The all too famous Leggett Hill was conquered today while cycling Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher! The combination of a 5,000+ foot day of elevation the prior day of cycling, followed by the double doozy of Leggett Hill made today a hard day on the bikes!
Cycling Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher is the 19th of nearly 30 daily diaries of our cycle trip from Seattle to San Francisco.
If you’d like to read from the beginning, check out, getting to Seattle. Each post in this cycle series will contain our daily journal entries that we kept via Track My Tour, photos captured throughout the day, and the exact route, duration, and elevation gains for the given ride.
Read Our Complete Guide to Cycling the Pacific Coast Highway Here
Let’s dive into Biking the Pacific Coast Highway, Day 18, Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher.
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Cycling Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher
Wow, what a doozy of a day! Leggett Hill isn’t one for the faint at heart.. especially when it comes after a 5,000+ foot day of climbing just before! Cycling Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher is known for the Leggett Hill climbs. And while it was tough, those tough days on the bike make us feel so much stronger and so accomplished!
The day started with three miles of climbing for a very rewarded 10 miles of downhill, before climbing for a bit more! Starting already halfway up a mountain certainly showed its perks today taking all the hairpin turns down Leggett Hill!
By this point in cycling the Pacific Coast bike route, mentally we can conquer anything.. and that was certainly the case with this climb! When you know you have the strength and power to climb based on hills in the weeks prior, it’s truly all the difference in making a hill day fun instead of hell!
We split with our group today, and enjoyed a proper date night at a local brewery in Fort Bragg, and a fun time exploring California’s Glass Beach!
Fort Bragg reminds us of places on the east coast! It’s a cute little touristy town fun to spend an evening at!
Overall, I think the hype of cycling Leggett Hill makes the day easier than it should be. Yes, it was hard, but we’d still argue our first big climbs in Oregon were much harder on us, both mentally and physically!
Biking Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher Day 18 Quick Facts
- Miles // 42.88 miles
- Saddle Time // 4 hrs 26 min
- Elevation // 4,551 feet
- Accommodation // hiker-biker in Mac Kerricher State Park
- Water // fill up before leaving Standish Hickey
- Food // expensive minimart on the way, and great brewery in Fort Bragg
Pacific Coast Bike Tour Blog Day 18
Monday 24 Aug 2015 22:39
Day 18: So, today was the next segment of our major incline.
The five of us took off from Standish Hickey State Park on the 101 and climbed Leggett Hill for three miles, then had nearly 10 miles of downhill.
10 miles of downhill was amazing.
The corners were hairpin turns with caution speed recommendations of 10mph. I would go into some of the corners at 35mph. So fun.
Then, the rest of the day was up and down. We arrived via California Hwy 1. It is super pretty, and we finally got back to the coast.
For lunch, we stopped at the outrageously expensive minimart. But it was comical and that was good enough for us.
We continued on to the Mac Kerricher State Park. This is where the Wolfpack finally had to part ways. The others needed to keep going to make sure they made it to San Francisco by Friday. We will arrive on Saturday and will hopefully meet up once again there. If not, we will have a reunion sometime.
We found out there was a brewery just 4 miles south in the town of Fort Bragg along with the famous Glass Beach. So we had to go check them both out after our two-hour nap. We had a wonderful day.
Our mileage for the day was 42.8 miles plus 8.9 for going into town with 4,551 feet elevation. The overall distance is now 868.34 miles.
Cycler’s Tips for Cycling Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher | PCH Day 18
- Today you cycle the famous Leggett Hill. A dreaded climb for all cyclists, followed by a smaller climb but more difficult than the first! Make sure your legs are rested before starting today!
- We ended up having to get lunch at a very overpriced supermarket, instead of being stuck doing the same thing, maybe be sure to grab some tuna or peanut butter from the store at Standish Hickey!
- While our friends continued cycling south to meet a deadline they had, we really enjoyed Fort Bragg! If you can, stay the night at Mac Kerricher State Park to spend some time in this little coastal town!
- Don’t miss Fort Bragg’s glass beach! It’s insane to see how much glass is just piled up on the shore here!
More on Cycling the Pacific Coast Highway
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Setting Yourself Up for Successfully Completing the West Coast Bike Route
This post contains our gear list, all our daily journal entries, FAQs on cycling the PCH, and downloads to make your PCH cycle trip easier!
Next Daily Journal Entry on our Pacific Coast Highway Bike Tour
Day 19, cycling Mac Kerrich to Van Damme, and a sad realization that we only had 4 days left on our trip.
Previous Daily Journal Entry on our Pacific Coast Highway Bike Tour
Cycling to Standish Hickey and a much-needed rest day at a swimming hole!
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Have questions about day 18, cycling Standish Hickey to Mac Kerricher? Need a bit more information about the trip as a whole? Or just want to share your experiences? We’d love to hear from you.. start a conversation below!