If you favor fat-tire biking and seek epic singletrack through postcard stands of Sequoia, head for Monte Rio Redwoods Park and Open Space Preserve. That rugged west county refuge quadrupled in size a year ago when Sonoma County Regional Parks acquired, from Save the Redwoods League, a 1,517-acre parcel laced with nearly 30 miles of trails. It was built and maintained for decades by members of the Gianni Cycling Association, named for the beloved Occidental bike shop that closed its doors in 1998.
Save the Redwoods League bought that timberland in 2025 from the Mendocino Redwood Company, which had allowed Gianni’s members to build trails and ride their bikes on the property.
Through the years, the cycling association, an all-volunteer nonprofit, has been the beating heart of mountain biking in west Sonoma County, earning a reputation for its superb stewardship of the land and the high quality of its trails. The steep singletracks — narrow, natural surface paths — and fast flow sections are designed to maximize fun while minimizing impact on the environment.
Tom “Snap” Gonnella, who owned Gianni’s Cyclery and founded the club named after it, recalled in a recent podcast, “We were trying to be as inclusive as we could, but we had to deal with the landlord, who was limiting us on how many bikes that we could have in there.”
Now in the hands of Regional Parks, the cap on users is lifted. “We get to share it with everyone,” says Jake Bayless, a Gianni member who notes that, due to the park’s relative remoteness, fears of overcrowding have faded. “Everybody loves seeing more people riding bikes and smiling,” he says. “It’s a magic place.”
Learn more about becoming a volunteer member of the Gianni Cycling Association at giannicycling.org.
Riding the Redwoods
Most of the park’s trails fall in the intermediate category. An introductory route is the 2.3-mile Monte Rio Redwoods Trail, a lollipop loop through towering redwoods, along singletrack and old logging roads, featuring 600 feet of climbing, which even the fittest riders may find challenging.
A far more ambitious undertaking is the 6.8-mile Radar Love Loop, which calls for 1,765 feet of climbing and offers sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean at the halfway point.
Access trails via the park’s main entrance, 9610 Main St. in Monte Rio, or from the trailhead at 25572 Freezeout Road with a parking lot managed by California State Parks.
The Upper Willow Creek Road trailhead, offering access to a plethora of scenic routes — Badfinger, Sound of Music, Eastside and East Ramps loop, to name a few — has very limited parking along Willow Creek Road. Many bikers ride from Occidental, 5 miles away.
After riding the bikes-only Vacation Wonderland Trail at Monte Rio Redwoods, stop in at the newly opened Wonderland Pizzeria for a pie and a pint on their expansive patio. 20391 Highway 116, Monte Rio. 707-865-5133, instagram.com/wonderland_pizzeria
This article was excerpted from our Ultimate Guide to Sonoma County’s Great Outdoors, originally published in the July/August 2026 issue of Sonoma Magazine.