Palm Springs – Tramway Road Climb (to Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Palm Springs. Yes, you read that right. Absolutely not a city known for cycling. Between the abundance of elderly drivers, excessively high temperatures and strong winds, this is one area that will test you. And yet, this wasteland for cycling has one of the best climbs in southern California – Tramway Road. This awesome road basically heads straight up from Palm Springs to the bottom of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.

I found this climb in The Complete Guide to Climbing (By Bike) in California (full disclosure: if you purchase the book from the link above I do earn a commission – with that said, I highly recommend the book as it is the most complete resource for climbs in California).

So, a couple of stats on this climb.. First, from the above book:

Needless to say, this is a stout climb. To put it simply, this is a road that does not believe in switchbacks. In 2k feet of climbing, you get some slight curves and one 90 degree bend…and nothing more. Up, up and up some more is an accurate description of the climb. During summer (and late spring, and fall…), the temperatures are generally unbearable. In the afternoon, the winds are strong. This climb has a small window of opportunity. If you hit that window, however, you will be rewarded with a challenging, beautiful climb. This last week, I enjoyed an altogether too hot week in Palm Springs (temperatures hit 115-118 degrees). Given these excessively hot temperatures, I headed out to climb Tramway as early as possible. While I left my hotel before 7AM, I didn’t actually get to start climbing until about 7:20AM (the drive from La Quinta to Palm Springs takes a while). At this time, temperatures were already hovering around 90 degrees. Hot? Yes. Bearable? Just barely.

Anyway, I started climbing Tramway Road from the intersection with 111 (aka Palm Canyon Dr) and enjoyed the views from the start:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Such incredible mountains that you climb into:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Starting at just below 700ft in elevation, you will quickly hit the 1k marker:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

As you continue to climb, the views just get more spectacular:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Turn off your air conditioner:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Given the 10%+ nature of this road and the summertime temperatures of 110+…that sign is probably necessary. If you (or your car) can make it beyond that sign, the scenery just gets better:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Wow, a stream crossing:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Definitely unexpected. Coming to the Palm Springs desert in July, I did not expect to cross a running stream. Tramway Road, it would seem, delivers the unexpected. This is nice – you get to climb the rest of the climb with some greenery (helped out by that stream):

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

But what an amazing (and steep) road to climb:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

2,000 feet elevation and lots of green along the stream:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Climbing up to the last, challenging steep section:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Entering through the gates:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Ridiculous Scenery:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Success!

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

The tram itself is a marvel of engineering:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

And the view down Tramway Road is not too shabby:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

The only photo I took that accurately represents the grade of the road:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Steep.

The speed limit is 25mph. Descending, you will go faster:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

This first part is very fast. Scrub some speed before the 90 degree turn at the bottom of this section. After the 90 degree section (and the awesome, smooth asphalt above it), you will get one last fast, smooth descent before the rough road begins. The first half of the descent is smooth and very fast (except for that one 90 degree turn). 50+ mph is easily doable. The second half, however, is torture. Still steep, but riddled with creases and bumps, this section of roadway is just no fun. Too bad. The grade and lack of curves would make for a truly epic final descent. Maybe someday. Until then, enjoy that fast top section. And enjoy the views. They really are quite nice:

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

From 2010-07-14 – Palm Springs Cycling – Tramway Road Climb (to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway)

Tramway Road is one great climb. If you find yourself in Palm Springs in the winter, give this a try. In any other season, give this a try in the early morning hours. Weekdays, the tram opens at 10AM. Weekends, it opens at 8AM. Climb the road before 10/8AM and you will basically have the road to yourself.

Anyway, mapmyride maps..

The full climb:

The last 1.2 miles at 12%:

And, the tough, final 1/2 mile at 14%:

Not bad. Click the Elevation Profile buttons for those maps. They might just entice you (or scare you away).

Here is my GarminConnect page for the ride:

Prost!