I think lots of folks are staying away due to trail conditions. I guess there is still some work to be done after the ice storms. Lots of folks were probably preriding the Womble since there is a race coming up too.
Ozarks - Syllamo ranger district/Trail condition
Just got back from AR and spending the weekend in the Syllamo ranger district of the Ozarks. This was my 2nd trip in the last 4 years. We had a great time and I look forward to going back although I was a bit surprised by the lack of riders on the trails. Is the area just to remote or are there better trails in Arkansas? We road the trails Thurs, Friday, Sat and Sunday and we saw two riders total. I was amazed. I know the trails are recovering from the ice storm but most were quite passible only requiring a few dismounts in spots. Some places are starting to become over grown and parts of the trail are in danager of disappearing.
So why the lack of riders on these trails?
So why the lack of riders on these trails?
1 - 13 of 13 Posts
We are very spoiled with many options so traffic is very diluted state wide!!!
heat. not a huge mtb community. unsure about trail conditions. most arkansans are too fat to ride bikes.
AR defiantly has a lot of great trails to choose from. Back in 05 we did a tour of the state and road Syllamo, Womble, Camp Robinson, Cedar Glaze, Earth Quake ridge and a few others that I can't remember the name of. The reason I came back to Syllamo is because out of all of those trails it was our favorite. It had the most varied terrain best mountain feel, good amount of mileage for 3 1/2 day trip, and the loops make it easy to manage the mileage. I guess that is why I was surprised that there was not more people out riding while we were there and surprised at some of the over growth. I hope the trails are still there next time we make it back to the state.
As far as the conditions go, there is a short section of the green trail that is hike a bike because of the down trees, and the red trail had some bad sections, although we did clear some smaller stuff. The Yellow, Blue and Orange where in great shape, only a few large blow downs on each. All trails had sections that were over grown, but not enough to spoil the ride.
The land managers and volunteers have done a great job with the trails in AR. I wished KY land managers would take note, although they probably will not. We have some really great terrian in the State of KY but land managers are not MTB friendly and really cater to the equestrians.
As far as the conditions go, there is a short section of the green trail that is hike a bike because of the down trees, and the red trail had some bad sections, although we did clear some smaller stuff. The Yellow, Blue and Orange where in great shape, only a few large blow downs on each. All trails had sections that were over grown, but not enough to spoil the ride.
The land managers and volunteers have done a great job with the trails in AR. I wished KY land managers would take note, although they probably will not. We have some really great terrian in the State of KY but land managers are not MTB friendly and really cater to the equestrians.
Thanks for the report, I was about to ask. We are headed up there on Friday.
Flyn G
Flyn G
We rode yesterday. We put in at the parking area on the right side of Hwy 5 which was check point 2 during Syallmo's Revenge. We left from there intending to do the 2nd half of the race course. But by Check point 3 we were so tired of moving logs and large branches and our shins were raw from briars and thistle slaps that we bailed and just rode down the road to Blanchard Springs Campground. Sitting in the cold creek water, eating lunch and having a Diamond Bear brew made things all better.
These are very nice trails that need attention to bring them back to their former condition. Are there any local groups trying to maintain these trails?
There were numerous downed trees that need chainsaw attention, but it is my understanding that a person must have special approval from the Forest Service to use one.
Flyn G
These are very nice trails that need attention to bring them back to their former condition. Are there any local groups trying to maintain these trails?
There were numerous downed trees that need chainsaw attention, but it is my understanding that a person must have special approval from the Forest Service to use one.
Flyn G
I was just checking for a Ranger number and found this.
Volunteers Needed!
I'm going to check into it next week and see what I can do.
Flyn G
Volunteers Needed!
I'm going to check into it next week and see what I can do.
Flyn G
Hey you still owe some volunteer time over here!
You must have been on the red trail, it was the worst of all of them. You should give the yellow trail a shot, it was not bad. We stayed in the Blanchard springs camp ground last weekend, that creek was really nice after riding all day in 95 + degree temperatures.FlynG said:We rode yesterday. We put in at the parking area on the right side of Hwy 5 which was check point 2 during Syallmo's Revenge. We left from there intending to do the 2nd half of the race course. But by Check point 3 we were so tired of moving logs and large branches and our shins were raw from briars and thistle slaps that we bailed and just rode down the road to Blanchard Springs Campground. Sitting in the cold creek water, eating lunch and having a Diamond Bear brew made things all better.
These are very nice trails that need attention to bring them back to their former condition. Are there any local groups trying to maintain these trails?
There were numerous downed trees that need chainsaw attention, but it is my understanding that a person must have special approval from the Forest Service to use one.
Flyn G
The place defiantly needs some volunteer help from what I could tell. If I lived around there I defiantly would be involved.
You are right Todd, and I will get over there. Maybe next Sat. if Raz is headed that way.THenne said:Hey you still owe some volunteer time over here!
I'm curious about the Syllamo though. If I can do a bit of chainsaw work to make that passible, I'd be willing to put a day on the red trail.
Flyn G
We went from Blue on the hwy parking lot to Yellow and bailed where it junctioned with the Red. Our plan was to ride the Red loop from there and back downt the Yellow to Blanchard Springs Campground. If Red is worse than what we were hitting, it must be extrememly bad.Single Track MTBer said:You must have been on the red trail, it was the worst of all of them. You should give the yellow trail a shot, it was not bad. We stayed in the Blanchard springs camp ground last weekend, that creek was really nice after riding all day in 95 + degree temperatures.
The place defiantly needs some volunteer help from what I could tell. If I lived around there I defiantly would be involved.
The creek was great after the ride:thumbsup:
The red was defiantly considerably worse that the others. the others defiantly had you off your bike, and after four days of riding there my arms and legs looked like someone had beat me with a whip. We just chalked it up to riding in the back country. We had a good time despite the extra resistance from the trail. The road the red the first day, so I guess that made the other ones seem not so bad. I still think it is worth the trip.
It will be great if you can get people motivated to work out there. It is one of the best trail systems that I have ridden on, I have ridden in 11 states including Kentucky and Arkansas
It will be great if you can get people motivated to work out there. It is one of the best trail systems that I have ridden on, I have ridden in 11 states including Kentucky and Arkansas
1 - 13 of 13 Posts
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