Review Date
June 15, 2008

Overall Rating
 2 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 4 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 3 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Ridden Once

Reviewed by: Jadedbee ,  Weekend Warrior

Summary:
Booo! Please believe all of the complaining in the above reviews. Lots of poison oak, lots of mosquitoes, eye gnats galore, and way more climbing than you would ever expect going downstream along a river. I am a strong rider, but this took me over four hours w/ no mechanicals or crashes (luckily). You're riding along the side of an avalanche at most parts where there is just a thin sliver of very loose rocks you have to stay on.
Lots of sharp leaved bushes hang over the trail besides the oak. Many parts are un-rideable due to erosion, large rocks, or very steep switchbacks with no traction (if there aren't loose rocks there are loose leaves and pine needles). A few descents were fun, but too short and narrow to be a reward for all the suffering.

Recommended Route:
My wife dropped me off at the South Yuba trailhead just above the town of Washington and I rode west down the river to Edwards Crossing. I used 3 different maps: 1 printed in last year's Downiville guide, 1 posted on an mtbr bulletin, and some Google earth exploring. I couldn't get a USFS map (they aren't available online); maybe this would have helped. There are lots of forks and bridges that were unmarked or called something completely different than what was on my map. I never saw signs for most of the landmarks on my maps. Also note: don't send your significant others in a 2wd car along N. Bloomfield Road through Malakoff Diggins! This is a OHV fireroad. But, yes, you can yell at me for doing this alone; I'm an idiot.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
Pioneer is nearby and much more fun. Also the trails around Lake Oroville are pretty cool and are relatively the same distance from Sacramento. Hole in the Ground would be another better choice.

Review Date
April 18, 2008

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 5 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 4 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Once a month

Reviewed by: jminn8086 ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
I will describe my recent ride on the South Yuba from the South Yuba campground out to Washington and back along the Rim Trail.

Course: South Yuba campground to Washington; Relief Road to North Bloomfield; Rim Trail to North Bloomfield road and back to campground.
Ride time: 4-5 hours
elevation change: ~ 10K
climbing: 5400 ft

Recommended Route:
I've ridden this both ways and I recommend riding from South Yuba out to Missouri drop or all the way to Washington and back versus the more popular route up North Bloomfield road to Missouri drop and back.

The course starts with a killer downhill followed by a fun and fast ride to Primitive Camp. There are a couple of short steep climbs in route to Missouri drop.

From Missouri drop things get interesting! You're faced with a long steep climb that has multiple switchbacks. This climb is as tough as you're going to find on the Yuba. The reward is fast sweeping singletrack with banked turns and a drop back down to the river. There are a couple of hike-a-bike sections where the trail has washed out or too loose to climb, but otherwise, this is one of the best rides in the area.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
- Round Mountain
- Pioneer trail
- North Yuba
- Bullard's Bar
- any trail in Downieville

Review Date
April 27, 2007

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 3 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 4 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Once a year

Reviewed by: chrisdabiker ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
Visit this page for the whole scoop

http://rvhpa.net/mtbike/syuba.htm

Recommended Route:
See above

Other recommended trails in the same area:
Steven's trail, lot's of trails in the Auburn recreation area.

Review Date
June 23, 2006

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 4 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 4 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Ridden Once

Reviewed by: dhouston ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
Wholly $##!. I read about this trail in a book and decided as a father's day gift to treat myself to a ride. Regrettably, I did not read the trail descrition as closely as I should. Not that I did not have a blast but I am accoustomed to more benign treks. Started with a 3 miles uphill on a graded road. Pretty good elevation change and the loose gravel made it somewhat of a challenge. After a one mile downhill reprive you join up with the Rim Trail. Very fun 4 mile single track jaunt. When I reached the Malakoff Campground site I went the wrong and illegal way but found this next half mile to be some of the most kick-butt single track around. Met up with town of North Bloomfield and began another short climb on graded road (1 mile). Go right at T and begin a long and serpentining downhill along Missouri Flat Trail. This is fun but as they say what goes down must come up. At T, close to the Yuba River go right and for the next 8+ miles and be prepared for some very technical, sometimes unpassible (Portage for 500 yards)narrow single track. Book I read indicated that uphills were not all that steep but they sucked the wind out of me. Don't be fooled into thinking that you can travel this section fast as a some of the turns will sneak up on you and if not careful you can kiss your fanny goodbye as there is a sheer drop along most of this trail into the river over 100 feet below. Perhaps the most beautfiul ride one can take if you are on a nice liesurely ride as there are terrific vistas and views of the scenic South Yuba. Mostly shaded but areas of exposure so bring lots of water. Reviews of this trail indicate that it is between 17-18 miles, trust me it is all of that as it took me 2.5 hours where other trails of similar length take me around two hours.

Recommended Route:
See other reviews.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
Pioneer, Foresthill Divide, Clementine Loop

Review Date
January 28, 2006

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 4 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 3 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Once a week

Reviewed by: GeneHacker ,  Weekend Warrior

Summary:
Great single track and view. Much more climbing than you would expect.

Recommended Route:
the loop