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Fort Yargo State Park Mountain Bike Trail
Winder, Georgia
MTB TRAIL STATS
Avg Rating:    |
43 trail reviews |
|
Status: updated 11/26/10 by MTBbasher |
Difficulty:  Intermediate |
| Length: 15 miles | Global Rank: #549 |
| Tread: Doubletrack | Configuration: Network |
| Ridden: 195 | Wishlist: 62 |
| Avg. Speed: 9.73 mph | Avg. Time: 1hr 21min |
| Elevation Gain/Loss: +1,802/-1,768 ft |
Directions:
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Description: Very light technical for the beginner to warm up to. Dont expect any fast downhills or extremely steep uphills. Limited singletrack, some double, some powerlines. Nice lake to take a dip in. Excellent camping accomodations.
added in 2003 by guest
Description: Very light technical for the beginner to warm up to. Dont expect any fast downhills or extremely steep uphills. Limited singletrack, some double, some powerlines. Nice lake to take a dip in. Excellent camping accomodations.
added in 2003 by guest 
SIMILAR TRAILS
Riders who liked this mountain bike trail also liked:Blankets Creek Bicycle Trail in Woodstock
Yellow River in Stone Mountain
Chicopee Woods in Gainesville
TRAIL REVIEWS review this trail
reviewed by inbody06 on February 9, 2012
great trail, well planned out ,one of the best state run trails in the area
reviewed by rwcameron66 on December 24, 2011
Great time camping and riding the trails. Scenic ride with plenty of wildlife to view. Not to difficult for beginners.
Similar Trail: daucet trail
reviewed by vendola on December 17, 2011
I rode this trail for the first time today and really enjoyed it. It's well maintained and has nice flow to it. Remember to bring $5 for parking.
Similar Trail: Chicopee
reviewed by calebgaines on November 23, 2011
Ridden it twice and looking forward to a third in the near future. Rode it clockwise the first time and counter the next time and counter clockwise was much better.
reviewed by chriscrowe16 on November 8, 2011
The track has one big jump but other than that it is a waste of gas to go to if you have any experiance at all
reviewed by rande11699 on August 15, 2011
Rode out there for my second time yesterday and I hate to say it but it is nothing special. There are some fun parts but imo there is not much flow. Now I have only ridden it in the clockwise direction and I have heard that counter-clockwise is more fun so I will give that a try before I scratch this one of my list of destinations. I think the Horse Park and Heritage, even though they are harder trails, have better flow and are more fun to ride.
* Review edited 8/15/2011
Similar Trail: Heritage. Horse Park.
reviewed by kwnichol on August 2, 2011
Rode the Yellow trail. Excellent signage that makes the trail easy to follow. Great ride...One of my favorites.
* Review edited 8/2/2011
reviewed by XElninoX on June 2, 2011
I raced here a few weeks back and the course was great. DEFINETLY the highlight of the season. The flow of the trail was great, the monster mile was a great ride. There were some challenging climbs but plenty of fun exciting downhill!!
reviewed by Slee_Stack on May 26, 2011
I ride this trail once a week. Its convenient for after work rides. It has a little bit of everything in one big loop. If you want an easier day, just skip the Monster Mile and the other couple spurs. I like the mix of not-too-long climbs, descents, and twists. I'm not an out and back climb/downhill kind of rider. I enjoy trails that mix it up, and Yargo does just that. Weeknights have been great, a few riders here and there...perfect. Being directional is a bonus so you can mix it up back-to-back days. I disagree with the 'easy to get lost' comment below. Its basically one big loop. It doesn't get much easier to follow. The inner loop (beginner) used to be VERY poorly marked so one could find themsleves tooling around campsites accidentally. The outer loop has 3 spurs (plus the mini Horseshoe spur), but these (and their bypass) are well marked. Confusing is Yellow River and its dozens of trail intersections, NOT Ft. Yargo.
* Review edited 5/26/2011
Similar Trail: Mt. Tabor
reviewed by Hardtail.Junky on March 14, 2011
This trail is cool but very long and at times confusing. This trail has a killer down hill section at the power line mark. Super fun when the ground is dry. I'm still more intertained with the Chickopee trail in Gainesville but this one offers some fun for a leasure ride.
reviewed by David_Echols on January 31, 2011
I have riden this trail 2 times in the past month and the first time i rode i got lost. But when i got the map and knew my way around it was a really good trail to ride with lots of little jumps all over the place. With a few uphills and some fun downhill rides i overall really like these trails.1/30/11
reviewed by MTBbasher on November 26, 2010
Rode here Thanksgiving Day morning. Had the trail all to myself. Pretty wet but still a great ride. First time here I rode CW. Thursday of course is CCW. Perfect solitude. I was very thankful to be out riding.
Similar Trail: Chicopee, FATS-Brown Wave maybe others
reviewed by fastcat on November 1, 2010
I took this trail far too lightly after reading many reviews here. I think many people are confusing the easy section (around the lake) from the hard section which is mostly single track. It is a long trail with many uphill climbs. Many many burms to get a little air going downhill. Also has some really fun 10 foot drops. the one really irritating thing is the markings on the trail. One word. CONFUSING. I got lost 3 times, and I had a map that I got off of the web. Do yourself a favor and stop by the park headquarters and get their free map. You still might get lost, but maybe not as bad as I did. I consider myself an intermediate rider and this trail really wore me out and kicked my butt. I still consider this a blue run trail, but it borders on the black. Very nice views of the lake is also a plus to riding this trail.
* Review edited 11/1/2010
Similar Trail: Bear Creek, Sope Creek, Rope Mill
reviewed by nvrenf on October 3, 2010
I rode 10-2-10 CC. Good workout - rooty in places, especially on the lake edge - had to walk it or would have slid off into the water... trail well marked with yellow and blue for about half of the trail, then red?and green - a little confusing. Lost the trail at the Horseshoe... found it again eventually down the paved road. Also several unmarked intersections with fire roads - look for the singletrack that is sometimes hidden by the tall grasses. This was my first time on this trail & didn't carry a map, so that may be the source of my confusion... ride time 1:40, AVG 7, MAX 24 (rode the brakes/unfamiliar trail). Did do some hiking in a few places, was on the trail a total of 2:10. Am looking forward to trying it CW. This is not a beginner trail in my opinion, but not overly technical either - roots, rocks, climbs and dips are part of this sport!
* Review edited 10/3/2010
Similar Trail: JackRabbit Trails, Hayesville NC
reviewed by BigDawgMike on September 17, 2010
my first real time mountain biking and it kicked my butt. I had a blast. Going there tomorrow with my little bro and his friend cant wait to see the horse shoe drop again. Not gonna try it just look at and pee my self.
reviewed by peanutpuckett on October 27, 2009
Fun! Worth the 1 1/2 hr drive for me. Nice aerobically, some good down hills, not too scary. They are doing some work on one portion so you have to detour. Be careful that you go in the correct direction for that day, it is well marked. I can't wait to go back. Worst part is getting on 285 to get there, now that was scary!
Similar Trail: Dausett Trails in Jackson,Georgia
reviewed by mtbgreg1 on June 27, 2009
came out specifically today to ride DOWN the monster mile. i've climbed up it twice, and decided that the next time i rode yargo, i'd be going down that section. and guess what? IT DOMINATED!!! "whoop-te-doos" is the phrase of the day... small, medium, and some of them are freaking BIG! i'm sure you could pick your way down this trail, riding the brakes.... but man, if you put the hammer down and rail it, holy cow!! that was a blast, and SO worth it!
reviewed by ilovenaps on May 31, 2009
Rode this today for the first time, was fun but also tight in spots with too many roots! Roots almost everywhere which made parts that could have been much more fun quite bumpy and technical. Over all I would recomend riding this trail! The woods are very nice, the lake is awesome, easy to find and park and the trail is well marked.
Similar Trail: Yellow River
reviewed by GoldenGoose on May 24, 2009
A decent trail about an hour outside of Atlanta with flowing trails that you can get the heart rate up on. Unfortunately, they rerouted the pipeline portion of the trail which was the both fastest downhill on even days and the hardest climb on odd days. Can you tell I'm a bit disappointed?
Similar Trail: Yellow River
reviewed by mtbgreg1 on March 21, 2009
Pretty sweet trail, no real climbing or descending. It is Georgia, however. Really good flow, but if you are looking for technical challenge, look elsewhere. Couple of interesting features along the trail including "Horseshoe Drop" to play on. Well maintained. All in all, a sweet ride!
Similar Trail: Chicopee Woods in Gainesville
reviewed by bpmcginty74 on March 6, 2009
Heads up (literally). Went out to Fort Yargo today and there are a LOT of fallen trees on the trail. I saw one guy who tried to jump one of the trees and snapped his chain. That must have been a long walk back.
reviewed by zsnau734 on February 17, 2009
Great overall trail.... decent variety. Very enjoyable 12 miles on the outer loop. One of my favorite places to ride within an hour of ATL.
reviewed by xcrhino on November 19, 2008
fun, challenging, some tight spots, great downhill on the counter clockwise loop
Similar Trail: 441 trails in athens
reviewed by j._r._eaton on October 6, 2008
YABA DABA DO The rock garden is technical, the horse shoes are great and the twelve miles is a nice ride and if you ride CW the Plantation pipe line climb is a good uphill climb. YABA did a great job "thank you. The only thing I see missing are log crossings.
Similar Trail: Blankets creek, Yellow river
reviewed by Frank_C on September 5, 2008
My first time out to this trail today. Trail was nicely maintained, and good all around fun. Went CW around the loop, and my favorite part was the narrow singletrack through the trees. I left my trail map in the truck, so it's not surprising that I missed the root garden, and I picked up the beginner trail for a portion of the ride. Enjoyed it. Rode it CCW yesterday, and the gas line descent is awesome - hit about 25 mph!
* Review edited 10/3/2008
reviewed by zaskar on August 6, 2008
Nice long ride (about 12 miles). There's lots of options, rock gardens, root gardens, inner and outer loops. The view of the lake is great at some points. It wasn't very crowded (I went on a Sunday), but most of the hikers were going the wrong way, so be careful there's a few blind corners. There are some nice downhills and lots of jumps. The trail changes from singletrack to doubletrack to powerlines and back again. Takes about an hour and fifteen minutes to do the loop, but you can go off to different sections that can take a little longer. Nice plunge in the lake after the ride. Very good accommodations. * Review edited 8/6/2008
* Review edited 8/6/2008
reviewed by Tony30052 on September 23, 2007
Just did this trail for the first time today. I've heard a lot of people rip on Yargo saying its too easy and no fun. Well they're wrong. Fort Yargo does have some easy trail stretches but there are plenty of good moderate climbs to keep you pumping and a good bit of fast downhill. Going down the powerline section you can FLY, but watch out because the next turn isn't marked very well and you'll end up making an unnecessary climb. Watch for hikers on the trail (I don't see why we have to yield to them, wouldn't it be easier to just step off the trail rather than us stop?) But the important part is, this is an 11-mile fun trek. The mileage is clearly marked to let you know how you're doing. Definately a good weekend ride/workout.
reviewed by bongo_x on June 9, 2007
rode it for the first time and loved it. I usually ride at yellow river. long enough and hard enough for a good workout, definitely not an "after work" ride for me. there has obviously been a lot of great work done here, the trails were great and easy to follow for the most part. the part at the long bridge (going clockwise) was confusing and I ended up riding a a mile or so in the wrong direction. be careful there when you're tired. I don't understand the "clockwise some days, cc on others" thing. I've never heard of anything like that. what's the point? it's especially confusing because the signs insist that the trails are "bi-directional", then lay out rules that are obviously uni-directional, changing direction daily. strange.
reviewed by harohomeboy on April 18, 2007
I just rode this place recently. Since the new trails have been built. This place is pretty cool. It is one long ride though. This is a great place to train for long races, and it is as close to an epic ride as we can get in this part of the state. The trails are awesome, but don't go out in the late afternoon, I barely finished before dark. You can ride at night here also, which is sweet.
Similar Trail: Tsali
reviewed by steeldtailer on January 14, 2007
This is a really sweet trail so close to Atlanta. It was my first time. Most of my rides here have been at Yellow River, Sope Creek, Big Creek ... Fort Yargo ... much better! Some of the earlier reviews mentioned "beginner" and "after work" .... more power to 'ya if that's the case, but I'd say this is a fairly technical ride. The 12 mile length makes it a bit much for the average beginner too. That said, there's really nothing stopping anyone from taking this ride, it surely won't destroy you. It has a great combination of moderate climbs and downhills, a pretty good "speed decent" at the "gas line climb" (on CCW days anyway), and a damn good amount of twisty, whoopdee, rooty, rocky trails. Give it as go!!! I'l be seeing a lot more of it in the future
reviewed by rockhopper06t on October 1, 2006
This has become my favorite local trail and one that I keep coming back to. There is always something to test your skill here - yesterday it was a deer that wouldnt get out of the way... The 3rd time I rode this trail I went ahead and purchased a year round pass for the park. Hikers and runners have all been courteous and the trail just keeps getting better at 12mi.
Similar Trail: Chicopee, Renaissance Park (Charlotte, NC)
reviewed by R3 on September 10, 2006
A really good trail to go out for a spin. A couple of really great climbs with a sweet decent to follow.
reviewed by stevegordon1970 on August 24, 2006
Well since the last time I posted alot has happened as far as building trails the whole loop is now 12 miles long for the most part this is going to be it except for a couple of rerouts around walking trails this trail system has a little somthing for everybody from tight twisty single track to a monster hill climb I hope all of you enjoy the trail a lot of man hours went into them approx. 4000 hrs. about 2000 of them were mine. Trails are in good shape right now we are planning on doing a lot of de-rooting this winter and put in a couple of bridges in some problom gullys.I appricate all the good things that are beig said about our trails. in 3 weeks the trails will become bi-directional monday,wed,fri,sun clock wise tues.,thurs,sat.,will be counter clockwise. As soon as we get the signs up this will take effect.
Similar Trail: Chicopee woods, Gainsville collage, Tribble Mill
reviewed by misst2u2 on July 11, 2006
Lovely!.. A nice ride. A bit confusing on one section but worth the reride. This was a decent workout without the extremes. It does have wonderful views and a peaceful setting. Thanks to the biker at Yellow River that told me about Yargo!
reviewed by Rthur2sheds on July 5, 2006
Yargo is a lot of fun! There are some great rolling sections before the dam that will require you to hold on tight! A couple spots demand a decent front suspension so be careful if you have a rigid fork! The back half (after the dam) is pretty placid and makes for a good time trial. I place Yargo in between Gainesville College and Chicopee in terms of technical difficulty... at 13 miles, it offers a good workout!
Similar Trail: Gainesville College
reviewed by Hyper on June 4, 2006
This trail is rather long, but really fun. There are some awesome downhills and one pain in the b*** uphill. Its not very technical and you can do the whole thing averaging 7mph. Not bad at all. If you are a beginner, this is the place for you. If you are into getting a nice cardio workout, the $3 price tag is worth it. I should note that you can ride on Wednesdays for free (thats what my parking sticker told me).
Similar Trail: Tribble Mill
reviewed by Rebus on April 17, 2006
A fun fast trail with minimal technical, no steep descents or climbs. There are a few shock-bottoming dips along the trail, but nothing that can really test your skills. You can go very fast during the first several miles because the trail is laid out so well and it's pretty smooth. The lake is beautiful, and the accomodations are very nice. You pick up a lot of road noise from a bunch of sections, but overall, this is a fun place to ride.
Similar Trail: Blankets Creek, Dauset (could be Dauset's twin)
reviewed by MBnewbie on March 18, 2006
rode this morning. Trails in great shape. Love Yargo. Thanks Steve and YABA members. Would like more info on YABA though. Excellen place to ride.
reviewed by MBnewbie on February 27, 2006
Went on my first ride Sun. Had a great time! Love this new sport! (New to me anyway!) Saw a lot of signs that said new trail, but we stayed on the more estabished trail. Accepting all advice for a 39 year old overweight (for now) guy for training tips and/or great rides!
reviewed by GAREALTOR on April 5, 2004
Fort Yargo reminds me a little of Lake Lanier, Stone Mountain and Callaway without the commercial trimmings. I\'ve personally only ridden there twice however on at least two of the trails. The first trail (clearly the beginner course) offers very few if any steep hills and is pretty much a level ride. Truely a beginners course, however watch out for roots and some deep tread markings. The alternate trail is decidedly more difficult. It features long uphill jaunts (by some powerlines) folowed by glorious, roller coaster like decents. It\'s very tough to push through this track as a beginner, however, there are not too many technical aspects to the course itself. There are some highlights of the courses that I thought I would mention. - There is a long grassy path that runs parralel to the lake. (the entire course for the most part runs around the lake). It is very reminiscent of Callaway\'s trail with the scenic lake view. - Early on the beginner portion of the trail there is an area cut out of the brush that forms a tunnel of sorts (kind of like Six Flags, without the lattice).
