Touring * Beginner * Scene *

From Interstate 405 (the San Diego Freeway) just north of Torrance, exit at Hawthorne Boulevard (Highway 107) heading north. After 1.5 blocks, turn left onto Manhattan Beach Boulevard and head west all the way to the beach. Park in the lot on Manhattan Beach Boulevard (be prepared to pay) or on a residential street off Palm Avenue or Hermosa Avenue. The trail can be found where it passes the end of the pier. Map: Los Angeles County Bike Map, available for free by calling (213) 244-6539.

South of the Manhattan Beach Pier, a smooth concrete bikeway stretches two miles down the beach known as the Strand, a major player in the Los Angeles-area in-line scene. Where the bikeway enters pretty Hermosa Beach, the attractive shoreline development there draws so much activity that flashing yellow caution lights are turned on during peak hours to control crowds. Bicyclists and skateboarders must dismount when the lights are on; fortunately, skaters aren't required to remove their wheels, yet. You'll notice that, starting from the Manhattan Beach Pier, the trail has fewer pedestrians than you'd expect; they have their own walkway next to the homes on the street to the left. The trail jogs inland at the Hermosa Beach city limits and follows Hermosa Avenue for a few blocks on an asphalt bike lane. Take this route back to the beach at 26th Street. A 20-foot-wide concrete promenade greets you on the beach, with a low wall on the ocean side and views of the streets and fancy brick promenades on the left. A 10 mph speed limit is posted, and within half a mile, you reach the yellow light area. Embedded every few yards in the trail's concrete are yard-wide sections of brickwork with grooves that vibrate your skates. This may be a strategic design feature to remind trail users to keep their speed down. On skates, though, the faster you cross the bricks, the less annoying the vibration. At Herondo Street, the northern city limit of Redondo Beach, the bikeway turns inland for a full mile to follow city streets around the back side of King Harbor. To skate the inland connection to the Redondo Beach bikeway, take either the sidewalks or the bike lane on Harbor Drive, depending on your skills. After passing a brick plaza, you will find the bike path that passes through the marina and into the parking structure at the end of the Redondo Beach Pier. On the other side of the parking structure and its little plaza, the bikeway resumes its southward beachside route. From here you can skate all the way to Palos Verdes (see the previous listing, South Bay Trail: Redondo Beach to Palos Verdes).