Outdoors/Adventure

Mountain bikers get more singletrack trails at Mirror Lake

Riders at the Mirror Lake Singletrack Trails are seeing double after a summer-long trail-building project added more than twice the distance to the existing trail system.

"Folks are welcome to go enjoy the trails," Will Taygan, a volunteer with the Chugach Mountain Bike Riders, said last week. "They are ready."

The new sections of trail — all 2.75 miles' worth — bring the total distance to 5 miles. Taygan said the trails include everything from beginner routes to black-diamond sections for expert riders.

"We designed them for people to get the full experience," he said.

Last Thursday, Heather Johnson and her dog Dani, a Siberian husky, stopped by the trails for the first time since the new sections opened.

"I'm really excited to see them," the Eagle River woman said as she unloaded her bike from atop her car.

Johnson said the location near the Glenn Highway is ideal. Other singletrack trails are located in the Valley (Crevasse Moraine in Palmer and Government Peak near Hatcher Pass) and Anchorage (Kincaid and Hillside parks).

ADVERTISEMENT

"It's nice to have something in the middle," Johnson said.

Taygan said the dedicated singletrack trails are open all year except during break-up. They're located near the existing multi-use trail system, and Taygan said walkers and runners are allowed to use them "as long as folks are aware they are designed for mountain bikers." Horses are not allowed, he said.

Among the features of the new trails are a quarter-mile "jump line," a series of loops Taygan described as "small but rowdy" and a mile of easier trails near the main trailhead at Mirror Lake Park.

The majority of the new trails are intermediate with lots of flowing lines to ride, Taygan said.

"So you get that kind of gliding, swooping feeling," he said.

Johnson praised the variety that's been added. "It's nice to switch it up," she said.

The trails are the culmination of four years of work, Taygan said. Volunteers racked up thousands of hours of labor, and professional trail builders Ptarmigan Ptrails installed lines suitable for riders of all abilities.

The cost of the two-phase project is $150,000 to $175,000, he said, with much of the money coming from federal and local grants. The Chugiak-Eagle River Parks and Recreation Department helped, he said, as did hundreds of volunteers.

There were about two dozen work sessions this summer where crews cleared brush or smoothed the trails, Taygan said.

"It was really neat to see the general public get involved for even a day or two," he said. "I think that helps them feel a connection to the trails and some pride in what they made."

Most of the work is done, though Taygan said volunteers will continue to maintain and tweak the trails next summer. A grand opening is planned for next spring but they'll open this winter. Taygan said there's already a race planned: the Merry Masher fat bike race on Dec. 29.

Email Star editor Matt Tunseth at editor@alaskastar.com or call 907-257-4274.

Matt Tunseth

Matt Tunseth is a former reporter for the Anchorage Daily News and former editor of the Alaska Star.

ADVERTISEMENT