So you’ve got your Electric Mountain Bike, what next? Below we list some of the great local places you can ride your bike, including some single-track, trails and cross country routes that we regularly ride.
Stanmer Park is a favourite of many Brighton off road riders and is the location for Brighton Big Dog MTB race every year. The woods includes a number of trails, mostly aimed at the cross country/single-track rider but also includes some slightly more technical trails with drops, jumps and tabletops. Most of these are in Stanmer woods, finding where these start and finish is easy to do using TrailForks handy app. These trails are specifically made and maintained by mountain bikers for mountain bikers but that doesn’t mean you can’t find your own natural trail or follow one of the bridleways, of which there is plenty, just remember to always look out for walkers and dogs.
Our personal favourite trails in Stanmer are Claras, Buzz Lightyear, Rollercoaster and Rail the Roots.
Wild Park is in a similar location to Stanmer and can easily be ridden on the same day if you have the time. It includes a number of specifically made trails, which have berms, drops and jumps. Some of these are slightly technical and quite steep so are not recommended for beginners, especially on a wet day. Again finding where the trails start and finish is easy to do using TrailForks, however the trails here are quite easy to see once you get to the right bit of the park. There’s also easy access parking, if you are driving there.
Look at some of the features of wild park and Stanmer in our video here.
We are lucky enough here in Brighton to be surrounded by the South Downs National Park. There are plenty of great, scenic routes over the downs, most notably the South Downs Way, which stretches about 100 miles from Eastbourne to Winchester. Don’t worry, you don’t have to ride the whole route, you can join and leave it in a number of places. Two of our favourite routes incorporate part of the South Downs Way, see them below.
Route 1- Ditchling Beacon Loop
For the first route, we usually start in Brighton Marina, from our shop. We then ride up the side of East Brighton Park, across the racetrack where we find a nice relaxed path behind the houses, which leads us up towards Falmer Road. Once here there is a track that runs parallel with Falmer Road all the way up towards the Amex Stadium. We then use a bridge to cross the A27 and ride up towards Ditchling Beacon. This is where we join the South Downs Way and head west. How far you then ride along the South Downs Way is up to you; we usually cut back down towards Hove somewhere near D
evils Dyke, down to the seafront and ride along back to the Marina, making a nice loop. This ride includes great views at Ditchling Beacon, some fun descents and usually some wildlife. A great cross country route for any ability rider! The main off-road bit of the route is shown in the below screenshot.
Route 2 – Devils Dyke/Shoreham Loop
The second route usually starts somewhere in Hove for us. However can be started from Devils Dyke if you would rather drive there. Once at Devils Dyke you want to find the South Downs Way and head west towards Lancing. Again how far you stay on this is up to you, we usually head down towards Shoreham, as there is a nice track, which runs parallel with the River Adur, making for a nice scenic route back. Unfortunately, once you reach the main bit of Shoreham, you will h
ave to join the road again to head back towards Hove. This route is great as it includes the climbs and descents of the South Downs Way, nice views and the River Adur. Great for any ability rider that wants to explore the local area by bike.
We love finding new trails and routes. Comment below or email us your favourite local spots to ride!
