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Getting off the beaten trail
NB: Originally posted elsewhere on the Global Riders Network and appears via syndication.
Have a read of this article:
http://www.themountainbikelife.com/2013/06/roll-...
Now tell me you're not inspired to go for a ride that's away from the standard 10km looped tracks, and I'll say your telling porkies!
As much as I love going and doing a few laps of Ourimbah, Appin, etc, I'm yet to do a ride like the ones described in the article. Maybe this weekend is a good opportunity....
Anyone been and done an 'off the cuff ride' and got any good tales to tell?
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I originally started mountain bike riding just going on random rides with my 12 yo son, covering the breathtaking distance of 30 km! (gasp) This was on degraded fire trails through national parks, we would laugh at the big 4wd units strugging or not being able to pass the road at all, and you could just pick up the bike and walk around it.
I miss that kind of ride, and it would be better now that I can cover more distance. Snowy mountains sounds like it has a few epics around, wouldn't mind getting into the back country over the summer.
Epic rides are always the best.
No race pace smash fest for two hours, but a good long ride.
Back in the early days riding in the UK, we would buy OS maps and navigate our way through farmers fields, bridleways and footpaths, camelbaks full of warm sweet ribena, fig rolls by the dozen and cantilever brakes that were shit in mud and wet grass.
It took us years to establish a good ride on the South Downs, long before bike specific parks and trails were created.
Adventure and exploration is in our souls and getting out into the wilderness is a special experience.
Epic is always best, its just working out the logistics.
MPN
G'day Pete,
Thanks for sharing a link to my article on The Mountain Bike Life.
Like you I love off the cuff rides. Lots of Saturday mornings I just tell my incredibly patient wife I'm going "walk about" (Ride about?) and I'll be back sometime
Riding in unusual places takes a bit of imagination, but it's worth the effort. It also helps to have a few mates who keep asking me "Where are we going this weekend".
I find it also helps to pretend you're a tourist in your home town. Imagine you're visting for the first time, and you've got an afternoon to explore it by mountain bike. Where are you gonna ride?
If you guys end up doing something out of the ordinary instead of the normal loop, please let us know. The more tourists on wheels we have out there the better
Neil
Sounds like you guys might be interested in some really epic rides
http://forums.mtbr.com/passion/bikerafting-alask...
and if that's not enough for you then follow it up with this one
http://forums.mtbr.com/passion/bikerafting-alask...
Enjoy
Exploration rides can be the bestest.
I've lamented in past blogs that mtb has become all about sign posted groomed trails. Just follow the signs and rail the berms but some of the best rides are the ones you just head out and have a look around, stumble over hidden gem and seldom used trails.
Sure some times you find yourself on a bush bashing porta-bike slog but no day is wasted on the quest for adventure.
Get out there
Nice article -
Been doing similar for 25+ years and still prefer it to following signposted routes. Hardly ever ride the Weat Aussie KC and Kalamunda area trails - It's nice arriving at a junction and deciding on which way to go based on which way I haven't been 
Posted a pic of some Mundaring, WA. area rides on thread http://perthmtb.asn.au/node/38394
Just exploring can make an 'easy ride' more interesting if you just explore other trails. E.G. for the WA riders, an alternative Heritage Trail ride, not using the section from Hovea to Helena Valley can be between 40 and 50km (or longer) using only 14k of the Heritage with max grade of around 20% and around 840mtr Vertical climbing (according to Google Earth).
Things found in 'off the cuff' rides. The usual strange behaviour of Homo Sapiens Sapiens when in pairs! Bee farms - not advisable to stop and explore these! Various Fora that don't hear you coming. Abandoned/unused picnic areas with BBQ facilities and/or tables still there. Peace and quiet is the main one
. No other MTB anywhere and the capacity to choose your own pace or just stop and enjoy. (For the Strava lovers - as no one else rides these trails you have as many KOMs as you like 
). Also going for an all day cruise and know you're unlikely to see another person (so carry a PLB just in case).
Avag'day
I used to work on a remote mine site and ride every day. I'd follow old drill lines that hadn't seen a soul in 20 years. I'd be constantly exploring new tracks and mapping them as I went. I even graded them, green, blue, black and even double black for some of the seriously difficult ones.
I had one favourite track than involved shouldering your bike and climbing to the top of a rocky ridge. The view was awesome and watching a sunset from up there sublime. Then the ride along the top and back down the other side was similarly sweet. It's pretty awesome riding solo under a star lit sky literally hundreds of miles from anyway.