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5,197 ft
Distance
104 ft
Climb
-26 ft
Descent
00:10:47
Avg time
79 ft
Altitude change
2,208 ft
Altitude min
2,303 ft
Altitude max
2,224 ft
Altitude start
2,303 ft
Altitude end
1.5%
Grade
-5.7%
Grade max
8.8%
Grade min
3,533 ft
Distance climb
1,217 ft
Distance down
394 ft
Distance flat
00:10:47
Avg time
Explorer Loop Details
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Activities
- Mountain Bike
- Hike
- Trail Running
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Riding AreaBent Creek Experimental Forest
Bent Creek, North Carolina -
Ref Number#337
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Difficulty Rating
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Local Popularity65 in Mountain Biking [+]
- 85 in Trail Running
- 75 in Hiking
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Global Ranking
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State Ranking
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Hiking SAC ScaleT1 Hiking
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Trail TypeMixed
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Bike TypeAM, XC
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DirectionBoth Directions
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Climb DifficultyBlue
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Physical RatingEasy
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Trail VisibilityAlways easy to follow
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Family FriendlyYes
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Dogs AllowedYes
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eBike Allowed
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Land Owner
Explorer Loop Upper trail features red clay berms typical of the surrounding trails. Most of the trail is wide enough to be considered double track and the beginning of the trail features a beautiful rhododendron tunnel.
Local Trail Association
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Please consider joining or donating to the local trail association to supportDonate to earn trail karma!
trail development & maintenance.
Traditionally Indigenous Territory
Recent Activity on Trail
Past Week
- 4 rides
- 16 miles average
6 Months
- 123 rides
- 12 miles avg distance
All
- 1,102 rides
- Last: Oct 8, 2026
| c1 | c2 | c3 | c4 |
|---|---|---|---|
January | February | March | April |
May | June | July | August |
September | October | November | December |
Explorer Loop Trail Reports
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Trail Conditions
- Unknown
- Snow Groomed
- Snow Packed
- Snow Covered
- Snow Cover Partial
- Freeze/thaw Cycle
- Icy
- Prevalent Mud
- Wet
- Variable
- Ideal
- Dry
- Very Dry
Trail Flow (Ridden Direction)
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The colour categories are based on what percentage of users are riding a trail in its intended direction.
The colour categories are based on what percentage of users are riding a trail in its intended direction.
- > 96%
- > 90%
- > 80%
- > 70%
- > 50%
- < 50%
- bi-directional trail
- no data
Trail Last Used
Trailforks scans activity logs to determine the last time a trail was ridden.
- < 2 days
- < 1 week
- < 2 weeks
- < 1 month
- < 6 months
- > 6 months
Trail Ridden Direction
The intended direction a trail should be ridden.
- Downhill Only
- Downhill Primary
- Both Directions
- Uphill Primary
- Uphill Only
- One Direction
Contribute Details
Colors indicate trail is missing specified detail.
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- Photos
- Description & Photos
- Videos
Trail Popularity ?
Trailforks scans activity logs to determine which trails are ridden the most in the last 9 months.
Trails are compared with nearby trails in the same city region with a possible 25 colour shades.
Think of this as a heatmap, more activities = more kinetic energy = warmer colors.
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- popular
- less popular
- not popular
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Activity Recordings
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Activity Recordings
Trailforks uses anonymized public activity data.
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Winter Trails
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Missing Trails
Most Popular
Least Popular
Trails are colored based on popularity. The more popular a trail is, the more red. Less popular trails trend towards green.
Jump Magnitude Heatmap
Heatmap of where users jump on trails. Zoom in to see individual jumps, click circles to view jump details.
BC Backroad Status
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Slope Aspect
Direction the slope faces
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Directions to explorer-loop-39315 trailhead
(35.476520, -82.634090)
Photos
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Videos
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Trail Lists
-
All of Pisgah area check list 2022205 trails -
Pisgah Area SORBA Regions - All Trails
103 trails
-
Pisgah Area SORBA - All Maintained Trails
61 trails
Routes with this trail
★ 3.5 • 10 miles • 759 ft • 30 • Loop •
A "figure eight" route starting and ending at the Rice Pinnacle parking area. A solid mixture of climbing...
★ 4.0 • 8 miles • 855 ft • 21 • Loop •
Starts with hard times connect to the South Ridge road for a gravel climb for 2.5 miles. Downhill from...
8 miles • 846 ft • 10 •
This route is what I used to ride every few months with the AVL Mountain Bike club. Just a nice chill...
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Nearby Trails
- Explorer Loop Connector 337b 968 ft
- Sleepy Gap 1,480 ft
- Laurel Branch Road 1,877 ft
- Boyd Branch Road 1,946 ft
- Lower Sidehill (eastern) 2,864 ft
Bent Creek Experimental Forest
- By markholloway
Trailforks Map Team & contributors - #39315 - 2,696 views
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