Central Valley North - Oakdale - Woodward Reservoir
3 mi 
Suitable for
Touring *
Street *
Slalom *
Directions
Take State Highway 120 east from State Highway 99, following the signs to Oakdale. Just west of town, turn left onto rural Route J14, also known as 26-Mile Road. Proceed north for four miles to the entrance of Woodward Reservoir Regional Park, and pay the $6 day-use fee at the kiosk (an envelope is left here for this purpose in the off-season). The road curves around to the left to follow the lakeshore for a quarter-mile, then comes to a four-way intersection where a big sign points the way to the lake's attractions. Turn left to go to the marina and park up by the marina store, where the best pavement begins.
Map: Modesto and Stanislaus County; Compass Maps, Inc., P.O. Box 4369, Modesto, CA 95352.
Map: Modesto and Stanislaus County; Compass Maps, Inc., P.O. Box 4369, Modesto, CA 95352.
Notes
Skating is good at Woodward Reservoir in early spring or early on weekend mornings. Summer weekends, however, can be pretty crowded: up to 10,000 people come here for swimming, boating, fishing, go-carting, and in-season duck hunting.
There are no paved bike paths, so if you do come on a busy weekend, you'll be sharing the street and parking lots with cars and trucks pulling trailers loaded down with water-sports vehicles. Yet despite the background noise of Jet Skis and motorboats, you'll get some sunny vistas of water and grassy shores to the north.
Your first view once leaving the marina, though, may be the odd sight of a long row of Holsteins trying to eat with their heads sticking out between the bars of a feeder apparatus, like inmates at some kind of bovine prison. The pavement is great for 1.3 miles, starting at the marina store parking lot; the lot itself is also fun--large, sloped, and perfect for slalom practice when empty. Skate past the first set of campgrounds and continue east on the new asphalt that curves around the lakeshore all the way to the RV Pump Station. Undeveloped camping and rough roads are beyond this point; if you'd like to add another seven miles to your trip, skate out of the park the same way you entered, and cruise te wide shoulders of 26-Mile Road (see related tour below).
There are no paved bike paths, so if you do come on a busy weekend, you'll be sharing the street and parking lots with cars and trucks pulling trailers loaded down with water-sports vehicles. Yet despite the background noise of Jet Skis and motorboats, you'll get some sunny vistas of water and grassy shores to the north.
Your first view once leaving the marina, though, may be the odd sight of a long row of Holsteins trying to eat with their heads sticking out between the bars of a feeder apparatus, like inmates at some kind of bovine prison. The pavement is great for 1.3 miles, starting at the marina store parking lot; the lot itself is also fun--large, sloped, and perfect for slalom practice when empty. Skate past the first set of campgrounds and continue east on the new asphalt that curves around the lakeshore all the way to the RV Pump Station. Undeveloped camping and rough roads are beyond this point; if you'd like to add another seven miles to your trip, skate out of the park the same way you entered, and cruise te wide shoulders of 26-Mile Road (see related tour below).
Related Tours
| Last Skated
Aug 1, 1995
|
Updated
Jun 16, 2005
|