I am wondering where people look online for mountain bike routes?
They need to be OS map based and the best one I can think of at the moment is the mtbtrails one
[url] http://www.mtbtrails.info/ [/url]
So lets say you are going to the lake district or north west scotland for the week and you are wondering what kind of routes there are available to do in the area, does anyone know of any websites that has trails marked on OS maps?
There are a lot spread about all over the place but I've never found a site that has a decent directory
Try big trotters as a start
p.s. the locations mentioned are just examples
Mapometer.com, mapmyride, ridewithgps etc all are searchable for a given area, but all use maps other than OS.
Here's what I do. I subscribe to the OS and can therefore search plot and print off maps for a given ride. I have a copy of UK MountainBiking which gives suggested routes but not specific trails, and using this I open up Garmin connect and OS getamap in different windows. I switch Garmin connect to satellite view and look for bridle ways and tracks on the OS. I zoom right in on Garmin, where you can often see exactly what the trail looks like, and plot a trace at high zoom level to be as accurate as I can. I toggle between the map views, looking for the next bit of trail on the OS, then switch to Garmin, check and plot. By the time I've finished I've got an accurate gpx trace to send to the Garmin, and I then trace and plot the same trail on OS getamap, save and print it as a backup at 1:25000.
I use Strava these days. find an area and "explore" where you'll find segments that are in regular use.
The popular ones are usually either the good parts or get you to them. you can then look at the routes people are riding when they do those segments or just build up your own ride.
The Endomondo routes page allows you to see where other people have ridden.
Always worth looking at...
I buy an OS map, which doesn't need batteries and I sit on the bog studying the green dashed lines, which are bridleways, perfect for horses and mountain bikes. I work out an interesting loop and then I take the map along and do the ride. It's pretty simple really.
I tend to use the OSmaps on bing maps, work out a route, take a screenshot and stick it on my phone for when im out and about.
I'm old skool, buy an OS map and ask in local bike shops (helps if you buy 'something', I've a huge stash of 26" tubes now despite being tubeless (and often 29er) for the last 8 years!
I just stick an OS map in my pocket, head out and follow my front wheel and make a decision at each junction. The OS map is to let me know how lost I am. I've got a GPS in my backpack, but it very rarely sees daylight.
This has got me into lots of interesting places I wouldn't have otherwise found. Sometimes it's a deadend and as I don't like using the same route to get back, then the map comes out in case there's a useful trail on the other side of the hill - in which case there's a bit of bike lugging involved.
(Probably not a workable method south of the border)
Yeh, what he saidTry [b]bogtrotters[/b] as a start
nooooo I said ONLINE
There are some things that you can't do as well online as you can with a bit of paper (OS Map).
I have followed some online routes other people have posted and been left wondering why as I go up hills that should be down and vice versa, or long stretches of supremely dull tracks.
The best thing to happen with GPS things is that everyone is getting rid of OS maps so I have collected loads for future use.
It's maybe a good idea to ask on a forum of like minded people the best bits of a particular area then use an OS map to link bits you think you'll like based on others opinions and knowing your fitness or skill limits you can achieve. That's my choice of how to do things
[url= http://wtp2.appspot.com/wheresthepath.htm ]Where's the path[/url] is pretty good. You get OS maps and google aerial imagery side by side, so that you can plan a route knowing what the terrain/relief is like and see where certain paths start and finish in realtion to landmarks.
Move the cursor on he map and it oves it on the image or vice versa.
I browse the OS maps, usually on Bing as its draggable 1:25k at fullscreen. Find the right combination of contours and path/track that appeals to me.
Check it out using geograph.org and wheresthepath
Loop it into the next bit I fancy riding.
Then may mark it up using bikehike, to export to GPS if I need to.
Usually if I'm planning a new route, its because I've seen, or heard about a particular trail I want to try out, and want to get it into a decent loop for maximum enjoyment.