Sawyer Hollow/Looking Glass Loop - 6.5 mi.

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Mountainbiking
Schoharie County

The ride is described from the Sawyer Hollow Rd. parking area, though you will probably ride these trails from other access points.   Why?  This loop goes UP immediately.  If you choose to start here, warm up on the pavement first.

Leave the parking area from the left/east end where you will descend to creek level.   After a rooty section, cross the wooden bridge and begin your march up the side of the mountain.  This is a main snowmobile trail in the winter, so it is generally maintained and in good condition.  The trail switchbacks up the mountain and the frequent log waterbars, which are slippery when damp, make the climb ever more challenging.  Except for the first rise after the bridge, the climb is rideable for the whole season. However, it is the hardest climb - of any kind - in Schoharie County.

You top out at an unnamed dirt road.  Go left.

Start looking for a marked snowmobile trail on your left about .8 miles after turning on the dirt road.  It's well-marked, and you won't miss it.  Turn left on the snowmobile trail and begin winding over logging roads and trails.  There are some muddy sections, but it is generally not technical.  Eventually the trail turns right, heads down a small drop and crosses a wet, but rideable section to a narrow, dirt road.

Turn right on the dirt road and prepare to get wet during the early season.  About 1/2 mile up the snowmobile trail turns left off the road and goes up an unrideable, rocky bank.  Hike a bike up the bank and you come out on Rossman Hill Rd.

Go left on Rossman Hill Rd., and soon you'll pass the Looking Glass Pond parking area on your right.  After the parking area take the first left turn which angles away from the road.

Welcome to Looking Glass Rd.  The road heads downward gently at first, then takes a sharp right over some small ledges and begins its drop in earnest.  A hard left soon follows, after which a fast ride down 4x4 road begins.  You can hit some high speeds on this section of the descent, but things change half-way down where the road suddenly deteriorates into a rocky mess.  The descent becomes much more technical as you pick your way through the rocks.  You know you're near the bottom when water starts running down the road and you come out to some meadows.  Beginners should use lots of caution, and pinch flats are common from the rocks and speed.  At the bottom you pass by a farmhouse and barn and come out on to Sawyer Hollow Rd.

Turn left on Sawyer Hollow and head back to the parking area.

Though not long, this ride includes a technical ascent and descent, and the acent is particularly grueling.  If you drag a novice on this loop you may lose a friend.

This ride is best done from Mallet Pond as part of a longer ride.