I love FOD, i think it’s a great place but the 40 minute loop round verderers after an hours drive is beginning to bore me. I know that the amount of riding there is huge but how can i find it?
Is there a better place to start than the cycle centre?
Should i head in a different direction?

I’m just after some tips from locals and people who’ve been going there a lot.

I think the bike centre does guided rides for about £20. Or there’s the uplift service if you just want the mini DH stuff.

If you Google the “Fountain Inn” , they have a couple of routes on their website (but beware, Lawnmower has probably disappeared).

Otherwise, you could head to Mile End (small village, you’ll find it on the map) and head eastwards and downwards from there and you’ll find some fun stuff. Also from Worcester Lodge (see OS map). And, if you go south of Speech House Road you might find the likes of Dowies…

I’ve found most of the stuff I know about from riding around the west edge of the woods in those sections and looking for trails heading back east.

The old Enduro trail (small “E” if you know what I mean) is now mostly tarmaced over by the Verderers.

The DH tracks are great and not scary at all. Quite a few are signposted too.

Just explore, if you see riders coming down somewhere, go and see where they came from. Follow your nose

Take a map and explore.
useful tip. (not the one up the road from Cannop, which is useful) Use Cannop cross roads as a reference point. Pick a quadrant and as long as you don’t cross a road you can’t get really lost and will never be more than a couple of miles away from Cannop. If in doubt head downhill to the road, then look for bikes on cars. If they are clean they are heading for Cannop, if dirty away. Really, its true 99% of the time. 😆

I’m going to set up a bike wash business at Cannop just to blow Mattsccm’s theory away….

As above, follow your nose, and don’t be afraid to explore.

Try http://www.fodmtbguides.com , I’m sure they would do you a deal

You can explore but you might get lost or bored.You need a good guide.The key to the Forest is linking the good trails together with good trails if you see what i mean.So you dont use the fireroads.Its an ACTFORM.Not many people have it 😉

A good way to get a base knowledge of the area is to enter an event like the Wild Boar Chase.

Alternatively, post on here (STW) a week or so before a trip here (FoD) and ask if anyone can show you around, or go through FoDMTBGuides or Pedalabikeaway and pay for a guide (not a lot of cost if there’s a group of you).

It is a frustrating area because there is so much riding so close to where you might be at any given time! I often see people riding along the road towards some of the better known singletrack and missing out some equally good but little known links. I’ve been fortunate enough to have introduced a lot of riders to trails in the area but these days I just pootle along somewhat more slowly than most youngsters want to ride 😉

It does work.
Just been out . Not the best time of day I know but the one car with clean bikes on it was heading towards Cannop. Several car loads of dirty bikes went the other way later.
The bike wash at the cycle centre is cleverly too busy to cater for everyone so some people will help rove my theory.
Another tip if you are out and about at the end of the day is, if you want to find your way back to the cycle centre, is to go in the opposite direction to the groups of cold wet youngsters on downhill bikes.

Ride Verderers then ride the DH tracks, easy to get loads of runs in with short fireroad climbs/push ups.
Great place for practicing jump and DH skills.