Gateway expansion construction update

This is the first in a series of posts that will update everyone on the progress of creating 46 miles of new trails in the Gateway Trail system. A labeled map is shown below.

Construction began in the spring of 2021 with work on the old “MX Trail” just north of Old McCloud Rd. above the railroad tracks. Andrew Pelkofer of Trail Labs Inc. put excavators and crews in the forest, some berms and jumps were added, and the trail was made more sustainable. Near the bottom of the trail, a huge rock and soil feature was added. Riders were so excited about the new trail that many of them rode loops over and over by ascending on Old McCloud.

Crews were then moved up the mountain to cut a trail beginning at the Ten Gallon exit off Everitt Memorial Highway, working south toward the old Bear Springs Trail. This section is deep in the forest and takes riders on a winding, up-and-down trip that was an instant hit when finished.

Eventually, a third trail was added south of Old McCloud that was engineered for a smooth, flowy, speedy descent to the railroad tracks where the old MX Trail ended.

Finally, the prior “Upper Bear Springs Trail” was attacked. It was rerouted and made more erosion-resistant—and some huge rises and drops were added at the lower end, connecting to the top of MX. The volunteer trail crew contributed to finish work on these last two segments, removing roots and raking the tread.

These segments have been approved and opened by the US Forest Service and are shown on the accompanying map, which has names added that were chosen via public survey. For clarity, the segments described above are Bear Springs (starting at the 10 Gallon trailhead and going down to the double black lines of the railroad track crossing) and the segment now listed as “Steam Donkey” (formerly BMZ-10). The old MX Trail is now the solid blue line between the orange triangle and the railroad tracks.

Additional trail segments have been added in the last few months, and these will be highlighted in upcoming posts.

To download a high-resolution file of the map shown above, click here.