Sweet flowy single track trails are what we are all after on our mountain bikes. Unless you live somewhere really awesome these trails don’t just spring up in the forest on their own. Here are a few of my favorite tools for trail building and some tips on how to effectively cut in sustainable and fun singletrack trails.
Recently I have been working on some trail re-alignment in my local riding area and it is a ton of work! I am not a professional trail builder but I thought I’d share some things I have learned as we built out our first new trail this year. My favorite tools for trail building helped make things easier for us and I hope if you read on it will help you to.
Clearing the Trail Path
First step after you have scoped out and flagged your trail path is to go through and move the big stuff in your way.
The area we ride in is frequently used by ATVs so we make sure we keep tons of large trees and trail “choke points” to ensure our hard work isn’t rutted out by spinning quad tires. We make a point of directing the trail through the forest and around the trees to keep our impact low.
Chainsaw
For this task I start with my trusty 16″ Ego Chainsaw. This is my first chainsaw and I have to say the convenience of battery operated cannot be understated. Its on when you need to cut and off when you don’t. I can cut through any deadfall I come across and work for around an hour with the included 2.5ah battery.
Highly recommend ditching the loud and smelly gas saw for one of these if you can. Keep the battery charged and the bar oil topped up and go to work.
Pro tip: When cutting small brush ensure you leave a 8″-12″ “handle” on the ground. This will help provide leverage when we remove the root ball from the trail tread.
Loppers
Second in my pack is a good set of loppers. I have a Fiskar set with extendable handles. These work very well for small branches and minor sightline clearing. You will want a set for seasonal trail maintenance so spend the money now and get yourself a decent set
Folding Saw
Lastly is a good folding trail saw. You can keep one of these in your pack even when you are riding to cut through most small deadfall. These also come in handy when you chainsaw runs out of battery for the day.
Cutting the Bench for The Trail
Here is where the trail will really start to take shape. Dirt work is my favorite! This is where you really see the trail taking shape.
You may think a shovel and rake will do the trick but if you pick up a few of these specialty tools your back and body will thank you later.
Depending on soil type and the amount of vegetation my first pass on the tread is done with one of these three tools;
McLeod
The McLeod I own is pretty lightweight so I find it works best to chop light brush and some rough raking. Think raspberry bush clearing. This one is easy to swing all day and a great all purpose trail tool.
Rogue Hoe / Grub Hoe
I have a 55HR which is a bit of an all purpose grub hoe. It has a bit of weight to it which helps make that initial cut into tougher soil. This one also works great if you need to clear some roots from the tread.
Pulaski
When the going gets very tough the Pulaski comes in. I use this to break up large root balls or to break up very tough soil. This thing is a beast to swing so I only bring it out when needed. Stubborn soil and roots are no match for a few swings of this beast.
Finishing The Trail Build
Once you have the trail cleared and bench cut its is time for the finishing work. This is where you will add some flow into your trails to keep trail users coming back.
Initial trail compaction is key to prevent erosion issues in the future. If users all pack down the center of the tread that is where water will go and you will end up with ruts and puddles all over your beautiful new trail.
Rouge Hoe Travis Tool or Mcleod
If you can only carry one tool out with you for finishing work bring one of these. The 70AR Travis tool. With these you can break up and pull around soil. Rake out sticks, rocks and other debris. These also great for most of the trail compaction you will want to do.
If you have multiple helpers bring McLeods for compacting and shaping the tread, the larger surface area makes compaction go quickly.
Rake
If you have plenty of help and hands a good steel rake works great for removing rocks and debris. My local trail is being built by only two of us so we opt for the multi purpose tools. Less to carry.
If you are simply clearing leaves and debris a nice steel tine leaf rake is best. Have the folks raking follow behind your trimmers.
Shovel Flat or Spade
If you need to move a ton of dirt it should come as no surprise a shovel is best. When your tread soil sucks you may need to create a “borrow pit” nearby and spread some of the good stuff over top. This is where a spade comes in handy.
Flat shovel is best when building features or jumps. It will help you get that tabletop nice and smooth.
Pulaski
Sometimes the soil in your tread just plain sucks. You may need to break it up to clear it away for some fresh stuff. The Pulaski can help break this up as well as help you break up and establish a good nearby “borrow pit”.
Five Gallon Bucket
Sometimes simple tools are your most valuable. Eventually you will need a bit of water to get better compaction or need to move dirt a few feet from a borrow pit. Pickup a solid hardware store bucket to add to your trail finishing arsenal.
How to carry it all
Some people are comfortable riding with tools for trail building in hand or strapped to their bikes. I didn’t like the idea of potentially crashing with sharps tools all around me.
Since our trail system is a short walk from the car I rigged up the old child carrier hiking backpack. I threw my bucket where the kid would go and it works for most tools when I am on foot.
Maybe one day I will have some extra cash to spring for a Dakine Builder Pack but for now my up-cycle way works just fine.
You will find plenty of great examples of sweet singletrack trails in my other posts. Head on over and checkout my Trails and Destinations posts to see what great looks like!
There are plenty of trail building resources out there but the go to organization in Canada and North America is IMBA. These resources are where I first learned about many of these tools for trail building and I highly recommend picking them up. They have a ton of resources to help you learn and get started building and maintaining your own local mountain bike trails.