Issaqueena?

[brianW]

Noticed Issaqueena was listed as a trail in the monthly news letter. Never heard of it. Where is it? How is it as a trail?

[seenvic]

Clemson, SC.

It's a great network of trails, but one can easily get lost if not familiar with it. I used to go w/ the Greenwood boys and they knew 50+ mile routes up there and never got lost.

When alone, I tend to pay very close attention to where I am and where the car is from where I am. I've never gotten lost up there but I've heard horror stories of folks getting lost.

[imnav8r]

I've wondered that myself. Thanks for asking Brian.

[eyebike]

I have been looking into local triathalons and there is actually one at Issaqueena. It is a trail run, kayak and mountain bike triathalon. I was wondering how hard this trail would be.

[seenvic]

Generally, Clemson is going to have more climbing that the CSRA. Clemson is up near the foothills of the mtns and we aren't.

Not sure which trail they will use as they have 50+ miles. But if they use the "Lake Trail", it is a relatively easy one up there.

I'd say as a rule of thumb, expect a little more climbing up there than here and the rest (technical nature) should be similar to our older trails we have locally.

[razorhoof]

in addition to the xc loops there is also a freeride area funded by clemson university and several local area sponsors. very well put together, built entirely by clemson collegiate racers and local DH guys. there's a Downhill track, Dual slalom course, a really nice set of MTB dirt jumps, and some Freeride style hits off in the woods that consist of some big hips and step up's. I ride there quite a bit. They've done a great job with what little gradient they have to work with up there, and something similar would definitely be do-able here.

bottom line if you're looking to challenge your skillset as a mountain biker and get up off your saddle for a bit it's definitely worth checking out.

[lionel]

I've seen some of the clemson free ride videos on youtube, and it looks amazing! Do we have anything similar nearby? If not, has anyone ever considered building something similar here? I would love to find a good spot around here with some good dirt jumps and free riding.

Razorhoof, do you happen to know where the DH track and dirt jumps are located in Clemson?

[dgaddis1]

Read this: sorbacsra.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=1528

There's some dirt jumps at the BMX track. Talk to Drew at AJBW for details, he's one of the guys that maintains them.

[scoopat]

myself and a few friends in the Athens area go up there about 3 times a year to ride this system. There are some great trails and its very scenic! Definately easy to get lost there as most of the trails are not marked. However I found this fantastic map (click all sizes for a larger version!):

www.flickr.com/photos/brado1/2435970785/

Here are some pics that I've taken up there over the years, it should give you an idea of what they've got going on up there, including the freeride/downhill stuff.

www.flickr.com/search/?q=clemson&w=73577994%40N00

Unfortunately for those who'd want to ride that stuff, the freeride features were not in the best of shape, seems like it could use some maintenance...

[imnav8r]

Welcome aboard scoop! That's a great first post and thanks for the information!