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West
Tyson Co. Park - Chubb Trail |
NEAREST
TOWN
St.
Louis (St. Louis County)
DIRECTIONS
From
St. Louis, go west on 1-44. Get off at Lewis Road Exit
265. Enter West Tyson Park, go up the hill to the end of
the road and park. Or, the other end of Chubb Trail can
be reached by exiting 1-44 at Meramec Road (Hwy 141).
Turn right (west) on the Outer Road. Follow this to Lone
Elk County Park. The Chubb Trailhead is the fire road
before the Lone Elk gates.
TRAIL
DESCRIPTION
The
Chubb is the most challenging trail in the St. Louis
area. It is a seven-mile dirt and gravel trail between
West Tyson County Park and Lone Elk Park (14 miles
round-trip). It has very challenging hills and some very
fast stretches. Terrain is rocky and usually slippery.
There are some truly nasty drop-offs. After those tough
climbs you are often rewarded with great views.
The
first four miles, starting at the Tyson Trailhead, are
primarily steep climbs and descents. The middle three
miles are flat, following the river bank (very much like
Stinging Nettle Trail at Castlewood). A mile or so of
uphill fire roads brings you to Lone Elk Park at the
other end.
The
eight-mile trail was developed by St. Louis County
Department of Parks and Recreation and the Missouri
Department of Natural Resources through the cooperative
effort of the Meramec River Recreation Association,
which is creating a 108-mile natural corridor along the
Meramec by joining together parks and trails.
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The
Chubb Trail offers some of the most technical
landscape around. |
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Other
sections of the Chubb are crazy fast and fun! |
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HIGHLIGHTS
Popular,
long descents.
HAZARDS
Definitely
wear a helmet on this ride.
AREA
INFORMATION
Lone
Elk Park has bison and elk, picnicking, a lake and more.
The Tyson end has camping and picnic tables.
ADDITIONAL
THOUGHTS
Less
extreme riders like to start at the Lone Elk end, which
allows you to warm up some. Great views from this trail.
From the West Tyson end, you'll find a good mix of very
tough technical stuff with fast stretches. As one biker
put it, "The Tyson end of the trail eats
bikes."
I have
heard of more major mechanical problems on this trail
than anywhere else (a good friend of mine broke his
carbon fiber Cadex in half). Make sure you and your bike
are ready before riding here. The river is prone to
flooding, putting some of the trail under water. This
trail also goes through Castlewood State Park.
CONTACT
INFO
St.
Louis County Parks: (314) 889-2863.
DISTANCE
7
miles. 14 miles round-trip.
TERRAIN
Everything
from good to bad to ugly.
RIDING
TIME
2
- 3 hours round-trip to all day.
LAND
STATUS
County
Park.
SERVICES
& ACTIVITIES
Water
and campsites at the West Tyson end of the trail. Call
for camping reservations. Nearby, St. Louis has every
service you might need.
TRAILHEAD
Trailheads
are to the right of the entrance to Lone Elk Park, and
the fire road at the West Tyson parking lot.
RATING
Moderate
to difficult.
If
you've never rode the Chubb Trail, you're in for a real
treat. In fact, this past weekend I decided to ride the
Chubb trail again. It had been quite some time since I
was last there. It was past 3:00 pm before I drove into
Lone Elk Park and there were several parked cars in the
parking area but no other riders to be found. So I
decided to ride it alone and found myself asking my I
hadn't been out here more often. Everyone thinks the
trail is highly technical and it is! But there's also
tons of very fast windy river trails straight across
from Castlewoods' "Flats" area. This section
gave me (the great non-technical guy) to really air it
out and release some of the comb webs that have built up
while sitting behind this computer screen all day at
home & work.
Quotes:
G-Man
From Portland, OR.
You people don't know how lucky you are. This trail has
everything, from fast fire road descents (Lone Elk
start) to winding riverside singletrack, to some good
jumps and log crossings, to some small climbs (compared
to the west), and some very nice technical sections. If
you ride this every week like I was, you WILL become a
very good rider (at least technically - I am still an
average rider when it comes to distance and long uphills).
My friends here are all roadies and drop me because the
trails are all like fire roads. I'd like to take them to
school at the CHUBB! Nothing less than 5 for those who
ROCK and roll!
"This
trail is the hardest trail I have ridden in St Louis. It
starts out easy from the elk park end. about 2 1/2 miles
in after a easy warm up you come to a field where there
is a sign pointing to the chub trail and it is pointing
back the way you just came. It took me a minute to
figure out that you need to keep going over the railroad
tracks and that is where the fun begins. You start out
going up a mountain that you end up having to walk up.
If you can make it up this 1/4 mile hill with out
putting your foot down, YOU ARE A PRO. No lie. Past that
you will have up and down hills that will start to get
very technical. Some of the most difficult technical
riding I have ever seen. Make sure you wear a helmet. If
you don't you will wish you had one."
Kristin
from Bellville IL... originally from PA
"I'm a native east coast rider (mainly
Pennsylvania). So coming to the flat area of Illinois
and Missouri, I didn't expect much as of ridding goes,
but the Chubb trail totally blew my mind, let alone my
legs! This trail rocks! literally ... this is an extremely
technical trail going from flat to rocks to steep
inclines. I'll admit, the first few times i did this
trail, not only did i have to walk my bike, but my legs
hurt for a few days! i highly suggest the wonderful
camelback, a first aid kit and Ben gay for the next day.
"
Jeff
from Fort Collins:
"I grew up riding this trail about twice a week and
I loved it. Now I live in the rocky mountains of Colorado
and have ridden some of the most amazing trails in the
world over the last four years. But when I go back to
Saint Lou I make sure I ride this trail as often as
possible. You get it all fast tight single track down on
the flats. Plus some steep technical climes and descents.
Best of everything. I will be coming through in march
with a group of guys from my bike shop on a mountain
biking tour of the east. Look for us."
We've
compiled a few good description links about the Chubb
trail that you will find interesting and informative.
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