By Vicky Sama
The Tish Tang is in full swing, thanks to Bigfoot’s Tom Phillips and a host of volunteers who have cleared and improved this old, renegade mountain bike trail outside of Willow Creek.
The trail starts at the Horse Linto Campground and climbs up the jeep road for about five miles to about 3,000 feet. At about an hour up the road, you’ll see a wide open intersection; take a left to find the top of the Tish Tang. The downhill is all singletrack separated in three sections by the jeep road. The first section is known as the Shale Trail, which flows over the rocks before winding tightly through the trees.
The second section is known as Roller, and like it’s name, the singletrack traverses and rolls gently along the hillside with beautiful views of mountain ridges. This is the section where XC riders can really get speed.
The third section (closest to the campground) is known as Downhill, and is perfect for shuttling big travel bikes. This section is a bit crazy for XC bikes. Take it easy on your first visit and learn the lines so that you don’t get stuck in a rut. The Downhill is not for the faint of heart. The start of this trail is narrow on a steep off-camber hillside that can take your breath away. Don’t look down. This section is packed with twists, berms and jumps and should be even better after a few rainy days in the fall.
The Tish Tang is a bit rugged and at times the berry bushes can scrape up your arms. Wear long sleeves and slather on the bug glorp to keep the skeeters away. The trail is more appropriate for moderately experienced to advanced riders, but beginners can easily dump out of the singletrack onto the jeep road at several points on the descent.
At the end of the ride, take a dip in the cool creek at the campground, but look out for Poison Oak.
And more is coming soon. A new downhill section known as the Ridge Trail is in the works (see photos).
If you’re lucky, when you get to the Tish Tang you’ll bump into Tom and he’ll give you the red carpet ride tour.
Trail Update 8/10/13. Do not ride the top section of this trail unless you are 100% immune to getting poison oak. It was everywhere. The bottom section was fine and fun. Enjoy.