A Day’s Area Excursion
Just west of Hayward is a scenic route that offers not only some great views, but smooth asphalt, little traffic and opportunities to spot wildlife. This 10 to 14 mile out and back ride is one of my favorites for road, hybrid or mountain bike. If you’re familiar with the Hayward area, you’ll know Smith Lake and Nelson Lake for their fine fishing and quiet, pristine character. You might want to take your fishing pole along on this ride, and don’t forget your camera. On my most recent trip over this route with my wife and two children we saw deer, squirrels, a bald eagle, rabbits, turtles, ducks, a raccoon and a fox family of four. For the best chance at seeing wildlife, early mornings and evenings are best.
To get there, go west of Hayward on State Highway 27/77. It’s 2.3 miles from the Highway 63 and Highway 27/77 intersection on the North side of Hayward to County Highway T. Turn right onto T and follow it .5 miles to Eytcheson Park on Smith Lake. This is a good place to park your vehicle. It’s also a good spot for a picnic and a swim, or to launch a boat. You can ride your bike to the park instead of carrying it on a vehicle. Highway 27/77 is fairly busy in the summer, but this section has a wide, paved shoulder. Just ride with care and remember drivers don’t always see bikers. There is not much of a shoulder for most of this ride once you leave the state highway, so stay on the right side, wear something bright and keep an eye out for cars. There is good visibility almost everywhere on the route, and we take our children, start our ride at the park, and keep the kids in front where we can observe them and warn of traffic approaching from the rear. The distances I use here are assuming you set your odometer at zero at Eytcheson Park.
From Eytcheson Park, head west along Smith Lake. The road runs for a mile right alongside the lake offering a high overlook of the water. It turns away from Smith Lake and heads North into a cedar and spruce lowland. Marsh Marigolds and wild Irises grow alongside the road here. At 2.1 miles Norway Point road enters on the right. Stay on T as you start a series of rolling hills, climbing into higher country with hardwood forest on both sides of the road. Four Seasons Road enters on the right at 2.4 miles. Both of these roads dead end but are worth riding for some extra mileage. You’ll get your first glimpse of Nelson Lake at 2.5 miles, and then Hard Rock Circle Road enters on your right at 2.6 miles. Here you have a choice. Stay on T and you’ll climb a long, steep hill that rewards your efforts with a fast downhill on the backside, or take Hard Rock for a flatter way around. T offers undeveloped forest views and Hard Rock Circle takes you past some vacation homes and cottages with glimpses of Nelson Lake through the trees. Either way, in slightly over a mile you’ll arrive at the same point. Since this is an out and back ride, you might want to try one option on the way out and the other on the way back. If you take Hard Rock on the way out, turn right on T and you’ll soon see Nelson Lake again. The next .7 miles is gently rolling and offers great views to the Northeast across the lake. There are inlets next to the road where turtles and wildfowl are almost always to be seen. To the Northwest you catch a glimpse of your destination, Nelson Lake dam.
Park Island Resort on the lake side at 4.3 miles is a place to stop in for refreshments. From here you can ride your bike down to the dam and push it across to the far side. Standing over the spillway and watching the amber water plunge 20 feet down into Totogatic Flowage is always a thrill. Here there is access to the lake or the flowage. This is a popular fishing spot, and the best luck is to be had below the spillway. The picnic park on the North side of the dam has tables, a lawn and drinking water available from an old fashioned hand pump. If you ride down to Highway 27 and cross the bridge heading south, (be careful of fast moving traffic here. There is no paved shoulder,) a turnout at .1 miles from the bridge leads up onto a high overlook with the Totogatic Flowage stretching for miles to the North and West. This is a sunset view as lovely as any in the Hayward area. Look for Osprey nests on the North side of the flowage.
From the Nelson Lake dam, you can continue North on the narrow two lane blacktop through the woods .2 mile to Nelson Lake Landing, where you can stop for refreshments and see fisherman coming off the lake at the boat landing. If a total of 10 miles is what you had in mind for this ride, this is your turnaround point. Return to Smith lake and Eytcheson Park by the same route that got you here. If you want to add another 4 miles total, ride west to Highway 27 (.1 mile) and head north .1mile to Jolly Fisherman Road.
Jolly Fisherman offers two miles of smooth, hilly blacktop out to the North side of Nelson Lake. It’s an excellent sprint on a road bike. You’ll pass Sunrise Bay Campground, then climb a steep hill that leads into a densely wooded upland with tall trees and lush ferns lining the road. Ride the 1.8 miles to an intersection with Erickson Road for the sheer joy of spinning through undeveloped forest on silky smooth blacktop. This is your turnaround, as both Jolly Fisherman and Erickson roads end shortly at private property.
I hope you enjoy the ride. See you out there. -Steve Morales
