Touring * Slalom *

From Highway 99, take Highway 120 east, following the signs to Yosemite National Park. After climbing the grade beyond Lake Don Pedro, you'll pass through Big Oak Flat and Groveland. Five miles east of Groveland, Highway 120 straightens out in one of the few passing areas between Groveland and Yosemite Valley. Just past Smith Station (a store where you can even get a cup of espresso), turn left onto Ferretti Road. Don't be intimidated by the cattle guard and narrow asphalt as you climb the hilly first three miles. When you reach Yosemite Vista Estates (a planned retirement community, according to the sign), you'll know it, because the pavement suddenly sports a double yellow center line and white-bordered shoulders. Park just off the right shoulder in front of the big sign that points the way to Pine Mountain and the airport. Map: For a free map of Tuolumne County, call or stop by First American Title Company at 71 Shepherd Street, Sonora, CA 95370; (209) 532-3156.

The light traffic, plus the exhilaration of skating up and down the grassy Sierra foothills, is what makes Ferretti Road such a wonderful skating site. Even at 6 p.m. on a workday, automobiles are so scarce at the road's east end that you can hardly believe it's rush hour, a definite plus for a road with no shoulders. (The speed limit is set at 35 miles per hour, but the few cars that do pass move much faster, so be sure to look and listen.) Starting from your parking spot on the shoulder of the road, skate to the west to climb the first small hump, passing a boat-repair shop--the only commercial building you'll see--and stepping around a cattle guard. Continue over the first couple of gentle hills through grassy pastures, where small groups of cows and horses graze peacefully. If you really look, you may be lucky enough to spot a deer, too. On the other side of the pastures, you'll encounter your first long climb, passing a shady grove of trees. The road descends right after the "School Bus Stop" sign, only to climb again. Ferretti's broad curves and fine asphalt surface make fast cornering easy on the descents. Each hill delights with a pretty scene, sometimes of grassy fields, and other times of a small ranch or trees. As you near Clements Road, Ferretti hugs the side of a hill, gradually descending. When you see Elderberry Road on the right, turn back. Here the traffic picks up as residents enter and exit the gated communities near Pine Mountain Lake (we plebeians never even get a glimpse of the lake).