slickdude
Member
- Local time
- 3:40 PM
- Joined
- Dec 10, 2011
- Messages
- 282
An off-roaders dream. Right to the east within 200 feet of Balboa and Victory blvd in the central San Fernando Valley is a tucked away hush-hush group of walking and riding trails too. Now most folks who know the Lake Balboa area know the paved bike paths which are mostly occupied by pedestrians these days. Such as a 5 year old with a pitbull on a seven foot leash, the illegal alien who just got out of her brand new Cadillac Escalade with a triple baby stroller, the old guy who jogs and does so in the middle of the bike path as to take up the entire thing. Little Johnny and Thelma, both running on all sides of the bike path. Mikey a five year old who seems to get in your way while riding and everyone else. Did I forget anyone else here? Oh wait, the park has a franchise that rents out fourwheel bikes usually crammed with 6 riders that go slow like the wild bunch. Ever try passing one of those? They always seem to block one side of the path or another.
So what's a poor biker to do. Well, there is always the dirt road between the L.A. River and the Balboa Golf Course. Goes between Burbank Blvd. and Balboa, not bad. You do need to dodge joggers or walkers but enough width except all the dirt bumps of course. Then there is a still, seldom used trail. People do walk their dogs, an occasional family pops by, but for the most part the usage is sparse and with all of the dirt trails and the feel you are out in the boonies, not bad. This gave me the perfect opportunity to try out my Papamotors 1000watt front hub motor and it did very good, was a blast. It got me up some steep hills requiring a bit of pedal assist in the end but it was like dirt bike riding. Crossing over river tributaries and bridges, riding a trail through the thickets and up and down hills was indeed a giant playground. No signs were posted excepting bikes so it must be presumed it for all usage and I made use of it, exploring many trails with my ebike. The fact the Papamotors front hub sounds like a muffled two-stroke made it even more fun. Reminded me of younger times on my old gas dirt atv's. You can access the dirt trail system right off the Balboa Bike path. If you are nearby, check it out, have fun, respect the safety of yourself and others at all times. But most of all, have a blast and enjoy the resource while it lasts.
So what's a poor biker to do. Well, there is always the dirt road between the L.A. River and the Balboa Golf Course. Goes between Burbank Blvd. and Balboa, not bad. You do need to dodge joggers or walkers but enough width except all the dirt bumps of course. Then there is a still, seldom used trail. People do walk their dogs, an occasional family pops by, but for the most part the usage is sparse and with all of the dirt trails and the feel you are out in the boonies, not bad. This gave me the perfect opportunity to try out my Papamotors 1000watt front hub motor and it did very good, was a blast. It got me up some steep hills requiring a bit of pedal assist in the end but it was like dirt bike riding. Crossing over river tributaries and bridges, riding a trail through the thickets and up and down hills was indeed a giant playground. No signs were posted excepting bikes so it must be presumed it for all usage and I made use of it, exploring many trails with my ebike. The fact the Papamotors front hub sounds like a muffled two-stroke made it even more fun. Reminded me of younger times on my old gas dirt atv's. You can access the dirt trail system right off the Balboa Bike path. If you are nearby, check it out, have fun, respect the safety of yourself and others at all times. But most of all, have a blast and enjoy the resource while it lasts.
