Comments: Alfa Road is a fast 4 mile dirt mountain bike downhill dropping
down from Hwy 20 to the town of Washington. You pass through the Tahoe National
Forest and the Alfa Diggins gold mine on the descent.
From Nevada City: Take Hwy. 20 sixteen miles north. After passing the
Washington Road exit and Skillman Campgrounds take a left onto Omega Road. [If
you see the Omega Rest Stop you passed it by 2 miles.] Park here. A shuttle
is suggested for this ride, parking the other car or meeting some one in Washington.
On the road: Alpha Road splits off 100 ft. down Omega road, keep to the
left. Alpha Road drops down off the Washington ridge with a 2000 ft. loss in
4 miles. This descent will warm your rims. You pass through Alpha Diggings after
1.5 miles. Alpha [originally known as Hell Out For High Noon City] used to be
a thriving gold town and was also the birthplace of world famous soprano Emma
Nevada. This mine produced over 1.5 million in gold before 1880. There is nothing
left of Alpha town but the Alpha Diggings. It's mostly national Forest and is
fun to explore. After passing through the diggings Alpha Road descends steeply
another 2.5 miles to the small town of Washington. There is a country store
for munches and you can relax and swim in the Yuba River here too.
Have a fun descent..