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Ride Summary:
At Island Lake State Recreation Area there are 2 trails, a 7-mile beginner oriented route and a 5-mile loop that is more challenging.
Trail Description:
The harder loop has a nice scenic view of the Huron River. The trails are clearly marked and a large map is posted at the start of the trail. Note: these trails are one-way, closed-loop, singletrack that can be ridden as two separate loops, or as one long loop. Terrain is mostly flat with rolling grasslands and some moderate gradual climbs. Weekends can be very crowded but completely empty during the weekdays. For the advanced rider, speed will be the lure as there are few technically challenging areas. The yellow trail is more technical, but not overly challenging. The Blue trail is mostly flat with a couple of hills that will require short high powered burst to climb.
How to get there:
From I-75
Take I-75 to I-696 and head West. I-696 turns into I-96 at the I-275 interchange (stay in the left lane). Continue on I-96 West for about 15 miles to the Kensington Road exit(exit 151). Exit onto Kensington Road heading South. Pass the light at Grand River and the park entrance is 1/4 mile on left. Turn right after the entrance booth and Follow the road to the parking area.
From US-23
Take US-23 to I-96 and head East for 3.3 miles to the Kensington Road exit (exit 151). Exit onto Kensington Road heading South, Pass the light at Grand River and the park entrance is 1/4 mile on left. Turn right after the entrance booth and Follow the road to the parking area.
Additional Notes:
There is a water pump in the parking area for filling bottles, and outhouses throughout the park.
| Posted by: just me on 12/7/2008 |
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Previous poster is right; trail is just outside of Brighton.
Also, I wouldn't call this anything but a beginner trail. It's not bad, has a decent climb or two (one per trail, yellow or blue). Some not so fun sand areas, but not as bad as other southeast MI trails. The worst part of this trail is all the roadies who think they are speed-demon mountain bikers. They will attempt to run you off the "easier" trail while they are out there to get their best time... keep your ears open for them coming up behind you because not all call out that they are passing.
Not a bad trail but very busy when the weather is decent.
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| Posted by: Mike on 7/26/2008 |
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This park is located near the town of Brighton, MI not Ann Arbor, MI.
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| Posted by: just a beginner on 10/2/2006 |
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Ihave been riding for just a few months and this is the only trail I have done. Recent rain has closed the steep hill on the yellow trail and a new trail has been carved. Some changes have been made to the blue trail too. If you ride do both trails for a good workout but the yellow is just fun.
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| Posted by: LonMan on 9/30/2006 |
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Your distance is wrong - Blue and Yellow combined are roughly 16 miles. Blue loop is just under 10 miles and yellow loop is just over 6 miles. Great single track - watch the sand.
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| Posted by: PappaBart on 11/16/2004 |
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This trail is a great beginner trail. Riding the Blue to Yellow (the 2 loops) will give you 13.6 miles with about 400 vertical feet of climbing. A few small spots, if you're riding at Elite race pace, can be a little tricky. Have fun!
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| Posted by: Slow Twitch on 7/29/2004 |
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This trail is worth the drive. If you do the blue loop then the yellow in succession you get a good workout. there is only one challenging climb on the yellow loop, but the state of the trail allows you to go fast. If your motivated you can do the trail in just under an hour (maybe less time if your real fast, I wouldn't know).
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| Posted by: darby on 12/19/2003 |
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fun place to ride in the winter makes it a lot harder with snow and ice
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| Posted by: BigFoot? on 5/21/2003 |
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I think the yellow loop is good only because the trail is hard packed there fore you can go fast, and not worry about log jams or big rocks. Its also fun with only one hard climb. THe blue loop sucks, I dont recomnend, neither do I recomend kensington
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| Posted by: Greg Kushner on 12/15/2002 |
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Your distance is incorrectly stated. The blue loop is 9.68 miles and the yellow is 6.38 miles. Blue to yellow is 14.69 and yellow to blue tops out a 16 miles due to different starts and some repeat and end.
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| Posted by: Mark on 9/9/2002 |
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TRAIL UPDATE - 9/2002: Blue trail is easier of the two, and is about 9 miles long. Yellow trail is more difficult, and is about 6 miles long. These trails are good for plenty of higher speed riding in the flats, yet still some good moderate hill work. High occurrence of sand areas.
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