So down in Exeter with my girlfriend – grew up here but didnt do off-roading riding as a kid… Which is best to go to tomorrow – not to complicated trails, couple of hours…

Have ridden woodbury couple of years ago, but mainly on the hard tracks. Haldon as a walker but not as a biker.

Also is there any good maps of either areas – found this of haldon – Haldon Map

Thanks for any advice!

Hi mate , depends what you want , woodbury got some good stuff , but hard to explain, unles your on the ground, prolly best going to haldon , doing the ridge, adventure trails nothing to write home about TBH , but a nice ride, again loads of good unofish stuff,but youd get lost trying to find it like,50% chance i will out on thurs eve., good luck , enjoy.

My choice would be Woodbury although you do need to know your way around. There are good trails to be had at Haldon but the waymarked stuff is deadly dull/super sanitised.

If it's just the 2 of you I'd suggest Haldon, the trails are clearly marked, not too taxing but enjoyable enough & you should kill a couple of hours easily.
Woodbury riding is far superior, in my opinion, but you'd need someone who knows the area to get the best from it.
Go alone & you'll spend your time riding the wide, loose fire-roads, looking for the good stuff.
It's pretty well hidden & not easily found on your own.
Which ever you decide, hope you both have a good ride!

Cheers.

cheers for the suggestions – has anyone marked the woodbury unofficial ones on any maps…? im a pretty good map reader so can identify specific points if need be!

Haldon is good fun, something for everyone really…

If you head over the back there are some cool unmarked trails with some fun singletrack and a few jumps

disben – YGM

This is a route I quite often do that takes in a lot of good singletrack and as little fireroad as possible just to get between the good singletrack sections. Nothing too extreme in this route either.

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/woodbury-common/893127687620085265

Woodbury riding is far superior

😯

Are you mad! 😀
I like Woodbury, i think its got some good bits however its not a patch on Haldon (the off-piste haldon, not the ridge route) IMHO.

despite the fact that Burchy rides like a girl, i concur.
Woodbury a bit too much like riding on the beach for me, though there is some good stuff there, for sure.
you don't say how capable your GF is. if not that experienced, then the ridge at haldon will give her something different to stretch her a bit, and is sectioned enough that you can have a bit of a blast yourself, in places. it's standard is probably not true red, as others imply, but there's still fun to be had.
there is lots of other riding up there. if you want showing, shout, and i'm sure someone will take you around.

As others have said you can get lost for weeks on end at Woodbury in a maze of doubletrack and loose pebbly stuff or someone in the know can show you where to look for the more interesting stuff..

I got shown a whole few miles of singletrack last night that were completely new to me.. (the guys showing me were riding way more intensely than my fitness levels allow though so I haven't a clue where any of it was due to wheezing and turning purple during the short time that I managed to keep up with the pace)

I'm gonna agree that Haldon is much better.. simply because Woodbury is my back garden and I like that it's pretty quiet..

Yeah ok Burchy1, I'll give you that, agreed that there's a lot more to haldon than the sanctioned trails, some of which are excellent, but they're not easy to find without a bit of help, plus, if you think Woodbury is like riding on the beach then you obviously haven't found the good bits!! 😉

to be fair, i made that comment about the beach, not Burchy, but you can otherwise blame him for most things….
i know it's not all like riding on a beach, but some of it is, and unfortunately, those are the bits that stick in my mind. more to do with how my mind works, than what Woodbury is like as a riding destination. 😀

cool – well, setup an STW ride then, and show us the good stuff! i have ridden up there with people who know their way around, and as i say, i know there is good riding there, but i'm always happy to be shown more.

Prob go around the red run twice – easier to follow – Woodbury is a bit of a maze if you dont know where your going?

Dartmoor but if you can't get there, definately Haldon over Woodbury, if only for the ease of finding single track trails to ride on without constant map checking and guess work.

If you have a GPS or are good at following a map then I agree with Trail Monkey but that maybe too far to travel?

Del – Member
despite the fact that Burchy rides like a girl

Weasel! 😉