Out of all the thousands of miles of singletrack spread across the nation, these 10 trails rank among the very best. Put these trails on your "must-ride-before-I-die" list today!
LessThe Whole Enchilada ranks among the most epic mountain bike rides of all time! This point-to-point route drops a whopping 7,000 vertical feet over 25 miles, and while there is some climbing along the way, all told it's one of most fantastic descents in existence.
Imagine the most epic mountain top views in the world and combine them with beautiful, flowing singletrack, followed by a raucous, high-speed descent down a mountainside ending on the valley floor, and you have the epic Monarch Crest Trail in a nutshell. The Crest is often ranked as one of the best mountain bike trails in the United States, and even the world. It's deserving of that ranking, too, with a roughly 10-mile portion of the trail that hugs the top of the Continental Divide.
The Hiline Trail is both stunningly beautiful and incredibly technical but thankfully, not at the same time. The trail gets its name from the high traverse that it performs above sheer cliff bands along the side of one of Sedona's red rock mountains. Thanks to the trail's vantage point high above the valley floor, riders can enjoy stunning views of the surrounding mountains and red rock formations.
The Kingdom Trail Network is an absolutely massive trail system boasting over 100 miles of non-motorized multi-use trails. With everything from old school hand-built singletrack to machine-built flow trails, doubletrack, and old gravel roads, this expansive network truly does have a trail for everyone!
If you’re a mountain biker living in Portland, Oregon, you ride at Sandy Ridge—it’s that simple. Despite being located over 40 miles from downtown, Sandy Ridge is the closest mountain bike legal singletrack network to the city of Portland. Built from the ground up by IMBA, this superbly-constructed trail system ranks as one of the top trails in the nation!
Dupont State Forest is a massive 10,400-acre forest just outside of Brevard, North Carolina that has become one of the most popular and highly-acclaimed trail systems in the United States. Dupont is probably best-known for two things: its gorgeous waterfalls and the iconic slickrock balds with views of the entire region, which this route visits.
The trail system at Copper Harbor was one of the first Ride Centers designated by IMBA. With the Silver-Level Ride Center designation, Copper Harbor ranks among the very best mountain bike destinations in the world! The route mapped here is just one example of an iconic pedal-driven loop through the network that access the iconic “The Flow” trail.
The “epic” in the name “Osberg Ridgeline Epic” comes from at least three aspects: 1. The epic length of this full-day point-to-point route. 2. The epic singletrack winding through the massive mountains. 3. The epic views from the above-treeline ridge! This gorgeous, singletrack-filled shuttle run checks all of the boxes for an iconic big mountain ride!
The Downieville Downhill is a classic shuttle run of epic proportions! Over the course of 15 miles the trail drops over 4,000 feet of net elevation. Running from the top of a mountain ridge down to the banks of the Yuba River, this epic trail has been a classic ride for decades. In fact, the trail and the town of Downieville are host to a long running race/festival dubbed the “Downieville Classic.”