That's Progress

Barley, hops, and yeast get all the attention, but water is the main ingredient in every beer. It's also one of the main ingredients at Peck Water Road Conservation Park, your starting point for a 12-mile (round-trip) bike-to-brews ride down Upper Rio Hondo Bike Trail to Progress Brewing. The park's centerpiece is a lake and you’ll pedal past it, rolling southwest on the paved bikeway along the channel of Rio Hondo. There's less water in the channel than in the lake, but plenty of ducks still enjoy it! Ride past the short runways of El Monte Airport, en route to a flight of your own: A beer flight! The tasting room at El Monte’s Progress Brewing has a wooden bar and four picnic tables where you can plop down and basically feel like you're drinking beer in a park. Choose from 11 craft ales on draught. The cream ale is a tasty thirst quencher. Or try the barley barrel-aged sour stout. There's also a pair of Belgian-style brews, and the imperial red ale impresses, too. Progress indeed!

Start from Peck Road Water Conservation Park at 5401 N. Peck Rd. in Arcadia (the park closes at sunset). Bike 5.25 miles down Rio Hondo Bike Trail. Pass a tree farm called Norman's Nursery and turn left at the intersection with a bike path that leads to Rush St. Take Rush St. for half a mile and turn right down Chico Ave. Progress Brewing is on the left after one block (1822 Chico Ave. in South El Monte). The tasting room is open from 3:00 to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday and noon to 8:00 p.m. on Sunday. Bike path is dog-friendly.