Complete Bicycle Post Trails 2023

Dogs Off-leash

E-Bikes Allowed

You'll be surprised at how fun these trails are! Rooty drops, techy climbs, skinnies, bridges, kickers, and tight twisty turns through the trees.

These are some of the more natural/raw trails you'll find in Eastern North Carolina.

The Bicycle Post Trails can be ridden in either direction! There is great debate about which direction is better.

Trail signage has been improved over the past few years but there are a few confusing intersections -- be sure to take a photo of the trail map at the parking kiosk before getting on the trail.

Daily parking fee is $3. You can deposit cash in the lockbox behind the informational sign at the parking area. Pick up all your trash and dog waste. Hikers and runners should yield to bikes.

This is the clockwise loop, so you'll enter the trail system through the Field Entrance, located at the southern end of the farm field away from the parking area. Soon after getting on the trail, you'll come to a four-way intersection. Continue straight, where you'll encounter one of the more fun downhill sections at the BPT!

Continue on Swamp Loop (following the green arrows) until you get to VGMF loop. Take a left onto VGMF and enjoy a mix of short climbs and curvy descents. At the end of VGMF, take a left to continue on Swamp Loop. You'll soon get to Pipeline Loop, another offshoot featuring more fun drops. At the end, again turn left on Swamp Loop.

You'll spend another ~0.5 mi on Swamp Loop before getting to "the Playground" (look for the teeter-totters, skinnies, and other relics in the woods). There are a few optional lines down through the gully and up the other side, but all of this can be bypassed. Swamp loop continues on the other side of the gully.

Continuing on Swamp Loop, you'll come across three very short U-shaped offshoots called the Mini Gullies, only some of which are marked; you can continue straight and skip these if you prefer. After the Mini Gullies you'll get to an intersection where taking a left continues onto Creek Loop and taking a right cuts off the rest of the trails and puts you on Swamp Loop going north (take this if you're tired!).

If you're feeling up for the rest of the trail, take a left to continue onto Creek Loop. Stay on this for about 0.5 mi until you see a left turn to Graveyard. Graveyard isn't well-marked from this direction, but luckily the two entrances to Graveyard are about 25 ft apart so if you miss the initial turn, you'll see the sign for the other entrance just down the trail!

After you enjoy the twists and turns of Graveyard, turn left to stay on Creek Loop. After crossing the bridges over the creek, turn left onto BC Loop, the southernmost loop. BC Loop ends at the same spot it starts. Take the other large bridge on the left to get back onto Creek Loop and re-cross the creek. Creek Loop eventually re-meets Swamp Loop; continue straight to stay on Swamp Loop.

After about 0.5 mi, you'll reach one fork; the trails converge about 500 ft further on at the top of a hill, where there is also a bench. You can continue onto Switchbacks Loop by going straight. Switchbacks is a short loop that features a quick downhill and a steep climb out. Swamp Loop continues from the top of the hill going east. From there, it's a pretty straightforward last few miles!

At the very end of the trail you can take an optional zig-zag pattern through the Bowls, which crisscross across another small gully. There's a ride-around to the south of the Bowls that will bring you back to the main parking area.

Look into the trees for the old cemetery at the southern highpoint of Graveyard Loop. Some of the headstones are made out simple boards!