Charlotte and Surrounding NC/SC Mountain Biking Trails

Flowy Trails - Jumps and Drops - Downhill Lines

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~8 Miles

The Crown Jewel of Charlotte Mountain Biking that offers several styles of riding - Cross-Country (XC) trails, jumps and features like drops (some are huge!) and berms, downhill trails, BMX jumps - at all different levels and is now connected to the River District via beautiful, accessibility-focused nature trail system.

TONs of Trails - Food/Beer - Family-Friendly

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~40 Miles (Multi-Use)

Very family-friendly facility with ~40 miles of XC trails that offer unlimited routes. The facility offers bike rentals, food/beer galore, innumerous outdoor-oriented activities outside of biking, and features several events like live music, race series, holiday/season-themed events, etc.

Downhill - Jumps and Drops - Shuttles

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~5 Miles

Closest shuttle-assisted bike park to Charlotte about an hour outside of Southwest Charlotte. Features fast, flowy downhill lines with jumps, drops, gaps, etc. This park offers a great introduction to bike park riding with plenty of great riding for beginners, fast jump (and other features) lines for seasoned riders, and even some double black features for the expert riders. Very nice facilities, staff, and trails. Highly recommend!

Flowy, Fast Trails - Feature/Downhill Lines

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~20 Miles

Very flowy, machined trails with three "Hub" locations offering a central, lap-able access point to several downhill, feature-focused trails (jumps, gaps, drops, berms).

Rocky Trails - Jumps and Drops - Skill Zones

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~5 Miles

There is a little something for everyone here with machine built beginner flow lines, janky hand-cut singletrack, and specific "skill zones" that allow riders to session features or string together a diverse 5-mile loop.The Outpost machined jump lines featuring Green, Blue, and Black lines, the Boulder trail featuring technical climbing over rock features and through rock gardens, a rock-centric jump line fed by a huge wooden roll-in, and more. 

Rooty Trails - Wood Features - Pump Track

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~7 Miles

This expansive park is great for families, and as an extension, the trail system offers mountain biking largely geared toward Beginner and Intermediate riders looking for speed, tech, and features. There's an awesome Pump Track at the entrance and there are several wooden features peppered throughout the trails such as drops, jumps, skinnies, rock gardens, and rollers to challenge more advanced trail riders.

Huge Jumps - Flowy - Rock Features

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~9 Miles

A "two-in-one" experience that caters to both technical cross-country riders and gravity-focused enthusiasts. Fisher Farm is known for its classic, punchy Piedmont terrain, featuring tight singletrack, challenging rock gardens like "Rock Rumble," and a rooty, technical layout across beginner to advanced loops. Cedar Valley Bike Park serves as the area's high-speed playground, boasting progressive jump lines and flow trails such as "Roaster Coaster" and the massive gaps of "Double Black Sabbath."

Hand-Cut Trails - Jumps, Skinnies - Poo Tracks

Difficulty: Beginner - Expert
Distance: ~15 Miles

These trails are technical and rooty with tons of diverse features from gap jumps, skinnies, concrete slab climbs, trail made of old railroad tracks (Poo Tracks), and more. Located adjacent to Park Road Park and tied together by the beautiful Little Sugar Creek greenway, the trail system often alternates between beautifully maintained and rough, handcrafted jank (intentionally). 

Flowy Trails - MTB Skills Area - Mild Climbing

Difficulty: Beginner - Intermediate
Distance: ~8 Miles

Expansive, absolutely beautiful greenway system in South Carolina featuring a MTB Skills Area and a handful interconnected XC trails. There are two main XC loops at 3-miles each that can be connected via Tunnel Trail and Mills Pond 2-way trails. Mild climbing throughout but great flow throughout.

Flowy Trails - Wooden Features - Jump Lines

Difficulty: Beginner - Intermediate
Distance: ~5 Miles

The upper parking lot area houses an adaptive bike friendly green trail with a lower section that introduces smaller jumps and a cool step up at the end (all rollable), and a fast rolling lap-able blue flow trail with 4 -6 jumps that is super fun. Looking for XC/Trail? The original Mountain Island Park Trail system is accessed through a mile long gravel access road just across the street from flow trails trailhead.

Wall Ride - Short Trails - Beginner-Friendly

Difficulty: Beginner - Intermediate
Distance: ~4 Miles

Semi-hidden, hand-cut singletrack featuring a massive wall ride, some jumps, and some nice overall flow. This trail system is short at around 3-miles total so it's perfect for beginners or a quick secluded jaunt in the woods. The trails can be relatively hard-to-find as the trail system is tucked into tree coverage and there isn't much signage making it a bit difficult to find either one of the two trailheads. 

Downhill - Shuttle-Assisted - Bike Park

Difficulty: Intermediate - Expert
Distance: ~8 Miles

Ride Rock Creek is a ~2 hour drive from Charlotte, but it features the best shuttle-assisted bike park downhill in North Carolina. There are very fast beginner lines so it may not be the best choice for newer riders. However, the lines offer intermediate and expert riders tons of choices between jump lines, hand-cut and techy downhill, huge features, etc. The shuttles are very fast and the facility is kept in great condition. Highly recommend!