Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Wheels Up - Bike Trail Update

Last Summer we built Wheels Up, a mile of flowy, fun downhill bike trail on the lower half of the Lower Mountain. A number of you checked it out in September and October. It was a blast. Our intention was to finish the trail and have a great downhill ride from Black Mountain Lodge to the Base Area. When the COVID-19 closure hit and we had to re-think our capital projects, this was one we pushed off to Summer 2021.

To complicate matters a little more, Wheels Up feeds right into the Pallavicini and Molly Hogan construction projects so it has been closed for the Summer. Our intention next summer is to re-open what we have already built and to finish Wheels Up to Black Mountain Lodge.

Over the next couple summers we have plans to build a loop on the Upper Mountain also. The trails have already been designed and laid out by Joey Klein of IMBA Trail Solutions. Combining both the Upper and Lower Mountain trails, we will have a really special 12-13 mile loop with about 1700' of climbing and descding. The descent will be spectacular crossing The Beavers, Pallavicini and North Glade. It will be cool.