Northern California
Riding the Trails
This area includes everything from Santa Cruz/Monterey north on the coast, and the Tahoe area.
Bay Area/Santa Cruz/Monterey
Arastradero - A short (~5 mile) loop through the western part of Palo Alto. Plenty of wildlife, a little bit of singletrack, and some nice jumps and the bowl for playing in.
China Camp - One of my favorite trails. Nice fun singletrack through Marin county, and you can make it as easy or as difficult as you like. I love the lower loop, as it provides a great singletrack workout on the Shoreline trail up, then up to the Bayview Trail and back down.
El Corte de Madera/Skeggs - Probably the most popular ride in the Bay Area. There is a network of 36 miles of trails to ride, most of which are intermediate, some are advanced, and others are impossilbe. I have a loop I love on this route that has to include going down Manzanita.
Fremont Older - A misnomer, as this trail is closer to Saratoga and Cupertino than Fremont. This is a great afternoon trail with a quite a bit of climbing, so this is usually my weekday afternoon trail as you can push yourself quite far for such a closeby and short-distance trail.
Fort Ord - An old military base that has become the best mountain biking in the winter in the Bay Area. It's sandy, so this place doesn't get as soupy as the other trails in the winter. There's quite a network of trails of here. Endless possibilities for various skill levels.
Long Ridge/Saratoga Gap - Part of the South Skyline region in the Midpenninsula Open Space Preserve. Saratoga Gap is a 2 mile technical singletrack that reminds me of East coast riding, and Long Ridge is the less technical part of the trail, but plenty of beautiful views.
Monte Bello - A good mix of various riding, but I don't tend to hit this trail frequently enough to know any decent routes. However, it does live up to its name (beautiful mountain in Spanish).
Quicksilver - Fireroads with nice views (and climbs), and some interesting history.
Rockville - A little park in Fairfield where rocks will rock your world.
Russian Ridge - Small area of trails off Skyline, but provide some excellent views, and some serious heat in the summer.
Shoreline/Baylands Park - Easy riding in Mountain View and Palo Alto, and usually a good place to introduce new folks to mountain biking. It's also a good place for a quick afternoon ride in the summer and spring.
Sierra Azul - Good fireroads for training in South San Jose. Also, some really killer views.
Pogonip - Great forested riding in Santa Cruz.
Wilder Ranch - A large network of trails just north of Santa Cruz. There is some beautiful riding here, and definitely a lot of climbing.
Lake Tahoe Area
Tahoe Rim Trail/Big Meadow - The most beautiful recommendation on a trail we have ever received.
The Flume Trail - A classic, not very technical, but definitely a very pretty ride.