Trees on trails

Anyone local to Hopton or bringewood able to say how the trails are around there?

Can confirm the (mainly treeless) main hill at Old Kilpatrick is running well. Some trees down in the Brown Hill woods where Spexy etc are located.

Can anyone suggest somewhere accessible from Glasgow that’s running okay? We were thinking of going up Ben Ledi but the wind forecast isn’t looking too good for anything higher up. #enduro style trails preferred.

Given the wind direction, Dunoon should be okay? Lots of the trails there are on previously harvested ground too. I’ve not been for ages though, tbh.

@grahamt1980 I’m semi local, Bringewood is in a very bad way according to one of the builders I know. Lots down and almost nothing was rideable. Hopton Pearce have said is closed, there’s an uplift there next weekend (11th) and they’ve said there will be limited stuff available for that.

Thanks for the reply.
That’s why i am asking about Hopton, I’m on the uplift but there doesn’t seem like much point going if there are only bits of trail open.
Maybe cancel the uplift and head somewhere else then

@molgrips it’s mind boggling how many huge trees are down, on a 100 metre stretch I stopped counting at 20, often with multiples all tangled up. In the past, there have been several trees come down and it was easy enough for people to either turn them into cool jumps / drops or cut out a section. I’ve chatted to the wardens and hopefully they are organising volunteers at some point for the main bridleways, but they won’t be doing anything about the lesser used trails.

Even if the trails are not too bad, access to them may not be possible in event of things going wrong.

In Tweed Valley we are not going to send any mountain rescue resource into a forest unless escorted by FLS. The risk is too high. If it takes an hour until FLS can spare someone, then that will be an hour longer for help to arrive.

Anyone riding in forests that are shut are placing other people at risk.

Just follow Rule #1

A pretty good link from Dimbins on closures/openures. Comrie and Callendar Park are going to be busy!

https://dmbins.com/blog/storm-arwen-trail-update/?fbclid=IwAR0VV8XF2iYxZMqj2Ci78guFbuT7oWt2lflIjCF9J3G9KrRQEdnta1s6prw

@grahamt1980, I’d give pearce a call some time next week and see what they think. They’ll give you an honest answer as to what limited means.

@steveh cheers, will do that

Been round Yair this afternoon/evening (on foot)
Someone has already been and chainsawed a load of stuff from Double Decker (big thanks if that was someone on here)
I had been intending to clear that if I could but not needed so went to Riley’s instead and spent a few hours there. Some bits will need chainsawing so i left those as I don’t have one but cleared away what I could and a load of smaller stuff so that whoever is chainsawing can just spend their time doing that and not fannying about with the little bits I can do.
The bit I saw didn’t look too horrendous. DD has survived, almost intact, Riley’s has a couple of uprooted trees where the roots have pulled up a section of trail but they’ve fallen in a such a way as to make pretty decent jumps. There’s one big tree over the track which it would be possible to ride under, but whether that’s deemed safe I don’t know, could conceivably finish it’s journey the ground just as someone goes underneath.
I’ve not seen the top parts yet though, no idea what it’s like higher up.

@Northwind that DMBINS link mentions forest closures round Aviemore but I’ve yet to see any signage and, other than Clifftop at Inshriach, I’ve yet to encounter any new treefall. We’ve a local FB Trail Conditions group too and no updates coming through on that either. Mind you, it’s not all FE land up here.

Gisburn now open again, sounds like a few diversions in place but basically functioning pretty much as normal.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/24782136080/posts/10159744906461081/

@andrewh power folk were there on Sunday chopping some of the lower trees, right at end of raylees, don’t know how they left it. Interested in hoes, saddle, sweaty and if they survived.
The road up lyndinny woods has a good few biggies over it which would make mrt access difficult.

Top of Hoes on Sunday just past where the doll is tied to the tree.

There used to be a trail here. 😒 by multispeedstu[/url], on Flickr

Walked down Sweaty and it’s Ok apart from one small tree just after the rock/logs section. But them the bottom is totally blocked with several big trees.
Pushup track is also blocked at the top.

Just been sent this-

Sadly the situation is worse at Thrunton.
If you have not been past the forest we are seeing 90% of the north face of the forest at the main car park is flat.
Crews are unable to get into the forest to see the extent of the damage but there are 1000’s of trees down, snapped tops and also 100’s still hung up.
It will be months – not weeks before we will have a full assessment of levels of damage at Thrunton.
Whilst we know it will be frustrating in the coming weeks we must ensure everyone stays safe and we do not have emergency service call-outs.

Hamsterley Forest in County Durham seems to have missed the storm damage and also Whinlatter in the Lakes so why not have blast there and as soon as we can welcome you back to the Northumberland forests we wll.

Best wishes
Alex MacLennan
Forestry England
Recreation, Public Affairs Manager
Northumberland

We rode Gisburn on Sunday. Highlight was the newly maintained Hully Gully. Many areas unscathed, but the trails listed as closed on FB were in patches that had been smashed, and will need a great deal of work to recover.

Over the hill, Havoc Bike Park were sounding very pessimistic about their prospects.

Update on Innerleithen trails.

Latest update is that the harvester is currently in Traquair clearing the forest road of all windblown.

This will allow for emergency vehicle access, which in turn will make things safer to help with clearing bridal paths and trails.

FLS are still asking that riders and public stay out of the forest.

Some updates on Yair and Thorni:

Hey mate. I’d say thornie has come off the best. Fire Road is completely free. It’s just the very top of turbo and over at high def that you need to walk around the fallen trees at the top to get to the tracks. The tracks I’ve rode/checked are totally ridable.
Yair is not accessible on the fire Road from peel. I’ve walked up the orange and 2/3rds are OK but the top start has gone for that and the black. Can’t see it being fixed its soo many down.
The other side of yair if you park at the bride with lights is OK to pedal up the fire Road. You can get up the pushup but at the top it’s a bit flattened. You can get around it though and get almost to a couple of trails. Il start a new entrance to these soon once it all settles down. The Traverse back along to the 3 brethren is fine and the two tracks off the path are sweet. I’ve not been down the footpath from the brethren yet to see the other black but I’m hoping its OK. Loads of work to do but totally savable.

You can get up the pushup but at the top it’s a bit flattened. You can get around it though and get almost to a couple of trails.

See my pic up there.^^

the two tracks off the path are sweet.

There were still a couple of pretty big trees across the main fireroad where Sweaty comes out on Sunday. These are also blocking the bottom of Sweaty

I might venture over again tomorrow at some point and have another look.

Cheers @pothead. Have seen pictures from Thrunton car park and further up the road. Pretty unrecognisable, but not surprising when you think about it: stand in the car park and you’re looking out to the northeast across a big bit of open low-lying land. The wind coming up the hill there must have been insane, and those trees are the first thing it’ll meet. Fingers crossed some stuff further in has survived.

Cut through Yair today and Ginger Mullet and Quarry are both clear.

@militantmandy and @singlespeedstu I assume from your posts that you are some of the trail builders at Yair. I’m local and free next Friday afternoon from about 2pm and all day Saturday if you need another pair of hands for anything on either/both of those days pm me.

Not one of the builders but have been doing some maintenance over there. Same goes for me though if anything is being organised.
Just drop us a PM I’m free most days.

If there’s nothing organised happening I’ll probably head down Saturday morning and do a bit, will pm you when I know what time and suchlike.
Meeting a forumite in real life, very exciting!

I was hoping to ride the Golfie next Thursday, is it possible at the moment? If not any suggestions for somewhere between Berwick and Glasgow?

I’d say the Golfie was a no myself but not been and had a look, just going from what I’ve heard from mates.

@andrewh
Might not be about next Saturday morning as we’re going to Tempest on Friday. 😁🍻

Damn, I’ve just about got my bearings T there now, any suggestions for something similar?

Thornielee maybe.
Again not checked the damage there but hear it’s OK.

Another one here who would be intrested in giving a hand to do some maintenance at yair next Saturday/meeting other forumites. If anything does get organised let me know as well, cheers

Yeah I’d be up for that too. Though obviously there’s a wee bit of a question over group work if the forest is still officially closed- how do we excavate someone when they cut their legs off with a silky saw etc… But still, yep

how do we excavate someone when they cut their legs off

Well, you just need to excavate enough to hide the body and the legs…

Here in Angus, we’ve had a bit of additional damage from storm Barra with hung up trees dropping and more windfall branches. Ho hum…

Meantime, if you are working at all in the woods, please be very careful indeed while clearing up, think about every move and make sure someone is watching your back at all times. An MTB pal of mine is now looking at a very long recovery from with three fractured vertebrae pinned back together and numerous rib fractures from an error when tackling a fallen tree that was still under tension.

Northwind, aide, I’d be up for that even if Stu is too hungover to join in.
Not planning on doing anything big, basically clearing as much small stuff as possible so that the guys with chainsaws can just show up, chainsaw and move on. Someone is chainsawing there but I don’t know who, just going to try to make things easy for them to do the bits I can’t.
Would be safer with couple of folk just in case. When I was there last I saw absolutely no one. Will pm you Thursday/Friday

@andrewh
Give us a shout anyway.
The hangover thing could go one way or the other.
I’ll be heading over sometime in the week anyway.
Might carry on with filling the bog on the pushup track with rocks which I’d started before the storm.

OK, will do.
Just had my vasectomy today so won’t be riding any time soon but should hopefully be OK for a bit of manual labour next weekend. Not as good an excuse as a trip to a brewery though🤣

Anybody know what Carron Valley is like?

Re Golfie. There are definitely clear trails, but current FLS line is “forrest is closed”. Take that as you will. Thornilee is also on the closed list and the gates are locked so you’d need to park at the road, however all fire roads are clear.

Current word in Inners is that the fire road at DH trails is now clear, I think official trail clearing will start next week. I believe the harvester is now clearing the fire road at Golfie. Fingers crossed, things will start moving soon.

@haggis1978 – I was walking up there yesterday, Tyred Jr was lapping the jumpy line on his DH bike. Gates were open. He said it was clear, he was just pushing back up the push-up path. Don’t know about the other trails. Saw a couple of riders out. A few trees down elsewhere in the forest but nothing blocking the forest roads we walked. There is forestry work going on up there though (away from the trails) so they may have cleared forest roads already.

Brilliant, thank you.