[Molasses]

I have lived in NJ most of my life. I grew up in Northern Jersey and I now live in Central Jersey. When you think about it, we have some great riding here in NJ and despite riding for several years there are still some spots in NJ that I need to ride.

So what are your favorite trails and for what reasons? If you're so inclined, what are some of the trails you'd like to ride that you still haven't?

Here are some of my favs in no particular order-

Mahlon Dickerson- Cut my teeth here and always find it a blast to ride, whether it is a singlespeed or dually
Clayton- Great park for riding with my pup (not too long for him and not too rocky)
Chimney Rock- Great intermediate technical ride that is really close to where I live
Ringwood- Many options from technical singletrack to carriage roads
Hartshorne- Excellent non-technical, but highly aerobic singletrack
Allamuchy- I don't know this trail system well and I have only ridden it it with a group of great riders making it a great day of biking.

I'd like to ride these trails
Skyline/Cannonball
Waywayanda
Stokes
High Point

Stay warm everybody!

 

[Stratocaster]

Flow

Anything with flow and rhythm that's not choppy and stupid...

I can't really say any particular park or trail system, I seem to enjoy sections. Sometimes it's big ringing down some power line trail or top speed down the beginning of the old race loop at Mahlon, or some banked s-turns somewhere that reminds me of riding moto-x. Maybe some puke hill once in awhile if I'm feelin good or even a nite ride in the snow. I guess any place that gets my heart and lungs pumpin for a long time and puts a big smile on the old kisser.

 

[deathonwheels]

C. Rock - My local favorite because it is close to where I live and the trails rattle my teeth. Sucks when it rains though.

Hartshorne - No tech stuff, but alot of fun. Driving there sucks, takes me an hour without traffic.

Six Mile Run - Mainly because it is 5 - 10min away and not heavily utilized. This place is under water when it rains though and littered with slack jawed, tabacco spitting, god fearin', made in america bow and arrow crazed hunters this time of year. Thorns and bees everywhere during the summer, but it was fun due to the dry conditions we had before the noreasters hit.

Clayton - Also no tech stuff, but bone dry after rain so a bonus. Watch out for the horse pies and horse flies in the summer!!

Kilmer - Nice short, steep drops/climbs and dirt jump areas, but generally small area and the only significant obstacles are the doughnut packers who lurk in the bushes. Mudfest when it rains.

Mercer - Not worth it really, but I went there alot when I lived in Plainsboro because it was close and quick when I was too lazy to drive. A big stinkin' swamp when it rains.

Ringwood - Awesome in every way!!!! I would go more often if it was closer, but the gas $$$ is killing me.

 

[Tracerboy]

Good topic for a thread, Molasses.

I agree with with your analysis (with the spots on your list that I have ridden).

A few underratted spots:
(in your area) Allaire: Lots of good trails, if you know where to look.
Cheesequake: Not a lot of trails that you are allowed to ride (3-4 miles)
but really fun where you can ride.
(southern n.j.) Camden County College: I'm probably bias because I made a lot there but its not bad.

I also agree that you should get out to Waywayanda. That place is great. Again, I might be bias (this time because I won my first race there), but its just a great, beautiful intermediate spot.

I used to be a big fan of Rutgers Livingston but its being really neglected. (Too bad.)

 

[Roland]

I'd have to say Ringwood because of the variety. There are trails of all kinds and depending on how you feel like riding you can do it there. Carriage roads, singletrack climbs, powerline/gasline downhills, a race course, drops, it's all there in one place. The trails there are for the most part well maintained, but not manicured to the point that they're boring.
Another thing I like about Ringwood is that any given day of the week you are most likely not the only one riding there, and the other riders tend to be friendly and helpfull if you need it.

Waywayanda is cool too, and a lot of fun, but riding there is different than Ringwood. Some of the trails are way more technical and a really good place to test your abilities. The forest seems to be thicker and the trails don't dry out as quickly as other places, I've been riding there in April and still seen ice in some spots.
"where the heck is the trail?" and "is that bear poop?" are thoughts that pop up sometimes when I ride there. I have a map that I got from Town Cycle in West Milford, and it does show lots of trails, but not whether they're open to bikes. I've been on some kick ass trails only to find out later that they're not.

 

[Mike679]

I generally stay in the northwest area of the state, close to my house.

Allamuchy (north) is my favorite by far. I just started riding there regularly two years ago (with some people from this board, incidentally). Still finding my way around. Love the climbs, the rocks, and the fact that you can ride there for hours and not see a soul.

Round Valley comes in second. I've been riding there forever and it's familiar and straight-forward. Drains better than any place in north NJ, in my opinion, well except for the first couple of miles.

Deer Park is great for those rides when I haven't been riding in a few weeks. The trails there are fast, not too technical, and you can cover a lot of ground in a pretty short time. Gets muddy, though.

Chimney Rock is where I more or less learned how to ride, so it has a place on the list. I love riding there in sub-freezing weather when everything is frozen and rock hard (traction!). It's also a good after-work ride. I find that I ride there less frequently since I became obsessed with Allamuchy.

All of these places are within 25 minutes of my house, so I rarely venture to Ringwood (though I should). I rode Mahlon a while back and loved it, but haven't made it back. Used to ride the Tourne prior to the whole partial trail-closure thing, and haven't ridden Lewis Morris in 4 or 5 years despite it being fairly close to the house. I understand that there's been a lot of work done there, so I'll check it out at some point again.

So many great trails, so little time.

 

[tkrutis]

For close to home South Mountain is #1,its got it all,good climbs,some technical,single track,and can get a pretty big loop out off it.The only problem is the dam tickets for illegal riding.If I got the time,which is never with 2 young kids,Allamuchy is King

 

[Stratocaster]

Underrated

I'de like to also hear a few more places people consider as excellent and underrated. This will create some interest in the areas less known. Yeah.. mooch and ring... and I like hearing the whys...

As far as underrated.. I'de have to give Black River a nod.. about a 12 mile ride. The area is long mountain ridge and valley with the river running along the bottom. The trails are laid from top to bottom of the mtn and give long climbs and downhills. Great for fast riding. Always always dry. Around an hour and forty five min. ride at a good clip. (It does need a few more trails to get you off the rail bed a bit but I've ridden as much rail bed at mooch, mahlon and kitt, and don't go there looking for too many rocks)

All in all... Great long downhills that remind me of snow skiing..

 

[Tracerboy]

People should try to give general locations. I, for one, have no idea where some of these places are.

 

[Stratocaster]

trail reviews

People should try to give general locations. I, for one, have no idea where some of these places are.

Scroll up, click on Trail Reviews... that should help.

 

[Mike679]

Black River?

I'de like to also hear a few more places people consider as excellent and underrated. This will create some interest in the areas less known. Yeah.. mooch and ring... and I like hearing the whys...

As far as underrated.. I'de have to give Black River a nod.. about a 12 mile ride. The area is long mountain ridge and valley with the river running along the bottom. The trails are laid from top to bottom of the mtn and give long climbs and downhills. Great for fast riding. Always always dry. Around an hour and forty five min. ride at a good clip. (It does need a few more trails to get you off the rail bed a bit but I've ridden as much rail bed at mooch, mahlon and kitt, and don't go there looking for too many rocks)

All in all... Great long downhills that remind me of snow skiing..

Is this in the Chester area? I've lived in the area for years(Long Valley) and never ridden this trail. Any details?

I've ridden Columbia Trail to a couple of obscure areas of singletrack. I can pick up Columbia Trail from my house and head south to a trail that connects you to the vicinity of Vorhees State Park where there's a little bit of fun trails, or I can head north and hit some singletrack that brings you up the back side of Schooley's Mountain. Legal? I'm not sure, but there is evidence of other riders - chain ring marks in logs and so on.

I have heard that there is a trail that goes from the vicinity of Vorhees State Park up to the quarry in Glen Gardener, but have no idea where that trail is. Anyone know?

It's always nice to have trails near the house that you can hop on your bike to get to, especially when time is limited.

Mike

 

[Molasses]

Keep the info coming!

This is great! Thanks to everyone who has and continues to post. I thought this would be useful because I found alot of great trails in Central/Southern New Jersey I never, ever would have found if I didn't move into the area. Some may worth the hour + trip to getting to while others may not depending upon one's interest and mood.

Another honorable mention should be Wissahikon Park in PA. Not too far over the border and is a great place to ride!

 

[mtnbkr0101]

People should try to give general locations. I, for one, have no idea where some of these places are.

check out www.mtbnj.com. there is a nice trail review section and a state map with trail locations.

 

[Stratocaster]

Is this in the Chester area?
Mike

Mike,
One end is in Chester off of Pleasant Hill Road.
The preferrable end is in Randolph off of Dover-Chester road, south of Route 10. (park at Bill's Luncheonette)

Steve

 

[Tracerboy]

Scroll up, click on Trail Reviews... that should help.

Lots of spots mentioned and talked about here are not reviewed in Trail Reviews, but thanks everyone for the info.

 

[schnauzers]

The First Place I Ever Road a MTB

I guess that even though it's not exactly technical or hilly, I have to go with my first. After all you always remember your first. I road it almost 20 years ago on a Trek 820 (which I still have) and today I road it again. Still fun after all these years. It's also a project of the NJMBA-DRC to legitimize and mark the trails working with the Pinelands Commission and other conservatories in this area. Here's my ride report from today:

Sometimes a ride doesn't have to be about going as fast as you can, dropping off of cliffs, or barreling through boulders. OK, so it should be about that, but living here in the flatlands, with temps fluctuating between freeze and thaw it's impossible to find a trail that is ridable without destroying it. So today we ventured out to one of my favorite places and pretty much where I first road a mountain bike. A nice large chunk of land in the middle of suburban sprawl, protected forever from greedy land developers by a rarely seen rattlesnake. Yeah, I said rattlesnake. We have them here, but I've never seen one. The greenies actually counted them a few years back (the government actually paid them to do it). I've written about this area many times before, but each time it still amazes me how much singletrack is here.

We start off from the shopping center parking lot and head through the PUD (planned urban development) out to the main trail head. The trails lining the lake are a little soggy, but the sand holds up well. Heading into KGII things are nice and frozen since the sun hasn't been out. There are now a few people holding weekly rides here, so the trails are worn in nicely. Nice and flowing in and out of the pines and past the cranberry bogs.

We then head across the street to the "hilly" section sampling more great singletrack the motos have laid down. We here a few motors in the distance, but they are not that close. Across the border into the next county we do a short climb past the superfund site and hit the BMX track. Lot's of fun when you know what's coming up. Then it's off to the peak. It's the highest spot in this area at 250'. The views are great though as everything else is at sea level. Then down the hill for some tight twisty downhill singletrack. The SS is really digging in today and I am showing off some of the balancing I have been working on. I get some decent air on the whoop-dee-dos, probably because the bike is light it's easy to put it up. I manage to land them all well, something I have always had a problem with.

We finish off with a tight switchback section. Basically a short down, then a tight 180 degree turn and a steep up. This happens three times in this section right after each other. Even on the 34/16 I am able to painfully make it. Back through some more singletrack and to the car for a 20 mile fun ride.

Here's the GPS profile, maps, sat pics, and KML for Google Earth, if anyone is interested. I shot some video but the camera angle was too low. Since I was unable to get the bullet cam to work I strapped the camera to my helmet as an experiment to see if I could handle the weight. Surprisingly, it wasn't that bad (about 3 pounds total between the camera and the ankle weight). So now I'll order one of those x-jackets,

https://www.pchospital.net/kg2005t.jpg
https://www.pchospital.net/kgprofile.jpg https://www.pchospital.net/kg2005s.jpg https://www.pchospital.net/KG.kml

 

[KirtM]

but living here in the flatlands, with temps fluctuating between freeze and thaw it's impossible to find a trail that is ridable without destroying it.

Dude, get over it!!! There's plenty of places to ride where you won't destroy the trails. I rode Hartshone on Saturday & it was fine. I'm sure Allaire would be the same. Your stories are enjoyable just try telling them without the preaching.

FYI. A few of us rode part of the 24hrs/Allamuchy course about a month ago and it has made a full recovery from the race. I thought you might be interested.

Kirt

 

[schnauzers]

but living here in the flatlands, with temps fluctuating between freeze and thaw it's impossible to find a trail that is ridable without destroying it.

Dude, get over it!!! There's plenty of places to ride where you won't destroy the trails. I rode Hartshone on Saturday & it was fine. I'm sure Allaire would be the same. Your stories are enjoyable just try telling them without the preaching.

Just my personal thoughts and opinions. I wasn't preaching. Hartshorne is almost two hours away for me and Allaire is just as flat as where I was on Sunday (actually it may even be lower elevation). I ride at Allair often. There are spots (especially by the river) that are mucky throughout the winter. No big deal as long as you ride through it and not around it.

FYI. A few of us rode part of the 24hrs/Allamuchy course about a month ago and it has made a full recovery from the race. I thought you might be interested.
Kirt

That's good.