Gazelle-Callahan Rd, NorCal
- Tim Mayhew
- Apr 21
- 2 min read
Gazelle-Callahan Rd is the ultimate reason to peel off Interstate 5 in Far Northern California. If you're heading north of Weed toward Yreka, there is a better way. At the tiny hamlet of Gazelle (little more than an intersection), leave the slab behind and set your sights on the 4,921 ft Gazelle Summit.
As you roll westward on Gazelle-Callahan Rd, Mt. Shasta looms in your mirrors—a massive 14,179 ft stratovolcano holding seven permanent glaciers that last erupted just 200 years ago- estimated to erupt every 600 years- just 400 more to go. It frames the horizon behind you as the bike flows past lush hay fields toward the range growing ever closer.
The climb gets twisty, winding through a series of switchbacks to the crest. Easy does it on the approach; reaching the summit rewards you with fantastic views that stretch across the Russian Wilderness and Marble Mountain Wilderness. To the north, the Siskiyou Mountains dominate the skyline, while the jagged peaks of the Trinity Alps round out the view to the southwest.
Flowing off the summit, the road drops into the broad Plowman’s Valley, home to the A-P Cattle Ranch. Founded in 1858 by Alexander Parker, a Scotsman who established his legacy here in the late 1800s, the valley remains a slice of living history. Keep an eye out for Lover’s Leap to the south—a stark, volcanic plug of barren rock jutting defiantly into the sky.
If you have time for a detour, Rail Creek Rd is paved for 8 miles up to Kangaroo Lake, a pristine 21-acre alpine gem at the 6000-ft level surrounded in low mountain ridges.
At the western terminus, you’ll hit the intersection with Highway 3. A turn south leads you over the 5,401-foot Scott Mountain back towards Trinity Lake & Weaverville, while a turn north rolls into Callahan (population: 50, and that’s being generous) to the start of Cecilville Road—better known to local riders as "The Racetrack."
Etna is just up the road, and Yreka sits further north, only a few miles from where you originally exited the Interstate.
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