Finding new mountain bike trails with Trailforks
Hello all, this is a brief overview of the Trailforks website and phone app for all of you mountain bikers out there. If you haven't heard of this site or used it before, check it out as it is one of the best free resources for finding trails, planning routes and finding trail status.
On the trailforks website, you can view a map of your country and zoom in on an area which shows all legal trails. The map does not show illegal trails or trails on private property.
Here is a zoomed in image of Lake Tahoe and all of the available trails to ride. I have been riding there on and off for a few years and can tell you that there are a LOT of trails here, from lift served bike parks at ski areas like Northstar, Squaw Valley and Kirkwood to shuttle services that drop you off near the top of mountain peaks. (Bring your pads and 'A' game)
You can create a route by linking trails together and download the GPX file. Then upload it to your phone and start it on the Trailforks app. The GPS will track your location and you can follow your route exactly as planned. Pretty cool eh?
After creating your route, it will show you the amount of climbing and descending, the trail length, trail status and total miles.
There is a trail status page that will show you any updates that recent riders have uploaded, like downed trees, streems to large to cross, muddy or snow covered conditions, etc...
There is an events page that you can filter by country / location. Into racing? Find a local race. Looking for a cycling event? Maybe a UCI XC or DH race?
The app for the phone has similar functions of the website with trails that you can download by state or country so you have them on your phone when your in the backcountry with no signal. The shot below is of South Lake Tahoe which I was riding earlier this week.
You can pull up as much detail and options as you like when viewing the maps
You can select a specific trail and see the details like distance, climb, descent and an outline of the mountain. I think one of the best features is your location identifier which is a arrow that point in the direction the top of your phone is pointing. When you come to a fork in a trail, you can just take out your phone and easily determine which way to go. This is specially helpful when the trails are not marked and have not signs.
You can 'discover' trails based on the area your in as well. If your an intermediate level rider, you'll want to search for the blue trails and stay away from the black ones.
There is a lot more on the trailforks site, you can setup a new account and start producing routes or just look for trails that you want to ride in the future. Maybe on a bike vacation?
Let me know if you use this site/app and how you like it...
It will be a nice and memorable ride. You have elaborated well the sites of ride.
This looks like a real comprehensive app for the ardent MTBer, any information you want us available. But I doubt if it is global. Many similar resources i have seen for campers and trekkers are either restricted to the country of origin of the developed world. Nonetheless, will check it out
I looked at India and they have a few trails listed. I'm not sure how popular the sport is there compared to Europe or the USA. I'm sure if were really popular, they would have trail builders and a lot of trails.
Yes. After posting i checked as well. Happily, India is there, sadly there are hardly any trails.
Compared to USA and Europe. Tiny. And the MTB crowd is 15% of the market, if sales are anything to go by.
Currently in India the most popular form of the sport is randonneuring. In most biggish cities you will see brevets being organised. Road races are a few. MTB only the ardent fans follow. MTB riding costs a lot of money, the other two much less relatively.
But it is picking up. Up until now most global manufactures have come here through dealerships. A couple of years ago Giant and this year Trek have entered the market through subsidiaries. They see huge market expansion in India. Because of a growing population with increasing purchasing power, companies of everything are making a beeline for the Indian market.
Most of the cycles being sold currently are hybrids, then roadies and last come MTBs.
We have no built up trails. Only natural trails. Which is both good and bad!
Also, the latest carbon framed high end mountain bikes are really expensive and you need a lot of disposable income to afford one. In the US and in the Bay Area, people have no problem spending $4000+ on a mtb...
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