Stub Stewart State Park is slowly but surely becoming a mountain biking destination. And it’s only going to get better this summer as the Northwest Trail Alliance (NWTA) just announced a $10,000 grant from outdoor gear retailer REI.
According to the NWTA, the grant will help fund a package of trail stewardship and improvement projects at Stub Stewart. The park, just 33 miles west of Portland, has been the focus on NWTA work and advocacy since 2008. It already boasts 15 miles of mountain bike trails, a network of free-ride/mountain-bike specific trails, and there’s plenty more that could be built — the only thing missing is money and volunteers.
“Grant funding is only part of the solution to creating more access,” reads a statement from NWTA, “At Stub Stewart State Park we have recognized that the 20+ miles of shared-use trail within the park represent many more miles of trail riding opportunities, with the help of dirt-moving, shovel-enabled volunteers like you.”
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The team at NWTA is currently working on a $100,000 grant through the federal Recreational Trails Program.
The local bike industry has also taken notice of the burgeoning biking possibilities at Stub Stewart. Portland Design Works, a Portland-based company that makes cycling accessories, has stepped up their support. They’ve just announced the Stub Stewart Trail Work Day on June 21st. The day will start with coffee and donuts and end with beer and a BBQ (and probably some riding on newly maintained and dug-out trails!).
If you haven’t ventured out to ride at Stub (it’s adjacent to the Banks-Vernonia Trail), make plans to do it this summer. And once you’ve enjoyed the off-road trails and experienced the potential, consider joining the NWTA and help make them even better.
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Thanks REI!
(Are there any plans to install a Dero/ Urban Racks type outdoor repair stand, tools and pump at the trail crossing?)
Thanks for including a shout out for Portland Design Work’s upcoming Trail Work Day at Stub Stewart, Jonathan!
For those of you who have never made it out to build trail, I’d like to personally encourage you to join us on June 21st. No special skill set is necessary, just a positive attitude and willingness to sweat a bit. We’ll have a great set of leaders on hand to provide guidance, tools of the trade, and refreshments before and after the work (Thanks to Trailhead Coffee Roasters and Fort George Brewery for their generous donations of brew!). Reach out if you need a ride, we’ll have a van to haul volunteers out there (Thanks Ironclad!).
Building trail is incredibly rewarding and intimately connects you to the trail. Every time you shred around a berm or flow through a ribbon of tree-lined single track you can take pride in the fact that you were part of process to create or maintain it – not only for yourself to ride, but for the whole community of mountain bikers in Portland and beyond that follow after you. Please join us for a very fun, very important and very satisfying day helping to realize the potential at Stub Stewart.
If you need proof of how we party, watch the video produced from last year’s Trail Work Day out at Sandy Ridge: https://www.ridepdw.com/video/2013/sandy-ridge-trial-work-day-1
Even if you don’t ride trails, come help build! Good trails helps to grow the sport of mountain biking, bring kids onto the trails, and ultimately leads to a better cycling scene for everyone. Stub Stewart is an under-appreciated place. It’s a great park to camp with the family, hike, and has different types of cycling opportunities. And it’s super close to PDX.
Great job REI, I’ll pay a visit soon and I’ve been wanting to go check out the trails there, hopefully soon now that they are dry.