This Ride is EPIC! | Duluth Traverse | Part 1
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- Опубликовано: 2 авг 2024
- The Duluth Traverse is a 40-mile mountain bike route that, as its name suggests, takes you end-to-end across the city of Duluth, along the hills that rise above Lake Superior. It can be ridden in either direction, with the two end points being Chambers Grove Park and Lester Park. While the Traverse travels on trails within the several mountain bike clusters that exist in Duluth (Hartley Park, Lester Park, Mission Creek, Piedmont & Brewer, and Spirit Mountain), the trails that tie this route together should not be overlooked. Duluth is an IMBA Gold Designated Ride Center (one of only 4 in the US, a designation higher than even Bentonville), and the Traverse is what brings it all together.
While most of the trails on the DT are green-rated, with some blue, don’t take it lightly. This is a big ride, with over 4,000 feet of climbing, regardless of which direction you opt to take. The riding is absolutely top-notch, and offers an experience unique to Duluth. From the flowy trails of Mission Creek, to the slabs of Piedmont and the technical gnar of Hawk Ridge, you’ll ride over everything from jagged granite to loamy pine-covered forest trails. While you should expect several significant climbs, you’ll be rewarded with an abundance of long-lasting, bar-clutching descents. You’ll experience northern hardwood, and pine forests, industrial vistas and scenic overlooks of Canal Park and downtown Duluth. Rarely will you be out of earshot of one of the many trickling streams and rapids that work their way towards Lake Superior, the constant backdrop to it all. Riding backcountry one moment, and pedaling through a charming neighborhood the next. THIS is Duluth.
This was my first attempt at riding the Duluth Traverse. I started in Chambers Grove Park and worked toward Lester Park. Unfortunately, I only made it to the Enger trail when I had a day-ending mechanical: a broken Shimano XT shifter. While this was obviously quite frustrating, I still had a hell of a ride, one which made me appreciate how lucky we are in Minnesota, to have such world-class trails right in our own backyard. I’d end up returning a week later to ride the entire DT, which I’ll cover in my next video!
0:00 Intro
1:13 St. Louis River Trail
1:45 Valley West
3:42 Ely's Peak
4:37 DWP Trail (Duluth, Winnipeg, and Pacific)
5:45 Spirit Mountain
7:23 Fairmount
8:52 Keane
9:35 Lollygagger
11:34 Skyline
12:52 Lincoln
14:39 Enger (broken shifter...)
16:42 Craft Connector (Bonus Trail!)
18:27 Bike Shop & Pavement 
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These trails are awesome and right at my skill level. I live in British Columbia and I ride up a big techy climb and then try to survive the crazy downhill. Great fat bike video as well from a year ago. I am thinking of getting one.
You could probably put a fat bike to good use up in BC! I’d love to ride out there someday, looks amazing. Yeah Duluth is a special place for sure, so much good riding. You can really feel like you’re out in the middle of nowhere, but you’re always close to civilization, and the riding really is fantastic. Thanks for watching! 🤙
Dt is awesome, especially with fall leaves changing. I have ridden it a few times start to finish, from Mission to Lester. So epic, the terrain and views are the best in the state imho. Last time i did it on a fully rigid fat bike, i won't do that again! Lol
Wow a fully rigid fatty, that’s some chunky terrain for such a steed! 😅. Probably good on climbs but slower over all the technical sections.
Nice video, Rob. Sucks about the mechanical. We were there in the Spring and I took some of those trails down into town to meetup with some friends at Ursa Minor Brewing and they were super fun along with some great views of the city and the water.
Yup, great trails everywhere, with all the views too, pretty special place! Plus a brewery!! 🍻
Too bad a mechanical limited what otherwise looked like a great day of fall riding in Duluth! The Traverse is incredible, it’s been fun to see it’s development over the years, finally completed the entire DT ride and checked it off the ride list earlier this year. Duluth has so many great trails it’s easy to forget about some, just rode craft connector for the first time in years and that is one scenic downhill. Looking forward to how your next ride on the DT went!
Nice work man, it’s a big ride to check off the list for sure. Gotta admit it was more of a grind than I thought it would be (at least on the second go when I actually finished it). I’d love to do craft from the top too, as I just took it down from Enger, either way it was a great bonus trail!!
Really digging the shots! Also that craft connector really wasn’t the worst decent for ya; I guess it’s better than being way out there with nothing. Really curious to see part two of the journey.. ❤😂🎉😢😮😅😊
Yeah Craft Connector was a pretty ideal bail route for sure! Duluth is ripe with great views, as you’re well aware, though lugging the camera on such a big ride is a questionable decision 😂
@@robonbikes No doubt, The first ride Evan and I did he brought his full camera and tripod kit and that greatly hindered our efficiency lol!
Love your videos dawg! Love the representation on the MN trails! I'd love to try the traverse again in the spring (it kicked my ass last time).
Thanks man! Yeah the Traverse will do that, I did it a week after this ride, was completely tanked by the end.
Sorry you had bike problems man! The DT is on my radar for next season for sure! Nice video, pics, and editing! I like your style! I love being a local rider in Duluth too! What a gem!
I appreciate it! Yeah mechanicals can happen but quite a bummer when they do. I did make it back a week later and rode the whole thing (next video!). Be sure to bring lots of water and snacks!!Yeah Duluth is fantastic, feel fortunate to be a local for sure!
Thanks for the tour, enjoyed it. My buds and i took a break from Cuyuna a few years ago, headed over to Daroof. Rode the Mission Creek
trails, then tried to follow the DT. It was stil being pieced together, so it was pretty hard to follow. We ended up at Bent Paddle Brewing
for a couple beers and lunch, then had to ride all the way back to Chambers Grove Park to the truck. Long day, but totally worth it.
Beautiful town and trails !!
I love how, when mountain biking, it’s a natural flow of events to end up at a brewery! 🍻 DT is pretty well mapped out now, but still good to have some form of navigation, there are still a few tricky spots!
Would a full suspension XC bike work on this trail, or do you really need a 140mm trail bike? Also if I wanted to do an out and back ride, is there a recommended section of the trail?
That would be a perfect bike considering the length and amount of climbing. Mine is 120mm rear with a 130mm fork and it hit the sweet spot for this ride. If you like technical riding I’d start on the east side (Lester Park) for an out and back (Hawk Ridge is a great technical trail with great views to boot). Starting on the west side (Chambers Grove Park) would be more flowy. There’s no wrong choice!
Hey Rob, I live up here - shoot me a message if you want to ride the Traverse again from East to West this summer or fall. I can help shuttle a return vehicle from Mission to Lester unless you want the ultimate loop - to which I’d say we can ride back on Will Munger, Cross City, and finally the Lakewalk. ✌️
Cool man, will do!
The Traverse is a great ride and a lot more challenging than people think! I did it in August last year, when it was 90 degrees and very humid and it was tough! The fall is the best time to ride it for sure.
Heck yeah it’s a grind for sure! Amazing how many miles of great trail there are! Props for taking this on in hot conditions, that sounds like quite the effort, bet you went through a lot of water.
@@robonbikes I went through a 3 L Camelback as well as a 20 ounce water bottle and I still ran out of water around Hartley. I needed to refill before I hit Morningside, Hawk Ridge, and Lester River Trail. It was a total of 3400 feet of climbing! Even though it’s “Green” trails, it’s a grind. Maybe you can do the whole thing next year.
I actually went back 6 days later and rode the whole thing 🤙. That’ll be my next vid. Yeah man I went through almost 5 liters on the second go, got a refill at Hartley Nature Center. I’ve never had that much on a single ride before, pretty nuts!
@@robonbikes Yeah, I’ve run two Grandma’s marathons and the Traverse is a lot harder. Just sayin’. The climbing involved and the technical aspect of mountain biking makes the Traverse a huge challenge, as well as the distance. 43+ miles is a long way to ride on Duluth single track. I rode it by myself and I think that makes it even tougher, too. If I rode it again, I’d have someone meet me half way to replenish my supplies and ride with a partner or a group to make it more fun.
Dang, the fact that you said it’s harder than a marathon makes me feel pretty good about going back and finishing it (plus the 24 miles back to the car!). Great work on the marathons!! I hate running 😂