Mount Kearsarge could see one of the longest and steepest mountain-bike trails in the region, running three miles and 1,300 vertical feet between the entrance to Rollins State Park and the summit parking lot.
“We’ve never done anything with this much vertical,” said Nicholas Holmes, secretary of the Central New Hampshire chapter of the New England Mountain Bike Association, which proposed the trail. The group has overseen the construction of numerous multi-use trails throughout the region.
As proposed, the trail would run entirely inside Rollins Park, largely parallel to the auto road. The Association has submitted its proposal to the state’s Division of Parks and Recreation and is awaiting their response. “We are following the state lead,” said Holmes.
The idea has drawn concern from the Conservation Commission in Warner, N.H., where Rollins Park is located, which says a trail could overwhelm the park facilities and would be dangerous for hikers.
“Mt. Kearsarge is iconic to central New Hampshire, the key to the identity of the seven towns at the foot of the mountain,” said Nancy Martin, chair of the Warner Conservation Commission. “It is quiet, it is family-friendly. It is fully booked in the summertime by visitors and could be changed forever by this mountain bike project.”
While the Mountain Bike Association says the trail will be multi-use, the commission has doubts. Its list of concerns suggests that the “multi-use high speed trail will not be compatible with passive activities like hiking, horseback riding, etc. Clearly too dangerous for other users.”
The commission said it feels an “enduro-style” mountain biking trail — with timed downhill runs — would be more appropriate “within the site of a downhill ski area … rather than in a semi-wilderness landscape like Mt. Kearsarge.” A number of mountain biking routes are operated at ski areas in the Northeast.
An estimate prepared by Ideride, a Vermont firm that designs trails, says the project would cost about $400,000 to build. The Mountain Biking Association proposes to pay for all it with grants and donations, Holmes said.
The proposal calls for a corridor four to six feet wide, with a tread — the area used by bikers or hikers — of two to three feet wide. This is typical for hiking trails.
The Division of Parks and Recreation is currently analyzing the proposal, said spokesman Gregory Keeler. A site visit was postponed because of snow and will happen this spring.
At this point, Keeler said there are no plans for a public hearing. Such hearings are not generally held for decisions about hiking or multi-use trails in parks, but members of the public can send their comments to nhparks@dncr.nh.gov.
The local chapter of the New England Mountain Biking Association has built and continued to maintain numerous trails through the region. Holmes said the organization has plenty of experience building “sustainable” trails and working on land owned by private individuals, the state, towns and even the Army Corps of Engineers.
“If we can make the Corps of Engineers happy, we can make anyone happy,” said Holmes.