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Fell Mountain Trail
39 reviews
4.72 of 5
a couple long hard climbs tricky down hills, huge rock garden, stumps,roots ruts. The bottom ppart of the ride is great for beginner it's flat but challanging single
great place to break your cherry. opened last june
Summary: This trail lives up to expectations. Well that is if you are expecting NEPA riding conditions. Yes it is rocky. Yes it is rooty. Yes it is the most fun you'll have on a saturday afternoon. As i'm writing this i have scratches on my legs and arms from a fall on HR280 today. Even thought this is a review... the story is well worth sharing. We are taking the orange (red, whatever we want to call it) main loop counterclockwise, normally i take it clockwise. Anyway we got sidetracked around HR280 and in advertantlly started the descent. Well needless to say after my partner and i each did an endo over the handle bars, we made it safely to the extreme bottom area. and popped out of the trail in some guys back yard! Being the weenies that we are, we just took the road back to the acess area and called it a day since we had ridden yesterday too and were pretty exhausted already. But forewarning that you need to keep your eyes peeled for signs as to what trail you are on. We didn't realize until i figured downhills like this didn't exist on the main loop. But by then we were at the point of no return. So we jumped off our rigs, ate some blackberries we found, and pushed onward toward the bottom.
Now for the real review. I'm going to come right out and say that i am biased since i live less than 20 minutes away from it. Prompton is also about 10 minutes from me. So obviously these two areas are my home turf and my fav. trails. But the orange loop is fun some good technical stuff, while the blue off shoots are cool they can get tricky. There are some that I get off and hike uphill at certain points. Although being a climbing wimp i have to admit i do on the orange loop in a few areas too. I wouldnt' say i'm near expert, or even at the intermediate level yet, but for a beginner, its still a great time. Uncrowded, i've seen so few ppl in all the times i've went that i could count them and not run out of fingers and toes. Forwarning the park closes at 8:00 so don't start a ride around 7:00 and expect to get finished after that. The lacawana county sheriff will be waiting for you to get done, and he won't be too happy about waiting for you just to close the gate. Don't ask how i happen to know this. Anyway the blue start loop is cool, but there is a tree downed in it that you have to hike around. out of area can't continue on :(
Recommended Route: clockwise on orange, my first counterclock experience after reading these reviews led me to someone's backyard b/c of bad navigation on the groups part. For directions look a few posts down
Other recommended trails in the same area: Prompton Dam Aea... don't go if it had rained in the past 24 hrs. A little more ghetto, but just as nice and just as much fun.
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Summary: I just rode this yesterday for the first time with a fellow who is an xc racer. I'm no racer, just like to ride technical, and he knew that when he asked me to accompany him. You want technical? Here 'ya go. As far as I can tell, the spurs are the hardest/tech-est parts - lots & lots of loose rock/shale, some "V"'s in between two rockfaces, and some climbing over open granite rockface that is kind of cool. There is one loop that is really tough - there's a sign at the beginning warning you "do not ride this if it is wet; do not ride this if you're not experienced", etc - there are some short "whoop" downhills leading to banked turns & more "whoops" that are fun, but then the climb back up is steep & rocky, and leads to lots of granite rockface that is some of the most technical climbing I've ever done. It is not Plattekill steep, but has enough challenge up and down to make for a challenging "all mountain" trail. The old race course has a nice long climb and finishes with a rough downhill. All in all, I'd recommend riding this with enough suspension front & rear, good brakes and some good friends. Enjoy! - Kelly
Recommended Route: Just to to the parking lot & there's a big sign at the trailhead.
Other recommended trails in the same area: Don't know enough in PA, but Shindagin Hollow, Jenksville, Oakley Corners and PLATTEKILL in NY.
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Review Date January 21, 2004
Overall Rating 5 of 5
Aerobic Difficulty 4 of 5
Technical Difficulty 4 of 5
Ridden Trail: Once a month
Reviewed by: CNY Nathan
,
Cross Country Rider
Summary: Of all my regular rides in Central New York and NE Pennsylvania, this is my favorite. Lots of interesting rock features make not only for a technical ride, but also for a beautiful, scenic afternoon. The main trail has a handful of challenges, but for some real rocky technical single track, hit the advanced spurs marked with the blue or white blazes.
The bike trails are about 90-95% singletrack with some exhilerating twisty downhills and some uphills across granite slick rock that will test your slow-ride balance skills. If you want some punishment, take HR280 (Heart rate - 280, that is) down to the absolute bottom of the park, do the hike-a-bike for a couple minutes, and then try to ride up the rest of the way back to the main trail. It's a challange alright!
One of the best features of the trail is its proximity to the lake at two different locations. If you can't make it through the entire route, just head back counter-clockwise along the lake when you find it.
It's easy to get turned around when the main loop in coincident with an old road, so check out this excellent map:
http://www.elkmtnarea.com/fell_mtn_2003/
Recommended Route: Clockwise, following the main trail (orange blazes) if it's your first time. Try the advanced spurs one or two at a time, cause most of them can kick your butt. If you think you've got plenty of energy, make sure to take the trail uphill from the second encounter with the lake; you'll probably feel drained enough to call it a day.
Other recommended trails in the same area: Prompton Dam.
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Review Date November 3, 2003
Overall Rating 5 of 5
Aerobic Difficulty 5 of 5
Technical Difficulty 4 of 5
Ridden Trail: Ridden Once
Reviewed by: JeffSkisMontana
,
Cross Country Rider
, from Mountain Top, PA, USA
Summary: November 2nd, 2003- 65 degrees. We decided to take advantage of the unusually warm day and ride Fell Mountain. We pulled up to the entrance to Merli-Sarnowski Park to find the bridge washed away by a recent storm. As we unloaded the bikes it began to rain. Brian had been here once prior so he was our guide. We crossed the creek and climbed the access road hill. Took the Orange trail and most of the blue and white side trails. Terrain was consistently challenging. Lots of climbs, rock gardens, trees down, stream crossings and trails that had turned into streams as the rain picked up. There are several confusing spots on the trails where you can easily a wrong turn. Surveyor tape might be a handy tool here to mark where you have been. Lots of leaves down when we rode. We explored for 4 hours and enjoyed throughly. Put this on your must do list of rides in PA.
4.72 of 5
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