If you want to find established bike routes with little fuss then Trailforks has the best info. You can hit the "discover" button and it'll show you popular routes.

If you're comfortable reading topo maps and like to get off the beaten path then Gaiagps has the most/best info. You can even overlay the Trailforks routes to show you popular routes but there aren't any verbal descriptions of what you're looking at.

 

Not sure where in the mid-Atlantic region you are, but for stuff in Maryland/southern PA, Trailforks is far and away the most complete source of information.

 

I didn't include Strava because it's not something I'm willing to use.

Good thing cause that's not what Strava is for

 

Local mtb clubs and local bicycle shops used to be the way I'd look up new trails in areas unfamiliar to me.

You can diss Strava (for a lot of reasons) but Strava's heatmaps really do show where people are riding.

 

You can diss Strava (for a lot of reasons) but Strava's heatmaps really do show where people are riding.

It's true. I combine the heat maps with GaiaGPS and it shows an awful lot. CalTopo also has lots of info but I find it visually hard to read.

 

MTB Project app is free and does ok. I think it is more conservative on the trails. I’ve submitted a local multi use trail a few years ago and it seems vetted well. We have some new bikes only technical single track. They won’t add it until the park shows it on their official map. This will take awhile. So word of mouth and sharing on others apps may be the only way for now.

Ride with GPS does well for road and dirt. One can filter for more or less dirt.

I’d try Trailforks but for now I don’t go very far.

 

We have some new bikes only technical single track. They won’t add it until the park shows it on their official map. This will take awhile. So word of mouth and sharing on others apps may be the only way for now.

Wait. So you uploaded a suggested trail for approval to MTB Project. And they are saying the land owner or, park. or whatever entity is controlling the visibility to the public?

 

Trailforks

 

Trailforks. In some areas others may have OK coverage, but very dependent on how actively users in that area upload stuff and content managers review it. Trailforks has been consistently good everywhere I've been in the US.

Trailforks will only show "official" trails though, so not everything is there. There is a heat map layer that shows everything people record (may be restricted to the pay version?)

 

Trailforks will only show "official" trails though, so not everything is there. There is a heat map layer that shows everything people record (may be restricted to the pay version?)

That must be park/management or region dependent. There are plenty of "unofficial" trails listed here in California. In fact Trailforks even has the ability to mark trails as unsanctioned.

Why Map Sensitive, Illegal or Hidden Trails? | Trailforks

www.trailforks.com

 

As someone else noted, Strava is not good for navigation.
It is free though and nice for seeing what your friends are up to or tracking your own activity.
Another feature that I really like is that it will tell you how many miles you've put on any components that you've listed (or total on your bike).
You can have multiple bikes.
That's how I knew that my Fat Bike only got a pathetic 500 miles out of it's SRAM NX chain (so I upgraded to X01 chain).

If you want to find established bike routes with little fuss then Trailforks has the best info. You can hit the "discover" button and it'll show you popular routes.

Trail forks is quite useful & you now get one entire state for free.

I also use Komoot. Maps aren't as good as Trailforks but if you want to plan a ride on your computer, it's nice for that.
You can also change routes on the fly so it's good for getting you back to your car if you go astray.

 

I agree Trailforks is best and most comprehensive, but the maps on MTBProject are easier to read.

 

Add and unoffical trail and see what happens. You'll get a notice if/when it is rejected or approved.

 

Undoing Strava segments = Very Difficult.