A Closer Look: Our 2025 Summer Trips
For 2025, we have trips that run the gamut of mountain bike adventures: from the rugged backcountry of Sun Valley in late June, to the incredible high-country riding in Durango in late July, to the rowdy trails in the Sea to Sky corridor around Whistler in early September, we’ve got it all. If you’re a little overwhelmed with the choices, we’re taking the time to break down each trip for you so you can make an educated decision – each of these trips by itself is incredible, it just depends on what you’re looking for!
Sun Valley: June 26-30, 2025
Technical Level: Intermediate
Fitness Level: Intermediate +
Summary: Sun Valley in late June is our first taste of big mountain riding each year, and we couldn’t be more excited to head to Idaho to sample the goods. Typically we’ll find perfect weather (highs in the 60s and 70s) along with tacky trails, amazing wildflowers, and non-existent crowds. This trip is all about big rides in the backcountry, and we’ve put some killer point-to-point routes together to show you the best of what’s on tap.
What should you expect in Sun Valley? Big rides, and loooong flowy descents with views that go on forever. That said, you should definitely put in lots of training miles before joining us in late June. Even though the terrain in Sun Valley is on the “more mellow” side in terms of tech, the rides here always have a way of beating you down over the course of a long day. We’ll mix things up with a couple of shuttles, point to points, loops, and maybe even finish at a couple of our favorite bars in town for post-ride beers.
Expected Itinerary
Ride Day 1: Oregon Gulch P2P w/ Shuttle. We’ll start our trip with a shuttle about 15 miles north of town to a drop point at the bottom of Oregon Gulch, where we’ll gradually head back to town via a series of loops and connector trails. This is the perfect first-day ride with some gradually longer climbs (but never too steep) and some killer descents to get you used to the bikes and the terrain. We’ll even let you pick the post-ride bar at the end of the day… Lefty’s or Grumpy’s?
Day 2: Castle Creek to Red Warrior to Warm Springs. Yep, another shuttle… today’s ride is a true backcountry experience where we’ll hit a long 7+ mile downhill that few people ride. The route starts with a 20-25 minute climb on Osberg Ridge before heading over to Castle Creek, which is one of our favorite raw, rugged descents anywhere. Once we hit Warm Springs Road, we have our biggest climb of the day up to the top of Red Warrior (about 5 miles), but it’s totally worth the effort since RW is always a customer fave: 5 miles and over 2000′ of ripping tech and flow! All told we’ll knock out about 21-22 miles with 2500′ of climbing and another 5000’+ of descent.
Day 3: We’re going to start with another shuttle ride, and this one is to the start of Osberg Ridge. Osberg’s all the way back to town is an absolute classic, but make sure you’ve got the legs and lungs to tackle it. Expect long climbs, huge views, incredible singletrack, and some rugged backcountry riding. Today’s ride will clock in around 25 miles with over 3000′ of climbing (and 6000′ of descending).
Day 4: We’re going to treat you to one of our favorite “short loops” anywhere… just south of town in Greenhorn Gulch. Greenhorn-Imperial is an incredible 11 mile, 2000′ loop that is the perfect topper for an incredible trip. If you’re feeling good on today’s ride and want a little more, we’re happy to add some climbing and descending to make it closer to 15 miles with 3000′ of climbing/descending.
Expected Weather: Sun Valley in early summer is absolutely perfect, with highs in the 70s and typically minimal chances for rain. Occasionally we’ll get a “heat wave” coming through that will push higher elevations close to 80*, but that’s fairly rare. If it does rain, it’s a passing shower/storm and not something that lasts all day.
Final Word: To us, Sun Valley is the epitome of “high country epic” riding. You’ll be wiped out at the end of each day, but honestly- we can’t think of many places we’d rather spend all day in the mountains. The rides will be big and long, but the descents are truly epic and we’ll have the trails to ourselves. Make sure you train for this one, as we’ll be in the saddle for 20+ miles every day with options to lengthen rides and push even harder.. and farther into the rugged backcountry of the Idaho mountains.
Durango, CO: July 26-30, 2025
Technical Level: Intermediate +
Fitness Level: Advanced
Summary: Durango was officially a new destination for us in 2023, and we couldn’t be more psyched about another incredible Colorado high country-based trip. If you’ve been on our trips before, we see Durango as a mix between Crested Butte and Monarch Crest: that is, you’ll get some big climbs, huge descents, and enough technical riding to keep you on your toes. Most all of our rides here will be shuttle-based; both to improve the “climb to descend ratio” and to allow us to put together some killer point to point rides.
If you want to be prepared for this trip, you’ll need to dedicate yourself to getting your fitness level up and putting in big miles beforehand: Durango is not to be taken lightly. These rides are big, rowdy, and typically at an elevation of between 9,000 and 12,000′ throughout the day. To us, Durango is the epitome of high-country adventure riding.
Expected Itinerary
Ride Day 1: We’ll get things going in Durango with a shuttle up to Hotel Draw and a “relatively easy” 20+ mile ride today… as we traverse across the ridge on the Colorado Trail, we’ll drop down Stagecoach which is a great warmup descent for the group to get you ready for what’s to come. After descending on a doubletrack road for a bit, we’ll hit the Hermosa Creek Trail. Hermosa Creek mainly goes downhill for almost 14 miles, but it does have a handful of punchy climbs mixed in, with one “good one” coming out of Dutch Creek later in the day. The purpose of today’s ride is to acclimate everyone to the bikes, the terrain, and the altitude… it’s going to be a good one, but it’s just a warmup for what’s to come!
Day 2: Today we’ll shuttle up to Coal Bank Pass where we start with a stiff 1,000′ climb for the day. After that, we’ll traverse Engineer Mountain Trail over to White Creek, which packs a punch in just a few miles. Big exposure means big views, and some of the coolest technical riding in the high country as well. We’ll hit the Colorado Trail from here, on our way over to Graysill Creek which is one of our favorite downhills in Colorado! All told, expect about 21 miles and just under 3,000′ of climbing today.
Day 3: Epic alert! Today we’ll shuttle up to Bolam Pass, where we’ll once again tackle the Colorado Trail… but this time, it’ll be up Blackhawk Pass which is one of the toughest climbs, but it’s also one of the most scenic sections of trail you’ll ever ride. From there we’ll traverse over towards the Stagecoach Trail (again) where we have multiple options for the descent. Today’s ride will blow your mind, but it’ll also test your legs and lungs so be ready!
Day 4: The last day… but it doesn’t mean we’re going to take it easy on you. Today we’ll head back up to Coal Bank Pass and hit the Engineer Mountain Trail descent, which is about 6 miles and 2500′ of pure bliss (for a total of 10 miles and 1300′ of climbing). For those with something left in the legs and feeling a little frisky, we’ll have the option to extend the ride and drop into the always rowdy and sporty Engine Creek (14 miles, 1800′ climbing).
Expected Weather: Monsoon season in the Colorado high-country can be a real thing, but hopefully by running our trip in late July, we’ll avoid a majority of the afternoon storms that we typically see. That said, there’s always a chance for thunderstorms when you’re above 12,000′, and we’ll make sure you’re prepared with regular pre-trip email updates. In terms of daytime temps, you can expect highs in the 60’s and 70’s, which is perfect for big rides!
Final Word: We absolutely love the tough style of rides you get in Durango, as the efforts are big but the payoffs are huge. Incredible descents, forever views, solitude, and some of the sweetest singletrack you’ll find in the western US. That said, these rides are quite difficult, so just make sure you’re prepared… but in our eyes, it doesn’t get much better than putting in big work and reaping the rewards with rides you’ll never forget.
Whistler, BC: September 7-12, 2025
Technical Level: Intermediate +
Fitness Level: Intermediate – Advanced
Summary: The Whistler trip is THE trip for our advanced riders, or our upper intermediate folks looking to improve their skills to a new level. The area is a virtual playground for mountain bikers, with terrain and tech that will challenge the best riders anywhere. Between the three locations, there’s enough challenging black trails to push your limits and help you find new ones. Definitely bring your A-game for this one.
From slabs to skinnies to flow trails to steep backcountry lines… this trip will throw it all at you. Sometimes even on the same day! Expect to be challenged beyond anything you’ve likely ridden before, on features you probably didn’t think were rideable. But it’s all about progression, and you’ll leave for your home trails a much better rider than when you showed up on Day 1!
Expected Itinerary: For this trip, we’re going to break it down a bit differently… because there are SO many trail options in each of the three towns, we’ll go into a little detail on how that will break down, and what you can expect from that perspective. Generally speaking, if the weather cooperates for our trips we’ll spend two days in Whistler, two in Squamish, and one in Pemberton.
Squamish: We started our expansion into BC with our trips here in 2022, and we were in love ever since we scouted these trails last fall. Squamish is the Disneyland for advanced-level mountain bikers with steeps, slabs, tech, and flow all built into the same ride. We’ll start you out easy on some “BC blues” (the equivalent of tough black trails in the US) to let you get the hang of things, but then we’ll get into it with black trails like In-N-Out, Entrails, and Credit Line. The descents in Squamish tend to be a little shorter, but they pack a lot of punch for the effort.
Whistler: Whistler is the perfect tech compliment to Squamish… the trails in Whistler tend to be a little longer/bigger and more raw, featuring old-school tech and steeps vs the slabs of Squamish. There aren’t any shuttles available in Whistler (other than the bike park, which we won’t be riding), so you’ll have to earn your turns the old fashioned way: by climbing up before dropping down. But trust us, with descents like Chipmunk Rebellion, Hey Bud, and Working Class all the effort is totally worth the reward on the way down. These trails blew us away… there’s a reason some of the best riders in the world call Whistler home.
Pemberton: Just 20-30 minutes down-valley (north) from Whistler, Pemberton offers an entirely different style of riding and a perfect compliment to the coastal BC vibe of the other two. Pemberton tends to be a bit drier than it’s neighbor to the south, and so the terrain mimics that: more rugged, steep, and raw than most of what you’ll find in Whistler or Squamish. Expect steep chutes, some fun slab riding, and descents that seemingly go on forever.
Expected Weather: September in the Sea to Sky corridor usually means temperate weather in the 70’s and an occasional chance for rain. Don’t worry though, the dirt gets better with moisture, and the slabs are still as grippy as ever. But still, make sure you bring a good rain jacket and maybe some rain paints on this trip. If you sign up, we’ll keep you updated with a up-to-the-minute forecast before the trip so you’re prepared!
The Final Word: This incredible trip is all about progression and pushing yourself, so be prepared. This trip is most definitely for our advanced/expert riders! You’ll be riding trails unlike you’ve ever seen before, with features and sections that you’ve only viewed on YouTube videos. Everything is SO well-designed and built though, that you’ll be amazed at what’s possible on a bike.
