Best road bike routes in Los Angeles 2026: 10 free GPX loops

Looking for the best road rides around Los Angeles? Start with the curated loops in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles route library — free to browse, free to download as GPX, and scored hour by hour for wind so you can pick a departure time that feels good.

Below are the top 10 routes from the library leaderboard (ranked by rating × popularity), with verified distance and elevation from the manifest.

Leaderboard: top road bike routes in Los Angeles

The routes

1. Back Bay bluffs loop — 40.7 km / 221 m

Ranked #1 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 71.85). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Back Bay bluffs loop →

2. Santa Clara River path loop — 41.7 km / 214 m

Ranked #2 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 67.76). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Santa Clara River path loop →

3. Lake Casitas shore loop — 77.3 km / 845 m

Ranked #3 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 54.17). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Lake Casitas shore loop →

4. Palos Verdes bluffs loop — 66.9 km / 621 m

Ranked #4 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 52.9). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Palos Verdes bluffs loop →

5. Back Bay hills loop — 54.3 km / 346 m

Ranked #5 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 45.17). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Back Bay hills loop →

6. Santa Ana River path loop — 75.5 km / 126 m

Ranked #6 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 44.34). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Santa Ana River path loop →

7. Peters Canyon Walnut bikeway loop — 59.2 km / 707 m

Ranked #7 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 33.63). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Peters Canyon Walnut bikeway loop →

8. San Gabriel Canyon Road loop — 60.5 km / 1324 m

Ranked #8 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 19.22). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View San Gabriel Canyon Road loop →

9. Pasadena to Mount Wilson loop — 76.9 km / 1863 m

Ranked #9 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 19.16). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Pasadena to Mount Wilson loop →

10. Saddle Peak ridge loop — 59.8 km / 1321 m

Ranked #10 in the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles library leaderboard (popularity score 17.61). Preview the map, filter by distance or elevation, and download the GPX free from the city hub.

View Saddle Peak ridge loop →

How to choose the right route for the day

1. Distance and time window. Match kilometres to the hours you actually have.
2. Elevation. Climbing metres matter more than distance alone on punchy loops.
3. Near vs day-trip. Some library loops stay close to Los Angeles; others are longer classics worth a train or longer start.
4. Wind. A city-centre forecast will not tell you whether the outbound leg is a headwind.

Tailwind GPS gives every saved route a Tailwind Score (0–100) for each departure hour. Scores of 80+ mean favourable tailwinds for most of the ride; below 40 expect a tough one. Free accounts get a 3-day forecast and up to 3 saved routes.

How to get the GPX and score your departure hour

1. Open the Los Angeles hub
2. Filter by distance or elevation if needed
3. Preview a loop on the map
4. Download the GPX (free)
5. Save the route and compare Tailwind Scores on the map

You can also draw your own cycling route, upload a GPX, or connect Strava.

Get the GPX and score your departure hour

All of these routes are free to browse and download at the Tailwind GPS Los Angeles cycling routes hub. Filter, preview, download, then compare departure hours before you roll out.