Training Hill — Attraction in California

Training Hill is short out & back, or better “up & down” off the Western States Tr just before the west end of No Hands bridge. The actual Hill starts after a brief access trail and is instantly recognized by its rocky steep ascent. The trail starts wide and well worn, and your legs will quickly confirm you’re in training mode. The trail connects with the Olmstead Loop trail, but the “training” part of it maxes out after about 1.1 miles at the break in grade and a “pullout” on the left to sit down for a moment, or longer. The average grade is about 21%, but there are steeper bits that are relatively sustained, and on brief down hill bit in near the middle. The elevation gain is about 1,000 feet. I did it 4x within 4 hrs one morning and the Garmin watch claimed the 4 round trips to be over 11 miles. I started feeling the burn on the 4th ascent without having to pause and suck air. In summary, there are more demanding training hill climbs but they are further away from Sacramento and take most of the day with travel, making Training Hill a good...

Well maintained so far this year, as of 4/20/2025! There is a ton of poison ivy/oak along the trail, but it is trimmed back far enough to easily avoid. We like to do counter clockwise, taking the steep part first. It's around ~1,000 feet of elevation gain from the parking area around the loop. Nice little hike. Very steep in the first part but there are a few lulls where you can catch your breath, then it's all downhill for the rest of the trail. Parking is $10 cash in an envelope, or pay at the ranger's station with a card. Can't pay online anywhere as of this review, would like to see...

Great trail conditions - partly cloudy in the low to mid 60s. Hiked in a t-shirt and shorts. You have a choice of either going to the right up the very steep hill or do a gradual climb to the left. I opted to go right. It was a challenging hike. Your payoff is the meadows at the top - beautiful! Encountered 3 horse riders going back down - not an issue. Alltrails app was very useful because trail branches off in a few places. I arrived around 930am. I had to take a few passes up and down Highway 49 to find parking. Just be aware it's super busy on...