Monday, January 5, 2015

Up and Down Squamish

Up and Down Squamish features a thrilling trail ride loop on Diamond Head in Squamish, BC. Shot in sequence, this 30km loop takes around 2-3 hours, hits 6 trails, climbs a total of 1500 metres (nearly 5000’), and rewards you with 10 km of descent. Enjoy a mix of hand built trails and machine built trails that have been made possible by SORCA, Dream Wizards, and countless volunteer hours.
The first trail on the loop is called Power Smart. Located at a high elevation and off the beaten path, this trail has endured more damage caused by water than by cycling, dirt biking, hiking, or even horse riding. This trail is wild, with lots of steep, technical switchbacks and loose rocks the size of your head. During most of the year water runs down the trail, you’ll be sure to get your feet wet. It’s not a popular trail that gets ridden very much and it is in dire need of repair. This trail is a lot of fun to ride though, be sure to hang on tight. Power Smart feeds into IMBA Smart. There are nice long corners and well planned switchbacks on this trail. Enjoy a descent followed by a bit of climbing as you pass from mature forest to areas of regrowth. Carve around narrow round corners, cross tidy bridges, and have a fast exit! This trail is another hand built gem in the Sea to Sky Corridor. Next is a trail called Fred. This is a good XC trail that has a few punchy climbs, some short, steep descents, and lots of technical turns. The more you ride it the more you’ll discover the flow built into this trail. It gets better every time you ride it. Ongoing maintenance continues to improve the drainage and speed.



Tinder is next; it is the obvious way to connect Fred and Your Mom. A brand new machine built trail by Dream Wizards, it features bermed corners, braided climb lines, table top jumps, split cedar river crossings, and manageable grade climbs. Cruise through fresh clear cut and enter the mature forest! Your Mom is a real charm. Here you will find lovely curves and corners. Beware of adjacent borrow pits as one false move means you’ll be buried alive. The gentle terrain carries good speed, but watch out because there are corners that will catch you if you’re going too fast. You will finish on Phil and Cams which is also the bottom of Pseudo-Tsuga. This piece of trail rewards you for all the hard work you’ve put in. Enjoy easily acquired speed, bermed corners, rollers, and optional gap lines as you cruise down to the bottom parking lot. People will be watching, so be sure to pick off the last gap to berm.

Thanks to Dunbar Cycles and Transition Bikes for making this video project possible. Thanks to SORCA for overseeing and maintaining the vast Squamish trail network. Thanks to Dream Wizards for the addition of Tinder Trail this summer. If you feel obligated please purchase a trail pass and/or donate to SORCA for increased maintenance and further trail development at SORCA on Trailforks. - Sid Slotegraaf

Transition Bikes
Dunbar Cycles