Beaver Dam

The trail is not very well taken care of. Not well marked. I took a few friends that are beginners to it and they don't want to come back there. It has a lot of potential, I think the trail hasn't had much riders in it and the track is sometimes not clear.

This trail has great potential but unfortunately it is not well kept.The West and South loop are my favorites. The Inner and Outer loops are good warmups but very rooty. This trail doesn't have good flow. There are tons of ruts and it is covered with leaves and pine straw. Make sure your bike's wheels have a more aggressive tread in order to punch through the thick pine straw and leaves. Otherwise, you will be out of energy 5 miles into the ride. The scenery is great which is why I keep coming back. Trails are well marked with color reflectors.

Rode the North Inner & Outer loops. Good trails. While the inner is consdered Easy and the Outer Intermediate I'd rate them both as beginner with a couple of spots that are a bit more advanced. I rode them with my 8 year old and 14 year old and we finished the loops in about 30 mins each. I enjoyed the ease of parking and getting to the trail head. The clearly marked trails were easy to find and follow.

Rode the West loop the next day and that loop is a bit more flat and less "rooty" than the North and Outer loops. It did have a couple of spots that were intermediate but there were ways to get around those if needed. You could easily do the 2 smaller trails in under an hour.

Good Singletrack.
Lots of roots throughout the trail, some areas are washed out, but the South Loop is a good course.
West Loop is less rooty.

This is a very well thought out trail, nicely built and well maintained. Kudos for that!!
The classification overall in my opinion is totally beginner/low level intermediate, with very few exceptions (less than a handful) and on those anyone felling more intimidated can simply walk them.
It is impressive the amount of climbing they were able to build into it.
I liked that it had some cool descents and some climbs needed a little extra effort, but nothing out of this world.
In terms of measurements, I was using my Garmin Edge 520 with a wheel sensor and I registered the total trail distance to be at 16mi and the total elevation at 1,325ft of ascent and 1,306 of descent (important to note that I covered every single piece of trail available, so I did Outer, Inner, West, South and Drop Zone loops).
Last but not least greatest feature is that this is a one way trail, so you can rip it and not be afraid of head-on traffic as there will be none.

This review is for West Loop, South Loop, and Drop Zone. Strava says it was 9.7 miles total with about 990 ft of elevation. It was well marked and followed Beaver Dam Lake for a while. It was a lot of up and down with short tough climbs. The Drop Zone area is listed as black diamond, but it's not that tough. There are a few drops in there, but nothing crazy. Overall, a blast to ride and I would do it again.

I did not really care for this trail. It's not very well laid out. There's just not really much flow to it. Only like a couple sections. Also I was going through a spider web more than every quarter mile. New Light and Old Creedmoor are much better uses of your time. I'll pass on this trail from now on.

Very nice, very fast track that can challenge experienced riders if they pick up the pace. Even beginners will have a good time if they stay within their comfort level. A lot of tree roots that will keep you on your toes. I actually took a good spill due to some large roots and I've been riding for 10 years. I loved the canopy provided by the trees. Very pretty track-get there early.

Probably my favorite trail in the Triangle. The south loop is the best part, 9 miles I think. Has an intense supplemental area called the Drop Zone. Nice views of the lake. Never crowded. If you go in non-beach season you can get in the lot for free.

Good ride for a beginner who wants to push themselves a bit and an intermediate rider who wants to just cruise through
-a lot of pine straw today

The trails are well laid out and easy to navigate, but they are incredibly rooty and somewhat washed out. My first run here I left with back pain. The trail will be easier and more enjoyable with a full suspension. You also have to pay around $6 per car to get into the park, and personally it wasn't worth it by myself, maybe with some people crammed in it would be

Not getting the traffic it used to see or the care. Limbs down, trees down, real soft layer of pine straw covering everything. Hard pedaling miles due to soft terrain.

Rode the West Loop to South Loop and included one lap of the drop zone, about 11 miles total. Overall, I think this is some of the best true mountain biking in the area if you are looking for long climbs, switchbacks, winding trails, and some fast downhill sections. The South Loop is pretty intense with the climbing and there are no bail-outs so make sure you are committed and in pretty good shape before you try it. I will admit I rode the granny gear, 1-1, in some of those sections just because it's so demanding. I would say if you normally ride in the 1 ring (on a 3 ring bike) at other places like Crabtree or Harris then you are not ready for the south loop and may end up walking some of it. Also I would like to mention, Drop Zone has two pretty big washed out drops to be aware of if you go zooming through there. All in all, I would say this a good ride for intermediate to advanced riders. I can't speak on the inner and outer loops as I did not ride them, but I would assume they are less demanding than the south loop.

I rode this trail for the first time... and perhaps the last time! It is not a trail made for hardtail bikes! It's a great workout and rough as all get-out. I could not sit down because the trail is just filled with roots that act like little dams when it rains and creates thousands of jumps. I think the South Loop was about 8 miles of this phenomon but on second thought, I just may return when I need some bone jarring physical theropy!!

I wish I had read this review before I attempted the South Loop! Exhausted wasn't even the word for it - I was drained and by the end even walking my bike up the hills took more than I thought I had in me.

Great scenery and fun trails. The inner and outter loops are good fun and not too demanding. The South Loop had a lot of climbing towards the last few miles and I ended up walking my bike for much of it. As a beginner, I was not physically conditioned to complete the South Loop, but it gave me a bit of an awakening and I'm looking forward to trying it again in a few weeks. The trails are in the middle of nowhere, so keep that in mind - you may want to take some extra items for safety or better yet, bring a buddy. I didn't see another rider for the entire south loop!

Great time on the trail yesterday. I had the whole place to myself I think... Many spider webs to prove it. Overall great trail!

I rode this trail after not riding for a year. Besides the roots that are everywhere possible the ride was okay. I look forward to going back after I start riding more regularly. I would also like to try some other tails in the area.

Awesome fun... Well kept and good variety of trails. The west loop to south loop is my favorite... You encounter a little bit of everything at BD!

Dude. This is the spot. Crabtree is a little too nice & New Light is a frigging jungle. Good flow, tough climbs, had a blast.