# 10 Best Mt Biking Spots in New England



## wa-loaf (Oct 5, 2009)

According to the Boston Globe anyway:

http://www.boston.com/travel/explorene/galleries/take10/mountain_biking/


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## MR. evil (Oct 5, 2009)

wa-loaf said:


> According to the Boston Globe anyway:
> 
> http://www.boston.com/travel/explorene/galleries/take10/mountain_biking/



what a crock of #$&* that list is. Its obvious that who ever put that list together is a spandex clad XC rider that doesnt like technical riding. The obvious glaring omissions are:

Lynn Woods, Ma
Holyoke Range State Forest, Ma
Vietnam, Ma
Case Mt, Ct
DAR St Forest, Ma 
Highland Bike Park, NH
Mt Snow, VT

The only spot on that list I have not ridden is Vietnam, and I am hoping to change that soon.


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## Riverskier (Oct 5, 2009)

The only place on that list I have ridden is Bradbury State Park, but I ride there regularly and they do have some awesome singletrack. Definitely worth checking out for anyone that lives in or visits Southern Maine.


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## Greg (Oct 5, 2009)

MR. evil said:


> what a crock of #$&* that list is. Its obvious that who ever put that list together is a spandex clad XC rider that doesnt like technical riding.



Just as the majority of the general skier population prefers groomed corduroy, I suspect the majority of the MTB population prefers smooth, flowy singletrack...


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## Talisman (Oct 5, 2009)

All these lists are a bit of a joke as it is unlikely someone has ridden every trail in New England.  In defense of the list, Pachaug & Arcadia do have great riding for wide range of abilities.  I was surprised stuff like Little Ascutney, Phen Basin, Waterbury, or Otis didn't make the list.  The carriage paths at Acadia NP do suck for mountain biking if you are over 8 years old or under 75.


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## BigJay (Oct 5, 2009)

I think i counted 6-7 systems out of 10 where i biked once at least.

That said, there are OFFICIAL mountain biking areas where you can get a map and info at the local tourism office. You can't get a map of Waterbury or directions from the tourist kiosque in Stowe or Waterbury...

So for official areas with dedicated maps and info, i think it's not so bad...


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## ski_resort_observer (Oct 5, 2009)

The Carriage Road System in Acadia is awesome but they are grave/dirt mostly flat roads, not mountain biking.


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## JD (Oct 5, 2009)

lol.


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## BackLoafRiver (Oct 6, 2009)

ski_resort_observer said:


> The Carriage Road System in Acadia is awesome but they are grave/dirt mostly flat roads, not mountain biking.



+1.  Great for daily riding with the Girlfriend but nothing I would consider "mountain biking".  Last time I was up there, I found a small trail here and there but the Carriage Roads are no single track.

Bear Book is supposed to be rad. (yes, I said rad)  I haven't had the time to get down there yet.  KT has been reviewed a bunch of times and I love Bradbury.  Awesome and can be quite technical.


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## BigJay (Oct 6, 2009)

JD said:


> lol.



You should be happy, Millstone is in 2nd place!

I do understand that most "riders" won't be riding much of these because there are way more better trails out there... but thinking from the "tourism-standpoint", don't you think it's fair to point these 10 outs?

hey, it will keep the queebs away from Stowe!


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## JD (Oct 6, 2009)

BigJay said:


> You should be happy, Millstone is in 2nd place!
> 
> I do understand that most "riders" won't be riding much of these because there are way more better trails out there... but thinking from the "tourism-standpoint", don't you think it's fair to point these 10 outs?
> 
> hey, it will keep the queebs away from Stowe!



I take no responsibility for the trails at Millstone....lots of other folks hard work there and I am happy for Pierre.  And I see your point.


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## umby (Oct 8, 2009)

I have never ridden at any of the areas on that list, but I am glad it doesn't include Lynn Woods. I love Lynn Woods. Keep it off the radar of those that would be looking on Boston.com for riding spots!

Vietnam gets enough traffic now due to the NEMBA trails back in there. I used to ride there all the time growing up in that area and there is a lot of fun sections back in there. From the few times I have been there in the past year or two the large amount of traffic on the non-NEMBA trails seems to be slowly taking its toll on the trails. (I am not a fan of the man made obstacles in the woods at Vietnam, it just makes it seem tacky to me, but that's a completely different topic!) Also I was also shot by some redneck hunter back in November of 2006 around 12noon ...so I don't go there too often anymore. You have to be a pretty incompetent hunter to 1) shoot with out knowing exactly what you are shooting at and what is behind it, 2) shooting within 100 feet of interstate 495, 3) not able to see/hear a kid on a mountain bike with a bright yellow shirt on screaming "WTF are you doing?!".

So in conclusion I am glad Boston.com is clueless and did not list two of the best riding spots in the Greater Boston area.


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## Marc (Oct 8, 2009)

MR. evil said:


> what a crock of #$&* that list is. Its obvious that who ever put that list together is a spandex clad XC rider that doesnt like technical riding. The obvious glaring omissions are:
> 
> Lynn Woods, Ma
> Holyoke Range State Forest, Ma
> ...



I think you'd be surprised at how technically proficient most good XC racers are.  It sounds more to me like their list is more a product of families getting into the sport and occasional weekend warriers.

There are so few "spandex clad XC riders" that don't like technical riding I don't think they have enough pull to influence a list like that.


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## umby (Oct 8, 2009)

Marc said:


> It sounds more to me like their list is more a product of families getting into the sport and occasional weekend warriers.



I agree... I bet the places listed in the article have more user friendly trails in general than where most of us ride. I mean that in terms of not only challenging the terrain is, but parking, signage, and accurate maps. I know they have maps for Vietnam and Lynn Woods, for example, but good luck following them with all the little side trails and unmarked trails.


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