Cherry Lake Rd, Tuolumne, CA
- Tim Mayhew
- Jun 1
- 2 min read
Cherry Lake Rd is an overlooked, remote mountain route in the Sierra Nevada Range that connects Hwy 120 near Groveland, CA with Hwy 108 near Sonora, CA. This ride remains an easily missed remote route to most riders while heading toward Yosemite National Park (south end) or flowing uphill on Hwy 108-Sonora Pass from the tiny foothill community of Tuolumne on the north end.
The south end is found 14 miles west of Groveland, the Cherry Lake Loop is an all-paved 52-mile back country route that easily wins the title of "the middle of nowhere." There is no commercial development, no fuel, no private homes and almost no one else out here. Instead, the Cherry Lake loop trades traffic and congestion for a pure, (mostly) centerline-free mountain excursion through Tuolumne County. Known as Cottonwood Rd on the northern half of the loop, a large portion of Cottonwood Rd was resurfaced a few years ago flowing through endless s-curves.
The Cherry Lake Loop starting from Hwy 120 plunges up and down two distinct mountain canyons, throwing an endless, rhythmic sequence of corners. Dropping into the first deep gorge, riders reach the Tuolumne River and the Kirkwood Powerhouse, and adjacent massive penstock alongside the road, before steadily climbing back out toward Cherry Creek Canyon. Along the way, the road tracks past remnants of the historic Lower Cherry Aqueduct running parallel to the road, an engineering relic built in 1916. The Cherry Lake Aqueduct (pictured in the link below) was last used in 2015. The water in these alpine lakes- Cherry, Eleanor & Hetch Hetchy is the drinking water for nearly 3 million people in the San Francisco Bay Area, located 165-miles away clear across on the other side of the state.
The pavement climbs from 3,000 ft at Hwy 120 topping out at a peak loop elevation of 5,600 ft. The destination is the massive earthen Cherry Lake Dam, completed in 1956, which holds back a 1,535-acre reservoir supplied by snowmelt. Cottonwood Rd makes up the northern half of the loop and connects back at Tuolumne outside Sonora along Hwy 108-Sonora Pass.
For riders looking for an remote, twisty pilgrimage with absolutely no towns, no people, and a glorious lack of traffic, the Cherry Lake Loop offers a definitive experience in raw, rugged Sierra Nevada pavement.
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