Los Angeles · Malibu Canyons and Mulholland

A 134 km loop from Calabasas

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Why this ride

Canyon rhythm without pretending the city is the ride. Out of Calabasas and back again: 134 km, roughly 2 h 18 in the saddle. On the way it passes Mulholland canyon core, Malibu beach air and Topanga. The coast is the point of it.

Roadbook

1. Calabasas fuel gate start

   Calabasas is the last neat suburb before the Santa Monica Mountains turn wild, and for motorcyclists it is where a Southern California ride begins. The town sits at the western end of the San Fernando Valley, with a tidy main street, gated communities and a strip of shops, and just beyond it the road enters canyon country. The name comes from the Spanish word for pumpkins or gourds, and local stories claim it refers to a wagon that spilled its load or to the wild gourds along the creek.

   From here, Las Virgenes Road and Malibu Canyon Road drop south through a steep canyon to Pacific Coast Highway, a quick, winding run past rock walls and, on the side, the Malibu Creek State Park, where the television series M*A*S*H was filmed. The canyon road is famous among riders, with tight curves, blind corners and a long record of accidents, so it demands respect. Mulholland Highway, named for William Mulholland, the engineer who brought Owens Valley water to Los Angeles, winds west along the ridge, twisting through oak woodland and chaparral with views down to the ocean.

   At Cornell Road in Agoura Hills, the Rock Store, a roadside cafe and gathering spot, has been a biker hangout for decades, and on Sunday mornings hundreds of motorcycles and cars cluster in the lot. The crowds can be intense, but it is part of the culture of the place, and a good place to meet other riders. Weekends are busy, with cyclists, sports cars and sightseers on the narrow lanes, so weekday mornings are better.

   Calabasas has plenty of fuel and food, which is why it makes a good start: top the tank here, because the canyon roads have no stations. The marine layer in late spring and early summer fills the canyons with cool fog until late morning, while autumn offers clear, warm days. Fire and mudslides can close canyon roads, particularly after winter rains, and the road surface is often scattered with gravel and fallen branches. Speeding tickets are common, and police patrol the canyons regularly.

2. Mulholland canyon core scenic

   Mulholland Highway is named for William Mulholland, the engineer who brought water to Los Angeles from the Owens Valley in 1913, and it is in its own way a piece of infrastructure that serves a thirst. It runs along the spine of the Santa Monica Mountains from the Hollywood hills out toward the Pacific, and the western section, near Agoura and Calabasas, is the part that riders love. The road narrows, the houses thin out, and the hills turn into a tangle of chaparral, sandstone outcrops and oak-filled canyons that look like a film set, partly because they have been one many times.

   The canyon core is the stretch where the road twists through folds in the hills, with blind bends, tight switchbacks and sudden changes in camber. The surface varies, and in places it is patched, cracked or sprinkled with gravel from the verge. This is a road that rewards a smooth hand and a cool head, not a heavy throttle. It also has a reputation for crashes and enforcement, and the sheriff's patrols are active, particularly on weekends, so the posted speed limits mean something. Early morning on a weekday gives you the road at its best, with cool air, low sun and few vehicles.

   Nature here is the Mediterranean kind. The hills are covered in sage, laurel sumac, manzanita and live oak, and in spring they bloom with lupine and poppies after a wet winter. The air smells of sage and dust, and the light has a harshness that makes shadows sharp. Wildfire is a constant presence, and the landscape bears the marks of past burns, with blackened stumps and fresh regrowth. Rattlesnakes sun themselves on warm tarmac in spring, and coyotes cross at dusk.

   Riders gather at a roadside stop near the junction with Cornell Road, a long-established rendezvous for bikes and cars, and on a Sunday morning it is crowded with machines and talk. It is a fun place to watch and meet people, though you should keep an eye on your belongings and park with care.

   Fuel is available in Agoura Hills and Calabasas, about six kilometres away, and in Malibu on the coast, so fill up before entering the canyon. Services in the hills are limited, and mobile coverage can be patchy. Carry water, because the sun is strong and the air is dry, and keep to your side of the line on the blind corners. The reward is a ride that feels far from the city, though you are never more than half an hour from it.

3. Malibu beach air swim

   Malibu is a thin strip of coast between the mountains and the Pacific, about forty kilometres long, and the road that runs through it, Highway 1, which locals call the Pacific Coast Highway, is as famous as the beaches it passes. The Santa Monica Mountains rise steeply behind the shore, leaving little room for anything except a few houses, a few restaurants and the road itself, and the result is a ride with the ocean always on one side and the dry hills on the other. The smell of salt, kelp and warm tarmac fills the air.

   The beaches are the reason for the swim stop. Surfrider Beach near the pier is the home of California surf culture, with long, clean waves breaking over a rocky point, and to the west the coves at Point Dume and the sandy sweeps at Zuma give more space. The Pacific here is cold, usually between fifteen and nineteen degrees Celsius even in summer, so a swim is brisk, and rip currents are common, so keep close to shore and watch the lifeguards' flags. Pelicans glide low over the swell, dolphins sometimes appear, and in winter you may see grey whales passing offshore on their migration.

   The road itself is a mixed pleasure. It has lovely curves and wide views, but it is also a major commuter route, so traffic is thick, especially at weekends and rush hours, and speed limits are enforced. The surface has patches and the shoulders are narrow in places. Rockfall and mudslides sometimes close sections after heavy rain, and the area has been hit by serious wildfires, including the Woolsey fire in 2018 and the large fires of early 2025, whose effects are still visible along the coast. Check the road status before you set out.

   Malibu has about thirteen thousand residents, with fuel stations, cafés and restaurants along the highway. Prices are higher than in much of California, and parking at beaches is limited, with fees or time restrictions, so read the signs carefully, since tickets are routine. Agoura Hills and Las Flores are other places where services are available.

   Go in the morning or in the late afternoon, when the light is soft and the road is less crowded. After a swim, the warm air dries you quickly, and a coffee on a terrace above the surf is the best reward.

4. Topanga food reset stop

   Topanga, late in the day.

5. Back to Calabasas finish

   Back at Calabasas. That is the ride.

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