Fresh dirt at 7 Mile Bike Park
- Location: 7 miles from Queenstown on the Glenorchy Road.
- Difficulty: All levels. Tracks are graded 3-5.
- Best time to go: Open all year. Trails are best from October until May
7 Mile has had a bit of love lately. This park is excellent for beginner and intermediate riders seeking progression. The flowy jumpy trails have something for everyone, from Cool Runnings for beginners, up to the more advanced Angel’s Edge, Satan’s Corridor and The Steeps.
Jack B Nimble is a new trail with a series of tabletop jumps, railing berms and step downs.
Upper Kachoong, Gravitron, and IB55 have all had improvements and redesigned so riders don’t have to be such great judges of speed. The trails set the speed for you and make it safer and more fun for you to ride.
Fernhill Bike Park gets even more sendy with McNearly Gnarly
- Location: Queenstown. Access from Wynyard Crescent or from Hammy's Track in the Ben Lomond Trails.
- Difficulty: Intermediate with grade 4 advanced sections
- Best time to go: All year, although not advised after heavy rain.
McNearly Gnarly the intermediate flow jump line jewel in the crown of Fernhill Bike Park, McNearly saw 23,000 descents in its first 12 months.
With 60+ jumps, in your four-minute lap down you get so much experience. Once you get your eye in you won’t even realise that you’re taking bigger and bigger jumps. And the tabletop jumps mean even beginners can land safely.
Fernhill Bike Park stalwart, the Wynyard Express, recently got a refresh. One of the first downhill tracks built in Queenstown, its reincarnation has some cool new features, along with the flowing berms and steep sections that made it a local favourite.
Mini Dream makeover
- Location: Queenstown. Access from Wynyard Crescent or from Hammy's Track in the Ben Lomond Trails.
- Difficulty: Beginner to intermediate
- Best time to go: All year, although not advised after heavy rain.
McNearly Gnarly is built by the trail building legends at Elevate Trail Building. The crew travel around the world building trails for the likes of Red Bull and Crankworx.
For their next trick, they’re extending Dream Track (a pro jump line) and McNearly Gnarly to Mini Dream, which is being reimagined with slopestyle course features.
Emmerson explains. “Lots of riders come here to train for Crankworx. One of the key Crankworx events is the slopestyle course and Queenstown didn’t have a slopestyle track for these guys to train on. So, we figured we’d fill the gap. It’s going to be the only slopestyle course in New Zealand open to the public.”
Hot Rod. Hot damn!
- Location: Coronet Peak. Access from Rude Rock by Coronet Peak base station.
- Difficulty: Advanced. Grade 4
- Best time to go: Open all year. Trails are best from October until May. Avoid after rain.
Newly opened at the end of 2020 is Hot Rod, the hotly awaited extension of the world-renowned trail Rude Rock, and a colab between QMTBC, QTT and Elevate Trail Building. The two trails combined form 1,200 vertical metres of descending flow track.
Chris explains: “This may be New Zealand’s longest downhill flow trail, but it’s going to be so much fun, it won’t feel long. We’re talking really flowy, with big berms and fun features to keep you engrossed all the way down. Although the trail is rated advanced, it will be accessible to many. Advanced riders can go fast. Intermediate riders can take it at a more relaxed pace.
“This trail is everyone’s dream. We’ve always said imagine how cool it would be if Rude Rock went all the way to the valley floor. And now it does.
Plan your Queenstown mountain biking adventure
Start planning your Queenstown mountain biking adventure with our guide to mountain biking in Queenstown. With advice for bikers new to Queenstown, families biking with kids, mountain biking for pros, gear hire, bike parks and top trails we’ve got you covered.