The Glendora Mountain Road (GMR) trail is a downhill singletrack trail that splits off into a few different directions near the bottom offering a different riding experience depending on which way you choose to go. There is also another section of the trail that starts from a different part of the main road that has some steeper hills to ride down as well as some nice jumps. Overall it's not too difficult of a trail if you want to get a taste of downhill mountain biking without too much risk of injury. |
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Glendora Mountain Road Trail Videos
Glendora Mountain Road Trail Review
The Glendora Mountain Road downhill run is fast and curvy and will let you test your speed and cornering ability but doesn't offer too much in the way of thrills unless you take the west side trail with the steeper downhills and jumps. The main run is fast and smooth and will go for quite some time until you get to where the trail splits off. After that you can go to the right for the easiest way which includes some more of the same type of downhill until you get to the bottom where it becomes rocky and slower.
If you hang a left you get a more challenging switchback run with ruts and rocks that is much more fun but shorter and tends to have more hikers coming up that you have to worry about. If you go straight then you get the steeper area which supposedly can be difficult for even very experienced riders.
If you want more of a challenge and are into some jumps then you should check out the west side trail. There are a bunch of man made jumps and some steeper rocky descents to ride down to test your skills. Many of the jumps are gap jumps so if you take them be sure you can make it to the other side. It's a good idea to do a run though without taking the jumps first to see which ones are at your skill level.
Overall GMR is a fun ride to do when you don't have to pedal up the trail unless you are into that kind of thing of course. Doing the shuttle makes it much more fun since you can relax on the way up and the shuttle will be waiting for you when you get to the bottom, unless you are too slow and it leaves you there. Either way it will be back shortly so it's not a big deal.
It's also a good idea to wear the right type of protection depending on what part of the trail you are going to do and how fast you plan on going. If you are just going to take a stroll down the main section then the normal helmet and no pads will be fine. If you are planning on going as fast as you can or doing the west side trail then you should protect yourself a little better.
Glendora Mountain Road Trail Pictures
Directions to Glendora Mountain Road
View Glendora Mountain Rd in a larger map
To get to Glendora Mountain Road trail you need to find your way to Glendora Mountain Road itself which is off the 210 freeway in Glendora. From Los Angeles you can hop on the 10 Freeway and connect to the 605 North and then exit at the I-210 E/Foothill Fwy toward Foothill Fwy/San Bernardino. Then look for the Grand Ave exit and keep left at the fork on the exit. When you get to W Rte 66 hang a right and then make a left on S Loraine Ave. Next you will make a right on E Sierra Madre Ave and finally a left on Glendora Mountain Road. If you are coming from another direction get yourself to the Grand Ave exit off the 210 and take it from there.
After you are on Glendora Mountain Road you will drive up about a mile and pass a fire station on your left. If you are taking the shuttle or want to park at the bottom where the trails come out then there will be a dirt parking lot on your left just past that fire station. If you plan on driving yourself to the top it will be about 8.5 miles from the dirt parking lot up Glendora Mountain Road to where you will want to start from. You will see a large dirt pull off on the right and then a gate where the trail starts. The entrance to the west side trail is 4.3 miles from the parking lot and will be on your left hand side. It's not as easy to see though so pay attention when driving up the road.
