TrailGate 2015 Success!

44 trails mountain bikingThanks to everyone who turned out for TrailGate 2015!

We had a great crew and a great day up on the 44 trail system. The weather was great, trails were ridden, bikes demoed, food eaten, music played and a good time had by all. We estimate over 200 people participated in the event.

We owe a big thanks to sponsors: Timberline Lodge for grilling up the food, Hood River Bicyclesfor serving up great demo bikes, Lets Get Out for organizing kid events, the USFS for the permit and attending the event, plus the band – Cripple Hop for setting the atmosphere with great bluegrass and their own imusic!

Plus all of our swag contributors deserve a shout out including: Mountain View Cycles, Dirty Fingers Bicycles, Dalles City Cyclery, Pfriem Family Brewers, Full Sail Brewing Company, Camp 1805 Distillery, Best Western Plus Hood River Inn, Brian’s Pourhouse, DAKINE, Pine Street Baking, Northwest Graphic Works, Solstice Wood Fire Cafe & Bar.

Trailgate 2015 may be over but the trails are still open to riding. So if you missed out on the event, get up there and enjoy the trails for a chance to enjoy the best single track on the Mount Hood National Forest.

Trailgate 2015

Trailgate Event PosterTrailgate on Saturday, July 11 is only two days away!

The weather forecast for Saturday is looking excellent. Saturday is forecast to offer sunny skies and 65-70 degrees, a nice change from the 90+ temps we have been experiencing.

Trailgate is an opportunity to celebrate and enjoy the fine single track trails accessible from Forest Road 44 on the Mt. Hood National Forest. There’s plenty of great riding and hiking to be had from the Billy Bob SnoPark, including great rides for all abilities, even kids! There’s even some killer road/gravel grinders to be had in the 44 zone.

We will be staging from the Billy Bob SnoPark located about 10 miles east of highway 35 on FR44. You can also get there from the east side out of Dufur. There’s plenty of great camping available at Eight-Mile and Fifteen-Mile campgrounds as well as other dispersed camping in the area.

Come on by at 10am on Saturday to check in on ride options, grab a cup of coffee compliments of Dog River Coffee and learn more about 44 Trails Association, meet local USFS rangers and to check out demo bikes from Hood River Bicycles (Yeti, Pivot, Giant, Santa Cruz and more).

Families can enjoy pedaling the Eightmile trail and kid focused ecology events at Billy Bob hosted by the USFS and Let’s Get Out

Once you’ve been out to enjoy the trails come on back at 3pm to enjoy food, drink (free) and music. We’ve lined up Hood River-based band, Cripple Hop, for a some great live music. Timberline Lodge is setting up the food service and 44 Trails Association will have info about upcoming projects. We’ll have a raffle with some great swag, too!

Trailgate – July 11 – Event Details

Trailgate Event PosterOK 44 Zone aficionados, the Trailgate event on Saturday, July 11, 2015 is less than two months away!

What is Trailgate you ask? It’s a day to celebrate and enjoy the fine single track trails accessible from Forest Road 44 on the Mt. Hood National Forest. There’s plenty of great riding and hiking to be had from the Billy Bob SnoPark, including great rides for all abilities, even kids! There’s even some killer road/gravel grinders to be had in the 44 zone.

We will be staging from the Billy Bob SnoPark located about 10 miles east of highway 35 on FR44. You can also get there from the east side out of Dufur. There’s plenty of great camping available at Eight-Mile and Fifteen-Mile campgrounds as well as other dispersed camping in the area.

Come on by at 10am on Saturday to check in on ride options, learn more about 44 Trails Association, meet local USFS rangers and to check out demo bikes from Hood River Bicycles (Yeti, Pivot, Giant, Santa Cruz and more).

Once you’ve been out to enjoy the trails come on back at 3pm to enjoy food, drink (free) and music. We’ve lined up Hood River-based band, Cripple Hop, for a some great live music. Timberline Lodge is setting up the food service and 44 Trails Association will have info about upcoming projects. We’ll have a raffle with some great swag, too!

if you are looking for an epic ride on July 11th, check out the Oregon Endurance Mt. Hood Classic ride planned for the same day and come by Billy Bob when your done!

Sign up for our e-mail list to get the latest info on and an event reminder for Trailgate!

Save the Date – July 11, 2015

Trailgate 2015 44 trails associationOur mild winter has many of us thinking about and riding our mountain bikes earlier than normal this winter. It’s also got us here at the 44 Trails Association planning a summer trail festival day to celebrate and enjoy the 44 trails network. Trailgate 2015!

The details are loose at this point, but the date is set for July 11, 2015. We’re seeing a full day of riding (or hiking) on the Mt. Hood National Forest based out of the Billy Bob SnoPark. It’s located on the 44 Road a couple miles east of the 8-Mile parking zone.

trailgate 2015 44 trails associationWe are lining up plans for an afternoon BBQ and social scene après riding. There’s plenty of great camping in the area and plenty of great trails to explore. Save the date for first annual 44 Trails Association Trailgate, and we’ll keep you posted with more details as they are available.

If you sign up for our mailing list, we’ll send ya the info direct. And we promise not to share your e-mail with anyone else, ever.

Work Party Success

We’d like to thank everyone who showed up on Saturday to help with our final trail day of the season. Thanks to Timberline Ski Resort and the USFS we had three power toters to haul materials. Here’s a few photos of the day.

 

Mid Summer Trail Work Day

Summer is here – in case you hadn’t noticed – and it’s time for our second trail work day of the season.

Saturday, July 26 is the day.

Continued Super Connector tuning is the plan.

Where: 9am Little John Snopark, Hwy 35
What: Trail maintenance, Super Connector
When: Saturday, July 26, 9am-2pm

HELMETS required! Bring shovels, McLeods, metal rakes, wheelbarrows, gloves, water, long pants, work shoes.

We’ll meet at the Little John SnoPark on Hwy 35 at 9am for coffee and registration. We’ll shuttle up to the work site and get started. There are a variety of projects including continued trail armoring with reject and corner alignment. We’ll break into two or three smaller crews on the trail.

Lunch provided by Hood River’s New York City Sub Shop.

Reach out via e-mail with any questions – 44trails (at) 44trails.org

Trail Work Results

Thank you to everyone who supported our June 14 trail work day! The USFS supplied 10+ yards of reject (gravel) and the 44 Trails crew worked to armor weak spots on the new Super Connector trail linking Knebal Springs to Surveyor’s Ridge. New York City Subs provided lunch and Dog River Coffee set us up with our morning fix!

We made made good progress moving the reject material and saw loads of riders using the trail. It’s great to see the word is getting out and people are riding the new connection.  Next work day is July 26!

Here’s a few photos from the day.

 

June 14 Trail Work Day

44trails_june14webJune is here, the 44 trails are in fine form and it’s time for our first organized work party of the season.

Saturday, June 14 is the day.

Where: 9am Little John Snowpark Hwy 35
What: Trail maintenance, Super Connector
When: Saturday, June 14, 9am-2pm

HELMETS required! bring shovels, rakes, 5-gal buckets, wheelbarrows, gloves, lunch, water, long pants, work shoes, dress for the weather!

We’ll meet at the Little John SnoPark on Hwy 35 at 9am for coffee and registration. We’ll shuttle up to the work site and get started. There are a a variety of projects including trail armoring with reject and corner alignment. We’ll break into two or three smaller crews on the trail.

Reach out via e-mail with any questions – 44trails (at) 44trails.org

44 Trails Meets Forest Leadership

Mount Hood National Forest

Forest Leadership Team

44 Trails Association participated in a congressional review of the Mt Hood National Forest with the USFS Forest Leadership Team for the Mt. Hood National Forest on May 30.

Our favorite corner of the Mt Hood National Forest (the 44 zone) plays an important role in the forest as it holds the watershed for The Dalles as well as the Dog River Pipeline, a vital component of the watershed. Additionally, ongoing fire mitigation thinning work, upcoming Dog River Pipeline upgrades and, of course, the importance of recreation were combined for a tour of the forest for congressional representatives, county representatives from Hood River and Wasco and the full regional Forest Leadership Team (FLT).

44 Trails was able to share stats on our ongoing work efforts to maintain, restore and enhance the multi-use trails accessible from FR 44. The FLT was very appreciative and supportive of our efforts, so we look forward to continued cooperation with the Barlow and Mt Hood districts to further our mission of trail maintenance and expansion!

Trail Work Schedule

Sweet new trail signs!

Sweet new trail signs!

The dirt is top notch in the Gorge right now and the riding season for Mount Hood’s 44 Trails area is fast approaching. As of May 8, there is still some lingering snow and plenty of downed timber on the upper trails accessible from Forest Road 44. Typically, the bulk of the system will be cleared and ready to enjoy come Memorial Day Weekend.

In the meantime, we’ve set a schedule for summer trail work parties to keep our mission of maintenance and expansion moving forward. Please mark these dates in your calendars and join us when you can. We strive to work for 4-5 hours in the morning and then enjoy an afternoon trail session, so you don’t have to give up a day of riding! More details about each event will be provided as the date nears and as we evaluate trail needs:

June 14 – Celebrate National Trails Day with a 44Trails work party – (Nat. Trails Day is actually June 7, but our event will be on June 14)

July 26 -Mid summer work day to armor and maintain high-traffic areas

October 4 – TBA Special Event – riding related event to thank everyone for all their support

October 18 – Final trail day before winter transforms the forest floor

Although random acts of kindness in helping to clear the trails is appreciated, all significant clearing and trail work needs to be organized through the USFS to maintain trail standards. The process on 44 Trails is different from that in Post Canyon or Sandy Ridge, and we need your help adhering to this policy. We have a great relationship with the Mt. Hood and Barlow Ranger Districts, and we aim to keep it that way. If you have time and energy to help with trail work, please reach out to us. We have ongoing opportunities to help clear and maintain the trails outside of our scheduled events. Give us a shout and we can connect you with the details.