Outbound Collective logo

Mountain Bike at Oak Mountain State Park

Pelham, Alabama

5.0/5
based on 2 reviews

Details

Distance

26 miles

Route Type

Loop

Description

Added by Edward Day

Listed by the International Mountain Bike Association as an Epic Ride, Oak Mountain State park has a whopping 26 miles of trails from beginner trails to fast and technical downhills.

Oak Mountain State Park has some great mountain biking for all ages and all skill levels. Most trails at Oak Mountain are more oriented to the cross country rider, but you can find a couple of trails more geared towards downhill, gravity riders. However, expect to be cross country mountain biking.

The pin takes you to the South Trailhead of Oak Mountain State Park. This is where most of the mountain bike trails begin. There is plenty of parking and plenty of trails to begin on. There is a full map of the trails posted when you arrive at the South Trailhead to give you a better sense of where to go. Be aware that there is a $5 fee per person to get inside the park.

For the beginner mountain bike rider, a few trails that are great to begin on are Lake Trail, Family Trail, or Mr. Toad's. These trails offer some fun flowy sections and a scenic ride without being too technical.

For the advanced rider, trails such as Blood Rock or Jekyll and Hyde would be more suited for you. Both trails offer very technical rides with lots of rock and boulder obstacles. Being very familiar with Jekyll and Hyde, I would say that it is one of my favorite in the park. While the top half of Jekyll and Hyde can be very difficult, the last half of Jekyll and Hyde is incredible. Very flowy and fast.

For downhill riders, you have about 2 options. A very popular trail for downhill riding is Lightning. With wood features and big drops, this trail is super fast and has some good sized jumps but is very short at 0.3 miles. However, by taking the Red Road, you can access a newly developed trail called Thunder. Thunder is more than double the length of Lightning and connects to Lightning at the very end.

A detailed picture of the trails can be found here

Read More

Download the Outbound mobile app

Find adventures and camping on the go, share photos, use GPX tracks, and download maps for offline use.

Get the app

Features

Mountain Biking
Bathrooms
Easy Parking
Family Friendly
Forest
Groups
Lake
River
Scenic

Mountain Bike at Oak Mountain State Park Reviews

Oak Mountain State Park provides a true mountain biking experience for any skill level of rider! The range goes from the tricky, technical Jekyll and Hyde, all the way to a bump track. There is even a dirt jump track on site. I would highly recommend biking here alone or with the whole family! After biking there are many other things to do including archery, kayaking, peavine falls, golf, and a nice little cafe!

I can too easily take Oak Mountain State Park for granted because it's in my hometown. Met some guys who drove down from Ohio for the weekend just to ride the trails here. This is seriously some of the best mountain biking in the Southeast. Favorite sections are Mr. Toads, Rattlesnake Ridge, and Lake Trail. Hope to eventually work up to some of the more technical trails like Blood Rock or Jekyll n Hyde, which I've heard are a lot of fun.

Leave No Trace

Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!

Nearby

Lake Trail Loop

Hike to Peavine Falls

SCUBA Dive at Blue Water Quarry

King's Chair Overlook via White and Blue Trail Loop

Kings Chair Loop

King's Chair Overlook