# Need Advice on "Bucket List" Trip Out West



## cdouble (Jul 24, 2007)

Looking for advice for a bunch of east coast riders looking to take a "bucket list" trip out west in 2013. A few of us did something similar in 2011, it was a 5 day tour from Durango CO to Moab UT. It was fully supported with tent camping along the way (5 days). We used Hermosa Tours (they were great), big plus was they did all the cooking and moving of gear. And their guides were awesome. This time, we're looking for something a little different. Our criteria:


- All sweet *singletrack*, little/no fire roads
- *Epic scenery* is mandatory
- *Base camp* with day rides of about 30 miles. Willing to rent cars or hire shuttle services. Would consider moving base camp once or twice, but NOT looking for a tour format.
- Prefer rustic *cabin *type setting, real beds are a plus, warm showers a BIG plus. Would consider tent camping. Strong aversion to hotels.
- *Beers *around the *campfire *at night mandatory
- Would like to ride own bikes, most of us ride hard tails. 
- Timeframe - late summer or fall of 2013
- Five days of riding plus or minus
- Probably 4-8 riders, could be more

A few random thoughts on locations, not meant to drive the discussion just provide some more context:


- Moab - only spent one day there, it was spectacular. Would probably be a great return trip, but all things equal would like to go someplace we haven't been before.
- Phoenix area - have local contact there, could do day trips to Black Canyon, Sedona Arizona Trail south of Picketpost, South Mountain. Flagstaff, Tucson, and Prescott.
- Grand Canyon/Bryce/Zion - have heard great things. Also some videos of Thunder Mountain that look amazing.
- Durango - again, we did that but was a really cool town and we had to skip Hermosa trail in 2011.
- Northwest - haven't been there, legendary bike destination but maybe more downhill oriented than XC. Have heard good things about Bend.

*Anyway, looking for ANY AND ALL advice on destinations, trails, rental cabins, etc. *

Oh and click here if you want to see what we did on our most excellent 2011 Durango to Moab adventure.

Thanks,
Chris


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## Betarad (Oct 24, 2009)

Just did a 2 week PacNorthwest bike trip with stops in Bend, Mackenzie River Trail (epic), Oakridge (for MBO), Waldo lake, and several places in Washington, most notably Duthie Hill. 

Oakridge is mindblowing....should be on everyone's bucket list. Seriously. Exceeds your mountainbiking criteria, meets all of your other needs, gotta shuttle with the local outfit to make the most of it.

MRT and Duthie Hill are also on the must-do list.

Bend was serious fun and has the best after-ride amenities, but lacked the total package the others listed had.


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## Cog Wild (Oct 10, 2006)

Chris, 
I know you said you were not interested in a tour format, but of course I still need to reply...

There are a few of our 3-day tours that would fit your interest. It would be a fabulous trip to spend 3 days riding with us and then spend the rest of your vacation in Oakridge, either doing your own thing, doing only shuttles with Randy at Oregon Adventures or doing Mountain Bike Oregon.

Cog Tours - all camping, three days and two nights and come with Deschutes Brewery beer. Check out cogwild.com for details, look under Mountain Bike Vacations.
1. Umpqua River Adventure - an IMBA epic, cross country trip with amazing views.
2. McKenzie River Trip - brand new tour in 2013 - includes riding the famous McKenzie River Shuttle as well as little known scenic gems. Pick up the current Mountain Bike Action for photos of riding with us and these amazing trails.
3. Bend Ultimate Adventure - cross country riding on Bend's best trails.

Oakridge. You need to check in with Randy at Oregon Adventures. I would look into Mountain Bike Oregon that takes place once in July and once in August. They both sell out months in advance and will help you get your fill of downhill amazingness!!

Cheers - Melanie


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## telebiker (May 6, 2004)

^^^^^ absolutely the best in the PNW!


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## bkreyche (Aug 23, 2012)

Chris, I agree with everyone post above about Oregon. We took a trip there about a month ago from Colorado and was sweet. 
On the otherside, if you want to come back to Colorado i would defently recomment some time in Crested butte and the surrounding area for a trip. Totally different riding than Oregon, so all depends what tike of riding you would want to do. I would assume east coast riding would be pretty similar to OR were CB is going to cover a lot more vertical but wouldnt call it DH riding.


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## abegold (Jan 30, 2004)

Another area to consider is St George, UT. I prefer it to Moab but the town is more conservative.
The riding at Gooseberry Mesa, Little Creek, Zen, Grafton Mesa and many more make this area world class. Best in spring or autumn. Gooseberry is the most fun trail I've ever found, but Downieville is second.


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## asphalt_jesus (Aug 13, 2010)

Downieville is awesome. North of there is Quincy which is not well known, but epic. Days-long epic too. The forest land up there is managed as multi-use as compared to southern California Sierra forests.

Having driven through St. George, I don't doubt for a minute there's good trail there. Pay attention to the times of year he posted though...

Mammoth is set up like a resort and many people like that. I think some of the ski resorts around Salt Lake City do something similar. It's an easier kind of fun that appeals to some. 

Some of the most epic trail I've been on is in the San Gabriel mountains in Southern California and I've been a few places. IMHO, they are similar to riding the mountains around Salt Lake City except a bit steeper and narrower.


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## Wherewolf (Jan 17, 2004)

*Tahoe*

Hard to beat Lake Tahoe in the summer. Miles and miles of great XC riding and always perfect weather. Many photos, maps, etc. on my site.


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## Nimblewill (Sep 29, 2011)

I have heard amazing things about Cogwild from friends and I am all the way down here in TN. Apparently the riding there is crazy awesome. I seriously need to check that place out.

I work for a company called BikeToursDirect. We promote local tour companies all over the world. If you guys get a wild hair and think you might be up for some oversea's riding some time, then check us out. We promote some amazing local companies all over the world with some unreal tours. Check out this video of a tour  in Scotland. We also have mt. bike tours in Nepal, Switzerland, Greece and other cool places. These would be bigger trips but you did say Bucket List.


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## Cog Wild (Oct 10, 2006)

Nimblewill said:


> I have heard amazing things about Cogwild from friends and I am all the way down here in TN. Apparently the riding there is crazy awesome. I seriously need to check that place out.


Nimblewill and Telebiker - thank you for the love! We are lucky to have amazing riding - and love sharing with everyone!! Nimblewill -come ride!!


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## Nimblewill (Sep 29, 2011)

Hope to do so sometime soon. I have heard a ton of great things about you guys. You are on my radar for sure.


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## Harryonaspot (Oct 5, 2004)

*try Sedona*

In Oak Creek there is the Red Agave. It's behind Bike and Bean. Ride from your door. A frames fire pits hot tub swimming pool. epic trails. good restaurants . Highly recommended


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## boostin (Apr 21, 2008)

Sun Valley, Idaho could fit the bill - 100's of miles of trails


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## abegold (Jan 30, 2004)

Another place with great trails in WINTER is here in Arizona. Tucson has the 8ish Days of Christmas free MTB festival with rides daily from around Christmas thru New Years. Lots of trails and many different elevations, from 2400' to 9157' so there are even cool summer rides.
450+ miles of singletrack. More in Phoenix. Sedona is fantastic riding and a very large trail network.
Prescott is planned to be a IMBA epic ride center in the future. Riding is already very good and more to come. Flagstaff we hit in summer.


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## ovaltech (Jan 21, 2012)

Mountain Bike Oregon is amazing and gives you a great sampler of technical western Oregon trails. Bend is not to be missed, sometimes when I'm riding there I feel like I'm riding in a magazine.


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## LadyDi (Apr 17, 2005)

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## jbuhl18 (Dec 15, 2007)

Moab is top notch. This was always a place I wanted to hit and finally got out there last month. Unbelievable scenery and incredible riding. You can't go wrong!


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## skiahh (Dec 26, 2003)

Sun Valley was nice.

What about Whistler?


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## Theslowguy (Jan 14, 2012)

Cdouble, 
You will not do any better than the umpqua river trail! I did this trail as a tour with Western Spirit three years ago, and couldn't believe how phenomenal the riding was. As soon as I got home from my 13 hour drive to southern cal, I immediately started telling all my buddies about the greatest mtn. biking experience of my life. Needless to say, we started planning a return trip for last summer.

For our return trip last summer, we did it our own with our own vehicle, and did it from one base camp, versus doing it touring style. This worked out great, as I had seen four other campsites on the trail, and I knew which one was the best. We had flush toilets, BBQs, and a GREAT swimming hole. My buddies were very impressed. We even did a day of whitewater rafting right out of our base camp. In addition, we went up and rode the Mckenzie river trail too.

You know the fear you have when you hype a restaurant or movie to your friends, and tell them it's "the best ever", then they proceed to give you **** for the next ten years if it doesn't live up to their expectations, or your hype. After, I hyped the umpqua beyond all belief, to a man, they all said it was even better than what they envisioned! 

They all loved it so much, that we are going back again this year, and spending a couple of days in oakridge as well. We have heard nothing but great things about this area as well. We have a seven day itinerary that involves two camp areas, oakridge, and umpqua, and tons of riding and relaxing. I do know that other lodging is available in both places. If you more questions, feel free to contact me.


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## SuperMtbDude (Mar 7, 2013)

duthie hill is the bomb


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## kevin267 (Mar 9, 2011)

skiahh said:


> Sun Valley was nice.
> 
> What about Whistler?


Whistler is awesome but OP has an aversion to hotels, so probably an aversion to a resort town with lots of people (but amazing riding). Whistler is a great trip though, not sure if it fits the criteria. I think whistler is the ultimate family mtb destination, truly something for everyone, awesome kids mtb camps and stuff, lot's of other things to do for days off or people that aren't as keen. Awesome bars+nightlife, but quiet beers around a campfire in the wilderness? Other than in my backyard, not so much... especially with the by-law people these last couple summers (I live in whis). But as I said the riding is awesome! Could do a trip with some days in whistler then some in squamish+pemberton (don't need to move base camp, 30-40 min drives though) then maybe a trip up to the Chilcotins which might be more up your alley if you are interested in British Columbia.

Here's some info on guided trips; 
whistler; Whistler Bike Guide
chilco's; mountain bike tours: Tyax Chartered Float Plane Air Tours and Services

and a cool article i remember reading months back; Castles and Fortresses - NSMB.com Mountain Bike Reviews, News, Photo and Video Chilcotin Death March - Part 2 - NSMB.com Mountain Bike Reviews, News, Photo and Video

Or some towns in the interior of BC; Revelstoke, Rossland, New Denver, etc. This is a kona ad, but great footage of Revelstoke riding; Kona House of the Big Wheel 3 on Vimeo

and i should throw in my favourite riding spot into the mix, Sunshine Coast BC (sechelt, roberts creek), RaceFace Explores the Coast on Vimeo (that video is in winter lol) Sunshine Coast Trails, Mountain Biking & Hiking (like a wikipedia of the trails there)


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## biobike (Dec 20, 2009)

i live here so i'm biased... but the North Shore / Squamish / to Whistler would keep any rider at any ability smiling for a vacation and beyond.

(plus it's gotta be one of the most beautiful parts of this beautiful world)!


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## CanyonDad (Dec 6, 2011)

Chris: I saw your old post and wanted to let you know of an option if you and your group come back out west. Our company is a mtn bike/RV tour planning company, meaning we rent you the RV and help plan your riding. Prices include campground reservations, rentals, and any side activities you might be interested in, like the new Zip Line in Moab. RV travel is a great way to go, giving you flexibility to go where you want with luxury accomodations wherever you are. Feel free to email with any questions.

John English
[email protected]


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## MtnBkrBob (Aug 15, 2007)

Chris,

Any feedback on your bucket list adventure? Looks like you researched it well. Be good to see some highlights or lessons learned.

I'm planning for a similar trip (12 day trip out west). Your criterion was spot on.

PS: wherewolf - Steve's Mountain Bike Site, Turlock, California - great work! I'll be studying your info for our run up the Sierra Nevada. Mammoth Mountain and Tahoe are planned stops (as long as we can find suitable trails).

Bob


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## cdouble (Jul 24, 2007)

Eight of us took the trip 2011 (funny, it doesn't seem that long ago). We rode point to point from Durango to Moab, 5 solid days of riding and 4 nights of sleeping under the stars. It's hard to describe how epic that was for a bunch of weekend warriors from the east coast. We saw amazing sights and smashed through personal limits we never thought possible. All the details are on my blog (MO7S: D2M) remember the posts are in reverse chronological order.

We are talking about a return trip (the last few years we've done long weekends at Kingdom trails in northern Vermont which is awesome but weather is more variable than out west). We specifically wanted the point to point experience last time, but this time I think we'll operate from a single location (campsite, cabin, hotel, whatever) so that we can cherry pick the best single track for each day (point to point does not give you that luxury).

Reading your blog now, I have a couple knees that are starting to talk to me. They're fine for now but I suspect they'll need work at some point, I will be delving into those aspects of your website for sure.

Chris


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