Mitchell Road Climb

We don't rate roads as safe or unsafe: crash counts can't say how risky a ride is, and roads people like to ride draw more riders, so they see more crashes. What the records show: no bike crashes were reported along the climb from 2021–2025.

How long and steep is the Mitchell Road climb?

1.0 miles (1.6 km) at 13% on average, climbing 692 ft (211 m) from 354 ft to 1,047 ft. The steepest half kilometre averages 15.6%. That makes it a Category 3 climb.

Where does the climb start and finish?

It starts at 41.21429, -123.76054, where Mitchell Road leaves State Highway 169, and tops out on the road at 41.21643, -123.75098.

Is Mitchell Road paved?

Yes, by its OpenStreetMap tags.

How is the category worked out?

From the climb's shape only: length in metres × average grade (%) of 16,000 or more for Cat 3, 32,000 for Cat 2, 64,000 for Cat 1 and 80,000 for HC. It describes how hard the climb is, not traffic or crashes.

Where does this data come from?

The climb is found from OpenStreetMap roads and USGS 3DEP elevation (every climb, not a list of famous ones). Access is from OpenStreetMap tags; gates and closures change, so obey posted signs. Crash counts are police reports in the California Crash Reporting System (CCRS) on data.ca.gov, counted where their map location is within 100 ft of the climb. The forecast is from the National Weather Service.

• Bald Hills Road from Martins Ferry BridgeHC · 11 mi at 4.9% · 2,864 ft · starts 0.5 mi away
• Cappell RoadCat 3 · 2.8 mi at 3.7% · 554 ft · starts 1.8 mi away
• Iron Gate RoadCat 3 · 1.3 mi at 9.8% · 696 ft · starts 2.3 mi away
• Lake Prairie RoadCat 2 · 1.1 mi at 21.4% · 1,266 ft · starts 3.1 mi away
• Deerhorn RoadCat 1 · dirt · 5.4 mi at 8.4% · 2,395 ft · starts 4.4 mi away
• Ranstead RoadCat 2 · 4.0 mi at 9.7% · 2,047 ft · starts 4.6 mi away
• Ross Ranch RoadCat 2 · 3.4 mi at 10.6% · 1,909 ft · starts 4.8 mi away
• Bloody Camp Road near TrinidadCat 2 · 7.8 mi at 3.9% · 1,588 ft · starts 4.8 mi away