Ridin' down Mt. Washington ?

[K2Dewd]

Has anyone taken their bike down any of the less steep trails ( boot spur etc. ? ) My topo map shows a lot of rideable elevations on this and other trails ? Or are bikes even allowed , last I knew they were allowed on all trails eccept the Appalcian Trail. Im gettin pretty excited about a hike-up bike-down this summer.

[neusaab]

Perhaps I'm wrong, but I don't think biking's allowed there.

[Slappy]

Naw, no bikes up there. Believe the Dry River - Presidential Range wilderness area covers pretty much anything in the vicinity. Bikes aren't allowed in wilderness areas, they're pretty clearly marked hiking trail maps. Probably a good idea to check and make sure any trail you're planning on riding up there isn't in one.

Tons of other good riding in the area tho, and may I suggest a chairlift? :D

[lobolator]

Great Glen Trails (read fee) is as close as you get to Mt Washington.
You can race up the auto road once a year, but you can't ride down.

[Scott O]

I'ts definately not open to biking. I doesn't look too steep on a topo but you'd wind up doing a bit of hike a biking down it. Maybe someday?????

[K2Dewd]

From what i've read about the trails in the White Mountains National Park area is that ( according to their site , all trails are open to mountainbiking accept the Appalacian trail and other "Wilderness areas" ) and it goes on to name the several designated areas in the WMNF where mountainbiking is prohibited. Mount Washington , and the Presidential Range is NOT listed. Other sites list the plight of organisations such as NEMBA to get the terminology down as to the legal description of what a " Wilderness Area " is ,and beleive me its pretty touchy , before certain groups blanket the entire trailsystem as a no-bike rule. Anybody out there got any hard info ?

[heckler]

I have always understood that the WMNF was off limits to riding. Certainly all the trails around Franconia Notch are.

Knowing the trails in the area, I can't imagine really wanting to ride down any of them! And I suspect that if you were to unload a bike at the top of Washington, park ranger types would probably be on you pretty quick. Plus it is just plain rude to the hikers struggling up if you were actually able to ride down it.

It would be pretty cool though. I have to admit! Unil they took your bike away. :(

[GandALF2]

Hey K2 Dewd,

I don't want to throw further cold water on this subject but I can't think of an area in New England that would do more harm to our cause than this one. Consider that the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) has one of their biggest facilities at Pinkham Notch. IMHO, next to the Sierra Club, they are very unfriendly to bikes. Mount Washington is one of the most heavily hiked mountains in New England. (Easy Mt Monadnockers, I said "ONE OF" not "THE"). I will almost guarantee that you will generate some publicity about your ride but it won't be the kind that you want. This is an extremely high profile area.

I also agree with the comment above about the trails themselves being unrideable. The contours on the map that you are reading are most likely at the 100' interval and not 20' as is the case in most other areas of New England. That means that the trails are five times steeper than you think. If you have ever hiked in this area, many of the trails have sections that require hand over foot climbing. Even Hans Rey might have a hard time here. Sometimes there are good and valid reasons that some fruit is forbidden.

As was stated above, the closest you can get to riding on Mt Washington, except for the once a year road ride up the auto road, is the Great Glen trails system at the base of the auto road. It is the site of the 24 hours of Great Glen.

Sorry Dewd, but as attractive as it may sound, this is just not a good idea. There are many other areas in the Whites that are open to bikes. If you really want to ride up there, check in with the White Mountain chapter and they can give you the full skinny on what's open. BTW, these folks have spent many hours, days, weeks educating and cajoling the WMNF folks about bikes and how they can be a valid form of recreation and how MTB'ers are a group that can help. One ride down a trail on Mt. Washington can destroy what it took these folks a lot of time and effort to accomplish.

Chime in here White Mountain folks!

Alf

[lobolator]

If you want a good mtn top ride, go for the Moats. You'll be able to see Mt. Washington. The trail goes up and over North, Middle , and South Moat Mtns. Good hard climb, long mtn ridge, good long descent (for the East coast).
By the way, there's no need to pay to ride up here, as long as you're willing to climb. But Attitash is fun if you want a lift up.

[MTBME]

I've hiked a lot of those trails and there's no way you would be able to get much riding in. Quite a few years back I thought a might be able to ride a good portion to the summit of Mount Pemigewasset. That also known as the Indian Head on Rte. 3 in Franconia. The lower sections rolled pretty good but then it was hike a bike all the way to the top. I did get to the top with the bike and was a minor celebrity as people were trying to figure out what the hell I was up to. Didn't get into any trouble but I did get in quite a workout.

[Slappy]

Mount Washington , and the Presidential Range is NOT listed.

I'd be inclined to go out a limb here and assume that the Great Gulf and Presidential Range wilderness areas encompass exactly what they describe.
There are tons of other trails in the WMNF that are okay to ride. The forestry service even used to put out a mtb trail map with difficulty ratings and all.(not sure if they still do - probably be able to hunt one down though).

The other two wilderness areas we need to stay out of are the Pemigewassit and Sandwich

[Slappy]

http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=stateView&state=nh&map=menhvt

[K2Dewd]

Just cant figure , where ARE these laws , I mean , I guess you guys would know , but not a mention of it on their site. Sure I dont want to bring any unneeded attention to these trails but theres some awesome sections , they'd be a gutbuster im sure ,but u only go around once. However if u guys say no then i'll respect it for sure , but God , there is some sure sweet trails in them white mountains , and some are a bear but dont we have a right ? And oh yeah to see Hans Rey bumpin down White Mountain trails......no-way !!

p.s. bet W rides a hardtail !!

[heckler]

Thank you!

[hogboy]

put it this way. go ride the trails up there. when you get punked off your bike by a ranger, and also slapped with jail time and a huge fine, tell us what it's like to be broke, bikeless, and have a record. it'll be an interesting post for sure.

[Slappy]

...but not a mention of it on their site.

:confused:


http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/white_mountain/recreation/biking/

"Cycling is prohibited on the Appalachian Trail , and in the 5 designated Wildernesses: Caribou-Speckled Mountain Great Gulf Pemigewasset Presidential/Dry River and Sandwich Range
For your safety, always be prepared when riding off-road. "

"A detailed mountain biking map covering the Pemigewasset Ranger District is available at all Ranger Stations (http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/white_mountain/contact/index.php)and the Supervisor's Office (http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/white_mountain/contact/index.php). A recreation opportunity guide for the Cherry Mountain bike loop is available."

[montana]

f'n idiot!

[off piste]

f'n idiot!

Comprehend what you read much?

[K2Dewd]

Slap , slap slap...im'bleedin ....I got it...I got it...

[BigMac]

Hey K2 Dewd,

I don't want to throw further cold water on this subject but I can't think of an area in New England that would do more harm to our cause than this one. Consider that the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) has one of their biggest facilities at Pinkham Notch. IMHO, next to the Sierra Club, they are very unfriendly to bikes. Mount Washington is one of the most heavily hiked mountains in New England. (Easy Mt Monadnockers, I said "ONE OF" not "THE"). I will almost guarantee that you will generate some publicity about your ride but it won't be the kind that you want. This is an extremely high profile area.

I also agree with the comment above about the trails themselves being unrideable. The contours on the map that you are reading are most likely at the 100' interval and not 20' as is the case in most other areas of New England. That means that the trails are five times steeper than you think. If you have ever hiked in this area, many of the trails have sections that require hand over foot climbing. Even Hans Rey might have a hard time here. Sometimes there are good and valid reasons that some fruit is forbidden.

As was stated above, the closest you can get to riding on Mt Washington, except for the once a year road ride up the auto road, is the Great Glen trails system at the base of the auto road. It is the site of the 24 hours of Great Glen.

Sorry Dewd, but as attractive as it may sound, this is just not a good idea. There are many other areas in the Whites that are open to bikes. If you really want to ride up there, check in with the White Mountain chapter and they can give you the full skinny on what's open. BTW, these folks have spent many hours, days, weeks educating and cajoling the WMNF folks about bikes and how they can be a valid form of recreation and how MTB'ers are a group that can help. One ride down a trail on Mt. Washington can destroy what it took these folks a lot of time and effort to accomplish.

Chime in here White Mountain folks!

Alf
well I agree with all above who have told you no, about ten years ago me and the wife had our bikes in the back of the truck when we went up there and we were asked to leave if we were planning on biking as it is not and never has been allowed. And from what I am told there are "LAWS" that you can read up on on what is allowed in the area.

[BigMac]

on another note don't go by a map. if you have ever hiked it you would see that it would not be worth a ride on that mtn as cool as it sounds....there would be more hike-a-bike and as gand-alf stated ther is much hand over foot climbing.

[K2Dewd]

Montana and off piste , I think you girls hung on to your mommys tit a little too long .

[off piste]

Montana and off piste , I think you girls hung on to your mommys tit a little too long .


Considering I was supporting you with my comment, I now ask you -- do you ever bother to try to comprehend what you read or just go spouting off like a newbie moron also?

Montana -- my apologies -- you were right on the mark on this one. Welcome to the forum!

Off to a good start there, DewwwwwwwwwD!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v411/hells/more/36_11_6.gif

[catbbq]

Montana and off piste , I think you girls hung on to your mommys tit a little too long .

Why do noobs come in and start insulting people that are asking questions and trying to help out?

The good folks at nemba.org put up a place to argue, and we do argue, over in the politics and rants section.

Keep you pointless posts to that area like the rest of us.

[K2Dewd]

I dont think you read the posts catbq , no disrespect here , I love downhill , just gotta improve my readin skills . its great to know the White mts. isnt totally offlimits. And yes every site has its little kids with little pee-pees.

[Slappy]

Have you tried Highland or Attitash in NH for downhilling already? If not, highly recommended. Do a search on youtube or somewhere for videos or pics from either place.
Mt Snow, Killington, Bolton Valley in VT and Jiminy Peak in MA also have lift serviced stuff. It's the way to go if you want to rip downhill. 10 runs a day on mtb specific trails is way better than 1 run on a sketchy trail full of pissed off hikers IMO.

[radair]

The above timberline trails don't get poached because there really is no riding, it's more like a talus field. They don't call it the rockpile for nothing.

You can add the new Wild River Wilderness area to the list as well.

[K2Dewd]

Thats a shame , I rode the River-basin loop 2 yrs. ago on a hike-ride-bike wknder , it was a bloody bear. Is it the pure naturalists that dont want any mechanical interference on the trails , just the purity of the feet , I mean were as responsible as they are ,or IS there an invasive threat to our ecology. I've never seen trails that were so damned by mtb riders ,with the ecception of hi traffic trails ,and those were ecologically maintained to allow runnoff and other natural occurrances , that disrupted natures balance. Im really hoping we can all eat cake. Ride-on

[K2Dewd]

Nobody's bombin ,woodsie , theres just some powerful forces not just in N.E. , but all over America that have that Sierra Club mentality. The word here is responsibility and respect. A lot of nature lovers think bikers are animals without concience , hey were nature lovers too. If we were'nt ,we'd be out on the asphalt like most , but we hate the stink and love the outdoors.We've got just so many tears on this planet and I feel that if we enjoy the outdoors and want to persue our sport , then we should be able to do so , responsibly.

[FriedRys]

Just wondering if you have done any hiking in the area that your talking about? I can't think of more than 100 consecutive feet that you could get a bike down aside from just throwing it and watching it tumble. It may look fairly easy when ya look at a map, but get out there, and it's a whole different story.

If your looking for a really good mountain top ride that is actually rideable and legal, take a look at Mt. Cardigan-Mt. Firescrew.

[Slappy]

But to a hiker, a mountain biker in full body armor and a full faced helmet blasting down a mountain on a dh bike isn’t much different than a MXer. Do you really want to be lumped in with them when discussing trail access?

I'm pretty positive K2dewd doesn't fall into this catergory at all.
It all still applies when it's a spandex clad XC rider clattering down the mt at the very limit of his control though doesn't it?

[C.P.]

This thread is going nowhere fast...

[Scott O]

This is bs. You people who tell me I can't ride my bike anywhere I want are the same one's who get mad when I drive my car down the side walk. I also don't understand why I can't do my squirrel hunting on the Boston Common and why people get upset when I use the ladies room to take a crap.

[K2Dewd]

Woodsy ,dude , I did'nt mean to get your underwear all in a bunch , I mean , im not doin it man , im not ridin down Washington , its over , I asked a question , I got an answer , cause ..and effect. Im just not happy about the Wild River area , what next ? Hey I enjoy ridin the old nearby standbys , theyre a lot of fun , but I like to go up country for a wknd and get intothe back woods , beers ,steaks and bikes, and yes we check the trails for mtb approval . Before long , more areas will fall by the wayside , and hikers will rule . I mean what the hell did God make the wheel for anyway . Oh and Scotty , ridin sidewalks or poppin squirrellies fine , but dude stay outta the little girls room.

[Slappy]

Whoa, don’t get me wrong. I am not against downhilling. I enjoy it myself. But I don’t think it would be wise to start pushing for the right to bomb down any trail we want. I think downhilling should be restricted to only those areas which are set up for it. Not only for the safety of other trail users (none) but for the riders themselves. I can’t see a mult-use trail system where there are hikers with kids sharing the trails with downhill rigs. And as a hiker and birder I would like to have some trails that I can enjoy without bikes. Just like how we (as mtbers) like to have trails without MXers and quads.


Sorry - I forgot my ;)
I'm pretty much with ya. Maybe insteada 'downhill rigs', I'd be thinking more like 'anybody going too fast for the conditions' (which include the possibilities of other user traffic of course). That's a nitpick though.


K2 I think we can all get behind a backwoods epic and some frosties. I know I can. :D And I think we've got things pretty good access-wise here in NE; some of that comes from being a self-policing community. A rip down the wrong trail could undo a lot real quick, so people (specially here) react pretty strongly. Plenty of good open stuff out there tho - I say we can this thread and start a fresh one about good legal 'out there' rides.