NP North Ridge & bypass

[dropthehammer]

Newish to the NP trail system.... a co-worker & I hit the north ridge trail last night after work. parked below the dog free run fences and rode the N Ridge red blazed trail which stayed mostly along the road. Working way too much this summer and the fitness is really suffering...

Got down to the water at the end/bottom and turned around to head back. At the top of the hill met up with some guys coming up. Asked about the notorious NR Bypass trail and they showed us the entry point. We rode most of it with them (much more interesting than the NR) but bailed at the new picnic shelter as it was getting dark fast. Took the road and some trails along it back to the dog area. Guess we missed out on the downhill at the end.

Plan to head down again some evening early next week and check out the rest. Nice work on that bypass trail...

Not that i am likely up for it, but where is the Dr J trail in relation to all this?

[Gregg3333]

Yeah the whole North Ridge area is really coming around nicely. Deluxe et al are doing a great job.

Dr. J is up by the pool area. Maybe someone who knows the name of the shelters and other landmarks can give you more specific directions.

[Deluxe]

Thanks dudes! Gregg has also helped out termendously on this trail (nice carpentry skillz). We just dropped in a litle dirt kicker before the berm and booter below Wyoming shelter. When you come up out of the climb above the admin building it's a nice reward - hit it with speed.

If you want to see Dr. J, come to the mtb fest on 18 Jul (noon McCandless shelter). We are trying to avoid too much publicity before county approves it. Thanks!

Dropthehammer - was that you I saw on the climb up (I was riding a green Ventana with white fork)?

[dropthehammer]

Green Ventana... yes that was us. I was on the surly. Nice to put a face to a (board) name.

All the woodwork on the bypass trail was looking fresh and built to last.

Can't make the 18th, taking the boy bmx-ing to westmoreland this weekend.

[Shred303]

Hammer, I like to start it from the Olympia shelter, here's how I do it:

FInd the Olympia shelter across from the Ice Rink at the intersection of North Ridge and Pearce Mill.

Head up through the lawn and search for the trail along the tree line. It's kind of hidden but once you find you'll have no doubt it's a pretty wore in trail. This is the start of the Northridge Bypass/Extension trail. This part of the trail is known as the Olympia climb.
At the top of the climb make a right. The left will take you to North Ridge road.

After a half mile you cross one of the new walking bridges. You'll cross the second bridge and then the trail climbs up near the lookout tower and runs right beside the road.

After this the trail will descend you'll cross the gas line and the 3rd walking bridge. Right after this at the top of the switch backs make a right. The trail is blazed with Red Rectangle with a black dot in the center. (A left will take you straight to the road)

The trail eventually take you behind ??? pavillion and ends. At this point cross the road and take the bridal trail or if you want to bail make a left and take North Ridge road back to the start at the Olympia shelter.

To take the Bridal trail cross the road and make a left on the trail and following the red rectangles. I haven't been this way in a while anyone know if it's blazed well? There's a few spurs but they all head in the right direction. At one point the trail will put you back on to North Ridge Road for aobut 20 yards but the trail start right back up again on the right. It will climb up along the edge of some yards and then a big downhill descent.

In whole this section of the bridal trails is anohter two miles of pretty easy trails and eventually takes you to the intersection of Pearce Mill and Brown Road about a 1/4 mile up the road from the ice rink where you started.

[gearhead313]

I just rode north ridge this evening in that direction explained, for the first time in a while. I usually ride it the other way, which I think its a much better ride. It seemed like we were working twice as hard for half as much, but when going the other way, your flow is only interrupted by the one big climb. I guess its all personal preference, but thats just my opinion.

[Shred303]

I think it rides pretty good both ways, at least North Ridge Bypass but I prefer it ending at the Wisconsin pavillion. I've never done the extension (with the 3 new bridges) any way but from Olympia pavilion to the lookout tower. I'll have to try it the other way some time. Off camber downhill and switchbacks going down to Olympia you think that's better down than up?

[gearhead313]

I mean, I think its better... some of those climbs are brutal, so it seems like you take flow out of the whole experience..

I'd be interested to see what you thought of the whole trail the opposite way since your so used to running it the one direction. When we finish out the trail at those switchbacks, you can just rail down them, and some of the little cuts make it really fun! its a nice way to finish the ride imo.

[Shred303]

I'm confused are you talking about doing North Ridge Bypass the way Hammer did it. Starting from Wisconsin pavilion? If you go that way some of the climbs are very near unrideable. Hammer's way most of the trail flows pretty nice except those couple of walking sections.

[Shred303]

Road yesterday and wrote down the mileage on my computer; I was always curious how long the North Ridge trails were. This is a loop starting across from the ice rink at the Olympia pavilion to the Wisconsin pavilion and then taking the Bridal Trail back to the intersection of Pearce Mill and Brown Road.

The climb from Olympia to the Lookout Tower/North Park Lodge is about 1.25 miles with about .5 miles of relief making it about 3/4 miles of climbing.

The extension (the new trail with the 3 new bridges) is about a mile and a half (1.55).

North Ridge Bypass (Brungers trail) is about 2 1/2 miles (2.6)

The total distance of the bypass and extension from Olympia shelter (ice rink) to the end Wisconsin shelter is a little under 4 and 1/4 miles (4.15).

The steep/long Bridal trail climb (in this case descent) is less than 1/2 mile (.42). This always felt a lot longer.

Put it in a spread sheet and uploaded to a google spreadsheet: Olympia to Wisconsin and the Bridal Trail Back

0.00 Start of North Ridge Drive across from the ice rink beside Olympia pavillion
0.04 Olympia Pavillion
0.08 Trailhead
0.30 Unanmed spur heading uphill
0.52 Top of climb. Spur to the left heads to the road
0.69 1st Bridge
0.86 Spur in pine field
0.92 2nd Bridge
0.99 Climb Resumes
1.24 Top of climb near lookout tower and North Park lodge
1.53 3rd Bridge
1.55 Top of switch back and make a right onto the Red blue dot trail.
1.89 Unkown spur rejoins
2.30 Pass the Red White spur
2.73 First sharp steep rooty switchback
3.16 Trail runs beside xxxx pavillion
3.85 2nd steep switchback
4.15 Wisconsin pavilion Red blue do trail head
4.16 Red Green Dot
4.17 Becomes Solid Red
4.39 Pass the Red Yellow Dot spur
4.84 Y in the field merge left not very obvious that the red trail heads left
4.87 Make a right at the intersection to stay on the red trail straight takes you to the road
4.97 Cross a gas line
5.13 Cross another gas line
5.22 Ascend to the road the trail runs along the road about 30 yards
5.25 Begin a short steep ascent starting from along the road
5.32 Top of the bridal trail climb (descent in this case)
5.74 Bottom of the Bridal trail climb
6.01 Bridal trail head at the intersection of Pearce Mill and Brown Road
6.26 Back to Olympia

[gearhead313]

Alright, im straight now... i had to pull up some maps to figure it out, but i got it. We usually ride the bypass trail that starts at Wisconsin and ends at Olympia, which i believe is how hammer rode it. There is only the one steep part you have to walk (i can almost ride it, but one root kills my spin), but other than that we session it out pretty good.... so hopefully we are all on the same page now

[Deluxe]

I ride it from the Beaver dam (by Beaver Pavillion) up Ridge then half way down Bridle trail and across road then back to Wisconsin and back down to beaver dam so it's closer to 7 (maybe more) from that route. Also if I have more time, I take bridle trail all the way down to Pearce Mill and tie in a Nature Center loop then back to Olympia and up hill to Wisconsin and then down Ridge again. That gives you 13 more or less. I will try to peg the mileage for yinz if you are interested.

And just for the record: I've seen gearhead's bike - he rides a sweet FR rig with flats...just so's one understands why he walks that one climb and doesn't give my man shyte about walking it...you're a sick monkey gearhead.

[Shred303]

I ride it from the Beaver dam (by Beaver Pavillion) up Ridge

Where is Beaver Pavilion Deluxe. I can't figure it out. The park map shows it somewhere over by the swimming pool.

[Deluxe]

Come down hill (Babcock Blvd) from pool. Through main intersection with WWI cannon, over spillway and past Pearce Mill Road Road (don't go left!), and at the very end of the long parking lot on your left is BEAVER shelter. Last shelter in North Park heading north on Babcock as if you are going into Pine township.

[Shred303]

Found it

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source= ... 53,,0,5.71

Still confused about what route you take

I ride it from the Beaver dam (by Beaver Pavillion) up Ridge then half way down Bridle trail and across road then back to Wisconsin and back down to beaver dam

So there's a trail behind Beaver pavillion and this connects up with the climb that I usually catch from Lake Shore by the spillway right? You cross the road and pickup North Ridge Bypass (Red rectangle blue dot) and take that back to Wisconsin?

[Deluxe]

Dude: go down to Beaver Shelter and look at the dam behind the Rachel Carson Western Terminus Trail sign. Ride over that dam and look down to your left as you come to the section where it was blown out by Ivan. As you look to left, you will see a new bridge (old stormwater pipes are still embedded in the mud on the shoreline). As you cross over the bridge, bang a right over a stone bridge into the woods and make another hard right. Climb like the little dickens - pitch gets real steep (use a hardtail - haha Jason!) - and you will pass the exit/entrance to the red w/ black dot trail (the switchback trail that takes you to the gazebo/spillway/boat launch area on Pearce Mill Road). So just climb up that, do your loop and when you come back down Ridge at the end of your ride, then take the Red w/black dot switchback trail and make a left (as opposed to a right that takes you past teh gazebo onto Pearce Mill) and take that trail until you come back to the little wooden bridge. Got it? I will try to upload or email the 12 Hours of Beaver Pavillion bootleg race map so you can see.

[dropthehammer]

Anyone have a GPS track overlay for the bypass stuff on google maps aerial photo or otherwise? Still unclear on the flow of the bypass trail.

Don't know the shelter names (Olympia, Wis) but we started in from n. ridge road, were parked below the dog run fences (which shelter is there?) and rode the trail from left to right wrt google maps. Soon after we entered off of N Ridge rd there was an intersection. Right went straight up over, presumably to the water tower, the other straight down presumably to the parking lot across from the ice rink. I am assuming the down option dumped at the olympia shelter, in the corner b/t pierce mill & n ridge.... We kept on straight and rode till we popped out at wyoming(?) shelter.... it was a new pavilion that the trail went right up to, big gravel lot, porta potty, new water tap. Anyway, we bailed there and took the road back past the tower et al.

[Shred303]

Not a GPS track but made kind of a rough outline of it here:
http://www.pennsylvaniadirt.com/2009/06 ... EntryStart

Deluxe would love to see that race map.

[rodack]

This has the whole N Ridge system, existing, and as planned. The map was created with gps tracks.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=104045239248518236882.00045c376fcb87fd26e26

I've got to ride it backwards again. I haven't ridden it in that direction since I first rode it the year it appeared. Once I saw the teeter, then climbed the really steep stuff, I figured the other direction was better.

[dropthehammer]

Many Thanks for the map links. B/T those and tonights ride, have a pretty good handle on it. We got hammered by the rain on the way back though...