All posts by Jay Richards

Mountain Bike Trail Report


The mountain bike trails are open for riding
. Riding on hold today with over an inch of rain the past 12 hours. The rain was welcomed and the trails should be rideable again Tuesday.

A great weekend of riding! Nice to see all the riders out on Saturday. Thanks for the support. Recent rider traffic and continued drying helping firm up the deck more and more each day.

We have been busy doing trail work the past two weeks, blowing out the entire 25 mile LagChilada course the past two weeks. Secondary signage is up and the LagChilada course is marked.  Up next for trail work will be dirt work throughout the course, taking advantage of the damp and soft soil to form and repair berms, drainage etc. 

The LagChilada challenge remains in place, handful of riders already completed this year! The LagChilada encompasses all the trails at Maplelag. Click here for more details. 

 Maps: Trailforks and click on Maplelag map for reference of the trails. 

Maplelag is a family owned and operated business. We are one of the few MTB trail systems in the Midwest that maintain the trails ourselves with no outside funding or assistance and pay property taxes that in turn help support other trails in the state! Please consider a trail pass to offset some of our expenses. We love to mountain bike and share the trail with others…what it is all about! Thank you! 

Great dirt and riding on Sunday capping off a sweet weekend of mountain biking on the Maplelag trails, April 27th, 2025.
Saturday riders, April 26th, 2025. (P.Arneson photo)
Navigating the Gnar, “North Loup Gnar”, April 26th, 2025. (PA photo)
Great early season riding on “Feeling Lucky”, April 26th, 2025. 
Wildflowers blooming big time today, April 26th, 2025.
Lakeside singletrack, April 26th, 2025.
Twin Lakes singletrack, April 24th, 2025.

Trail Report

Spring has sprung at Maplelag. A great time of year to be in the woods and one of the best times for hiking and biking with no bugs etc. The woods are slowly coming alive with flora and the sounds of spring are as prevalent as ever with birds, waterfowl and frogs.

The ice went off Little Sugarbush on April 16th and on nearby lakes. The loons have returned and the water is busy with a nice variety of waterfowl. The ice off is always a special time of year, marking the transitions of seasons from winter to spring. 

The trails are drying up and we are back in the woods doing trail work, focusing on the mountain bike trails. We are clearing sticks, branches and blowing out leafy areas but also cutting deadfall off the ski trail, cutting in to blocks and splitting for firewood for winter season 2025/26.. 

The mountain bike trails are open, click here for report. Nice to see folks out. this year so far.

A few wildflowers are emerging from the forest floor and and a few other signs of flora on the forest floor and the grounds slowly greening up.

Thanks everyone who supports the trails at Maplelag. We had a fun run to end the ski season. We appreciate you very much and can’t wait to have folks back on the trail for dirt season. Stay tuned for more updates.

Hepatica flowers blooming in full force today, April 26th, 2025.
Trumpeter swans on Kohlepp’s pond, April 23rd, 2025.
Evening scene along Mother North Star, April 21st, 2025.
Mossy ski trail, April 21st, 2025.
Busy beaver on a large oak tree. April 21s,t 2025. 
Group of trumpeter swans enjoying ice free Little Sugarbush lake, April 17th, 2025.
Bullhead lake ice free, April 13th, 2025.
Sunset over Little Sugarbush lake as seen in front of the new sauna, April 15th, 2025.
Edge of Little Sugarbush lake, April 13th, 2025.
Sunday night lightning, April 13th, 2025.
Hepatica flowers ready to bloom thanks to warm nights and sunshine, April 12th, 2025.

Mountain Bike Trail Report

The mountain bike trails are open for riding. Great weekend of riding in place. Nice to see all the riders out on Saturday. Recent rider traffic and continued drying helping firm up the deck more and more each day. Little bit of mist Sunday morning, nothing being recorded in the rain gauge though. Roots and rocks might be a bit slick otherwise dirt should roll just fine.

We have been busy doing trail work the past two weeks, blowing out the entire 25 mile LagChilada course the past two weeks. Most of the signage is out as well including the LagChilada signs. Up next will be dirt work throughout the course, taking advantage of the damp and soft soil to form and repair berms, drainage etc. 

The LagChilada challenge remains in place, handful of riders already completed this year! The LagChilada encompasses all the trails at Maplelag. Click here for more details. 

 Maps: Trailforks and click on Maplelag map for reference of the trails. 

Maplelag is a family owned and operated business. We are one of the few MTB trail systems in the Midwest that maintain the trails ourselves with no outside funding or assistance and pay property taxes that in turn help support other trails in the state! Please consider a trail pass to offset some of our expenses. We love to mountain bike and share the trail with others…what it is all about! Thank you! 

Saturday riders, April 26th, 2025. (P.Arneson photo)
Navigating the Gnar, “North Loup Gnar”, April 26th, 2025. (PA photo)
Great early season riding on “Feeling Lucky”, April 26th, 2025.
Wildflowers blooming big time today, April 26th, 2025.
Lakeside singletrack, April 26th, 2025.
Twin Lakes singletrack, April 24th, 2025.

Mountain Bike Trail Report

The mountain bike trails are open for riding. Surface conditions vary from tacky to loamy, mostly in the low areas otherwise very good early season riding conditions being reported. Recent rider traffic and continued drying helping firm up the deck more and more each day. The trail crew at Maplelag prefers to run lower profile tires which don’t attract the solid as much and roll a bit faster. 

We have been busy doing trail work the past two weeks, blowing out the entire 25 mile LagChilada course the past two weeks. Most of the signage is out as well including the LagChilada signs. Up next will be dirt work throughout the course, taking advantage of the damp and soft soil to form and repair berms, drainage etc. 

The LagChilada challenge remains in place, handful of riders already completed this year! The LagChilada encompasses all the trails at Maplelag. Click here for more details.

 Maps: Trailforks and click on Maplelag map for reference of the trails. 

Maplelag is a family owned and operated business. We are one of the few MTB trail systems in the Midwest that maintain the trails ourselves with no outside funding or assistance and pay property taxes that in turn help support other trails in the state! Please consider a trail pass to offset some of our expenses. We love to mountain bike and share the trail with others…what it is all about! Thank you! 

Bullhead Bootleg singletrack, April 22nd 2025.
Bullhead Bootleg singletrack, April 22nd 2025.
Mossy trails, April 22nd, 2025.
Twin Lakes singletrack, April 22nd, 2025.
Twin Lakes roots! April 19th, 2025.
Twin Lakes rock garden, April 19th, 2025.
Clearing singletrack, April 17th, 2025.

LagChilada Mountain Bike Challenge

The LagChilada challenge is a opportunity to ride all the mountain bike trails at Maplelag in one ride/day. The challenge can be ridden any day during the dirt season. We have t-shirts available for those that complete the challenge. The challenge is open to everyone. Trail pass or season pass required to participate. The course is set on Strava. Total mileage is just under 25 miles and features around 2500ft of climbing!

Heading to the start of the LagChilada!

The challenge starts with the new loop “Feeling Lucky” singletrack loop. Look for black and pink signs at key intersections. Upon completion of Feeling Lucky, take a right on the starter loop following all the sport/comp/expert/marathon signs and marked singletrack routes. After the “Bear Pass” singletrack, take a right and head on Bullhead Lake trail to access the Goat Ranch rd (county rd 110) Take a right and continue to the pavement, hiway 26. Take a right and look for access to Bootleg singletrack loop. Upon completion of the Bootleg loop, double back on hiway 26 and county road 110. Enter on Bullhead lake trail connector again to double back to main loop and continue on taking all the marked singletrack segments.

Key intersections are marked with black signs.
T-shirt for completing the LagChilada

After the start of “Bjorp’s” singletrack, take a right where marked to access the trail across 110 “North Loup Gnar” riding this segment east to west. Upon completion of North Loup Gnar, cross 110 again and pick up Bjorp’s. Shortly after, look for access to Sukkerwest. A connector trail is used to complete Sukkerwest. Use connector to get back on to Bjorps. Follow rest of trail to Twin Lakes, back across to complete!

Special belt buckles for doing a double LagChilada!!

Trail reports on the trail report page. Good luck and have fun!