Cumberland Mountain Biking Trails

We were fortunate enough to get away for another long weekend holiday last week. This time we made it up to Comox Valley on Vancouver Island, BC to check out the Cumberland trails.

Our first day out could have been better. It was very wet and at one stage we managed to find ourselves a bit lost despite having a map (I’ll blame getting lost on my tiredness due to packing the car and driving to the island before heading out for the ride). That day however, we did ride a fun trail called “Broncos Perserverence”. Broncos Perserverence fast became our our favourite trail at “Cumby” – with enough flow to be an enjoyable ride for Jess, and enough technical features to keep me busy.

The second day out was perfect. After the washout that we had the day before, the sun was just what we wanted.

Sheltered by the forest in the mid-morning, “Mama Bear” was our first run of the day. With a healthy dose of tree roots and a smothering of snow still around, it was a comfortable challenge for the both of us. It’s one of those trails that isn’t particularly hard, but if you’re willing to push yourself there are some cool lines or options you can take to mix things up a little. My favourite was jumping the bank of roots at the beginning (or end!) of the trail.

Another trail that we enjoyed was “Spanker”. Spanker started as a real XC trail, with lots of slippery roots and plenty of technical features, but then opened up into a cleared section of forest with bermed corners and some really fun jumps. We hung out in the sun and “sessioned” the jumps for a while and then made our way back into the forest.

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Cumberland has an excellent trail network. I get the impression that the trails have been around for some time now, but are being rationalized more and more with better signage and by using sustainable trail building methods. While some trails aren’t signposted that well yet, others have “feature” bike parts like reflectors marked throughout the trail – I imagine it would be a fun experience to ride here at night!

Not only are the trails here great fun, the environment is some of the most beautiful that I have seen. The forest was lush and green – I could stop just about anywhere on a trail and something would catch my eye. While I know not everyone is into the sport for the environment, it’s a huge part of it for me.

If you find yourself on Vancouver Island, or more specifically in Comox Valley with a bike, I strongly recommend checking out the Cumberland mountain bike trail network.

For more information on the Cumberland and Comox Valley trails, check out CVMTB and Mountain Biking Girl.