-
Posts
-
-
Hi. My guys and I are driving from LA to Whistler in Mid-July. We’re from Singapore and the US and Canada trails are on our bucket lists. We’ll be heading North and would welcome any biking stop-overs suggestions enroute. Oh and we’re all in our 50’s and 60’s…… Cheers guys, thanks in advance and ride safe
-
First, I’m jealous. Second, not sure how much tech you’re looking for, but the following ideas are more flow than chunky tech: 1) near Santa Cruz, the Soquel Demo Forest Flow trail is an epic downhill ride. Be advised that the climb in and out are no joke – but the payoff is well worth it; 2) I haven’t been yet, but Bend, Oregon is high on my list; 3) Squamish is an hour south of Whistler – I’ve done the Diamond head area (Half Nelson is a must downhill), but there is more. Have fun!
-
Galbraith Mountain in Bellingham is awesome. Lots of flowy fun here – more singletrack than you can shake a stick at.
North Vancouver is incredible – go check it out if you want to see the birthplace of freeride mtb. There are easier trails but it’s the total opposite of Galbraith, mostly chunky tech. It’s very cool to see some of the iconic lines from some legendary mtb movies and such here. There are lots of moves that I don’t have the stones to hit but they’re very cool to see.
Squamish has pretty much a bit of pretty much everything for all abilities. Love it.
-
You guys are in my age group as well. Riding around Bend, OR is a lot of fun, everything from semi-techy XC riding around Phil’s to long shuttle descents down from the Mt. Bachelor area. Nice, mellow gradient trails like the Deschutes River Trail from near Sunriver (Start at the Lava Visitor’s Center and start with a nice 4-mile or so descent down the Black Rock Trail to the DRT). If you decide to stay on I-5, there is a lot of riding in the Ashland area, and in the Willamette Valley there is Alsea near Corvallis, and Black Rock West of Salem. Both of these areas are a little rowdier, long grind up gravel fire/logging roads to the trails and then hold on! I haven’t ridden Galbraith up in Bellingham, but have heard great reports – hope to check it out this summer. You guys should have a blast!
-
A swing through Lake Tahoe is well worth it. Many trails from easy to hard. The Flume is a classic and always impresses.
-
Downieville CA (2 drop day): Park at the top, drop into Downieville, shuttle back to top, drop a 2nd time, shuttle back to top and you are on your way to next adventure. Recommend Yuba Expeditions for shuttle. book in advance.
Oakridge Oregon: Approx 30 minutes east from Goshen on Interstate 5, Hardesty and Lawler trails off of highway 58. Will require a shuttle. Cog Wild and Oakridge Shuttles service the trails. Cog also has guides if needed.
Truckee CA: Dirty Harry drops you out at base of Northstar ski resort/bike park. The bike park is a good hang as well. -
Well, this just goes to show how we all like different trails. Bend is absolutely not worth detouring off your preferred route for and The Flume in Tahoe is my #1 overrated trail on the planet. It has some good views but you get them from all over Tahoe. I had heard great things about The Flume for nearly 30 years and finally rode it last Fall….what a waste of time. Literally, every other trails we rode in Tahoe was better. That being said, Tahoe is not worth venturing off to either. You need to spend as much time as possible in Whistler (and Squamish) as possible because it’s the only place I’ve ever ridden that’s BETTER than the hype. Yeah, it’s that good and I’m not even a park guy.
LeonardK….our group drives up every other year and we are all in our 50’s and 60’s too but we do have one guy in his 40’s that rides with us. That 45 year old is the only true “park” guy as well. It would help knowing how long of a trip you have, how many hours per day you’re OK driving and what kind of terrain you’re after. I’ll tell you what we do but there are many options available out there. I will say that we try to keep our route tight and stay right along Interstate 5 so we’re not wasting too much time getting to and from the different places to ride. If you have a month to venture around, that would certainly change my advice. However, we have two weeks (16 total days) so here is our plan this year:
Day 1: Drive 11 hours to Ashland, Oregon
2: Do a shuttle ride with Ashland Mountain Adventures. It’s a super fun, mostly intermediate FLOW type ride and most importantly you’ll be done by Noon and back on the road by 1 pm. We will then drive 8-9 hours to Bellingham, Washington
3-4: We ride in Bellingham. Fantastic trails (especially if you like structures), great town and friendly people with cheap lodging. After our ride on day 4, we drive (3) hours to Squamish
5-6: Ride in Squamish, moving up to Whistler after riding on day 6
7-14: Ride all over Whistler and usually one day in Pemberton (45 minutes away)
15: We will drive 5+ hours down to the Seattle area and ride Tiger Mountain (1st time for us) before continuing our drive south until we’re tired and find a cheap hotel to crash for the night.
16: Drive the rest of the way home. A long day, probably 15 hours but I’ve driven all the way from Whistler to San Diego in one day (solo I might add) so 15 hours with multiple drivers should be survivable.
-
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.