Represent

By Rob Manning

Blue Mountain Reservation

Mountain biking around the Hudson Valley takes on many faces as the terrain changes from location to location. You've already read about Stewart Buffer Zone (April 06), so now it's time to cut your teeth on Blue Mountain.

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Blue Mountain reservation is part of a dedicated New York State park system, which means you'll find plenty of amenities around the site to make you comfortable. Amenities include barbecue pits, bathrooms, picnic tables and changing rooms. This is a nice change from the isolated reaches of some of the area's trails. There are plenty of different trails carved into this 1,600 acre plot of public land. The singletrack here, however, is epic.

We headed down there in early June, and caught possibly the worst day to ride that you could find. Overcast, 80+ degrees and nearly 100% humidity. Most of you know, heat isn't bad, but humidity is a killer. That aside, we had an excellent tour guide to show us the best (and worst) of Blue.
While there are quite a few trails available at Blue, most of the trails favor more advanced technical riders. Exposed (large) rocks and roots are strewn liberally across the trail, and without a great deal of finesse - or at least a lot of travel - you may have an incredibly tough time with the area. There is something about Blue's soil that turns it into grease when it's wet, so if you're running hardpack tires, life could be incredibly miserable for you.

Perhaps the nicest thing you'll discover about Blue is that most of the trails, if not all of them, are marked by numbered posts. Navigation through use of a map and the signposts will be more than adequate for all but the most navigation impaired among our ranks. Should you decide to set out with a map, pay careful attention to sign posts, as they may be easily missed as you ride. It's hard to pay attention while you're blowing through single track and grinning ear to ear.

If you have the ability, many of the trails are more than worth your time. A few of the hilights from our ride included a long climb up Ned's Left Lung (named for the famed mountain bike racer Ned Overend) which will leave all but the most fit climbers puffing and cursing Ned's name. Crusing down Limbo for a bit and hanging a left on Stinger will send you into fits of glee. Lower Stinger will drop you on a blisteringly fast fire road descent to the parking lot, after which you can turn around and back up Dickey Brook Trail, back up Ned's Left, then a quick descnet down Upper Sis and Crisscross should hang you out to dry for good.

Blue is an enigmatic destination; hard to explain but very easy to experience. If you want more information, check out the following:
Westchester County Parks Department
Westchester Mountain Bike Association

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