Mountain Biking LA GRANDE OREGON By Brian Sather & Mark Larson
2006 by Recreation Publishing. Summerville, Oregon. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced for sale. Only limited material may be referenced in other sources. ISBN 0-9778159-0-0 Printed in La Grande, Oregon, USA. Website: Address: Email Brian: Email Mark: www.lagranderide.com Mark Larson Cyclesports 1910 Island Avenue, La Grande, OR 97850 Phone (541) 962-7441 bsather@lagranderide.com cycleman@uci.net Layout/Graphics: Brian Sather Special Thanks: Cory Walz, Matt Allen, and Bart Barlow for ride contributions. Jennifer Fager, Rachel Sather, and Judith Sather for copy editing. Cover Photos: (Top) The Grande Ronde Valley courtesy Nancy Allen. (Center) Mountain bikers in the Rock Garden of Archery Range Trail System courtesy Rick Bowen. Maps created with TOPO! software 2006 National Geographic Maps. To learn more visit: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/topo Mountain biking is a fun recreational pursuit, but also includes inherent risk that must be recognized by participants. The rides described in this book are challenging and potentially dangerous. The authors of and contributors to this book are in no way responsible for personal injury or damage to property in connection with the use of the information provided. Rides should be undertaken at the rider s risk, realizing the descriptions provided may not be entirely accurate and that conditions change.
Table of Contents List of Maps & Figures... ii Warm-up...1 What to Take...2 Ride Checklist...5 Trail Etiquette...6 Mountain Biking with GPS...8 Winter Riding...10 The Rides...12 Overview Maps... 14-15 Easy Ladd Marsh Nature Trail...16 Foothill Road...18 Sandridge Road...20 Morgan Lake...23 Spring Creek...26 Ski Loop...28 More Difficult Robbs Hill Fox Hill...30 Morgan Lake Hill Climb...34 Telephone Ridge...36 Umatilla Rim...39 Finley Creek...44 Umapine Loop...48 Lookout Ridge...51 Lehman Loop...54 Archery Range Trail System...58 Most Difficult Mt. Fanny...64 Lookout Creek...68 Mt. Emily Loop...72 Downhill Most difficult Mt. Emily Downhill...76 Indian Rock Downhill...78 Hale Spring Downhill...80 Common Mountain Biking Terms...82 Online and Other Resources...86 Where is La Grande?...88 i
List of Maps & Figures Map Key...12 IMBA Rating Guide...13 Overview Looking Northeast...14 Overview Looking West...15 Ladd Marsh Nature Trail...17 Foothill Road...19 Sandridge Road...22 Morgan Lake...25 Spring Creek...27 Ski Loop...29 Robbs Hill Fox Hill... 32-33 Morgan Lake Hill Climb...35 Telephone Ridge...38 3D View Northwest Section Umatilla Rim...41 Umatilla Rim... 42-43 Finley Creek... 46-47 3D View Finley Creek...47 Overview of Rides Near Umapine Campground...49 Umapine Loop...50 Lookout Ridge...53 Lehman Loop... 56-57 3D View South - Archery Range Trail System...59 Archery Range Trail System... 60-61 3D View East - Archery Range Trail System...62 3D View West - Archery Range Trail System...63 Mt. Fanny... 66-67 Lookout Creek... 70-71 Mt. Emily Loop... 74-75 Mt. Emily Downhill...77 Indian Rock Downhill...79 Hale Spring Downhill...81 Regional Map...88 ii
1 Warm-up I get up early about 5 AM. It s any weekday in the spring, summer, or fall. I pull on my riding clothes, grab my helmet and hydration pack, load my bike into my old pickup, and head out to my usual morning riding spot. When I reach the trailhead, about a ten minute drive from my house, it s barely light enough to see without lights. But that s okay because I know this trail so well, I could almost ride it in the dark. Soon, it will be full daylight. I go through the gate and begin my granny-gear grind up the mountain. I love starting out this way. The steady uphill pull on this trail gets my heart and adrenaline pumping quickly. When I reach the main cross-trail just below Archery Range Road, I have a choice to make. I can go left to the south half of the Archery Range Trail System for a fun, fast ride on familiar ground. Or, I can go right and take on the newer and more technically challenging Fast Twitch and Skills Challenge trails. Either way, it s going to be a great way to start the day. Here in La Grande, we are truly blessed to have quality mountain biking, REAL mountain biking, so close at hand. In less time then it takes you to look through this book, you could be ON your bike ON the trail! How cool is that? In fact, you could drive to any ride featured in this guide in one hour or less. Tempting as it may be, we don t keep our trails a secret. In fact, we happily invite every vacationer, bike weenie, and trail rat we happen to run into to come and partake with us! The purpose of this book is to document our knowledge of the mountain biking in the area. We want to get the word out that La Grande is a great place to spend a few days to ride, sight see, and hang out. We ve selected a number of rides to include in this guide. These are a combination of our favorite rides and those that are relatively easy to get to. We ve tried to include something for every skill and fitness level. You ll find these rides to be challenging and aesthetically pleasing. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Useful Information from Local Authors Key Features Precision trails mapped with authentic GPS data LaGrandeRide.com - companion website for up-to-date trail information and interaction between readers, authors, and others Written by local authors who are readily available to help you Thorough trail notes and descriptions with accurate mileage to help keep you on track Detailed topographical maps and elevation profiles, plus three-dimensional views Includes a variety of rides on single-track, two-track ATV trails, & gravel roads ranging from easy to extremely difficult Highlights the popular Archery Range Trail System on pages 58-63 Price $14.95