Can anyone advise me how tough the "expert mountainbike track" is at Swinley, compared say to the Black route at Thetford....
Thanks in hope
There isn't one! There are a collection of upmarked trails through which are fun to ride 🙂 If you like the Thetford black then you'll like Swinley.
Swinleys not that bad loads of break bumps oh and mud this time of year, ridden there a load of times... well worth a tip 😛 its not that steep but have a good look around loads of hidden bit... last time I went i found the set of the new Harry Potter film, so you never know what your going to find...
Yeah... find someone that looks local and follow them, otherwise you'll miss out on all the good stuff.
the 'expert area' you are refering to is a nice run of single track, there are in fact a choice of a few runs but nothing that could be considered 'black' graded. Basically a few berms and jumps (all of which are rollable), nothing knarly. There are a few other fun sections in and around 'sandy cutting', and between sandy and the expert area, various dh runs, jumps and drops etc. Worth a trip there but perhaps not at the moment as its getting pretty churned up. Sandy cutting was un-rideable a few weeks ago, this didnt stop people from riding it and so it was in a right state!
Do you need to pay for a day permit do you know
you are supposed to, available from 10am at the visitors centre or online
There are no "routes" as such at Swinley, just ride about as you like. I've ridden both Thetford & Swinley this summer & find Swinley a whole lot more fun. Most of Thetfords black route is dull corrugated XC riding & no fun at all.
there's tonnes in there that appeals to all abilities. If you can't find something to entertain you you either are an absolute DH god who hates pedallingor you aren't trying hard enough. Even Jedi enjoys Swinley's flowing singletrack!! What more recommendation is there (Jedi, back us up here)
Example would be the runs from the top of 'The Wall' - with various names like Babymaker, Deerstalker, Left Left, etc. All pretty rollable to a very average rider (I can do them all for a start) but with some biggish tabletops in them too so if you're inclined you can style it up (as I believe the parlance goes) to your heart's content.
But it is very very wet currently so you might not get the best out of a visit this week.
and yes - please buy a permit online or at the centre; reasons why
[url= http://www.gorrick.com/swinley/permits.php ]HERE[/url]