R.b. Winter State Park Mountain Bike Trail
Directions:
To view directions to R.b. Winter State Park mountain bike trail, please login. If
you don't have an account, sign up now: it's free, only takes a minute, and gives you access to tons of other rad features.
Description: Known around the area as Halfway Dam, R.B. Winter State Park offers some great woods double and single track with forest roads. This gets to be a pretty remote area of PA so it's easy to get on a forest road and end up far away from the park and its year round freezing cold lake.
Boiling Spring Trail is pretty decent but for a good route I would take a look at Mountain Biking Pennsylvania instead of trusting my directions because I get lost alot.
added on May 16, 2005 by jlpXC 





reviewed by AladdinP on October 18, 2010
Choose your trails carefully and you're in for a great ride. Bring a trail map that described trail difficulties or you'll regret it. I highly recommend this trail guide: http://docs.google.com/gview?embedded=true&url=http://www.departments.bucknell.edu/geography/environs/bike_guide.pdf
Cowbell hollow is definitely one of the best singletracks around. If you hit RB Winter, you're obligated to hit Cowbell. No questions asked. It's got a nice balance between excellent stony descents, steep climbs, and a few small obstacles to boot. The other trails marked as "medium" are pretty enjoyable as well.
Trails marked as "advanced" or "very rocky" are not exaggerated by any stretch. Some trails are downright impossible to traverse without walking through at least a few sections. Of course, I did it all on a hardtail, so I can't offer the best insight on this - some of the harder trails might be doable with a FS bike (i.e. Top Mountain Trail).
Speaking of Top Mountain Trail, the view is fantastic if you make it to the top. Don't miss that vista at the peak or you'll regret it. It makes the near-impossible rocky climb worth it. The Bucknell guide says that it's a "unique trail for all levels", but beginners/experienced riders alike should be prepared to do a lot of walking unless they're well-equipped. I probably carried my hardtail over a mile and a half of really extensive rock gardens. Hope you can bunny hop, too, because there's lots of downed trees that have been incorporated into the trail. After a steep technical descent, the trail ends with a 2 or 3 foot ridge that one can easily get some nice air off of, assuming enough speed is acquired from the someone difficult descent. You AMers will love that part.
If you want to hit that jump, be sure to go from east to west. You'll be fighting extensive rock gardens all the way up, but you'll have a pretty nice descent on the way back.
Also note: Glen Cabin Trail looked way overgrown and under-ridden at a glance, though I didn't go down it.





reviewed by Sodamoeba on May 8, 2010
This trail is a great ride, but my first two experiences made it clear that you have to have some patience. Definitely get a trail map, and only bike on the trails marked "Central Mountain Trail." They are the red-blazed trails. Mid State Trails (Orange) are no bikes allowed, and "Other Forest Trails" (Blue) are hell on earth. I made the mistake of taking a Blue trail my first time and carried my bike for 2 miles through impossible terrain that could not be described as trail. The Red trails, however, are amazing. There are some incredibly rocky sections that you should walk unless you have a full suspension bike and some serious skills. Old Tram Trail was a blast when traversed west to east (the other direction would have been completely uphill). I also took Spring Mtn Trail to Bear Gap Trail, and got a bit lost along the way. However, Bear Gap Trail was amazing, with one of the best and most technical downhills I've biked since I biked in Italy, with a fun log jump in the middle of the intense hill. Lower your seat for this one. Be sure to ride it south to north, or it will just be an impossible uphill. The contour map that you can get at the park is very helpful in determining what direction to ride. If the parking lot map holder is out of stock, be sure to pick one up at the park's main office. It's necessary.
* Review edited 5/8/2010Similar Trail: French Creek, PA

Additional Pennsylvania Mountain Bike Info
Related Pennsylvania Resources