The great weather in the Gorge continues, hard to believe it is so nice here in the middle of February. Because of the dry winter weather, some of the local trails that would normally be way too muddy to ride this time of year are in perfect condition, almost like late spring/early summer. One of these spots is Post Canyon. Post Canyon is a unique place, a combination of private property, county and state land allows building of “North Shore” type trail features on some of the trails. There are also miles of XC oriented singletrack trails with plenty of technical riding, climbs and downhill sections.
The cold morning fog lifted and it was bright sunshine and blue skies for the rest of the day. We started out at the bottom and rode up towards the Family Man area
Family Man is an area of bike features geared for the beginner to intermediate freerider. There are log rides, bridges and jumps, but they are only a foot or two off the ground which is a good thing because, unless you are an expert bike rider, you will have to bail here and there while you are improving your riding skills.
Just because the trail features are off the ground doesn’t mean they are easy. Some of the log and rail rides are pretty long, you have to concentrate to stay on track
Post Canyon is well known for it’s challenging trail features. These jumps and tricks are not for beginners by any means. This is serious riding for advanced riders with big suspension bikes and probably some degree of body protection. Post is a world class spot so you better have world class skills if you tackle these advanced freeride trails because getting seriously hurt is a real possibility.
Here’s a short video showing some of the features around the Family Man area
http://youtu.be/Z0krBjYh9a8
Because Post Canyon is so well known, it can get pretty crowded, especially on weekends, so we usually go somewhere else to ride. We were able to sneak in there on a Friday morning in the middle of winter on a sunny 60° day, being lucky enough to be in the right spot at the right time paid off this time. Also, the trail stewards for Post Canyon, the Hood River Area Trail Stewards(HRATS), have done a great job recently of building and repairing the trails and features so Post Canyon is in perfect condition. All in all, a perfect day at a classic mountain bike spot.