best places to ride near bristol?

ralph1471
ralph1471 Posts: 92
edited November 2010 in Routes
Hi!

Me and a friend are hoping to head up to cannock chase for a days riding as its near to an indoor ski place we wanted to visit, and we will be heading to bristol after that. Was just wondering if anyone has any recommendations as to whats nearest to bristol (or cannock, or between the two!) in terms of trail centres? afan is about an hour and 30 according to google maps but just wandering if anyone knows what is nearer and still good? I know the forest of dean is but if we drive up there what are the chances of finding the best trails? I read in an MBUK article that you might need to befriend a local to find them but this isnt ideal as we will only have 1 day there and would rather spend it riding that wandering around the woodland!

any help or suggestions would be very welcome

cheers

Comments

  • welshkev
    welshkev Posts: 9,690
    the fodca trail is signposted at FOD but is very short. cwmcarn is only 30 mins from bristol, and ashton court is actually in bristol with the timberland trail there
  • ralph1471
    ralph1471 Posts: 92
    sweet, thanks!
  • ralph1471
    ralph1471 Posts: 92
    Have you been to the place in bristol? is it enough for a days riding? what about cwmcarn? is there enough to fill a day without doing the downhill? my friend rides a hardtail so im not sure he'd be up for it. is the downhill rideable on a 100mm hardtail do you reckon?

    sorry for the noobie questions

    cheers
  • welshkev
    welshkev Posts: 9,690
    not ridden at ashton court, but a l;ad i work with rides there a lot, he says it not very technical and no huge climbs or descents but it's fun. cwmcarn only has 1 trail apart from the DH which i do in about an hour and a half and i'm a fat lazy guy :lol:

    if you're after a whole days riding either do cwmcarn and then over to bristol.

    or afan with it's multitude of trails would be best if you can be arsed to drive :D
  • matty_boy76
    matty_boy76 Posts: 88
    I live in Bristol and the Timberland is about 11km long so about 2hrs tops if you take it easy - fully signposted though. There's plenty more "off piste" around here but it might be a little tricky to find if you're only here for the day.

    Cwmcarn is indeed only 30-45 mins from Bristol and is a steep climb followed by some superb flowing trails - the DH is rideable on a 100mm HT, as most of it is rollable. Depends really on your mates skill, and balls tbh.

    I'd head to Cwmcarn or Afan 1st after leaving the midlands, take the M50 to South Wales - if you want a full day in one place go to Afan (it's about 1.30hrs from Bristol) then head to Ashton Court in Brizzle if you want a bit more - it doesn't compare really to Cwmcarn or Afan but is a good blast if it's dry - it's pretty crappy in the wet - but might make a good twilight/night ride as it isn;t too technical. You miss the toll charge on the Severn bridge this way too.
    http://mtbtrailtime.googlepages.com/locationmaps
  • ralph1471
    ralph1471 Posts: 92
    cheers for the info, might go and ride cwmcarn a couple of times then, if i can manage it! probably a good idea to go on the way back from Birmingham. thanks for your help!
  • konanige
    konanige Posts: 115
    why does no-one mention the mendips when talking about riding near bristol? its the best riding there is in the bristol area and easy to get to. find your way to Bad ass bikes in Burrington combe and they will point you in the right direction. theres enough riding to keep you busy all day if youve got the legs for it!
  • Andy!
    Andy! Posts: 433
    konanige wrote:
    why does no-one mention the mendips when talking about riding near bristol? its the best riding there is in the bristol area and easy to get to. find your way to Bad ass bikes in Burrington combe and they will point you in the right direction. theres enough riding to keep you busy all day if youve got the legs for it!

    +1 the missus lives 5 minutes away and I am finished work and looking for a new contract as of 2 weeks time so I am going to enjoy some riding with the dog down there.
    Merlin Malt 2
  • ralph1471
    ralph1471 Posts: 92
    cool thanks i shall check it out on das interweb when im more awake!
  • Horton
    Horton Posts: 327
    Mendips are great, but not a trail centre and unless you know the area, you might well end up on fairly boring tracks as not all of the trails are that obvious. To get an idea what's around up there have a look around on t'internet for Rowberrow...

    What's been said about ashton court is spot on, there's loads around here though, Ashton Court, Leigh Woods and Ashton Hill to name just a few that are all within riding distance of each other, but only the timberland trail in Ashton Court is actually signposted so again, could be a bit dull. If you're coming down from the snowdome, hang a right and do Cwm Carn or if you can be bothered with the extra drive, Afan defo has more to offer.
  • thecremeegg
    thecremeegg Posts: 284
    A heads up about the Timberland Trail, rode it today and its horrendously muddy! Couldnt get any speed up really mainly due to my tyres either bogging down or slipping
    My Enduro S-Works
  • Andy!
    Andy! Posts: 433
    yeah deffo more out at Afan but Mendips are great for nice peace and quiet.

    Also got the Quantocks further down the M5.

    http://www.ridethequantocks.co.uk/
    Merlin Malt 2
  • ralph1471
    ralph1471 Posts: 92
    Might avoid the timberland trail then as its probably going to be muddy by the sounds of it. might still head up to cwmcarn as its not far too far or afan if we have time. Its good to know abot the other area around as well as ill hopefully be heading back up again before too long as my friend now lives in bristol. I think i might stick to trail centres this time though as were limited on time and it just simplifies the process of finding good trails. im horrendously bad at getting curious and wandering around different trails for ages if they're not marked out!

    cheers!
  • projectsome
    projectsome Posts: 4,478
    ralph1471 wrote:
    Might avoid the timberland trail then as its probably going to be muddy by the sounds of it. might still head up to cwmcarn as its not far too far or afan if we have time. Its good to know abot the other area around as well as ill hopefully be heading back up again before too long as my friend now lives in bristol. I think i might stick to trail centres this time though as were limited on time and it just simplifies the process of finding good trails. im horrendously bad at getting curious and wandering around different trails for ages if they're not marked out!

    cheers!

    Timberland trail will be a bit muddy at the mo, there is Leigh Woods just over the bridge to the right which has more trails more technical stuff, such as picnic table and rocky horror if you can find em.
    FARKBOOK TWATTER Happiness is my fucking mood!

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