Mountain biking and skiing go hand-in-hand. Skiers and snowboarders enjoy a similar feeling from biking down a trail as they do skiing or snowboarding, though falling down in fresh powder is much more forgiving than falling on dirt. As the snow melts, the attention turns to mountain biking at ski resorts. And many of the most renowned ski resorts are home to some of the best bike parks for mountain biking. Read on to explore some of North America’s best ski resorts for mountain biking.
The Best Ski Resorts for Mountain Biking
Killington, Vermont
Mountain bikers are greeted with nearly 2,000 feet of vertical at Killington Mountain Bike Park, which features three high-speed lifts serving more than 30 miles of classic New England singletrack and Gravity Logic flow trails for beginners, intermediates, and experts. Three unique mountain areas make up Killington’s gravity-fueled bike park. Snowshed is the beginner terrain, which includes some intermediate trails to maximize progression. Ramshead is home to Killington’s freeride trails, which have a mix of intermediate and advanced terrain. Killington Peak offers classic New England trails with plenty of rock and roots to keep you honest.
Killington has several camps for bikers: Group, private, youth (3-day midweek camps for ages 7-17), and adult (weekend camps, age 18+) bike park camps. Season passes, packages, and rentals are also available.
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Deer Valley Resort, Utah
Deer Valley Resort’s mountain biking trails are spread over six mountains, where riders will find 3,000 feet of vertical and some 60 miles of mountain biking trails, including four flow trails by Gravity Logic. Trails are accessed via three chairlifts: Silver Lake Express at the resort’s base, with Sterling Express and Homestake Express located mid-mountain. Several of Deer Valley Resort’s mountain bike trails connect with Park City Mountain Resort’s extensive 400-mile network of singletrack mountain biking trails.
Adults can choose from clinics or private mountain biking lessons at Deer Valley to improve their skills, while kids clinics enhance their skills and confidence on a guided trail ride. Packages include a full-day bike rental, bike clinic, and lift ticket.
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Whistler, Canada
Whistler Mountain Bike Park has often been touted as the top lift-accessed bike park in the world, boasting 4,900 feet of vertical and more than 50 miles of lift-served terrain. It’s separated into four main zones, Fitzsimmons, Garbanzo, Creekside, and Peak, each of which offers unique trails with natural features. Whistler’s gravity-fed downhill biking experience includes green trails, technical double blacks, and jump trails.
Whistler Mountain Bike Park summer programming includes adult, teen, and kids’ lessons, camps, private lessons, women’s and men’s nights, kids’ clubs, and instructor training programs. First-timers to Whistler Blackcomb can download their Trail Progression Scale Orientation Guide, which provides information on which trails you should ride based on your ability.
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Mt. Bachelor, Oregon
Mt. Bachelor Resort is Oregon’s premier lift-served mountain bike park with trails for all ability levels. Excavated single-track enduro and downhill trails flank the Oregon volcano, with intermediate and expert trails descending from Pine Marten Lift. The Little Pine Lift takes families and beginners up to descend on the machine-built and single-track trails. Established in 2013, Mt. Bachelor Bike Park has 13 trails that contribute to the region’s 300-plus mile network of mountain biking trails.
New features appear in the skills park, and more trail miles are dishing up new challenges each year. The double black diamond Rockfall Trail draws expert thrill-seekers for its 20 percent average slope, lava rock, and natural jumps. There’s no skirting the mandatory technical features right under Pine Marten Lift, so the pressure will be on to nail the drops.
Winter Park, Colorado
Winter Park is called Mountain Bike Capital USA, partly thanks to more than 600 miles of trails throughout the Winter Park and Fraser areas. Trestle Bike Park offers some exciting riding and is particularly great for its convenience in Denver. It’s self-proclaimed as North America’s fastest-growing bike park with over 40 miles of lift-served trails to drop into.
Trestle Bike School offers full-day programs for riders of every level. It also offers a number of different camps and skills clinics for a variety of ages and skill levels. The Women’s Breakthrough Clinic is a fun, full-day clinic taught by women for women on select dates throughout the summer. Find out more about camps and clinics on their website.
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Northstar, California
Northern California’s largest mountain bike park beckons riders to the north shore of Lake Tahoe with beginner to advanced cross-country and downhill mountain biking trails at Northstar California. Favorite technical descents include Sticks N’ Stones and Boondocks, while anti-gravity rides on the jumps of Livewire and Gypsy are popular. Lap the Big Springs Gondola to warm up, then head to Vista Express or Zephyr Express for more.
Northstar’s group bike lessons are a great entry-level experience for all ages. Kids and teens (9-17) can enroll in the 5-day mountain biking camp, featuring 4 days of instructor-led lessons, daily coaching, and a water sports day.
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Boreal, California
The Slabs is Boreal’s fun lift-accessed downhill mountain bike park in Soda Springs. Get into the zone with access to The Slabs downhill mountain bike trails, dirt jumps, a pump track, and indoor/outdoor concrete parks. The Slabs consist of 6 freestyle trails ranging in ability level. The Trenches are the playground for dirt lovers looking to start tricking, while riders of all abilities can find something they love.
The Woodward Tahoe Mountain Bike Camp is popular for learning or progressing. Once instruction groups are formed, each day is split into parts: A morning and afternoon instruction session and then a free evening to explore other activities at the camp, like tie-dye, dodgeball, Lake Woodward access, and more. Week-long day camps offer 5 days of sport-specific instruction Monday to Friday. Campers are dropped off each morning and picked up each evening following camp activities and instruction.
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Crested Butte, Colorado
Crested Butte Mountain Bike Park was established in 2009, designed to meet the needs of all riders, from beginners to gravity experts. The lift-served bike haul, via the Red Lady Express, has a network of trails containing both lift-served downhill trails and cross-country rides that connect to some popular rides in and around Crested Butte. Crested Butte Mountain Bike Park has more than 30 miles of lift-served singletrack, while it connects to more than 800 miles of singletrack throughout the Gunnison Valley. It’s typically open from June through September.
Crested Butte offers professional guides who teach the essentials like proper braking skills, technical descents, and how to traverse challenging terrain. These certified guides offer 2-hour group lessons, 2-hour, 4-hour, and 7-hour private lessons. The packages include bike rental and lift tickets.
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Snowmass, Colorado
The base of Snowmass Mountain turns into a playground for mountain biking each summer season. Snowmass Bike Park features nearly 3,000 feet of vertical and 25 miles of downhill trails. Difficult trails include Viking, Vapor, and Valhalla, all of which test your technical capabilities. Midweek is often the best time to visit, as certain Tuesdays in July and August are Bonus Bike Nights when lift-served biking continues until dusk. A variety of bike rentals are available.
Snowmass Bike Park’s mountain bike center offers lessons to riders of all abilities. Coaches teach everything needed for first-time downhill mountain bikers, from cornering and jumping techniques to bike handling skills. Downhill bike clinics, private bike lessons, and kids’ bike camps are also available. The 3-day kids’ camp is for children in grades first through sixth. Kids ride on trails throughout Snowmass Village and on Snowmass Mountain with manufactured obstacles and features like jumps and drops.
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Grand Targhee, Wyoming
Grand Targhee, featuring 2,000 feet of vertical lift-served downhill and 70-plus miles of multi-use trails for cross country and downhill mountain biking, has long had a great reputation among downhill mountain bikers. It was the first downhill mountain bike destination in the Tetons. The two-mile-long, machine-built Rock Garden accessed from Dreamcatcher Chairlift descends a technical 1,809 feet, making it the most demanding and steepest black diamond trail at the resort. Grand Targhee hosts a number of great camps, including women’s mountain bike camps, to get riders going to the next level with confidence. These are offered in several two-day sessions in July and August. Great biking events happen during the summer at Grand Targhee, including the Grand Teton Dirt Classic.
Snow Summit and Snow Valley, California
Don’t let the names fool you. Once summer arrives, Big Bear’s Snow Valley and Snow Summit turn into what it calls So Cal’s “Mountain Biking Mecca.” The two bike parks, located less than 15 miles from one another, are chock-full of fast downhill trails, scenic cross-country trails, and more. The two bike parks offer 21 downhill runs (9 downhill trails at Snow Summit and 11 at Snow Valley) and more than 60 miles of cross-country trails. Buy your tickets online ahead of time to save.
Note that Snow Summit’s bike park is open daily, while Snow Valley is open Friday through Sunday only. BBMR Anytime and Midweek, Snow Valley Anytime, and Ikon Pass/Ikon Base Pass holders get 20% off bike park lift tickets.
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Snowshoe Mountain Resort, West Virginia
Snowshoe Bike Park is home to one of the largest trail systems in the East, with nearly 40 trails and 1,500 vertical feet of descent. These trails feature legendary berms, jumps, drops, and flow for every ability level. The park is recognized as one of the best in the U.S., as evidenced by its hosting events like the 2023 Mercedes-Benz UCI Mountain Bike World Cup. First-time riders, pro downhillers, cross-country lovers, and everyone in between can find their trail.
New to Snowshoe Mountain are Speciality Skill Clinics focusing on specific skills like drops, berms, and jumps. Also new is a 90-minute and 3-hour Advanced Mountain Clinic that gives a feel for the bike park. The Mountain Adventure Center (The MAC) carries a full line of Trek Downhill and Enduro bikes for the whole family.
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Angel Fire, New Mexico
Angel Fire Bike Park, voted Best in the Southwest by MTBparks.com for 7 years in a row, is the largest bike park in the Rocky Mountains. It features 2,000-plus vertical feet and 60 miles of lift-served terrain consisting of skinnies, jump lines, manicured flow, and super chunk trails. The personalized approach here accommodates beginner riders, and group sizes are never more than 5 to a class.
The 3-hour lessons include half-day standard or junior bike rental, full armor, and a full-day lift ticket. Each lesson is geared toward individual goals. Angel Fire also offers private 3-hour lessons, lift tickets, and rentals sold separately. Bike and gear rentals are available through the on-site Bike Shop.
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Header image ©Northstar/Vail Resorts
April 15, 2025
