Where To Ride XC...

[Six]

Hey!

I'm new to Vancouver this week and just wondering where people go to ride their XC bikes. I know that there are lots of XC trails up in Squamish but is there anything right around Vancouver? I met someone cool who has offered to show me around Squamish which we will hopefully do next week but he wasn't sure about trails around Van.

I checked out the NSMBA site and saw that the Bridal Path is an XC trail...but...is it a stunt trail? Armour required etc? I'm from Calgary and have ridden tons of classic XC in Kananaskis, Canmore etc..but don't have a big arsenal of West Coast stunt skills. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

[sanrensho]

No armour required for Bridle Path, no stunts on there. You could also do Bottletop and/or connect that into the LSCR trails (Fishermen's, etc.).

[Dave K]

On the North Shore and Seymour in particular, as Sanrensho said, Bridle Path is a good one. Pretty rooty and bumpy, but nothing death defying (no armour required). Wil's Way, Ridge Runner and Bottle Top are all close by (or connect). Up in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve (LSCR) there is the Circuit 8 trails which are fun, but a bit short. THere are trails near Camp Brick (scouts camp area) just south a bit. On Fromme, there is Griffen, Roadside Attraction, Floppy Bunny and Bobsled. More technical XC trails include Pipeline and Seventh Secret.

Burnaby Mountain (below Simon Fraser University) has a good mix of XC trails. It is a good area to get an intro to the rootiness and steeper trails before you head to the steeper North Shore trails. Start with the North Road trails (parallel North Rd) and Lower Snake. Mels is a fun loop. Nicoles is a really good step up (steeper with more tricky DH switch backs). You can find maps at the BMBA website (www.BMBA.ca). There are also several map kiosks on the mountain.

A little further away from Vancouver is Eagle Ridge above Port Moody. There is a big network of trails that can include loops around Buntzen Lake, Sasamat Lake as well as trails around Belcarra (near the Burrard Thermal power plant). It is a bit of a maze around there so you either need a map or a guide (or just a really good sense of direction). Since the trails mostly loop in and around residential areas, you almost always pop out onto a road somewhere.

I've just kinda listed off a lot of trails without much directions. Sorry about that, but it is mostly because it is difficult to explain how to get to areas. I know how I ride there, but often I don't know the street names that I take. A good idea would be to join a club that offer XC ride options. NSride (www.nsride.com) does stuff like that. You'll meet lots of like minded riders (there is a big spectrum of riders from DH only freeriders to XC riders ranging from beginners to advanced). It is a good way to get to know trails by being led by knowledgeable (hopefully!) leaders.

Hope to see you out on the trails.

Dave

[Six]

Thanks sanrensho and Dave! That is more that enough to get me started. On the plus side I've met a guy who has generously offered to take me up to Squamish. Hope to hit that next week! Take'r easy.

[ChunkyMonkey]

Thanks sanrensho and Dave! That is more that enough to get me started. On the plus side I've met a guy who has generously offered to take me up to Squamish. Hope to hit that next week! Take'r easy.
Don't ride next Saturday (June 16th) in Squamish. You'll be cought in an avalanche of lycra (http://www.testofmetal.com/).

[Six]

Don't ride next Saturday (June 16th) in Squamish. You'll be cought in an avalanche of lycra (http://www.testofmetal.com/).

Heh...yea...saw info on that all over the place. I wanna ride the course tho...sounds like it's awesome! Mebbe the next week or something.