Sterling Forest Trail Conditions

bucknejo

Well-Known Member
Well heck, while we’re here...

Are there mosquitoes at Sterling? Asking for a friend.

ok, so yes - i deserved this one. yes, bears live in the woods and i shouldn't be a dipsh-t asking if they do. i didn't see any yesterday, but i did see a 3' rattle snake at the mid-way point on the palisades 17 trail which was pretty rad.

and yes, btw - there are a million mosquitos at sterling. i got bit by all of them. 2x... that's part of being a dipsh-t. not putting on the bug spray that's sitting in the trunk of your car b/c you're so amped up about riding some berms and flow.

thanks to cameron for giving me some direction in the parking lot on buttonwood and to the 2 or 3 mtbnj guys who stopped at the top of hutch to keep me on the straight and narrow. and thanks to the trail crew on that day that was out there building and for all the days before - this place is awesome and will for sure get even awesomer in the days to come.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
ok, so yes - i deserved this one. yes, bears live in the woods and i shouldn't be a dipsh-t asking if they do. i didn't see any yesterday, but i did see a 3' rattle snake at the mid-way point on the palisades 17 trail which was pretty rad.

and yes, btw - there are a million mosquitos at sterling. i got bit by all of them. 2x... that's part of being a dipsh-t. not putting on the bug spray that's sitting in the trunk of your car b/c you're so amped up about riding some berms and flow.

thanks to cameron for giving me some direction in the parking lot on buttonwood and to the 2 or 3 mtbnj guys who stopped at the top of hutch to keep me on the straight and narrow. and thanks to the trail crew on that day that was out there building and for all the days before - this place is awesome and will for sure get even awesomer in the days to come.

You must have run into @UtahJoe @Kirt and @Chris26er - they were there about an hour before us. We were another 4 MTBNJ people with like 400 other people. We did the loop CW and funny enough, @UtahJoe saw a rattler too and took a pic. We saw nothing, and TBH I didn't get hit by any mosquitoes. I did, however, crash in the Buttonwood parking lot like an ass. Maybe that was my karma for being a sarcastic dipshit. We'll call it even.
 

UtahJoe

Team Workhorse
Team MTBNJ Halter's
ok, so yes - i deserved this one. yes, bears live in the woods and i shouldn't be a dipsh-t asking if they do. i didn't see any yesterday, but i did see a 3' rattle snake at the mid-way point on the palisades 17 trail which was pretty rad.

and yes, btw - there are a million mosquitos at sterling. i got bit by all of them. 2x... that's part of being a dipsh-t. not putting on the bug spray that's sitting in the trunk of your car b/c you're so amped up about riding some berms and flow.

thanks to cameron for giving me some direction in the parking lot on buttonwood and to the 2 or 3 mtbnj guys who stopped at the top of hutch to keep me on the straight and narrow. and thanks to the trail crew on that day that was out there building and for all the days before - this place is awesome and will for sure get even awesomer in the days to come.
Ah OK, I remember you... Nice putting a face to a screen name...

That loop is fantastic....what an amazing amount of work that crew did.
 

pixychick

JORBA: Ringwood
JORBA.ORG
My guess is that things will dry out some by Sunday, especially on the RB and Hutchinson. I have heard they are almost done with the new section, but not been up there in 2 weeks. I imagine the usual spots will still be wet.
 

MuniMan

Well-Known Member
My guess is that things will dry out some by Sunday, especially on the RB and Hutchinson. I have heard they are almost done with the new section, but not been up there in 2 weeks. I imagine the usual spots will still be wet.


Just about a perfect call on the conditions.

Yesterday the trail was a little soft in spots. The kind of soft that is susceptible to becoming cratered with heavy use and then turn into mud puddles the next time it rains.

The usual muck holes didn’t disappoint. Especially on the road that bypasses the very close to being finished section.

The almost finished section is still almost finished. (No more hornet nests.) And as usual everyone is asked to come out, do a little work and help finish it and build some berms and other features.

IMG_2815[1].JPG
 

oobaa47

Well-Known Member
Can anyone advise on the trail conditions this morning? It rained really heavy last night but I believe it was only for a few hours. Thx
 

pixychick

JORBA: Ringwood
JORBA.ORG
Munsee Eagle will most likely be very wet and much is freshly cut. I would recommend giving it a few days to dry out.
 

MuniMan

Well-Known Member
Foot traffic is way up on the Sterling loop. The new trail has been advertised heavily on social media and in newspapers. I saw about as many walkers as riders there yesterday. Albeit there were no group ride herds. Everybody said that they liked the trails. If you are riding please be on the lookout for walkers.

The bridge on Hutchinson trail is being worked on right now. Drying out and hardening some of the trouble spots on Munsee-Eagle will be up next.
 

JimN

Captain Wildcat
Team MTBNJ Halter's
LoL, how do I get that version of Strava?

You need to remember that you saw that one of your friends rode at Sterling earlier in the day, and when someone asks on mtbnj how the conditions at Sterling are, you ask your friend :p
 

MuniMan

Well-Known Member
It will be primarily freeze/thaw. The portions of the trail that drain well will be in good shape Sections that are wet will get soft when it thaws. Spots that catch sun can thaw even if its below freezing.

We are working to get the wood to build bridges driven up to near the power lines on Munsee Eagle. We have 2 projects planned, first to enhance the 'one plank bridge' and the other to get over the stream on the section built last summer. So stay tuned for requests for manpower to move wood on the trail
 

Dirt Dawg

Member
With the shortest days of the year upon us, has anyone had success riding here after dark? If so, where is a good place to park?
 

MuniMan

Well-Known Member
With the shortest days of the year upon us, has anyone had success riding here after dark? If so, where is a good place to park?

The park's hours are officially dawn to dusk. Whatever you do, please do not park your car at any of the lots within the park after dark. You are apt to trigger a lost hiker/biker/hunter drill if a ranger or the park police happen upon your car.
 

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