Best Mountain Bike Trails at Knox Mountain, Kelowna
Knox has a little something for every rider. Roadies can tackle the gruelling uphill climb and fast, fun descent on well-maintained pavement. Beginner mountain bikers can get off-road on some XC style trails and man-made jump trails, while advanced riders can shred Shale Trail from top to bottom.
Here are the best mountain bike trails at Knox Mountain, Kelowna - for every rider:
TRAILS AT KNOX (Kelowna) FOR MOUNTAIN BIKE BEGINNERS
The best beginners trail at Knox Mountain Park, Kelowna is the Simpson Trail. We recommend that beginners take the road up and get a few laps of Simpson Trail under your belt before trying anything else. It's a purpose-built flowy 'jumps' trail that has a bit of everything mountain bikers need to learn. That's what makes it so great for building confidence!
Here's what you'll find on Simpson Trail:
A Gentle Wall Ride
There's a beginner-friendly wall ride you can take to enter Simpson - but it's easy to skip too, if it's not your thing.
Berms
Practice turns on some friendly berms (or banked turns) right at the start of Simpson Trail, and then again further down. As you get faster, you'll be able to practice leaning into the turns and pushing to maintain speed without peddling. But, for now, these are an amazing entry-point for beginners to mountain biking.
Tabletop Jumps
All the jumps on the trail can be rolled, so there's no need for you to get airborne until you're ready. When you are, the tabletop jumps are wide, well-maintained and perfect for mountain bike beginners.
Rollers (Pump Tracks, on the Trail!)
Pump tracks are awesome for beginners looking to practice using your body while mountain biking. Simpson Trail has a section with rollers, so you can practice that pumping motion to get free speed (without pedalling!). Check out the videos on YouTube that teach pumping for beginner mountain bikers.
Once you've got that mastered, head over to Kathleen lake to try your hand at some longer descents, steeper climbs, and single track with slight exposure.
BEST TRAILS AT KNOX FOR MOUNTAIN BIKING
Our go to trail at Knox takes you up the mountain via lower Apex Trail (also called the goat trail) and Apex Trail. The climb is pretty steep in sections and Apex trail is a shared trail with hikers. So, be respectful of those around you!
The Apex mountain bike trail ends at the 'gully', a steep descent and epic step up. There's a ride around too.
From there, make your way over to the road and head on up to the peak. If you're looking to get in a longer ride, the Balsom Rock loop (which starts behind the washrooms off to the right at the top of the road), is awesome.
Shale trail from top of bottom is the go to for experienced riders. It's to the left once you hit the top of the road. It starts with a truly janky steep section, before rolling through the gully. (You'll find the entry to the path behind the pergoda pictured above.) Afterwards, the trail rolls through some rocky drops and dusty switchbacks, before entering lower shale. Lower shale has the steepest, longest, blackest rocky sections on the mountain that are recommend for strong intermediate to advanced riders only. There are ride arounds all through the lower section too. The ride arounds will give stronger beginners to intermediate riders awesome practice on berms. Be warned, they aren't well made - and there are rocks nestled at the bottom of every turn - but they are a ton of fun. It's no coincidence that the Strava Segment for the berm trail is called 'Awesome'!