Northwoods Boulevard Climb
- long (6.9 km)
- 4.3 mi
- long (6.9 km)
- of climbing (230 m)
- 755 ft
- of climbing (230 m)
- average grade
- 3.3%
- average grade
- steepest 500 m
- 9.1%
- steepest 500 m
Elevation profile
From 5,925 ft at the bottom to 6,680 ft at the top. Grades are averaged over each half kilometre, from USGS elevation data, so short ramps can be steeper than they show.
Weather at the top of Northwoods Boulevard this week
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Is it safe to bike up Northwoods Boulevard?
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. The records here are also incomplete: most reports along it are filed under Truckee, where only 40% of reported bike crashes have a map location, so the numbers here are too low. What the records show: 1 bike crash was reported on or beside Northwoods Boulevard along the climb from 2021–2025, 1 of them serious or fatal.
Common questions about Northwoods Boulevard
- How long and steep is the Northwoods Boulevard climb?
- 4.3 miles (6.9 km) at 3.3% on average, climbing 755 ft (230 m) from 5,925 ft to 6,680 ft. The steepest half kilometre averages 9.1%. That makes it a Category 3 climb.
- Where does the climb start and finish?
- It starts at 39.32582, -120.21845, where Northwoods Boulevard leaves Donner Pass Road, and tops out at Viking Way at 39.35381, -120.25243.
- Is Northwoods Boulevard 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.
Other climbs nearby
- Ski Slope Way from Christie LaneCat 3 · 2.1 mi at 6.6% · 722 ft · starts 2.2 mi away
- Ski Slope Way from Springbrook PlaceCat 3 · 2.2 mi at 7.1% · 827 ft · starts 3.0 mi away
- Alder Creek Road from Stony Creek CourtCat 3 · 5.1 mi at 3.1% · 850 ft · starts 3.3 mi away
- Donner Pass RoadCat 2 · 3.3 mi at 6.6% · 1,168 ft · starts 3.8 mi away
- The StrandCat 3 · 1.5 mi at 7.3% · 594 ft · starts 6.3 mi away
- Highlands View RoadCat 3 · 2.7 mi at 4.2% · 607 ft · starts 6.6 mi away
- Somerset Drive near TruckeeCat 3 · 2.2 mi at 4.8% · 564 ft · starts 6.9 mi away
- Mount Watson Boulevard from Sawmill FlatCat 3 · 3.0 mi at 4.8% · 748 ft · starts 7.8 mi away
Places to ride to nearby
Bike crash hotspots nearby
Found from OpenStreetMap roads and USGS 3DEP elevation; ranked on shape only. Category 3: 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. Crashes: bike crashes reported within 100 ft of the climb, 2021–2025, from the California Crash Reporting System (CCRS), counted only where the report has map coordinates. Weather: National Weather Service. Access from OpenStreetMap tags; obey posted signs. How the data works.