Take the fireroad out the back of the ski resort parking lot. Start downhill,
but go slow, because the singletrack is immediately (less than a a quarter
mile) on your right. It's marked with an orange flag and called something
like Perfect Ride?. Once you find the singletrack on the right of the fireroad,
you've got about 5 miles of super plush super fun singletrack dirt through
lots and lots of pines etc. Just follow the orange flags and it's pretty
obvious where to go. There are a couple fireroad crossings, but if you look
around, you'll see the trail just a few feet up the road at each crossing. At
the one unmarked singletrack Y, just after a creek crossing and about 4
miles in, go right. Left goes uphill, right downhill. About 5 miles in you'll
cross through a meadow, and then do 5-10 minutes of singletrack climbing,
topping out at a fireroad. At the "Y", go LEFT. This is really the only
completely unmarked decision you make. The fireroad climbs a bit (15
minutes+), opens up to huge views of Lake Isabella, and then BOMBS (to
the LEFT) down the rest of the mountain. Two + more miles, at the only
other "Y", which is more like a "T", go right. (Left at the first one, right at
the second) It smoothes out there and really rips. Be heads up for trucks.
This road will take you all the way back to the main drag, just south of
town. Another option is to go right at the "T". This will bypass the only real
bummer of a climb and take you to the bottom of Sawmill road. There are
several turnouts at the bottom to park a shuttle car.
Ridden this trail many times a year for the past few. Great super fun and flowy singletrack, but it can get pretty dry and loose over the summer. I'm putting this review up because I noticed that it is written up as a black diamond/advanced trail. This trail is at best an intermediate trail, and should be rated as such. Any of the technical spots can be rolled at super slow speeds. If you feel like beginner trails are getting stale this is a good moderate step up.
| ThankAwesome trail! This and Cannell Plunge are the two must-do trails in Kern. Just Outstanding starts out at 7000' and drops to roughly 2k @ the bottom with not much pedaling inbetween. Lots of flow with nice berms and several jumps, and doubles thruoughout. Rode in early September and conditions were great.
Great way to shuttle this is to call a local named "Shuttle Bob" at 1-760-223-2815. He charges a flat rate and will drop you at the top and leave your vehicle at the bottom. VERY hospitable and knowledgeable of all local trails.
| ThankI just rode this on the weekend. Just outstanding was excellent. Its VERY dry up there at the moment so was really dusty and loose but still super fun. I took the waggy ridge trail instead of the fireroad down which was a mistake, Waggy is very exposed to the sun (JO under shade cover most of the time) and deeply rutted, plus the burn area from the recent Shirley fire has made Waggy not worth riding. Overall a great downhill. Lots of other tracks in the area. Dirt bikes etc also use the trails but I had a great run from 7094 ft elevation at the start to 2700ft and the bottom.
| ThankThis is a fun trail with easy access, but it will be HOT if you go during the summer so bring lots of water. There are a few short climbs and there is quite a bit of sand throughout the trail but that shouldn't be a problem for most. When we got there in the morning we expected to ride the trail twice, but by the time we got back to the truck after the first run I was too tired and the Kern River Brewing Company was calling my name, which I highly recommend if you are looking for a place to eat after a good ride. Also if you are gonna stay for the weekend, you should also check out Channell Plunge. It is an epic 30 mile trial starting at 9,900 elevation at Sherman Pass and ending in Kernville at 2,700.
| ThankAbsolutely fantastic ride. It can be a little rutted early in the season from dirt bike riders going up (watch out for them!)
| Thank