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I've been up that way many times, by bike, by motorcycle, by car. Although the road to the top is relatively tame (7% max grade), the surrounding area is super

I've been up that way many times, by bike, by motorcycle, by car. Although the road to the top is relatively tame (7% max grade), the surrounding area is super steep and hilly. Great for hiking and mountain biking, not so much for fire fighting. It's also very, very dry. Major props to all the fire fighters who labored to save such a historically important facility.

fennecfoxen 6y ago
If I recall correctly, the road to the top is relatively tame because it was built to deliver construction materials to the observatory, and that was before motor vehicles.
- chillers 6y ago
  I visited last November from the San Jose side, and the road was a nightmare. It's a small, windy road through the mountains with little visibility. I could see it being extremely difficult to navigate with firetrucks as it took me quite a while with my Prius.
  - option 6y ago
    that road is motorcycle heaven - love it. But, yes, its a miracle that firefighters were able to stop a fire there
  - ericbarrett 6y ago
    The front road (Mt. Hamilton Road / Hwy 130, starting at Alum Rock) is very winding because the grade was limited to allow horse & cargo carriage to summit the peak. Limiting the grade means extra turns. The back side roads, down to Livermore or Patterson, as well as the faster front cutoff (Quimby Rd) were built for vehicles and are much steeper and a little straighter. Source: Grew up there
- bagacrap 6y ago
  specifically they needed to deliver very large and heavy mirrors for the telescope itself
  - mauvehaus 6y ago
    Lenses, actually. The Lick Observatory is home to the second largest refracting telescope in the world. It’s a sight to behold, and the road is a stunning drive in it’s own right as noted. ETA: it’s an ass-kicker going up on a bicycle. It’s 22ish miles up, with like one brief respite near the county park.
spike021 6y ago
Last time I went up, I passed a sheriff (or maybe CHP) sitting on the side of the road and he was looking down the hill. My friend and I passed by thinking nothing of it. Then while hanging out up at the Observatory, we noticed a sheriff helicopter flying nearby. 30 minutes later we started heading down, got maybe a half mile down Mt. Hamilton Rd. from the Observatory, only for the whole road to be blocked because an abandoned vehicle had been found at the bottom of the canyon. LEO's needed to block the road for fire trucks and other first responders and then wait for the chopper to assist with investigating the vehicle. We ended up being stuck for a couple of hours and got to watch the first responders navigate the road and terrain. That renewed my appreciation and respect for the risks they take in that kind of environment.
- sizzzzlerz 6y ago
  In about the same time, you could have gone down the east side and come out the Mines road in Livermore. That is a great road by itself, especially in the Spring. I’ll be curious to see what damage the fires caused.
  - spike021 6y ago
    Yeah, we considered that! I've driven Mines Rd. from Livermore to the Junction. But I didn't have a full enough tank of gas to feel comfortable going that way. Me too. All my favorite driving roads and areas to explore have been affected by the fires.

fennecfoxen 6y ago

If I recall correctly, the road to the top is relatively tame because it was built to deliver construction materials to the observatory, and that was before motor vehicles.

chillers 6y ago
I visited last November from the San Jose side, and the road was a nightmare. It's a small, windy road through the mountains with little visibility. I could see it being extremely difficult to navigate with firetrucks as it took me quite a while with my Prius.
- option 6y ago
  that road is motorcycle heaven - love it. But, yes, its a miracle that firefighters were able to stop a fire there
- ericbarrett 6y ago
  The front road (Mt. Hamilton Road / Hwy 130, starting at Alum Rock) is very winding because the grade was limited to allow horse & cargo carriage to summit the peak. Limiting the grade means extra turns. The back side roads, down to Livermore or Patterson, as well as the faster front cutoff (Quimby Rd) were built for vehicles and are much steeper and a little straighter. Source: Grew up there
bagacrap 6y ago
specifically they needed to deliver very large and heavy mirrors for the telescope itself
- mauvehaus 6y ago
  Lenses, actually. The Lick Observatory is home to the second largest refracting telescope in the world. It’s a sight to behold, and the road is a stunning drive in it’s own right as noted. ETA: it’s an ass-kicker going up on a bicycle. It’s 22ish miles up, with like one brief respite near the county park.

spike021 6y ago

Last time I went up, I passed a sheriff (or maybe CHP) sitting on the side of the road and he was looking down the hill. My friend and I passed by thinking nothing of it. Then while hanging out up at the Observatory, we noticed a sheriff helicopter flying nearby. 30 minutes later we started heading down, got maybe a half mile down Mt. Hamilton Rd. from the Observatory, only for the whole road to be blocked because an abandoned vehicle had been found at the bottom of the canyon. LEO's needed to block the road for fire trucks and other first responders and then wait for the chopper to assist with investigating the vehicle. We ended up being stuck for a couple of hours and got to watch the first responders navigate the road and terrain. That renewed my appreciation and respect for the risks they take in that kind of environment.

sizzzzlerz 6y ago
In about the same time, you could have gone down the east side and come out the Mines road in Livermore. That is a great road by itself, especially in the Spring. I’ll be curious to see what damage the fires caused.
- spike021 6y ago
  Yeah, we considered that! I've driven Mines Rd. from Livermore to the Junction. But I didn't have a full enough tank of gas to feel comfortable going that way. Me too. All my favorite driving roads and areas to explore have been affected by the fires.