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October is when San Diego riding hits its stride. The tourists are gone, the coast holds its warm water and long light a little longer, and the backcountry has finally cooled off for good. The mountain switchbacks are comfortable again, the desert is opening back up, and the crowds are thin. We ride year round out here, but a clear October morning on a mountain road is about as good as it gets. Just keep watching the wind, because this is peak Santa Ana and fire season in Southern California.
Ride of the Month: Palomar Mountain and the South Grade
The famous nickel switchbacks, mountain pine, and a burger at the top
Point it northeast and climb the South Grade of Palomar Mountain, County Road S6, the road every San Diego rider knows by heart. It stacks tight switchback after tight switchback up the mountain, the corners riders call the nickel, into cool pine forest with the valley falling away behind you. Roll over the top past the observatory and Mother's Kitchen, then drop the East Grade, S7, along the ridgeline. In October the air is cool and clean, the pavement grips, and the mountain is quiet after the summer crowds.
Fuel up in Valley Center or at the base, dress in layers because the top runs cold now, and take the switchbacks easy for sand and gravel washed onto the shaded corners. Grab a burger at Mother's Kitchen and loop home before the low afternoon sun.
Now that it has cooled, the Anza-Borrego desert is back in season. Drop the Montezuma Grade on S-22 into Borrego Springs for one of the great descents in the state. Chasing the coast? Take the old Coast Highway 101 up through Encinitas and Carlsbad, or run the Ortega Highway, CA-74, north through the Cleveland forest. And Julian is still in full apple harvest if you want pie at the top of the Sunrise Highway. All of it rides best in the morning, before the afternoon wind builds.
Fall Riding Safety: Southern California Edition
October is easy, beautiful riding in San Diego, with a couple of real hazards that peak this time of year.
- Santa Anas and peak fire season. October is the worst of it for the hot, dry Santa Ana winds. They shove you around on the ridgelines and passes and drive real wildfire and smoke risk in the backcountry. Check the wind and fire conditions before a mountain run, and never ride into smoke.
- Marine layer and cold mornings. The coast and canyons can start the day socked in with gray, wet marine layer, and the mountains and desert now run cold at first light. Run your light, dress in layers, give it easy inputs until it burns off, and watch the painted lines near the coast.
- Mountain gravel and low sun. Runoff and the first rains drop sand and gravel onto the shaded corners of Palomar and S1, and the low October sun sits right in drivers' eyes on the ride home. Pick a clean line through the blind corners and assume the car behind you cannot see you.
- Split smart. California lets you lane split, but fall traffic and distracted drivers make it a judgment call. Keep the speed differential low, stay out of blind spots, and never assume the car sees you.
Know Your California Law
- Fault is shared, but never a wall. California uses pure comparative negligence. Your recovery is reduced by your share of the blame but never barred outright, even a mostly-at-fault rider can still recover something. Insurers still fight to shift blame onto riders, so how the crash is documented matters.
- Lane splitting is legal here. California is the one state that expressly allows lane splitting. Done safely and at a reasonable speed it is your right, and an insurer cannot treat legal splitting as automatic fault.
- Everyone wears a helmet. California has a universal helmet law. Every rider and passenger must wear a DOT-compliant helmet, no exceptions.
- You have two years, and the minimums are low. California gives you two years to file an injury claim, and its liability minimums are among the lowest in the country, so uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is your real backstop. Do not wait to get advice.
Ride Nation San Diego
The local chapter is where SoCal riders post weekend miles, call out wind, gravel, and fire conditions from Palomar to the Anza-Borrego grades, and share the shots worth putting your helmet on for. Post where you rode this month and tag us. It is your scene, run by riders who actually ride these roads.
Last Weeks for the $20,000 BikeWin Giveaway
You are on this list because you entered, which means you are already in the running for 20,000 dollars toward any motorcycle you want, drawn December 10. Got a buddy who would want a shot? The entry page is open and free.
Enter the giveaway
A driver turning left across your lane on the coast highway. Gravel on a Palomar switchback. A distracted commuter who never saw you splitting on the 5. If you ever go down in California, you want a lawyer who rides these roads and knows your rights, including your right to split.