Credit: Spencer Bushnell It’s a historically bad year for wildfire in New Mexico, with the largest fire in state history having already burned a large chunk of the Santa Fe National Forest and now threatening the southeast corner of the Carson Forest. Both the Santa Fe and Carson forests are completely closed to all hiking…
Most of all, we’re grateful for this community. In 2021, our membership grew to over 100 strong. Not bad for a little ski– er… bike town. And that level of support got stuff done this year and gave us all so much to be thankful for. The pandemic era in Taos has been a time of remarkable growth that’s come with…
Yup, that’s right. Our friends at Shuttle Taos are offering 50% off South Boundary Trail shuttle rides to all current TMBA members for all rides during the 2021 season. Why? Because YOU are essential to making sure we have great places to ride in Northern New Mexico, and Shuttle Taos wants to thank you. Just…
Credit: Loren Bell Or at least, those who braved the forces of nature were rewarded. Taos area mountain bikers and their families descended on the boulders of Tres Piedras for two days last weekend. In conjunction with the Carson National Forest Tres Piedras Ranger District, the TMBA group established and cleared ~ 2 miles of…
We’re looking for a few more TMBA members to join the annual Trail Master Training hosted by the Carson National Forest. When: May 15-16 What: A classroom portion (BOTH in person or via Zoom) followed by a field session on the 16th. Where: Taos Youth and Family Center (Field Location TBD) We’d love for TMBA…
Testing the new Aldo Leopold trail. Join us for our season kickoff at Tres Piedras on May 22nd – 23rd! We’ll be helping the Forest Service clean up the Aldo Leopold trail before exploring the area with some rides, and generally enjoying being outside on and off bikes. Saturday: • 10am: Trail Maintenance • 2pm:…
Meeting Time / Location: Sunday May 02, 2021 • 9am at KTAO to carpool, or • 10am near WEST trailhead (in Wild and Scenic Rivers rec area – see details below.) Ride Type: • Intermediate with some expert technical options Ride Stats: • ~10-15 miles, ~1200+ ft climbing, ~3-4 hours riding Detailed Description: This is…
Over the past few months, a group of hard-core trail enthusiasts braved the elements for a series of rides in the local area. There weren’t many of us, but good times were had navigating the different depths of snow and winter riding conditions. “Riding” might be a strong word for what we were doing, but…
Chatterly provides plenty to chew on Celebrate Easter or just another Sunday by getting outside into a historic, gorgeous and often overlooked section of the Carson National Forest. We’ll be taking the opportunity to check up on the DH Lawrence trail system, which is an unofficial grouping of social trails including the Frieda and Chatterley…
Despite a chilly wind, eleven rugged souls showed up to explore the Ojo Caliente backcountry on Sunday. Great to see some new faces and check out some new trails in Ojo’s “outer limits.” Stay tuned for more in the coming weeks as our riding options dry out… Credit: Spencer Bushnell Credit: Spencer Bushnell Credit: Spencer…
UPDATE – Hey all, let’s plan to meet at the Ojo Caliente resort employee parking lot. As you drive towards the resort it is on the left before you go over the river and through the main entrance. 10 am sharp! See you there. It’s snow, ice and mud season in El Norte! Not…
The trails around Taos are full of mud and snow, but the Nambe Badlands are bone dry! Join us at 10 a.m. in the parking lot of the Dreamcatcher Theater south of Espanola and we’ll caravan to the trailhead from there. Socially distant ride, bring your mask!
Horsethief has become ridable. It’s work getting through the snow on the north facing uphills (often I’m pushing), but the southern loop was passable and, at times, fun. Counter clockwise, one can take the arroyo channel down and to the west to meet up with the southern rim portion of the trail. Don’t be discouraged,…
Large Rock Rolls Punctuate Glorietta’s Black Diamond Routes Winter Riding Update: Several Taos riders have recently made the 2 hour commute to the Glorietta Trail System, east of Santa Fe on Interstate 25 (very easy and quick access to trailhead). All of us were beyond thrilled to find these south facing slopes relatively snow free…
Perfect conditions rewarded the group at the Rift Trail systems for some snow riding. TMBA members were rewarded with fine conditions for the second Winter Group Ride. Riding on packed snow, a series of trails were available for exploring. We even had the opportunity to break trail on a segment of the Rift system, opening…
Sunday December 27th, 8:30 am.Ride the frozen Mesa with winter riding veterans from TMBA. No special equipment needed beyond plenty of warm clothes and windbreaker shells. Ski gloves and wool socks are a very comfortable option for this type of riding. The less Knobby your tires, the better; old tread worn tires are perfect, but…
TMBA has been working closely with ECTA and the BLM on the development of a new trail plan at Horsethief Mesa, which are set to be included in the new travel management plan to be submitted by the BLM in the summer of 2021. The agency is currently contracting with archaeologists to survey the proposed…
The Enchanted Circle Trails Association has been working under a grant to design the layout of one section of the Rio Grande Trail between the Gorge Bridge and John Dunn Bridge. From their newsletter: ECTA is designing this new trail through a grant from the Department of Interior. The Rio Grande Trail is conceptualized as…
Two representatives from TMBA met with the Town of Taos Facilities and Special Events Director, Mitch Miller to discuss the feasibility of a installing a pump track on Town land. Pump tracks are fast becoming wildly-popular essential hubs for bike communities due to their minimal requirements of space and maintenance, and accessibility for all types…
Social distancing Covid times are still great times for trail riding. The only problem is that so many people seem to agree and the signature trails around Taos are more crowded than ever! Popular rides like the Talpa Traverse (best dump-to-dump ride on Earth!), Rift Valley and mighty Divisadero will likely bring you in close…
Testing the new Aldo Leopold trail. The Tres Piedras Ranger District of the Carson National Forest and TMBA teamed up to install the beginnings of the Aldo Leopold Interpretive trail on Saturday, October 10.  Eight volunteers from around Taos County descended on the forest and installed over a mile of NEW trail! When combined with…
Remember we have to share trails with users that don’t have wheels. Some even have more legs than us. Trails in Taos and the southern Rockies are as crowded during this pandemic era as they’ve been in, well, probably ever. That means it’s super important that all MTBers practice good trail etiquette, be on our…
Aldo Leopold knew… (Photo credit: Spencer Bushnell) Due to some recent forest thinning, an amazing opportunity has opened up in an area of the Carson National Forest by the Tres Piedras ranger station. Taos-style rugged slick-rock riding and other unique features are just waiting to be connected!Mark your calendars now to join us for a…
In a response printed in today’s Taos News, TMBA addresses a reader letter advocating that trails be closed to mountain bikers. We point out that for every negative interaction there are hundreds of positive ones, and the solution to trail sharing issues is not to ban a user group, but to make trails safe for…
