Touring * Fitness * Slalom * Artistic *

Approaching the town of Paradise from the south on State Highway 99, exit at State Highway 70 heading north. Two miles up, take Clark Road (State Highway 191) north and follow it 15 miles into Paradise. You'll find the east end of the paved trail just a few yards before Clark meets Skyway, the main east-west street in town. You will start at the other end, however, so turn left onto Skyway. (To park here and do the downhill direction first instead of last, ask the owner of the air conditioning and heating shop next to the trail if you can park on the property.) About 3.5 miles to the west on Skyway, turn left onto Fir Street, and drive down to where it ends, next to the Paradise Irrigation District corporate yard. Park on the shoulder of one of the streets near the trail entrance sign. Approaching from Chico, head south on State Highway 99 and take the Skyway exit heading east. After about 10 miles and 2,000 vertical feet of climbing, you'll enter the town of Paradise. Drive through town on Skyway until you reach Fir Street on your right. Turn onto Fir and park near the trail sign by the Paradise Irrigation District corporate yard.

It seems too good to be true, but the name Paradise really does apply to this trail that runs through the small town of the same name. Located at about 2,000 feet in the foothills south of the California Cascade Range, the town is a great destination for skaters seeking to escape the hotter climates of the Sacramento River Valley. The newest section of the Trailway was added during the summer of 1995, making the longest continuous section about four miles long. South of Fir Street, a gravel section extends west to Foster Street, where another half mile of asphalt is in place. Once that connection is paved, the skatable trail will be a total of five miles long. Starting at the Fir Street entrance, the smooth eight-foot-wide asphalt trail passes by the sign dedicating the Paradise Memorial Trailway "to all of the persons who lived, worked, and died to make Paradise a better place to live." The path takes you through a quiet corridor of shady pines and brightly colored wildflowers. Occasionally you catch a glimpse of the backyards of modest homes, but for the most part the scenery and sounds are natural. You'll cross five or six intersections along the way where side streets connect with Skyway; some are equipped with rustic benches, though it's not as if there's any traffic to sit and wait for out here. At a couple of the intersections a low hill blocks your view of oncoming traffic, so listen first and then cross quickly. After Rocky Street, the newest section of trail begins on pavement that was installed as recently as 1995, stretching up to Clark Street. Beyond Clark, the trail continues for another third of a mile, terminating at Pentz Road. The Paradise Memorial Trailway makes a gradual incline in the Fir-to-Pentz direction. In most places the gentle grade is so easy it's hardly noticeable. And of course, the payoff comes when you turn back, rolling down smooth pavement through a forested landscape for four now-effortless miles.