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Lake Crabtree County Park

Current Trail Status

	Status	When Updated	Who Updated	More Info		Help keep this info accurate by clicking the red bicycle
	closed	05/14 2:12 pm	Reward

Average ratings submitted by users                     Write a review   User submitted reviews

Category	Average Rating
Overall :	3.7 / 5.0   based on 48 votes
Technical :	1.8 / 5.0   based on 48 votes
Climbing :	1.6 / 5.0   based on 48 votes
Freeride :	2.5 / 5.0   based on 48 votes
Scenery/Wildlife :	3.0 / 5.0   based on 48 votes
Flow :	4.1 / 5.0   based on 37 votes

Description
Location: Just south of the RDU airport, off Aviation Parkway.
Miles: about 8
Skill Level: Beginner
Contact: Park office (919)460-3390 (call to see if trails are open)

Map
Park Hours and Fees
Directions
Rules of the Trail
Pump Track

Lake Crabtree County Park singletrack is by far the most popular place for beginner riders in the Triangle. Its central location is also great for relieving weekday stress if you work in RTP. The wooded trails connect to Umstead State Park and Cary's Black Creek Greenway.

Since it's so popular, plan on passing lots of other riders when the weather's good. Please be courteous and cautious with the riders you meet here. It is a great place to learn to ride and don't expect to come here and hammer people out of your way. Stopping to help out beginner riders does a world of good for our sport. There are six loops, some connectors, and the Lake Trail.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Crabtree trails are closed when they are muddy. Call ahead to see if they are open. Please respect the rules of the trail and don't ride on closed sections.

Directions
Go towards RDU airport on I-40 and exit onto Aviation Parkway going south. Crabtree County Park entrance is on the left. You may park in the first gravel parking lot or at the boat ramp parking area. One of the main trail entrances is across the road from the first gravel parking lot. Another great way to access the trail is via Connector C.

Park Hours
8:00am to sunset, seven days a week. The park is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day.

Rules of the Trail

1. All riders must wear a helmet.
2. Respect the rights of all other trail users and obey park rules and regulations. Bikers must always yield to walkers.
3. Plan Ahead.
4. Ride only on officially marked trails.
5. Keep your bike under control.
6. Do not disturb or alarm wildlife.
7. Pets must be kept on a leash at all times.
8. Leave no trace (don't litter).
9. Set a good example and report violators/hazards.
10. Allow time to finish outings before the park closes.
11. Park management has requested that group rides park at the boat ramp parking area. This leaves ample parking for the users of the open play lot.

Pump Track

Thanks to the wonderful staff of Lake Crabtree Park and volunteers, the first public pump track in the triangle area has been built. The pump track is located near the "old field rows" label on the map near the intersection of Connector A and Loop 1. A pump track is a series of rollers and berms. Its intended to teach one to learn how to pump their bike over ups and downs on a trail, which when mastered, a person will be able to accelerate their bike with out pedaling. The pump track is not really intended to be jumped, which defeats the purpose of the track. Rules/Guidelines The building of the pump track involved uncounted hours of planning, negotiations, and construction labor. Please follow these guidelines to help preserve the pump track in a good condition. no skidding no pedaling no braking helmets required lower your seat body position should be more upright as you approach the roller push down as you come over the roller easier on a hard tail but can also be done on a full suspension bike Note that if feels awkward at first. But once you get use to it, it's a lot of fun and a really good workout. Pedaling and braking destroys the rollers and berms. Especially when you "catch" a roller by pedaling over it.

This trail is not open for night riding except under organized night ride events coordinated with cycling clubs and park staff. Stay tuned to this site for upcoming night rides.

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Lake Crabtree Park trail has been reviewed 48 times by our trianglemtb.com guests.

Reviewed by: Klunkdub Reviewed on: 02/10/2012 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	Awesome place to learn and develope skills! Jumps, pump track, flowing trail, technical sections, and minimal climbs make Crabtree a blast! Not to mention the family of deer that hangout along the trail. If you have not already, you've got to checkout crabtree.
Reviewed by: dman1123 Reviewed on: 01/02/2012 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	Pretty good flow so it can be pretty fun if you ride fast. A few good jumps along the trail and then, of course, there are the dirt jumps which is my reasoning for giving a high freeride score. Nothing much in the way of climbing but if you ride it fast you will definitely get a good workout.
Reviewed by: Aquajern Reviewed on: 12/17/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	Trail had great flow and a little bit of everything, not to technical but great ride highly recommended for all levels of riding! >Trail includes: Jump section (beginner and more advanced) Pump section Skills sections (great balance and drop off pieces) Some nice hills and climbs, but overall not technical (few rooty parts) Flows great! Nice lake side trail, offers great scenery, benches to rest, and many views of lake. Just go you will not be disappointed! *Due note this trail can be very tricky to navigate for the first few times, lots of intersecting loops, but had a ball anyway going in circles till I had enough.
Reviewed by: murr Reviewed on: 08/16/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	Good place to learn how to ride fast. Definitely not a technical trail system. Although, there are a few sections where you can learn to corner without braking. Other than that no big hills and nothing very strenuous about, Crabtree. Just a fun, fast track.
Reviewed by: rampage Reviewed on: 08/07/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	No detailed review given.
Reviewed by: andjava65 Reviewed on: 06/16/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	This is a very nice fast trail. Not very technical except for some sharp turns. If you want to have fun, ride fast this is the trail for you...
Reviewed by: zman Reviewed on: 06/10/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	No detailed review given.
Reviewed by: scrutton Reviewed on: 04/18/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	No detailed review given.
Reviewed by: RickyE Reviewed on: 03/10/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	Trail has a few technical sections and turns but overall is just very flowing and fast. This is a good trail if you want to just fly through the woods and hit a lot of banked turns. I gave a high freeride rating for the jumps section which has sizes for all skill levels.
Reviewed by: Scottyb Reviewed on: 02/03/2011 Overall: Technical: Climbing: Freeride: Scenery/Wildlife: Flow: Report inappropriate review	This a nice trail to just get out and enjoy the twists and turns on pretty smooth dirt. There is not a huge amount of tech but there are some freeride opportunities with a jump track and some skills obstacles that have been put in place. I'd consider this a good place to start out if you're new.

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