Forest of Ae

Looking for some intel please. Complete Ae virgin. Normally just carry on up to Inners but booked on the Ae uplift next month. I’m keen to do a few runs on the main lines but hoping to use the shuttle for discovering some of the more off piste stuff. I am also quite happy to go for pedal about after it finishes if needs be.

I have been studying Strava and Trailforks, theres tons of information, but ive no idea whats what.

so, which tracks at Ae are not to be missed at the moment?

Ta.

@trekster….

Trailforks will help you find the stuff I refer to below. I’m going to ignore the signposted trails, I don’t typically ride them loads, that’s not to say they are bad though. You will find once you set off there’s multiple options to pick and the off piste and the signposted trails become a bit of a mish mash. Kinda like Inners.

From the uplift drop off. I’d look to ride Red rum into Turn down for what (mega fun trail -must ride it) and also blue rum, which is as the name suggests a little easier. Any trail from the top brings you out on a fire road halfway down with more trails leading off that. Typically hit the fire road and turn left and then pick any trail on your right. Things like Jungle and IVO and fitter along gets you to Frazers which is a nice chill warm up if you want to get your eye in.

Peddling up afterwards is great for opening up the trails slightly lower down and over to the right as you look up at the hill from the shop. (It’s also a much easier pedal up than the full uplift slog)TTTT, Tea time etc, are nice trails that link nicely into Frazers and some others that take you from the fire road to the bottom.

the bike shop are friendly and helpful with offering suggestions as well.

If you want a pedal (not near the uplift stuff) Scrambled eggs is a good one to try as well.

Enjoy. AE its great!

Great stuff thanks.

In terms of steep tech rather than big features, which would you say are the most full-on?

Main thing for me was that the dh hill was just really confusing with trails, like innerleithen but more so- I gave up entirely on finding specific trails or knowing where i was and just followed my nose and had a much better time that way rather than stressing about the “right” trail. I don’t remember any of it actually being especially hard, but that doesn’t mean there’s not insane stuff tat I just haven’t found. AS a result I can’t recommend anything but I had a great time and I’d happily just set off down random trails and see what happened.

@cteagles, how is the hill with quarry trail etc these days? I haven’t been up that side since it got knocked about a couple of years back

@Northwind It got revitalised for a local enduro, so I think it’s in pretty good shape, but I didn’t ride it last time I was there so I can’t say for sure!

@mahalo if you are happy on inners DH stuff then I don’t think there’s much to really worry about, aiming loosely for a trail off the top and just riding what you find will be best like Northwind said. You will quickly find what you want. The lower fireroad you can certainly be more selective with as it’s all a bit easier to work out on trailforks.

Turn down for what has some pretty tricky bits if you try for the high lines, TTTT and those trails are steep but it’s nothing worse than the easiest Golfie trails. I think some of the bits over by the quarry can get quite steep but they (like scrambled eggs) are a little out of your way. When I go, it’s usually with no uplift, and I wam up on Frazers, climb to the top of TTTT and drop one of those trails (usually back into Frazers on the fire road) then do the full climb to the top. From there it’s  bit of a rough guess for Red rum which comes off one of the official lines and make it up as I go from there. And you’ve got to ride Turn down for what, it’s such a well built trail and mega fun.

TBH, you dont really need an uplift at Ae, I’m a fat ba..ard, and get up the hills every Tuesday night. There’s loads of off route options. The red route is quite tame, I did the Shredder downhill section on Tuesday, it’s marked as ‘Extreme’ / orange. I made it down without falling off in the heavy rain. Of course, I went slow, as I’m a wuss, but if I can make it down, it isnt that hard. Of course, the faster you go, the harder it is and the higher you’ll jump from the ridges. Bascially, what I’m saying is if you are a downhill god, then you’ll need the off piste stuff, of which there is plenty, or ride fast to get air on the sign marked routes. I walk down some of the off piste, far too steep and rooty/rocky for me. If they are putting on an uplift, then there’ll be plenty of people to show you where the off piste bits start.

Uplift? Shop?? Blimey. I remember when there was just a broken microwave dumped behind the bushes in the ‘car park’.

I assume it still has Omega man at the end of the XC long loop?

Not been there for at least 15 years…

“I assume it still has Omega man at the end of the XC long loop? “

Yes, I did it today. From Omega, there is around a 500 metre long climb back up to the fire road, then a new downhill section that is well surfaced with lots of berms and chances to fly. It’s really fast, with lots of jumping if you have the skill (I’ve seen a few crashes there as peoples abilities do not match their hopes as they speed down it). It’s a good finish to the loop.

So pedalling up to top of TTTT, Rainbow Road etc. – is there a nicer alternative to the long fire road trundle that takes you out and then back on yourself?

I used to push up through the woods, but loads of trees down now.

@chakaping not that I’m aware of. It always feels manageable to me as it feels a lot shorter than the full loop all the way to the top!

So pedalling up to top of TTTT, Rainbow Road etc. – is there a nicer alternative to the long fire road trundle that takes you out and then back on yourself?

I used to push up through the woods, but loads of trees down now.

chakaping- on an uplift try Stumpy to the East?  of the trig point at the DH. This leads to the fire road that TTTT starts from. More bang for your buck!

Good advice from everyone here but no one has mentioned Craigshields. It’s way off the beaten track but is the longest single track in Ae and is sure to be in the National Champs enduro in August.

Thanks cteagles! Good info. I’ll never go to Ae for the trail centre again tbh but the offpiste is so good, I’ve not ridden there for ages so it’s sort of fallen off my “list of places”, need to fix that this summer

Thanks both, as I suspected that big gravel loop is still the most-direct.

I like to do quite a few laps so it gets tedious pretty quickly on my big bike.

Must get on the uplift there sometime, for a change.

Did a couple of laps this week on Green Hill (the ‘Quarry’ hill end) stuff – just the tamer ones as I’m easing back into riding again after a few months away.

Can confirm RMS and Toddy’s Ticker both running beautifully in the main.

Haven’t done Craigshields in years, not since it was very first cut in (and our very own NC21 landed on me!)

“Toddy’s Ticker “

Did you hear how it got its name?
Guy had a heart attack there, survived ok.

oh. this isn’t about Autechre then?

Mahalo , how did it go then?
I saw the uplift bus a couple of times from the cafe, I’d already been out and done a bit of the red earlier. For an uplift day, it was very quiet.