Most epic singletrack trail between Portland OR and NorCal?

[SchralphMacchio]

Okay here's the deal: I'm currently in Portland, and I need to be back in the SF Bay Area on Wednesday night. I have my ratty old Subie, 5" FS Norco bike, iPhone with GoogleMaps, camping gear, and a willingness to travel. I want smooth flowy fast with small jump options off of rocks, roots, or ramps, and climbing is not a problem. Techy is cool, but "silk" and "butter" are the main desires.

It's Monday morning right now and I'll probably start driving tonight. I want to hit this tomorrow and/or Wednesday. It'll be raining lightly on Wednesday.

Where should I go? Need to know so that I can set my travel plans and download/buy maps as needed!

I've already hit the McKenzie River trail between Eugene/Sisters on Friday and it was epic! Although the last 8 miles were a bit boring (could have been steeper/faster/more winding for me).

Thanks maggots, I only have good vibes and cold beers with which to repay you!

[thebigeast]

Paradise royal trail in the king range (nor cal) is pretty epic, not sure how out if the way it is for you though

[thebigeast]

And you can camp right on the beach very near by in shelter cove

[powpig]

Looking to get up to Oregon for some riding this summer so I've been doing some research, but never been, here's what I got.

North Umpqua River Trail seems to get lotsa raves.
Dread & Terror --> Hot Springs --> Deer Leap seems to be the sweet spot. About 25 miles one way. Love to hear a report if you do it.
http://www.blm.gov/or/districts/rose...ils/index.html

[butterscotch]

Alpine trail in Oakridge? that might too similar to what you've already done in terms of terrain, but probably a more sustained downhill.

Ashland, OR might be a good option too.

[Power_Sauce]

Check out Sandy Ridge, off hwy 26 on your way to hood. Super flowy trails there.

[forty]

blackrock is your answer
fast and flowy buffed trails, check
race gnar tech trails, check
full on ass puckering freeride trails, check
epic, check
trails should be dialed, they just had a shuttle event over the weekend and we spent all winter dialing things in for it, if i was still in OR i would show you around, but may have a friend or two who could give you a tour in the afternoon/evening if they are in town



seriously, nothing else in OR compares for flow, bend is sweet, sandy ridge is cool, ashland is great, but its still just not the same... all imo of course

[SchralphMacchio]

Powpig, I've heard a lot of raving about the NUT as well. Roseburg is an easy 3 hr drive from here and maybe I can try to set up a hitch hike shuttle to do that stretch 1-way or something ... Ill try to find more info today about trailheads to see if a shuttle is easy to set up on my own. I will tell you all about McKenzie and that one if I get er done!

[SchralphMacchio]

Forty, sweet! Jimw was just there on Sunday for the shuttle event. Ill look more into this vs. NUT ... If I do a loooongass drive on Weds to SF, maybe I'll hit both ...

[forty]

Forty, sweet! Jimw was just there on Sunday for the shuttle event. Ill look more into this vs. NUT ... If I do a loooongass drive on Weds to SF, maybe I'll hit both ...

nice! i think a few mags made it for some shuttling, which is a once or twice a year occurrence only, pretty bummed i moved to MN a few months ago and have to hear all about it from my buddies back home while i wait for the rain to stop to even ride shit xc trails out here...

NUT is amazing for sure, i never got a chance to ride it, but hiked much of it over the years, dread and terror section is certainly top of the list if you hit that area up

but for pure flowy goodness i just dont see anything else comparing to BR, combine the amazing forrest setting, woodwork that makes your jaw drop, and some good peeps, and, well, its about as good as it gets imo
of course i am a bit biased after spending so much time out there digging/sawing/riding, but its a pretty special place and if you can get even a lap in would be worth the visit

also, dont let the fr/dh rep scare you off if you arent looking for 6ft drops and the like, the "beginner" trail is what we rode 75% of the time for its pure grin inducing flow, and can be railed as hard as possible, i think the current record is brakes in only 2 spots...

[AKbruin]

I'm a huge fan of Ashland, both the town and the riding. It's a good place to hit for a quick shuttle early in the morning or late in the evening. In other words, you could jump on a shuttle around 5 or 6 p.m. and have a sweet 12-mile, 5000'+ decent and be back to your car within 2 hours of having left it. Or you could spend a couple days riding the trails there.

That said, I haven't been to any of the other places mentioned but would really like to. Oakridge and Black Rock top my list.

[butterscotch]

Agree that black rock would a great choice as well. Super fun even on 5" travel. Falls City is weird place, though. If you do hit up Black Rock, Venti's Cafe in Salem is a great option for food (court st. location has plenty of veg. options, too.)

[PeachesN'Cream]

You could easily combo Black Rock tomorrow and then drive to Ashland in the afternoon/evening and ride there Wednesday morning before wrapping up the drive to SF.

I have also heard there is some really fun stuff off of Shasta, The Entertainer, but have yet to ride it. Might be another option to consider instead of Ashland and would get you a couple hours closer to SF.
http://www.shastabasecamp.com/biking.html

Let us know what you decide on. Vicarious shredding FTW.

[SchralphMacchio]

At Fat Tire Farm in Portland ... New Ground Control tire to replace the Panracer Smoke that got punctured by sharpass lava rock the other day.

I think I'll head to Falls City tonight and hit Black Rock pretty early, leave there around noon and get a 6 PM shuttle in Ashland, then hit that again Weds morning before driving back to the 510.

Definitely will be photos and TR coming later ... though not for a while because I need to sort through my 250gb of photos from Norway/Svalbard!

Thanks for the advice, trusty maggot collective!

[forty]

Have fun!
for a little beta my fave warmup lap is banzai 1-3 then jump on the road riders left to sickter gnar to finish off the lap

[schuss]

Portland to SF isn't even that bad, mostly boring.

[sierraskier]

For super fun, fast, flowey, tacky xc rides (with climbing and some legit vert) you want Oakridge. You can stay in town or camp right on the middle fork of the willamette probably by yourself, and fish and ride out of your campsite.

http://www.ormtb.com/Oakridge/Oak_trails/Overview.html

http://www.mtbikeoregon.com/trails


That said, I haven't ridden Ashland or Black Rock and would love to take my freeride bike there.

[Sinfield]

Falls creek falls in the Gifford Pinchot was riding epic yesterday if you're looking for more of a natural terrain flow. Nothing man made, just 14ish miles of great single track.

[Arty50]

You could easily combo Black Rock tomorrow and then drive to Ashland in the afternoon/evening and ride there Wednesday morning before wrapping up the drive to SF.

I have also heard there is some really fun stuff off of Shasta, The Entertainer, but have yet to ride it. Might be another option to consider instead of Ashland and would get you a couple hours closer to SF.
http://www.shastabasecamp.com/biking.html

Let us know what you decide on. Vicarious shredding FTW.

Go to Blackrock, ride Bonzai Downhill, try to stop smiling so hard that your jaw might fall off, rinse, repeat.

I really need to get to Ashland too. I keep hearing great things.

The Entertainer is super fun, but it gets realllllly dry and dusty if there hasn't been rain in a while. I haven't been watching the weather up there, so no clue. If they have gotten rain recently, it will be prime. It also has some fairly techy sections down low from what I remember. It's an awesome loooong descent, which also means it's definitely a shuttle ride.

[Zeedashbo]

Oakridge and blackrock

[SchralphMacchio]

Tough yet awesome cure for a hangover. Light drizzle + perfect transitions/transfers = happy Schralph.
Thanks for the beta guys! On my way to Ashland ...

[SchralphMacchio]

And forty, huge thanks to you and the BRMBA crew for all of the sweat equity that went into making that place what it is and securing access. I can't even imagine the man-years of time that made BR a physical reality.

[forty]

And forty, huge thanks to you and the BRMBA crew for all of the sweat equity that went into making that place what it is and securing access. I can't even imagine the man-years of time that made BR a physical reality.

thanks!
i was just a small cog in the machine keeping that place running, the real heros have been slaving away out there for 10+ years giving it their heart and soul
glad you had some fun, although im not sure ive ever seen someone leave without a smile...
enjoy ashland!

[SchralphMacchio]

Rode the Ashland Super D into town at 7 pm last night. The second part of the trail, Lower Bull Gap was amazing. Damn that downhill was tiring as hell on a 5" bike (a lot of high speed rutty sections), after 2 full laps at Black Rock and a longass drive from Portland to Ashland!

Ashland is great for how long of a fast run you can get ... Kind of loose like Tahoe, but way less dry and way better packed. Huge reality check and adjustment though after spending the morning on the most retardedly smooth grippy perfect not-like-anything-in-real-life clay berms at Black Rock.

Next time I'll check out the NUT and Oakridge, as I am sure those will be very different styles of riding from what I had yesterday.

One more Ashland shuttle at 1230 today before driving to Oakland ... I'm thinking Tim Curry: let's do the Time Warp!