Best Wet Weather MTB Rides in Whistler

Has rain inundated the Whistler Valley? Head to these great wet weather rides!

Mountain Biking Difficult, Severe

Description

The mountains of the Coast Range span the stunningly-beautiful Sea-to-Sky corridor. The mountains encompassing the Whistler Valley, in particular, are known as the Fitzsimmons Range, a sub-range of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains. Here, the mountain peaks climb high into the air, ending in dramatic, rocky, high-alpine tundra scraped clean by the recent departure of glaciers. However, the vast majority of the mountainside is covered in towering coniferous forests. In this lush temperate rainforest, the trees grow tall and majestic, the massive trunks of the current inhabitants still only a fraction of what the ancestors in the old-growth forest boasted before they were cut down.

The pervasiveness of this deep, dark forest combined with mountain bikers' desire to access their favorite trails straight from town means that you'll find most of the best trails in the Sea-to-Sky corridor winding their way among the towering trunks, sliding down steep hillsides over cascading root webs and rock gardens. Unfortunately, that means rain—and lots of it, depending on the month of the year. While mid-summer is usually quite dry, the spring and the fall can bring intense downpours that leave the trails muddy and slick.

While July and August see about 8-9 rainy days per month on average, May and June see about 15 days of rain per month. October spikes to a peak of 17-18 days of rain. While November is the rainiest/snowiest month of the year, it is usually the transition month to ski season and doesn't offer good riding during the best of times.

Whistler residents do have the opportunity to flee the cold, rainy weather and head down in elevation to the dry trails of nearby Pemberton, which usually offers prime riding conditions during the spring and fall. But what if you're stuck in Whistler during a rainy spell, and you still want to get out for a trail ride? That's where this guidebook comes in.

In this guidebook, you'll find a roundup of trails that hold up quite well during wet weather riding. Trails such as Business Time feature extensive rock and a few wooden features, which—while impervious to rain—can be very slick when wet. Exercise caution on these trails. Others—such as Working Class—feature plenty of roots to keep the soil in place which, again, can be sketchy when wet. Still others—such as Howler and Billy Epic—have a reputation for draining well due to rockier soil and a lack of the dark, black dirt found in other areas of the valley. These are potentially some of the best trails to ride in the wet.

Still, please exercise your best judgment regarding how wet the trails truly are. Even the trails mentioned here can get too soggy to ride. If you're leaving ruts as you ride, it's best to turn around and save your ride for another day. The sun will come out tomorrow! (Or maybe next month.)

Sources: Weather And Climate.com