Group Rides and Trail Work Events
Group rides are held weekly—weather permitting. We hold three different types of rides every month, a beginner’s ride, intermediate ride and a women’s+ ride. All rides require that you wear a helmet; have a functional trail, trail-capable bike; and that each rider register for their ride and have signed a waiver. Rides all meet at the Bear Branch Nature Center parking lot. All rides are no drop.
Trail work events happen on the second Saturday of each month and are announced via our email newsletter and social media. To register for a scheduled work day check the list of events below.
Monthly Trail Work
Second Saturday of Each Month
Join us for our monthly reoccurring trail work. On the second Saturday of each month we get together and to do a variety of work including basic trail maintenance (vegetation trimming, drainage, debris removal, etc.), trail re-routes and planning out and digging new sections of trail. Help us make Hashawha the best little park in Maryland. Sign up below!
Get to Know Hashawha Group Ride
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This ride is a great way to introduce a friend or child to mountain biking (MTB). The ride usually remains in the Hashawha side of the park but may cross over to the Union Mills area. Helmet and signed wavier required.
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Meets at the Bear Branch Nature Center parking lot at 5:30pm every Thursday. A casual paced MTB ride of approximately 5 miles.
GTKH Intermediate Group Ride
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Our Get to Know Hashawha ride for Intermediate Riders. Helmet and signed waiver required.
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Meets at Bear Branch Nature Center parking lot at 5:30pm each Thursday. This ride will cover a variety of trails geared towards more experienced riders. Approximately 10 miles in length, at a pace of about 7–9mph.
Women’s+ Group Ride
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A group MTB ride for woman and all woman-identifying/non-binary peoples. A casual ride for advanced-beginner to intermediate riders. Helmet and signed waiver required.
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Meets at Bear Branch Nature Center parking lot at 10am on the third Saturday of each month. This ride focuses on skill and confidence building. It will cover a variety of trails over 6–10 miles at a casual pace.
Group rides for the 2024 season are over. We’ll return to group rides in Spring 2025.
sMORE’s Ride
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These group rides for parents & kids are organized and led in various locations in the DMV. Each sMORE's program is structured a little differently, but they all have one common goal in mind: to provide a fun and safe opportunity for kids and families to enjoy and learn more about the sport of Mountain Biking.
The overall mission of our family and kids programs is to foster camaraderie and help children realize their potential in a fun and constructive mountain bike environment. Along the way we want to emphasize the importance of living a healthy life style and respect for our environment, so that future generations can continue to enjoy it.
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The Carroll County sMORE's meet at the Bear Branch Nature Center on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of the month. The rides are for ages 8-14 (with a parent), riding 2-3 miles or so.
Plan Your Own Ride
For the adventurous at heart. Use the below links to download GPX files you can use to plan a ride on your own. Load the gpx file into any navigation software you might use. These are ride routes we use to lead our own rides each week. Be aware that not all trails in the Hashawha Environmental Center or the Union Mills Equestrian Trails are well marked or signed. Ride at your own risk.
All group rides and events require a signed waiver to ride. Helmets, hydration and a trail-worthy mountain bike is also required. All ride cancellations will be announced via instagram and facebook. MTBMD is dedicated to providing fun, safe, and inclusive atmosphere for ALL riders. We will NOT tolerate any dangerous, hateful, disrespectful, or inappropriate language/actions at our rides or events. We reserve the right to ask someone to leave if they are unable to meet this expectation or if a rider is endangering themselves or others.