Chestnut Mountain

One of my favorite trails in the Bozeman area. An absolute must for advanced riders looking for a great ride. Most riders will start at Goose Creek trailhead (off Trail Creek road) and traverse the trail down to Chesnut Ridge trailhead. I prefer to start at the Chesnutt Ridge Trailhead (just off the interstate on Trail Creek Road). The first five miles is a pure grueling ascent of switch backs up Chesnut Ridge until you are on the spine of Chesnut. Probably the most physically challenging rides in Bozeman and that's the way I like it. Once on top, you have a great roller-coaster ride of single track down the ridge with awesome views. I've ran into many elk along this stretch. Several miles down the ridge and you will intersect a 4-wheeler trail. A right turn (west) will take you down into the Bear Creek/ New World Gulch trail; a left turn (east) will take you to the Goose Creek trail head and will hook up with a gravel road. I then continued down the gravel road out Goose Creek, connecting with Trail Creek Road (paved) and ride back to the Chesnutt Ridge trail head. (I prefer riding this as a loop as opposed to dropping a car at the top and riding down. Riding the switchbacks off Chesnut is dangerously fun and extremely hard on brakes
Total loop is 14.5 miles.
Min Elevation = 5,268
Max elevation = 7,646
Elevation gain/loss = 2,967
Average Grade/slope = 8.7%
Max grade/slope = 38%

One of my favorite trails in the Bozeman area. An absolute must for advanced riders looking for a great ride. Most riders will start at Goose Creek trailhead (off Trail Creek road) and traverse the trail down to Chesnut Ridge trailhead. I prefer to start at the Chesnutt Ridge Trailhead (just off the interstate on Trail Creek Road). The first five miles is a pure grueling ascent of switch backs up Chesnut Ridge until you are on the spine of Chesnut. Probably the most physically challenging rides in Bozeman and that's the way I like it. Once on top, you have a great roller-coaster ride of single track down the ridge with awesome views. I've ran into many elk along this stretch. Several miles down the ridge and you will intersect a 4-wheeler trail. A right turn (west) will take you down into the Bear Creek/ New World Gulch trail; a left turn (east) will take you to the Goose Creek trail head and will hook up with a gravel road. I then continued down the gravel road out Goose Creek, connecting with Trail Creek Road (paved) and ride back to the Chesnutt Ridge trail head. (I prefer riding this as a loop as opposed to dropping a car at the top and riding down. Riding the switchbacks off Chesnut is dangerously fun and extremely hard on brakes. I can't usually go as fast as I like because of all the foot and other bike traffic; another reason I like to ride it in reverse.) Going down Chesnut is not for beginners. It's not all that technical but it is very steep.
Total loop is 14.5 miles.
Min Elevation = 5,268
Max elevation = 7,646
Elevation gain/loss = 2,967
Average Grade/slope = 8.7%
Max grade/slope = 38%

Simple answer--and a common practice. The description is just that--a description. Where the trail is, how to reach the trailhead, route(s) available, terrain encountered, etc. Objective stuff. A review, on the other hand, is subjective, and brings in personal impressions in addition to factual information. Two different purposes, each expressed in their proper place.

This is a Bozeman must do. I usually don't give high marks to a loop with this much road, but the singletrack on this one makes it well worth it. The first two miles of the singletrack is a tough climb through alternating woods and alpine meadows with spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. Then, there's some great ridgeline roller coaster riding that will put a big grin on your face. There are also some fantastic rock formations along the way and you'll be torn between watching the trail and watching the scenery. Finally, you get 2,400 vertical feet of continuous descent on excellent quality singletrack. This one is just plain fun.