Cedarville St. Forest: Conditions

[bikerRob]

02/01/04>>Conditions: Snow, 4+ inches with hard crust, temp 30*>>> Well I thought I’d give it try today even though I knew there was a good chance that it would not be ride worthy. From the parking lot I took the orange trail. Riding thru this stuff was like riding up-hills the whole way with a bungee cord tied to you. If it hadn’t been for the crusty topping it would have been a great ride. I only rode the single track about a quarter mile before I realized that today just wasn’t the day to ride Cedarville. I decided instead to try the forest roads thinking that they would be more hard packed. They were so the ride continued. I rode every forest road that had been driven over. The road down to the lake was hard pack the whole way and just a blast. After riding back towards Bee Oak Road, I turned right towards the camping area that had been plowed but still had a light layer of snow on it. ( * note, It’s okay to go around the gates ) I followed out all the camping loops and finally made my way back to the car. I managed to get an hour and half ride out of it. Not bad considering the lack of ride worthy single track. If I had to do it again I’d bring the studded tires ( at least for the front tire ). There were a couple icy sections along Bee Oak Rd. (photo)

[Dobbs]

biker Rob - saw a previous post you put up re: Rockburn. Have you been there or to Patapsco off of Landing Road since the snow? tried to email you, but couldn't locate an email through more-mtb. thanks for any info.

boobazaazoo@yahoo.com

[riderx]

Originally posted by Dobbs
re: Rockburn. Have you been there or to Patapsco off of Landing Road since the snow? See link (http://www.more-mtb.org/forum/showthread.php?s=&postid=1393#post1393).

[bikerRob]

02/02/04>>>I haven't been to Avalon or Rockburn since the last snow ( 4+ inches ) I have a feeling though that it's going to be much like what I saw at Cedarville except with hills. I too was hoping someone knew the conditions at Avalon. If anybody chooses to ride it, be sure to give a post. ( *Dobbs, you can send me a private message by going to the profile and clicking "send a private message". My e-mail won't be listed till I have time to set up a separate mail box.)

[mraue]

55 degrees. I've been riding in the metro area for 5 years, but never Cedarville until today. Happy I did -- this may be the best place to ride in this area between winter and spring. Here are five reasons you should check it out NOW:

1. The trails aren't sloppy at all. A few boggy spots -- proper manners dictate you carry your bike over. You might want to stay off the blue trail.

2. Patapsco and Wakefield and most of the others really need you stay off for the next few weeks. They'll be in great shape about the same time you get bored of Cedarville.

3. You've never ridden there. Maybe 25 miles of single/double track and access roads, 2/3 is single-track. Orange makes a nice 7 mile loop of all single-track.

4. Your girlfriend will like it. There are no obstacles at all, except an occassional horse dropping. The forest is beautiful, even in winter. And the trails wind and roll more than enough to keep you interested.

5. The park ranger actually seemed happy to see both me and my bike, probably due in large part to his past interactions with "those MORE guys."

And for those of you who say it's not challenging enough -- pedal harder and keep your hands off the brakes!

[NPT]

I took mraue's advise and went over to Cederville today. It's a little bit of a drive from DC, but not too bad. The trails were perfect, dry, and the 70 degree weather helped also. Not the most difficult of runs, but it's nice to get off of the paved bike paths and get in some dirt.

[bikerRob]

04/18/04>>> I took a quick romp thru Cedarville on Saturday...most enjoyable! Most of the trails were very dry with only the occasional boggy spot. I was glad to see that someone had been doing some trail work to repair some of the boggy sections along the blue trail. ( Notably, where the blue trail intersects with the white trail near the lake Rd. ) In this area white stone has been applied all the way to the small wooden bridge and a little beyond. A little further along the blue trail there is an area that is still a quagmire. However at least there was some tape on some of the trees that showed where the best line was. Thankfully someone did some corduroying to make this section passable. A band-aid approach but it will do for now. There was a major dead-fall on the orange trail just south of the camping area near another wooden bridge. This really needs to be cleared. Be prepared to climb over this tree if you want to continue on. ( unless you want to walk thru the stream..be my guest. :rolleyes: )

[bigbadbrad]

hey biker Rob: Yes, indeed! I was out to Cedarville w/my toddler in the bike seat a couple weeks ago, as I recall it being fairly flat, forest roads, etc. Worked great for taking him; I hadn't been there in a few years, was excited to see there's a network of singletrack now; have to get back sans l'enfant!

Question: do you know who to contact there about deadfall/trail clearing? I meant to report it to the ranger's office before I left, but the toddler was getting cranky. Anyway, I was following the old route (pre-singletrack days) from an old guidebook, that just takes the forest roads on a kind of figure 8 route. When you turn off the main Forest Road (across the bridge, just beyond the lake), onto Mistletoe Road . . .it's got major deadfall; several trees across the road, making it nearly impassable (even if I didn't have my boy on the back).

Please advise the correct authorities, &/or let me know who to contact, I'll handle.

Thanks!
--Brad R.
ride on . . .

[bikerRob]

04/19/04>>> Cedarville Comment... >>> Cedarville's just a great place to ride. People complain because it's flat but Hey!...sometimes you need an easy ride. If you're going to ride easy, I can think of no better place in Maryland than Cedarville. There's a little bit of everything in Cedarville, second growth Pine forest, a lake, bunches of looping, twisting, rooty single track. All the trails are well marked and well maintained. I was surprised to see the dead-falls. After I left I was wishing that I'd of left a note on the office door about the dead-fall. If I get a chance I'll try to call the park office and talk to someone or leave them an e-mail. It sure would be great to see a map of Cedarville on the MORE web site. All the maps I've seen of the area are way out of date.

[mtbmore]

MD DNR has just recently published new maps of Cedarville, Rosaryville, Patapsco, Seneca/Schaeffer, Gambrill and Greenbrier and a few others. You can purchase these maps online at the DNR site. Here is the link http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/

Scott Scudamore