Review Date
July 10, 2012

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 3 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 4 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Once a month

Reviewed by: John.M ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
I have ridden this trail a couple of times, and I have to say it is a great time. There are quite a few rocks - much more than I am used to - but not too much that it is not rideable by average to higher skilled riders. Given that, I do have to walk a couple of places. As long as you pick a good line, you'll be ok.

The path/direction is pretty easy to follow, and there are shortcuts that will get you back to the trailhead.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
Chickasaw Trace - 1 hour south, near Columbia. Much more of a XC trail (less technical). Montgomery Bell - 45 minutes or so west.

Review Date
June 11, 2010

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 3 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 5 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Ridden Once

Reviewed by: jscusmcvet ,  Weekend Warrior

Summary:
Wow, great trail. Just got back from riding this trail. If you like tight, twisty, rooty and lots of rocks, you will love this trail. It had many technical obstacles, mostly utilizing natural terrain features, as in rock formations. I was pretty happy that I cleared most of them. I rode both sides in a counter clockwise direction. Can not really say if it would have been better clockwise, as it seemed to have an equal number of up obstacles and down obstacles. It is easy to see that if you are a great rider you could hit some very cool drops off rock ledges. I rode most of them, but I ride them, not launch off them.

I parked on the lakeside and that allowed a nice warm up before crossing under the road and hitting the much harder Pinnacle trail. That trail really tested my technical abilities and that was great. IF you are not into technical riding, stay on the lake side and enjoy well designed beginner level and low intermediate level trail and obstacles.

Nice work trailbuilders!

Review Date
March 27, 2010

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 4 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 5 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Once a week

Reviewed by: Nomadic Buckeye ,  Weekend Warrior

Summary:
Hamilton Creek is the most technically demanding trail in the area. Wear a helmet for crying out loud. There are several opportunities to jump. They're all drop-offs, so launching is pretty easy. Not all of the landing zones are so easy. They're all optional with alternate routes. Some of them are in places you have to know where to look. It's one of my favorite trail systems. Stay off of it when it's wet! This place gets lots of traffic and riding in the mud tears it up. Not only that, but the rocks and roots are slimy, so you'll spend some time on your head, which you'll deserve.

Recommended Route:
Both loops are more fun going counter-clockwise, which means stay right at every intersection.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
Montgomery Bell is technically pretty easy but has a lot of tight turns. Expect to get a major workout since there's very little coasting.
Lock 4 in Gallatin is fun, as is Chickasaw Trace in Columbia. Long Hunter is pretty good for beginners. Advanced riders will get bored with the limited trail length. Franklin Marion SF is a nice place to go if you have the time to go to Monteagle. St. Andrews School is also a lot of fun. Raccoon Mtn. in Chattanooga is awesome. It's mostly hardpack, but it also has some very playful areas with the availability of plenty of air and plenty of speed.

Review Date
July 20, 2009

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 3 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 4 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Ridden Once

Reviewed by: hammermtb ,  Weekend Warrior

Summary:
The trail was very challenging at times, especially on the advanced loop. The beginner loop is a tough one if you are just starting out, but I would recommend that you dont let it demotivate you. The cardio toll that the complete course took on my body wasnt entirely too bad, however the muscular strength and endurance is where the course hammered in its respect. There are alot of very challening descents/climbs on the Advanced loop and would only recommend that after a few times of riding the intermediate loop. All in all, great course, just make sure you take your own toilet paper...port-a-let was out.

Recommended Route:
for Hamilton Creek newcomers, take the beginner route and follow it to the intermediate. Stay away from the Advanced unless you have ridden there a few times. the beginner route really gives you a feel for what is to come on the intermediate course.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
Loch 4 Mountain Bike Park and Montgomery Bell

Review Date
May 5, 2009

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 3 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 4 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Once a month

Reviewed by: homerjones ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
Primary trailhead is at Hamilton Creek Park, off Bell Rd. There are basicly two loops. The first being "beginners" that becomes "intermediate". There is an out route at the beginning of the intermediate. About the only difference between beg. and inter. is log crossing and slightly steeper climbs.

The second loop is "advanced", and marked well off of the intermediate loop crest. Beginner and intermediate trails are windie with some rock and roots. The advanced is more skill and endurance demanding. Compared to other trails in the area, more rock crossing, climbs, and drops. Good news is, to qoute the friend that first talked me into trying it, "There's nothing that you can't walk or ride around." If it looks scary, walk it or bipass it. Find a friendly line and ease through. It's all do-able and lots of fun. It will hurt you if you're not careful. In middle Tennessee, it's my favorite. Great confidence builder. Doing a full lap with no blood is something to be proud of. I was.

The down side is that it doesn't drain well. It takes two or three days of warm, breezy weather, after a mild rain to ride without trail damage and muck.

Recommended Route:
My favorite route is right (counter-clockwise) on each loop.

The easiest is left (clockwise) through the beg./inter. and right (clockwise) through the advanced. The later gets you to the advanced entry quicker, with fresher legs. Fresh legs are good in the advanced.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
I rank Mongomery Bell (White Bluff) a close second. Not nearly as techically demanding but lots of climbs and run-downs.

Lock 4 (Gallatin) is fast and flow-ie.

Bear Wheels at Defeated Creek (Carthage) is similar with the toughest climb this side of Raccoon Mt.

Chickasaw Trace (Fairview) is challenging. Spray for chiggers in the summer.

Then there's Raccoon Mt. (Tiftonia) that's not exactly "in the area" but combines the best of all of the above in a 16 mile loop.