Touring * Fitness * Street * Artistic *

From State Highway 99, take the Pinedale/Herndon Avenue exit and head east on Herndon. Go 7.5 miles and, just before you reach the intersection with State Highway 41 (you can see the overpass a block away), take a left on Blackstone Avenue. One mile north, Blackstone curves to the right to pass under Highway 41 and at that point becomes Friant Road. Go 10 miles north until you can see the dam of Millerton Lake. A sign marks the turnoff for Lost Lake Recreation Area on the left. Park off the shoulder of Friant Road to avoid paying the $5 fee at Lost Lake (charged only at peak season).

Experienced distance and road skaters will want to check out this long roll from Fresno to Lost Lake at the base of Millerton Lake Dam. It's also a favorite route for cyclists, thanks to the bike lanes painted on both shoulders for the entire 10-mile length. Without cars on the road, this would be a truly epic skate. Be warned, however, that motorists (and on weekdays, heavy-duty semis) scream down this relatively straight two-lane road at 60 to 70 miles per hour. You have enough room to make wide strokes, but be sure to skate in the direction of the traffic on your side of the road to protect your face from flying pebbles. Leaving Lost Lake, the road back toward Fresno remains flat for two miles, with low plateaus rising to your left, and fields, gullies, and more flat-topped hills on the right. The rural setting comes complete with grazing cattle, cactus, a windmill, vineyards, and hilltop homes. The asphalt is clean and in good repair, but when you come upon the newly paved section of Friant Road, with slightly wider shoulders, you can't help but grin with glee and stroke a bit wider. It only lasts a mile and a half, until the Willow Road turnoff. At Willow, you've just passed RMC Lonestar, an asphalt company. You don't know whether to love 'em or hate 'em, because this outfit is one of the major reasons for the terrifying trucks on the road, but could also be responsible for the great surface you're skating on. Not far beyond Willow, the steepest hill of the trip awaits. If you're in fairly good shape it's a piece of cake, especially if the wind is at your back. Half a mile after the road flattens out again, you approach the new country club on the south side of Friant Road, with baby palm trees lining an inviting access road; that nice pavement is worth a quick roll. From here on, Friant becomes four lanes, and the newest housing developments begin to appear on the left. The bike lane to the left of the road seems to be cleaner in this section than the right-hand shoulder, but it will be easier to take a break in Woodward Park just ahead if you stay on the right-hand side. In-lining is not allowed within Woodward Park (though bicycling is), but you can legally skate a two-mile strip of asphalt between the park and Friant Road--reportedly the first section of a San Joaquin River multiuse pathway planned for the Fresno area. On your trip back, you may want to check out Friant View Lane or the Lost Lake loop, skate tours described in the next two listings.