Heil Valley Ranch map courtesy Boulder County. (you are not actually “here” )

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: singletracks.com exists to help you find the best mountain bike trails. We’re serious about making trail information more accessible and we’re always adding new features like the interactive trailhead map to help you find the best dirt. We’ve put a lot of thought into organizing trail information over the last 11 years and with all the new members on singletracks this summer we thought it would be a good time to talk about our trail organization philosophy.

Perhaps the most important question to start with is: What makes a trail a trail? We actually wrote about this 2 years ago in detail but I’ll try to boil down our ideas to a few simple points:

1. Just because a trail has a name doesn’t mean it needs its own listing or map on singletracks. Places like Palmer Park have at least a half dozen named trails contained within the park but it gets just one listing. Same goes for open spaces, trail networks, preserves, etc. This makes it so riders don’t have to look at 6 different pages just to see what a MTB destination is all about. The image above shows a map of Heil Valley Ranch which contains 4 named trails but a single listing.
2. Length is important. The Colorado Trail is hundreds of miles long and it’s impossible to ride the whole thing in a day. In this case it makes sense to break the trail listings into single trip segments that start and end at established trailhead areas with convenient parking even though it is technically a single trail.
3. Trails need to be open to mountain biking on a regular basis to be listed on singletracks. Clearly this means illegal trails should never be listed but it also means trails on private property that are only open for occasional races shouldn’t be either. Some trails are open opposite hunting season while others are only open one month a year - these are ok to be listed, just be sure to make closure information clear in the description.

Unlike some other MTB sites you may have used, we’re constantly checking for duplicate trail listings and updating trail info based on member feedback. We’ve even set it up so all the reviews, photos, wishlist entries, etc. are transferred when we have to consolidate duplicate trail listings to keep all the info in one place. Sweet.

Want to add a trail but aren’t sure if it needs a new listing? First, search the site to see if it’s already listed using the trailhead map or the search box at the top of the page. Also feel free to email us if you have questions - we’re here to help and we love finding out about new trails!

Last month I wrote about a somewhat disappointing MTB trail recon trip to middle Georgia and I actually got a lot of sympathy (though that wasn’t my intent at all). The fact is I love riding new and unfamiliar trails and even the stinkers give me satisfaction since I get to check another MTB trail off my list.

Yesterday morning the weather was cool and dry so I snuck out to scope the newly constructed trails at Harbins Park in rural Gwinnett County about 35 miles east of Atlanta. The reviews I read on singletracks gave conflicting information and I really wasn’t sure if there were 4 miles or 11 miles of trail and whether there was even any singletrack at all. This time I packed info on a “backup trail” nearby just in case Harbins Park was a dud.

Harbins Park is only about 4 miles down the road from Tribble Mill (and 8 miles from Ft. Yargo as the crow flies) but the two trail systems couldn’t be any more different. For one thing, all the mountain bike trails in Harbins Park are purpose-built for biking and are single-use meaning you won’t run into any hikers or equestrians on the trails (they have their own dirt). The loops closest to the parking lot feature fairly wide trails with sharp, twisting turns being the only real “technical trail features” (TTFs).

All the trails were cut using machines so they’re a couple feet wide right now but over time will become more narrow as vegetation fills back in. From what I could tell there wasn’t a lot of hand work done on the trails after the machines came through and there are several rough spots where things aren’t quite smoothed out yet.

Most of the main, large loop is solid beginner territory but I pressed on to the far loop marked with a dashed line on park maps. I wasn’t sure if this meant the trails were still under construction or what but they ended up being some of the best I’ve ridden in a while. To enter this section you have to ride over some large rocks piled up on the side of the paved path which seems like a good way to weed out the newbs - kinda like the “you must be this tall to ride the ride” signs at Six Flags. If you fall on the rocks, you’re not ready

The back section features much steeper climbs and some short downhill runs with jumps and bermed turns - an unexpected surprise for sure! In fact the entire back loop is really just a miles-long pump track through the woods and has incredible flow - I felt like I could ride around and around for hours. There’s even a super steep granite downhill that transitions into a bermed turn and for about 100 yards you feel like you’re riding somewhere in Utah.

The park facilities are top notch with restrooms, a bike wash area, and great maps and signage throughout. In fact I think I may have found the nicest MTB Trail sign anywhere in the world - and there are two of these in the main parking lot! There’s also a paved multi-use trail that intersects the mountain bike trails in a couple places making it easy to skip ahead or take a shortcut after a long day.

Harbins Park is a county park and the trails were built with the help of the Gwinnett Area Trail Riders (GATR). This place is a great example of how sustainable trails can be built with all MTB skill levels in mind and how destination trails can potentially benefit the local economy. I know I’ll be back soon - and next time I’m bringing my friends!

This week we added the 700th mountain bike trail map to singletracks and it’s amazing to see how many people are riding with GPS units these days compared to just a couple years ago. Officially singletracks members have mapped 706 trails covering 8,409 trail miles and 1.5 million feet of climbing (!). Assuming someone could ride each trail at an average speed of 9mph it would take a person nearly 40 days of continuous riding to cover all the trails. Of course you’d need to factor in some travel time since the mapped trails span 4 continents!

We’re constantly working to improve the map data and just yesterday we rolled out new and improved elevation profiles on all the maps (see the image above). Even bigger improvements are in the works including high res maps and easier GPS data uploads/downloads.

Don’t forget we’re giving away $10 HuckNRoll.com coupons with every subscription purchase this month while supplies last. Now is a great time to upgrade your membership to take advantage of this amazing resource!

Most MTB trail maps by state

Colorado: 136 maps
California: 86 maps
Georgia: 53 maps
North Carolina: 53 maps
Wyoming: 37 maps

Ok, so we missed the first day of summer by a couple days but better late than never, right? Today we posted a Google Map showing singletracks trails around the world using the location info you’ve been submitting over the last several weeks. This is just Phase I of the project but we’re pretty stoked to say the least! A few notes to help you navigate:

1. Start by clicking a trailhead cluster to zoom in. Once you’re zoomed in enough you’ll start to see individual trailhead pins.
2. Many trailhead locations shown are approximate. As we mentioned before we need your help pinpointing MTB trailheads and the white markers on the map show trailheads that have not been precisely located. Many mountain bike trails aren’t even shown on the map because the city/state info is incorrect (for example, a trail city submitted as “Atlanta/Decatur” instead of just “Decatur”). If you come across a trail listing with a weird city, please submit an error correction using the link on the right side of the trail page.
3. Trails sharing the same trailhead and/or the same approximated city/state are combined into a single pin on the map. We did this so you can click on all the trails (no overlapping pins) and as a bonus it’s already helped us identify duplicate trail listings.
4. You can hover over pins to view trail names; click pins to view a link, thumbnail, length, and difficulty info.
5. The map is updated once a day so if you just added a new trail it may take a bit for it to show up on the map.

So there you have it, a Google Map showing singletracks trail locations - now you can all stop emailing me There’s more to come as we integrate the map even further, stay tuned this summer and fall…

When mudhunny and I started singletracks back in 1998, our mission was simple: to help mountain bikers find the best trails. Eleven years later it’s still our focus and to make sure that happens we personally ride and report on as many new trails as we can.

Last week I put together a list of 5 unfamiliar trails in middle Georgia that I found on a local MTB club’s website and decided to see what was up. The Google Map I built said the round trip would be close to 300 miles and 8 hours of driving but that’s a small price to pay for riding 5 different trail systems in a single day. At 8am on Wednesday I was off…

I hit the first trail of the day, Charlie Elliot Wildlife Center, just before 9am and found the parking area empty (no surprise). This trail has an unusual permitting system I hadn’t seen before that involves filling out a permit to take with you and depositing a carbon copy in a locked bin. The “trail” turned out to be horseshoe-pocked doubletrack that was wildly overgrown with high grass but it was well marked and probably not a bad choice for beginning riders.

Heading to the next trail, my Google Map directed me onto some crazy dirt roads and after several miles I was pretty sure I’d see the Dukes of Hazzard coming around the bend at any moment. At intersections I rarely saw signs with the name of the road I was turning onto, only signs for the road I was turning off - sort of a “guess and check” method of navigation. I finally emerged onto a paved highway and made my way to Bartram Forest in Milledgeville.

My youngest brother goes to school in Milledgeville and he actually told me a little about the trails at Bartram Forest but when I got there all I could find was miles and miles of doubletrack. Like Charlie Elliot, much of the doubletrack was overgrown and I was starting to get frustrated until I found it: singletrack! It turns out I went the wrong direction initially and totally missed the singletrack right beside the trailhead. The singletrack was tight and fast but unfortunately way too short. Then again, I suppose you take what you can get in this area.

By now it was lunch time so I ate a sandwich in the car as I drove to the next trail: The Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge. I was looking forward to this trail the most because I saw pictures online and it looked pretty good plus I had read there were 12+ miles of trail. I strolled into the visitor’s center and asked the ranger which trails were open to bikes to which he replied, “None of them.” Ok, but what about the gravel roads? Only if they are open to cars. Yuck.

I’m a professional, though, so I grabbed a map and headed out on the gravel. I didn’t see a single car on my 13 mile loop but I did see some turkey and deer along the way. At this point it was getting VERY hot (mid-90s) and halfway around the loop I was ready for it to be over. To be fair, though, I’d say the Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge is a good place to get MTB training rides in on the miles and miles of gravel roads.

After the hot ride I debated skipping the next trail and heading home but after pumping the AC in the car a bit I was refreshed and ready for the Camp Thunder trails. As a Boy Scout I stayed at Camp Thunder several times and though I knew nothing about the bike trails, I remember having a blast canoeing on the Flint River nearby. Anyway, to make a long story short, upon arrival a staff member informed me that the trails had been closed to the general public for a year and a half. Nice. I’ll never trust a mountain biking website again

Trail #4 was a bust which left just trail #5 before my epic trip came to an end. I didn’t have high hopes for the Kiwanis Fairgrounds Trail in Griffin since the woman I spoke with at Camp Thunder said there was nothing there as far as she knew. The trail was sorta on my way home anyway so I soldiered on. It turns out the directions I printed were perfect and I found this short trail gem tucked between the National Guard Armory, the fairgrounds, and the city airport. The trails were twisty, tight, and fun - the perfect capstone to my adventure. My only complaint is the trails were waaay too short - probably less than a mile - but like I said, you take what you can get.

I’m addicted to exploring new MTB trails and no matter how many bad trails I ride there are always a few cool discoveries that make it all worthwhile. Get out and ride some new trails this summer, then share your reviews here on singletracks - think of it as a public service!

The International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA) announced yesterday that the 2010 IMBA World Summit will be held in Augusta, GA May 5-8. Augusta may seem like an odd choice, especially to mountain bikers in the western US, but the area is quickly becoming the model for building sustainable trails in cooperation with state and federal land managers. There’s already an IMBA Epic trail system in the area (FATS) and there are plans to add even more singletrack to the region in the next few years.

I’m actually not too surprised that Augusta is being recognized as a world-class mountain biking destination. In fact, the second article I ever wrote for singletracks in September, 2001 was titled “Hidden Gems Found in Augusta, GA” where I made the claim that the area was already a southeastern MTB mecca. Sure, I may be a little biased since I started mountain biking in Augusta in the mid-1990s (my first real trail ride was at the Stevens Creek Trail) but it’s tough to argue with miles of singletrack spread across nearly a dozen unique trailheads.

Want to see what the hype is about? Check out this list of Augusta area MTB trails… See you at the World Summit!

Saturday was National Trails Day and I got a chance to help out with the MTB trail reroutes out at Sope Creek just outside Atlanta. I assumed this would be just another monthly SORBA work day with maybe a dozen volunteers so I was blown away to see nearly 200 people ready to work at 8am! Apparently REI promoted National Trails Day involvement pretty hard and was able to get a good group out there, most of whom were not mountain bikers. The SORBA guys were clearly in charge though and ended up leading several groups of ~20 volunteers each.

My group (led by SORBA Atlanta prez. Tom Tomaka) was assigned trail closure duty - sorta like demolition work on a construction site. While we piled sticks, leaves, and logs on top of the old, eroded trail other groups were busy constructing split-rail fences at the entrances to the old trail to route riders and hikers to the new dirt. Still other groups did finish work on the new trail sections, clipping roots and tamping loose dirt to make the trails smooth as butter.

Trail closure step 1: Find sticks and logs to pile on closed trail.

Trail closure step 2: Place sticks and logs on trail.

Trail closure step 3: Cover with leaves. Where’d the old trail go?

Some die-hard Sope Creek riders will probably be disappointed to see the steep, rocky trail sections replaced with bench cut smoothness but the reroutes had to be done to address some serious erosion issues. It’s rare to see mountain bikes allowed at all on trails managed by the National Park Service like those at Sope Creek and the good news is that there are plans to build a brand new loop / network of bike trails in the park as early as this fall.

Long Cane Trails LLC did the initial machine work on the reroutes.

At the end of the day the volunteers were able to open at least 2 new trail reroutes which was honestly really satisfying. I managed to get a quick ride in on the new trails (”first tracks” as snowboarders would say) and I gotta say these new sections flow much better than the old stuff. I also ended up working with singletracks member GoldenGoose and didn’t even know it until afterward - small world (see if you can pick him out in the second photo above).

Even if you didn’t get a chance to help out in your area on Saturday, make a point to help with trail work at least once this summer - contact your local MTB club to get involved!

Santa Teresa Park (San Jose, CA) photo by gab26.

Tomorrow is National Trails Day here in the US and as a mountain biker I gotta say I’m a little confused about what I’m supposed to do. Over on the IMBA website there isn’t a single mention of National Trails Day (other than a news item from 1998) and the SORBA website is linking to the American Hiking Society to help people find events to participate in. Huh? I thought mountain bikers were trail users too -  I guess NTD is the American Hiking Society’s show.

Since IMBA doesn’t seem to be organizing or promoting events for mountain bikers to celebrate National Trails Day, I thought I’d put together a quick list of ideas and events for tomorrow.

1. Take a beginner / first time rider on a mountain bike trail. Yep, there’s really nothing better than introducing n00bs to mountain biking and (hopefully) a greater appreciation for trails and outdoor spaces. National Trails Day isn’t the day to shred and terrorize other trail users (nor is any other day for that matter) so take it easy and help others get comfortable on the trails.

2. Get to work. SORBA Atlanta (my local club) is hosting a trail work day at Sope Creek with a group ride to follow and I reckon many other clubs are doing the same. Oddly (or perhaps shrewdly) enough the Sope Creek event is being promoted on the American Hiking Society website rather than SORBA’s site. Could this be a way to show hikers that mountain bikers are good for the trails? I think so - let’s crash this party (in a good way).

Finally, here are a few National Trails Day events for mountain bikers I found through a quick Google search. This list isn’t even close to complete so if you know of an event in your area go ahead and post it up here in the comments. Happy Trails Day!

EPIC Mountain Bike Ride (Irvine, CA)

Trail work / Group ride @ Legend Park (Clayton, NC)

SORBA work / Group ride @ Sope Creek (Atlanta, GA)

Trail work @ Crested Butte Mountain (Crested Butte, CO)

Trail work @ Sprague Book Park (Glenwood, NY)

Grand Opening of Raisin Woods MTB Park (Dalton, GA)

Festival @ Bur Mill Park (Greensboro, NC)

Trail work @ Riverside Park (Hartford, CT)

Multiple events/rides happening in West Virginia State Parks

This weekend I rode the Sumter Metric Century, a 62 mile mountain bike race through the Sumter National Forest in South Carolina, home to some of the best singletrack the southeast has to offer. Despite mostly overcast skies and occasional rain showers throughout the day I had a blast reconnecting with some of the very first mountain bike trails I ever rode.

The “low key” race started at Lick Fork Recreation Area with a LeMans style start (no gun) and covered about 5 miles of singletrack before heading out of the park. After a little paved and gravel road riding we hit the first sag stop and jumped onto the Wine Creek and Turkey Creek trails for 12 miles of uninterupted singletrack riding. By the second sag stop we were more than halfway through and I felt great.

More paved and gravel roads led to the Stevens Creek (Modoc) trail and the final singletrack portion of the ride. About 2 miles into the trail (mile 44 or so and 4 miles from the end of the singletrack) the trail crosses a wooden bridge (one of dozens along the course) where someone placed a pile of sticks at the start of the bridge as a warning. Since the creek was about 6-8 feet below and the banks were nearly vertical I decided to carefully walk my bike across the slimy, twisted bridge rather than try to ford the stream.

About 2/3 of the way across the bridge I started to slip into the creek. As I was sliding I prepared myself to jump into the creek but at the last second I somehow regained my footing. I inched a bit further toward the end and grabbed onto a tree. With less than 3 feet to go I felt confident with a firm grip on the tree trunk when - WHAM - I was on the deck on top of my bike! I grabbed the high edge of the bridge decking, swung my legs to the bank, and slid my bike and body onto terra firma.

Somehow I avoided serious injury to myself but my bike didn’t fare quite as well. I fell on top of the bike with the derailleur side down, bending the derailleur AND several spokes on my rear wheel. The wheel was so bent it was nearly rubbing the frame with each revolution but I was able to make it 4 miles to the final sag stop.

At the sag one of the volunteers ghetto-trued my wheel by banging the rim on the asphalt and off I went for the final 16 miles to the finish with a wobbly rear wheel and just 3 usuable gears. I finished in 6 hours, 6 minutes which was a bit of a bummer (I was hoping for sub-6 hours) but in the end I was stoked to make it to the finish where there were burgers and hot dogs on the grill.

I don’t look tired, do I? I’m pretty sure I lost 10 pounds of water on the ride!

In the end we rode 24 miles of singletrack and climbed more than 3,500 feet (much more climbing than I originally estimated). It was great seeing brianW and seenvic there (ask him about his fall on 4-mile bridge) along with all the riders and volunteers who made the ride a success.

If you’ve never ridden in the Sumter National Forest I highly recommend getting out there this summer. With nearly a dozen singletrack trails within a 50 mile radius including the IMBA Epic FATS trail, you’re sure to have a blast. In fact, rumor has it that IMBA is considering Augusta, GA for the 2009 World Summit thanks to all the hard work SORBA is doing in the area. What are you waiting for?

West Fork trail in Oakridge, OR. Photo posted by AK_Dan.

Oakridge, OR bills itself as the “mountain biking capital of the Northwest” and while we haven’t ridden there yet ourselves, they have a pretty good argument so far. With more than 500 miles of singletrack in the mountains outside town I’d say that puts Oakridge in serious contention for the mountain biking capital of not just the Northwest but the entire US. I know, I know, other towns like Moab have more famous trails but where else can you find 500 miles of legal singletrack?

What makes Oakridge even more compelling to mountain bikers is the local brew scene. In my mind beer and biking go hand-in-hand and the Northwest is typically known for some great microbrews. The article I read mentions the Brewers Union Local 180 brewpub where they make their own cask-conditioned ale - tasty.

Oakridge presents a great model for other areas around the country that have been hit hard by job losses due to dying industries. Local business owners are realizing mountain bikers are willing to travel to ride great dirt and we typically spend a few bucks to do it (not to mention the bar tab!).

One Oakridge City Council member predicts the Oakridge MTB scene will really blow up in 2-5 years so plan your trip now to beat the crowds!

Japanese Gulch photo by singletracks member chris_donovan.

Last week we talked about the idea that hikers and other outdoor groups should work with mountain bikers to preserve public lands since united we stand… (you know the rest). Anyway, it seems the hiking and equestrian community still aren’t really on board with the concept and one hiker even chose to voice his opposition right here on the blog.

That’s why this next story is so refreshing: A developer is planning to build a huge warehouse next to Japanese Gulch in Everett, WA and residents aren’t too stoked on the idea so they’re asking mountain bikers to help them save the open space and trails. The residents have organized a group to preserve the gulch:

Members of the gulch group plan to reach out to the mountain biking community that rides through the gulch.

Mukilteo resident Dave Culler said he attended because he mountain bikes through the gulch. Culler said mountain biking Web sites refer to the gulch as one of the best places for biking in the area.

“The mountain biking community has tried to keep Japanese Gulch quiet so there’s no (bike) traffic,” he said. “But if they were concerned it would go away, they would help.”

Mountain bikers helping save an area from development would have been unheard of just a few years back. Today we have a voice and it’s our turn to help save the trails for everyone - hikers and bikers alike!

There’s an article over on NewWest.com about allowing mountain bikes in wilderness areas that’s stirring up some serious controversy (thanks to chukt for sending the link). The jist of the opinion piece is that rather than seeking to block mountain bikes from future wilderness areas, hikers and equestrians should work together with bikers to form a more powerful alliance to protect roadless areas. Seems pretty reasonable, right? Too bad many of the article’s commenters are pissed.

The author, Bill Schneider, points out that the Wilderness Act passed by Congress in 1964 did not contain the word “bicycle.” It was only in the 1980s that the Forest Service (not Congress) revised regulations to ban bicycles in wilderness areas. These days IMBA is a powerful lobby and Schneider argues that hikers need allies in preserving new wild and roadless areas in the US. (Note: IMBA is not currently trying to get bikes into existing wilderness areas.) If we work together instead of against one another, the argument goes, we’ll be able to protect more wilderness.

I probably spent 30 minutes yesterday reading the comments on this article and it gave me a new appreciation for what mountain bikers are up against when it comes to opening new areas for trails. While IMBA has had huge sucesses in the past few years we still have a long way to go - let’s all do our part to make sure mountain bikers have a voice!