but barely). The trail is well
marked, there are a couple turns, but they have signs. If you start
from the side opposite the American River bridge, the first fork in the
trail is unmarked (about 50 ft from the dirt parking area). Go straight
(don't turn left). Riders coming from the bridge will see the dirt
parking area at the end of the trail, so you won't turn the wrong way.
The Trail
It is pretty hilly, making it a pretty strenuous 6 miles. This is
probably my favorite quicky trail because it is has so much difficult material.
You will cross a small creek, ride over big nasty rocks, climb a couple
really steep hills, and get to rocket down a few curvy down hills.
The ride comes out on Salmon falls road, about a mile south of the American
River bridge. There is a small parking area there, so you can start
on the end opposite the bridge if you would like. A good ride is
starting on the end opposite the bridge and then do Salmon
Falls Trail so you get a long ride with some technical stuff as well.
Also, if you cross Sweetwater creek at the end of the trail, and then forge
your way across the lake bed (that is usually dry in the summer) you will
find a paved parking area. It is probably only 1/4 mile from the
end of Sweetwater. This is another Folsom Lake recreation area, but
is much less known and used than the one at the bridge. At one end
of the parking lot is a hiking only trail. This has potential to
be a great mountain biking trail, but it is currently only open to horses
and hikers. This trail goes all the way to dike 8!! That means
that if it were open to bikes, you could ride from Peninsula Park on Salmon
Falls Trail to Sweetwater Trail then all the way to dike 8, which is 30
miles of dirt one way (and some incredible riding)!
Trail Details:
Sunrise/Sunset
Weather
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