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Mountain Biking at Fort Custer Recreation Area

Description | Ratings

Trails: 12 miles of trails are open to mountain biking: lots of singletrack, some doubletrack, some roads.
Access fee: Park entry pass
Nearest town: Augusta, MI
Trail map: Available at the park
Web site: Fort Custer RA
Points of interest:
Other activities: Hiking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing
Lodging: Cabins are available from the park. Kalamazoo has several choices of accommodation.
Camping: Campground in the park
Weather forecast: Battle Creek
Tourism info: Battle Creek Visitors Bureau
Getting to the trail: The park is just west of Battle Creek
Map of local region: Battle Creek
Submitted by: J.R.
from: Michigan
Date submitted: April 7, 2004

Rate this trail

Number of ratings: 7
Average rating: 4.64  

7        

Area name: Fort Custer Recreation Area
Number of times riding the trail: Weekly
I last rode there in: Oct, 2003
Trails that I have ridden: all of them.
Favorite trails: i liked all the trails some were a little to easy for me though.
Best time to go: when its warm.
Trail marking: Very good
Trail maintenance: Very good
Rating: 5 stars
What I liked: the cardiac climb killed me. but it was very fun.
What I disliked: i wish there was more people out there to ride with. other than that nothing.
Comments:
Submitted by: Dustin
from: Kalamazoo, MI
Date submitted: May 23, 2005

6          

Area name: Fort Custer Recreation Area
Number of times riding the trail: Weekly
I last rode there in: Nov, 2004
Trails that I have ridden: All of them are great, although the green trail was too technical for me but I have bad knees.
Favorite trails: i like to ride a combination of the red and yellow trails.
Best time to go: Anytime, although personally i don't ride in the snow, i ski.
Trail marking: Very good
Trail maintenance: Very good
Rating: 5 stars
What I liked: I like everything. The parking lot can look full but when you get out on the trail you rarely even come across other riders.
What I disliked:
Comments: i love the first part of the red trail.
Submitted by: Vicki
from: Kalamazoo, MI
Date submitted: May 2, 2005

5          

Area name: Fort Custer Recreation Area
Number of times riding the trail: Weekly
I last rode there in: Nov, 2004
Trails that I have ridden: All of them are great, although the green trail was too technical for me but I have bad knees.
Favorite trails: i like to ride a combination of the red and yellow trails.
Best time to go: Anytime, although personally i don't ride in the snow, i ski.
Trail marking: Very good
Trail maintenance: Very good
Rating: 5 stars
What I liked: I like everything. The parking lot can look full but when you get out on the trail you rarely even come across other riders.
What I disliked:
Comments: i love the first part of the red trail.
Submitted by: Vicki
from: Kalamazoo, MI
Date submitted: May 2, 2005

4          

Area name: Fort Custer Recreation Area
Number of times riding the trail: A few times
I last rode there in: Oct, 2004
Trails that I have ridden: all of them
Favorite trails: The red loop is the best. The grannys garden section is great very technical lots of roots rocks and drops. I've seen many under experienced riders go over the handlebars. The camping is good real close to the trails.
Best time to go: after labor day when you can drink
Trail marking: Very good
Trail maintenance: Very good
Rating: 5 stars
What I liked: It has a trail for every level of riding
What I disliked: nothing
Comments: Hunters in the fall wear orange. I almost got an arrow to the chest by a turkey hunter.
camping is great, fire wood on site for a reasonable price.
Submitted by: paul
from: Chicago IL
Date submitted: March 22, 2005

3          

Area name: Fort Custer Recreation Area
Number of times riding the trail: Weekly
I last rode there in: Nov, 2004
Trails that I have ridden: Red, Yellow, Green
Favorite trails: Red (most technical)
Best time to go: Until the park closes!
Trail marking: Very good
Trail maintenance: Very good
Rating: 4 stars
What I liked: Granny's Garden on the Red trail (most technical). Red has a couple of killer uphills. Lots of log jams on the Green trail.
What I disliked: The scenery is not as beautiful as some of the other parks. Mostly woods w/some pines also.
Comments: Fort Custer is one of the most popular MTB areas in MI. The West Michigan MTB Association rides here every Thursday.
Submitted by: GORG
from: Kalamazoo, MI
Date submitted: Nov 9, 2004

2          

Area name: Fort Custer Recreation Area
Number of times riding the trail: Once
I last rode there in: June, 2004
Trails that I have ridden: Green and Red Loops
Favorite trails:
Best time to go: Spring or Fall
Trail marking: Fair
Trail maintenance: Very good
Rating: 4 stars
What I liked: Fast Trails and well maintained.
What I disliked: I would like a little more technical Singel Track.
Comments: Make sure to get a map and bring it with you the first time you go. It is some time hard to follow the shorth cuts.
Submitted by: KDA
from: Sault Ste. Maire
Date submitted: June 14, 2004

1        

Name of area: Fort Custer Recreation Area
I have ridden there: Several times
I last rode there in: Sept, 2003
Trails that I have ridden: There's several loops and I've ridden them all. They vary from mostly flat and easy to hilly and intermediate. Some rocks and roots. Some sand.
Best time to go:
Trail marking: Fair
Trail maintenance: Very good
Stars: 4.5
Favorite trails:
Comments: Trails are interconnected, so you can get a varied ride everytime you're out there. There's lakes and strams and lots of places to stop and enjoy the scenery. Beware of bikers going the wrong way. Hikers are also out there but are easy to navigate around, unless they're idiots.
Submitted by: J.R.
from: Michigan
Date submitted: April 7, 2004

Rate this trail