Where to park, what trails are rideable and what are not?

N

Nicholas

Banned
This place has potential but it seems you need knowledge of where to park, what trails/ trail sections are good and where to avoid as there are lots of totally unrideable sections.

I parked at the first obvious location off of Green Pond Road on Lower Hibernia Road, near the bat cave with iron bars. This is not a good place to park because there is a fairly sustained steep incline with lots of loose rocks underneath requiring alot of effort and balance to pedal up, so I just walked up much of it. Eventually I passed a dirt road that some people enter Wildcat Ridge from(a better place to park than where I started) and a small pond where I encountered a white trail that was not that bad. I choose to veer to the left at one point and continuing on eventually I had the option of taking a Blue trail. At first I was a glad I took that fork, lots of nice big glaciers full of green fungus, but eventually it became totally unrideable for a long duration and I had to cross a stream with large gaps between the rocks some of which were marked in blue. But after I crossed I found a very rideable "fireroad" that hugged the stream for quite a bit.

Does anyone know a better parking area that will take me closer to that fireroad by the stream? Also we should share in this thread what loops we think are good and what aren't.
 
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You parked at a good location, just managed to miss the good trails. Next time, take either the bue or orange from the bat cave parking. It,s all rideable....by some..keep trying to ride there and you,ll get there too.
 
I totaly get what nicolas is saying.Hit this place for the first time 2 weeks ago.Parked on Meridan just off Green Pond Rd., took the trail (Beach Glen ?) in for a bit, then found a single track (which must be a new trail in the works because it had small orange flags sporadically until I could not recognize a trail any longer)hit a blue trail heading away from Grn Pnd Rd, some nice rocky tech stuff for a while, eventualy I hit Meridan Rd again(not sure how). after back at the car,took Beach Glen Trail up to lower hibernia lot.Past cave found orange took that for a while until it seemed the markings vanished or I veered the wrong way.Wound up on some sandish trail until I came upon the Upper Hibernia lot. Today I started at Upper, took orange to hawkwatch, found a white fun trail for a bit until it seemed to become a lot of hike a bike, turned back hit red which led me back to Upper Hibernia again.Am I hitting the main trails? And if I stayed on the white longer today would it have connected with red again, just a lot lower? I have not given up on this place yet. I kind of like getting lost in the woods for a few hours. Prolly why Mooch is my favorite.
 
kidzach said:
I totaly get what nicolas is saying.Hit this place for the first time 2 weeks ago.Parked on Meridan just off Green Pond Rd., took the trail (Beach Glen ?) in for a bit, then found a single track (which must be a new trail in the works because it had small orange flags sporadically until I could not recognize a trail any longer)hit a blue trail heading away from Grn Pnd Rd, some nice rocky tech stuff for a while, eventualy I hit Meridan Rd again(not sure how).
Click to expand...

Next time you get to Meridan road, don't go back to your car. Instead, go left and you'll eventually see another trail on your left (sorry, don't remember how far but at least a few minutes on the road - think it's by a creek crossing and you have to stay left on the road at one point). This will take you up to the dam/reservior via fire road. There's a couple of options off to the right of this trail that can eventually get you to the same place. If you make a left and cross the dam and then a left into the woods a little thereafter, you can make a nice big loop around the whole park (i.e. were some of the trails were later on in your description). Not easy enough to describe here!

Don't give up though the place does take a certain type. Even when you know the trails, a ride can quickly shift from great to awful.
 
goldsbar said:
Next time you get to Meridan road, don't go back to your car. Instead, go left and you'll eventually see another trail on your left (sorry, don't remember how far but at least a few minutes on the road - think it's by a creek crossing and you have to stay left on the road at one point). This will take you up to the dam/reservior via fire road. There's a couple of options off to the right of this trail that can eventually get you to the same place. If you make a left and cross the dam and then a left into the woods a little thereafter, you can make a nice big loop around the whole park (i.e. were some of the trails were later on in your description). Not easy enough to describe here!

Don't give up though the place does take a certain type. Even when you know the trails, a ride can quickly shift from great to awful.
Click to expand...

Thanks,I'll do more exploring down that way next time.
 
The one really good trail (ok, there's actually a few but you can follow the same general loop on this one) the GPS link above is missing is if you follow the counterclockwise direction, after the reservior you stay on the trail as shown for 5 or 10 minutes (?), you'll pass a marked but unridable trail on your left. Think it's the white. A minute or two thereafter will be a hard to find trail - starts on a small rock IIRC - on the left that leads back to the white trail where it's rideable and a marked trail intersection. Stay straight and you can follow this to near the top of hawk watch. Double back for an incredible fun rocky downhill. Almost all tecnical but rideable singletrack. There's a turn that leads toward that small pond in the picture about halfway through.

Do the link as posted a couple of times to get a feel and then branch out. There's also some really interesting stuff to the right of the stream that climbs up to the reservior dam.
 
Took your advice last time out.Took the left back into the trails off Meridan.This basically took me straight to the damn on mostly a fire road type of a trail. Along the way I tried to cross a stream where I noticed some red markings.This basically led to nowhere.As I made my way toward the damn I did pass a few right turns which seem to go up some pretty steep techy climbs.Not sure if anything special is up this way. Once I crossed the damn I went left back into the trails , Yellow- Wildcat Ridge trail I believe. So far my favorite trail is that nice techy trail (blue?I think, not powder blue-beach glenn)Somwhere in that triangle area between Meridan and Green Pond Rd.The only problem is this trail does not seem to be connected to any other good trails in this "triangle area" as I shall call it. The other area that is pretty good is the Hawkwatch-Upper Hibernia area (orange, white, red).The white trail near the Bat cave is pretty much hiking for the most part. I can see where this place was (and STILL is in some places)a haven for ATV's.
 
"As I made my way toward the damn I did pass a few right turns which seem to go up some pretty steep techy climbs"


We are Working on marking the stream trail and a route towards the boat launch parking lot. I can,t mark the trail to the dam because it is technically off limits. The trail up the hill from the stream is real nice, a long technical climb. Comes out at the power lines, proposed a trailhead to sr road, but there are concerns folks will try to park there which would result in tickets. So we will look for a way to come out closer to the big parking lot.
 
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