The San Juan and Candy Store Mountain Bike Trail

It’s amazing the things that were around me, that I never realized were there, that is until the whole mountain biking bug got me.

The San Juan Trail, and the Candy Store Trail are just about 35 minutes from my house, and I never even knew they existed 3 months ago. But they have become two of my favorite trails. Now I am not a hard core XC rider, that said, we shuttle these two trails, they do have some pedaling mixed in with the downhill and it’s a pretty good workout (for me). Usually we go in a group and park one car at the bottom to bring the driver of the other car back to the top to get his truck. You need a forest Adventure pass to park there; the rangers do patrol the area periodically to check for them. A year pass is only 35 bucks, well worth it.

I ride with my 2 sons mostly and some of their friends, yeah, I know, my two sons! Yep, well I am 50, and have been doing the 2 wheel thing since I was old enough to push a pedal or twist a throttle. My 2 rides on the San Juan Trail, and 2 on the Candy Store section, have been in the best conditions, winter, cool temperature and 3 of the rides were after rain or during, making the sandstone like trails the perfect texture for some great riding.

This is single track riding, mostly between bushes and manzanita. That Manzanita will rip you right off your bike, shred your jersey, poke your arm, maybe draw a little blood, and then not even look like you touched it. There are some awesome switchbacks, fast narrow sections and some sections that weave under a canopy of trees, it is almost too beautiful of a scene to just bomb past.  Read more