9.9 miles
Distance
436 ft
Climb
-432 ft
Descent
345 ft
High Point

No water or bathrooms once you leave the HQ. Some trails run wet in the spring.

Head out on the Pond Walk on the south side (counter clockwise) of the pond and then the Borderland Trail to the gated parking area at the end of the road. Pick up Bob's Trail here for a warm up before hitting the tech on the north side of the park. At the end of Bob's Trail, turn right and go all the way out to Mountain Street. Take a left on Mountain Street and ride 100' up to the gated entrance back into the park. From here, ride up the meadow to Granite Hills Trail.

Granite Hills is challenging climbing through chunky singletrack up to the doubletrack portion of the Ridge Trail. Travel up Ridge to the Friends Trail signage. Up and to the left is a large challending ledge to climb. The B-line is to the right but I'd skip that. Follow the Friends Trail singletrack initially through some easy climbs and ledge. In just a short bit you will come to one of the more challenging rock gardens in all of Borderland. Once through the rock gardens you'll come to a set of two "bridges". Not really bridges but 10" wide boards that run first about 50' then about 100'. They are a real test you skinny abilities. Many people hike-a-bike.

Once finished with Friends trail, you get a bit of a break to hammer the Morse Loop and the Quarry Loop. A mix of double track and single track with a little tech thrown in.

You end the Quarry Loop back at the Ridge Trail. The single track portion of the Ridge Trail will challenge the best of the technical riders. It starts with ledge, mixes in ledge throughout the trail, and ends in ledge at the NEMBA trail. Take caution on the first drop 50' down the trail. Most riders walk it.

The NEMBA trail, obviously built by NEMBA many years ago is optionally done out and back. The uphill flow runs toward the west. This is another of the technically challenging trails.

Once done with the NEMBA Trail, follow the double track down to the Split Rock Trail. This is a fun and technically challenging trail that brings you to the Granite Hills trail. Turn right at the Granite Hills Trail and make your way back to the carriage trails at the pond.

Turn right at the pond and take the Northwest Trail up to the French Trail. These trails are super chunky with lots of challenging lines around medium and large boulders. Finish the route on either direction of the West Side Trail.

Detailed Description
Borderland Challenge is a 10 mile popular expert route located near Sharon Massachusetts. This mountain bike primary route can be used both directions and has a hard overall physical rating. This route includes 23 trails. This route climbs 436 ft with a max elevation of 345 ft then descends -432 ft.
Local Trail Association
Local trail association
Southeast Massachusetts NEMBA Chapter (nemba.org)
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Details

  • Featured
  • Riding area
  • Primary Activity
    Mountain Bike
  • Other Activities
    • Hike
  • Difficulty rating
    Black Diamond
  • Route Type
    Loop
  • Bike type
    XC
  • Direction
    Both Directions
  • Physical rating
    Hard
  • Ridelogs
    12
More Stats for Borderland Challenge mountain bike route
  • Avg time
    1 hr 37 min
  • Altitude min
    202 ft
  • Altitude start
    246 ft
  • Altitude end
    249 ft
  • Grade max
    -26%
  • Grade min
    17.4%
  • Distance climb
    4 miles
  • Distance down
    4 miles
  • Distance flat
    2 miles
Avg: 3 (3 votes)
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  • Ideal
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Recent Trail Reports Along Route

statustraildateconditiondescription
West Side Trail
May 9, 2024 @ 2:27am
May 9, 2024
Northwest (green)
Apr 28, 2024 @ 6:04am
Apr 28, 2024
Tree down
Morse Loop Trail East
Jan 1, 2024 @ 1:30pm
Jan 1, 2024
Removed large tree near the Mountain St connector. There's a large pine down at the northern end of the loop, but it's easy to go around.
French Trail
Dec 5, 2023 @ 7:39am
Dec 5, 2023
Tree down near the intersection with west side trail.
Friends Trail
Jul 13, 2023 @ 3:02pm
Jul 13, 2023
Mostly dry. Just a few small mud spots.
more reports »