Parkfield Lunch Ride

CE – THIS IS A CLOSED RIDE TO THE PUBLIC. MEMBERS MAY BRING TWO GUESTS WITH THEM.

PLEASE ARRIVE 20 – 30 MINUTES PRIOR TO THE PRE-RIDE BRIEFING! (This will allow you time to visit other riders, use the restroom, fuel up, get a cup of coffee, etc.)

PLEASE BRING YOUR SM HOG MEMBERSHIP CARD FOR CURRENT STATUS!

Ride Rating: Moderate

Santa Margarita Park will be the final destination / termination point for this ride.

This will be my last Sunday ride for the year albeit not a late lunch ride. After our pre-ride briefing at the Chevron Station we will head north at 9:30 am on Highway 101 and travel to Highway 46 west (Chevron / McDonalds) (59.5 miles) where we will pick up north county riders.  I will provide a ride briefing at this point of the ride for any members we pick up at this stop.  We will take a break and fuel up here before continuing on with the ride.  From here we will continue north on Highway 101 to San Miguel and exit on Mission Street before turning right on N River Road and then left on Cross Canyons Road.  We will go a very short distance and then take a left onto Indian Valley Road  and then a right onto Vineyard Canyon Road and on into Parkfield (35.6 miles).  We will stop here for lunch at the Parkfield Cafe (Lunch Hours begin at 11:30 am).  We will also have some time to take in the Parkfield sites as this is the Earthquake Capital of the World.

History:  Parkfield lies along the San Andreas Fault, one of the longest and most active faults in the United States, which appears in the town as a seasonally dry creek bed. The fault marks the divide between the North American Plate and the Pacific Plate. There is a bridge across the creek with piers on either side that have shifted more than five feet relative to one another due to aseismic creep since the bridge was constructed in 1936.

Mining and Homesteading used to be a prosperous activity in this community, but the mines were exhausted below economic recovery levels and the industry moved elsewhere. Today, it is a small town of about 18 people, most of whom are ranchers and farmers. There is a small tourism industry in the town based on equine-related events, hunting, a bluegrass music festival, and Parkfield’s unique earthquake history. The Parkfield motto is “Be here when it happens.”

A post office operated at Parkfield from 1884 to 1954. The town’s original name of Russelsville was rejected by the post office and Parkfield was chosen from the town’s park-like setting among oak trees.

After lunch we will head south on Cholame Road to Highway 41 / 46 where we will head west exiting in Shandon on W. Centre Street (24.9 miles) and then pick-up Highway 41 south (25 miles) to Highway 229 through Creston and on to Highway 58.  Traveling a short distance on Highway 58 we will stop at Santa Margarita Park (24.9 miles) for use of the facilities and to say our goodbyes.  This will be our termination point for the ride.  From here we will travel to Highway 101 south and back to the Santa Maria area (40.1 miles).  The total miles for the ride are approximately 186 miles.

Menu:  https://www.v6ranch.com/parkfield-cafe

Please let me know if you have any questions by emailing me PhilipRietz@comcast.net or call and leave a message on my cell at 805.757.9202 and I will call you back.

Phil ‘Rain Man’ Rietz