# exotic and unlikely mountain bike destinations



## telebiker (May 6, 2004)

Show us locations where you've biked that would qualify as "off the radar". My fave spot is Jamaica. Lots of tropical trails, many bottles of Red Stripe beer and plenty of ......well , you know.


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## RecceDG (Sep 4, 2010)

Tenerife. Best volcano ever.

DG


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

Dodecanese Islands Greece.


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## k2biker (Jan 13, 2004)

Bosnia and Tibet. You should come with us in 2011.


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## bpheasant (May 20, 2009)

Around the teafields, Limuru (just outside Nairobi), Kenya. Was going anyway & took the bike along mainly because I could (generous baggage allowance) - was a great way of getting out & exploring between villages.










Also, the riding around Kathmandu & Pokhara, Nepal is pretty good. Once again - a great way to get off the beaten track.


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## Bkmonster (Sep 16, 2010)

Wow, looks amazing. So how does one travel with a mountain bike? How much dis-assembly needs to be done and how much are the special luggages for bikes?

thanks


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## bpheasant (May 20, 2009)

Bkmonster said:


> Wow, looks amazing. So how does one travel with a mountain bike? How much dis-assembly needs to be done and how much are the special luggages for bikes?
> 
> thanks


There are a wide range of travel bags for bikes available (& correspondingly a wide range of prices) - & some people just use cardboard bike boxes (easily obtained free from bike shops). Being from NZ, I use this one from Ground Effect (I think mainly because I saw how a friend's worked from him. It's on the rather minimal side for padding, but a few pieces of cardboard & wrapping for the tubes in the right place prevent most damage. My bike has been on countless planes, on top of tiny taxis in Nepal and trains & buses all over the place for the last three years without any significant damage - I perhaps don't take enough care packing as I should as some of the paintwork is a bit scratched up now.

To disassemble & pack takes about half an hour - wheels removed, quick release skewers removed, spacers put in skewers & reinserted in to dropouts, rear derailleur removed, seat lowered, cranks & chain removed (not necessary, but the pedals have to come off anyway - so I find it easier just to remove the crankset) and finally handlebars removed. After three years of this, I have finally replaced the rather bent discs - from now on I will remove the discs each time.

With just the bike & shoes in the bag it looks like this. It's easy to fit in the necessary tools, camelbak, riding clothes & I often get a sleeping bag in as well. The most significant damage I had from an airline was a cracked helmet - that now goes in my other bag. I've usually managed to fly with generous airlines & have only paid about $60 in extra baggage fees over the last three years.

It can be a bit of a drag lugging such a bag around (as well as another one or two - dealing with the packed Tube during a London summer after flying for 24 hours & then walking a couple of miles was rather trying) - wheels would be something I would look for next time. But it's well worth it to get explore different countries & trails by bike.


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## Bryce604 (Oct 6, 2009)

Laos - ultra-hot, shitty rental bike, no helmet, virtually no health care facilities, no familiarity with area, riding solo. What could possibly go wrong?


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## MTB1ker29 (Nov 1, 2010)

This thread is so interesting! Have been on tons of mountain bike holidays with the fam around the uk - Scotland and Ireland especially, so it's been really fascinating to see such unlikely destinations...would never have thought of them myself!


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## michaeldorian (Nov 17, 2006)

Subscribed. Awesome thread topic


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## mitzikatzi (Sep 9, 2008)

*Australia *

Well it is not really Exotic.








Details

I have no idea what the tour company is like. I just found the ride and thought it looked like a good one.


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## dkbikes4life (Nov 20, 2010)

I've never gone riding there yet, but I would absolutely love to go ride Norway around the fjords. I have an old mountain bike magazines that have pics of epic rides around the world and they show some of the trails in Norway and it is gorgeous.


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## rystel (May 21, 2010)

*Yukon, Canada*

Awesome riding, fun people. Check out Ride Guide TV episode from last year
http://www.rideguide.ca/bike_episode.aspx?mid=33316&cid=14067


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## Pimpride (Nov 14, 2005)

Heard Puerto Rico has some good tropical trails. Also wished I had my bike in Luxemboug...


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## abegold (Jan 30, 2004)

dkbikes4life said:


> I've never gone riding there yet, but I would absolutely love to go ride Norway around the fjords. I have an old mountain bike magazines that have pics of epic rides around the world and they show some of the trails in Norway and it is gorgeous.


Canada and Alaska have fijords. Canada is as bike friendly and remote as most anywhere. You can ferry to destinations right up the west coast from Vancouver to Alaska, one of my travel dreams. 
Lots trails on Vancouver Island and near Vancouver, Squamish.
I've explored Doubtful Sound in New Zealand (don't bother with more famous and much more crowded Milford).The fijord I was in was huge, silent except for the birds and seals on rocks at the entrance. Water was calm and we had to to ourselves except for 2 other small boats. Rich forest environment with dolphins following the boat, riding the wake. Fiordland National Park.


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## iRideAfrica (Jan 10, 2011)

So no mentions of South Africa yet? Cape Town and surrounding mountains have some great mountain biking and Howick, in KwaZulu Natal has probably got the biggest network of trails in South Africa.

You can find more info and proper maps about cycling in South Africa as well as where to hire high quality bikes if you search for 'iRide Africa'


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## mtbmike93 (Aug 22, 2011)

My wife and I rode in southern Scotland this June. We went over during Tweed Love, a week long mtb festival in the Tweed Valley of scotland. The access rights in scotland pretty much let you ride anywhere responsibly. We rode 30 mile "Naturals" as they call it and some of the trail centers called 7Stanes. A must if you want a riding adventure.


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## OldIcehouse (Aug 2, 2010)

*Concur with Scotland*

I concur with riding Scotland. Just returned for a West to East C2C ride. 300 miles and 35,000 vertical. Oustanding time. The Scottish Highlands are not to be missed.


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## abegold (Jan 30, 2004)

mtbmike93 said:


> My wife and I rode in southern Scotland this June. We went over during Tweed Love, a week long mtb festival in the Tweed Valley of scotland. The access rights in scotland pretty much let you ride anywhere responsibly. We rode 30 mile "Naturals" as they call it and some of the trail centers called 7Stanes. A must if you want a riding adventure.


Trails built for mountain biking by mountain bikers are maybe only a 20-30 year occurance since they've started to be built. Were any of the trails you were riding built for bikes or all for walking?


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## SJKevin (Nov 30, 2011)

You can hop off the beach for a day and do jungle trail riding in St. Lucia. It's one of the more mountainous Caribbean islands.


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## telebiker (May 6, 2004)

Aaaahhhh...St Lucia. What a lovely island. Wasn't Tinker Huarez involved in developing a trail there?


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## likeaboss (Jan 1, 2012)

+1 St. Lucia. Great windsurfing too.


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## summud (Jul 26, 2006)

*St. Lucia*

+1 St Lucia. The wife and i went there with some friends to a Sandals Resort (group vacation). It was nice and all but kinda boring. We found a bike tour\rental company called Bike St. Lucia Bike St.Lucia - Jungle Biking Adventure - Mountain Biking

You can only get to the beach by boat, but once you are there they have single track through the jungle that goes through an old plantation. Not crazy extensive but it was alot of fun, and you get a nice meal on the beach and a dip in the ocean when you are done riding. :thumbsup:


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## itsdatealdeal (Jan 19, 2011)

Guatemala!! Awesome trails, amazing people, the best tortillas in the world.


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## BigMountainAdventure (Mar 6, 2012)

Hey fellow riders! We run amazing all-mountain, cross-country and downhill trips worldwide...Nepal, Switzerland, Italy, Morocco, Peru, South Africa and Botswana, Costa Rica, Iceland, Mexico and of course our homebase of Whistler, BC. Check out our website and get in touch with us! Big Mountain Adventures, ridebig.com.
Happy Trails! 
Chris Winter


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## Sewered Rider (Jan 18, 2011)

*Alaska Beach Riding near Homer.*

Fat bikers hit the beach in Southcentral AK.

Fatbikealaska.com


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## Sewered Rider (Jan 18, 2011)

*Album of Alaska beach riding*

^ my photos didn't load, heres a public link.

Life's a beach and then you ride. | Facebook


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## Inuitbiker (Mar 18, 2011)

hong kong


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## bctrav (Oct 31, 2012)

For those who rode St Lucia, was it worth it? Im going in January and was wondering if the Bike St Lucia company was worth a visit. The website really doesnt give much info let alone pricing.


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## BeginnerCycling (Nov 21, 2011)

bctrav said:


> For those who rode St Lucia, was it worth it? Im going in January and was wondering if the Bike St Lucia company was worth a visit. The website really doesnt give much info let alone pricing.


I haven't been yet, but I'll be going on a cruise soon and planning to try it out for a day. Here's the breakdown on cost (quote from their email):

"Our Jungle Biking™ tour includes the bike & helmet (Cannondale F800 Leftys), bottle of water, all transportation, snorkeling in the marine park, beach amenities, nature/historical trails and an excellent lunch which includes salad and veg bars and a choice of BBQ chicken or Fresh Catch of the Day. The cost is US$115"

When they say transportation, they will pick up from the Ferry Dock (near cruise ships) at 8:45 and return you there at 4 p.m. They also have some other non-biking tours, which I think my wife and daughter will do while my son and I hit the trails. The site for those is: Jungle Reef Adventures - St. Lucia's Premium Adventure Sports Tours - Home

I'll post an update after our trip.


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## Nimblewill (Sep 29, 2011)

We have been adding some pretty awesome tours lately at BikeToursDirect. We have tours in New Zealand, Nepal, Scotland, Namibia, and lots of other places (Too many to list).


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## likeaboss (Jan 1, 2012)

bctrav said:


> For those who rode St Lucia, was it worth it? Im going in January and was wondering if the Bike St Lucia company was worth a visit. The website really doesnt give much info let alone pricing.


This was about 10 years ago. The trails were nice but the bikes were rough. Hopefully they had upgraded but the drive trains on most of our 4 bikes were badly worn. Bad shifting, chains skipping on climbs, etc. At that time we were the only ones there that day.

Snorkeling was average. Tough for me to judge as we are used to seeing much more while scuba diving. Food was good.

To answer your question: Yes, it was worth it and I would do it again. I would also make sure to do a good test ride before heading off into the jungle.


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## Nimblewill (Sep 29, 2011)

I work for Bike Tours Direct. We represent local tour companies all over the world. This keeps prices down and gives you the benefit of having a local guide showing you around. We have been adding all kinds of awesome tours recently. Here is a video of a tour from one of our operators in Scotland. You will probably recognize some of the riders...

I just remembered that I posted something two spots up. Forgive me for the repetitiveness. But do watch the video..

I guess I am still learning the ways of the Forums...


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

Some fun rides that I've enjoyed:

Khyber Pass from Jalalabad to Peshawar
Kashmir, from Srinagar to Pahalgam, then up the trail to the shrine
Costa Brava and the Basque Country between France and Spain
The back roads from San Rafael to Cannes
The roads from Ajaccio to Bonafacio on Corsica
The trails around Sheffield between San Antonio and El Paso...nice ride along the Pecos
The trails from Albuquerque to Santa Fe along the Turquoise Trail.
The Mountain Trail above Fort Bliss in El Paso


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## bikerider2 (Nov 9, 2011)

Torres Del Paine, Chile.


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## TikiGoddess (Mar 24, 2013)

Thailand! I was there for a climbing trip and the place was amazing. Krabi is an island paradise south west of thailand that offers all types of adventure sports. I was there to soak on the sand and climb the awesome limestone lines but I had friends that biked around the island and loved it. For more serious mountain biking, head up north to Chang Mai. Great scenery and amazing mountain biking trails, highly recommended.


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## casnell (Jul 25, 2009)

Timor Leste, done the Tour de Timor twice and loved it !
Was booked to go to the Wakhan corridor, Afghanistan , in July but couldnt get the numbers so its cancelled


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## BeginnerCycling (Nov 21, 2011)

BeginnerCycling said:


> I haven't been yet, but I'll be going on a cruise soon and planning to try it out for a day. Here's the breakdown on cost (quote from their email):
> 
> "Our Jungle Biking™ tour includes the bike & helmet (Cannondale F800 Leftys), bottle of water, all transportation, snorkeling in the marine park, beach amenities, nature/historical trails and an excellent lunch which includes salad and veg bars and a choice of BBQ chicken or Fresh Catch of the Day. The cost is US$115"
> 
> ...


A bit delayed, but finally posted an article on my blog about the mountain bike tour in St. Lucia:

Mountain Biking in St. Lucia « Cycling For Beginners

It was a lot of fun!


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## sacredrides (Apr 11, 2008)

*My vote is for Nepal!*

I've been lucky to travel all over the world with my MTB tour company, Sacred Rides. In 17 years, nothing has quite compared to biking in Nepal. Peru comes a pretty close 2nd!


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## 1nterceptor (Jun 6, 2013)

*Aruba*

TRIP TO ARUBA - YouTube


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## milehi (Nov 2, 1997)

I spent the last two weeks in August riding around the desolute backcountry of Iceland solo. And when it was raining, I partied like a rock star in Reykjavik. I planned to go surfing too but the conditions were poor.


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## sacredrides (Apr 11, 2008)

*Azores!*









Amazing DH riding, with beaches and ocean never far away!

http://sacredrid.es/1lFpASR


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## daniele (Oct 24, 2007)

I am biased, but definitely Tenerife!!!






just ask Jerome Clementz... 

Hit me up when you come this way!


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