Salisbury Community Park are all hand built with a main loop and several optional loops connected. This route includes all of the optional trails, providing a nearly 10-mile ride. Volunteers are working monthly to add additional features and mileage to the trail network. New signage is being developed and will be up by mid March.
Port-a-john in main parking lot, restrooms near the baseball fields.
Enter the park and drive straight into the first dirt parking lot. At the back of the lot, you'll find signs pointing towards the mountain bike area and a narrow dirt road to the trailhead. It is best to park in the main lot and ride the short dirt road 0.2 miles to the trailhead, although it is also possible to drive down the narrow dirt road to the trailhead and park in the grass.
Most riders take the loop clockwise although either direction is allowed. New additions in 2019 increased the full trail length to nearly 10 miles if all optional trails are ridden.
Roughly 0.2 miles after entering the trail is a fork that will end up in the same place regardless of the route selected. The most exciting choice is right at the fork, then a sharp left at the top of the hill where there is a 15-foot drop and a jump. The other options are much more passive.
The first optional loop is
Humpty Dumpty, a short but enjoyable ride.
Humpty Dumpty connects back into the main loop which is a nice-flowing singletrack. At around 2.5 miles, after a 50-foot wood ramp, the optional
Casey Jones Loop is over a bridge on the left. This is a new 1.8-mile loop added in 2019 and it is still fairly raw and bumpy; watch out for pedal strikes on the off-camber corners.
After re-joining the main loop, after about 6 total miles, turn to the left for the
Curve & Swerve optional loop.
Curve & Swerve is about a 1-mile high-speed flat optional loop that flows well. At the end of
Curve & Swerve turn left on the narrow fire road.
After about 200 feet, the main trail turns off to the right. Going straight another 200 feet, however, takes you to the
Jump Line. The
Jump Line was also added in 2019 and includes jumps of varying difficulty. Riders can stay to the left side of the jumps for flat or beginner options, or go over the jumps on the right side for more challenging options including tabletop and double jumps. A second jump line was added in early 2020 immediately to the left of the 2019 jump line. Both are the best jump lines in the area. At the base of the
Jump Line, take a hard right and come back up the access road. You can either do the
Jump Line again or take a left at the top and return to the main loop.
The next optional loop off the main trail is
Thunder Road.
Thunder Road is a series of tight turns and dips, a good chance to practice weight balance and bike control. The next optional loop after returning to the main trail is
Turkey Loop, a narrow and challenging singletrack if ridden fast.
After re-joining the main loop, proceed to the bottom of the fire road and take a sharp right to retrace some of the trail before the climb out. There is a sign pointing to the left immediately after the long wood ramp directing you back to the trailhead. Your heart will be pounding by the time you make it back to the trailhead!
This is a fun ride with the main loop good for beginner-to-intermediate riders; some of the optional loops more appropriate for solid intermediate riders. The trails drain well and are well-maintained, including leaf removal in the winter! It is a bit of a hidden gem in central NC.
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