Be careful, this article will put Nelson on your bucket list!

Nelson, New Zealand. A quiet little town (though technically a city) of around 50,000 people nestled between three National Parks at the top of the South Island, 40 minutes flight from the capital, Wellington. In typical New Zealand style it’s quite idyllic; lush rainforest-covered mountains cascade from all directions down to the crystal clear waters and golden sands of Tasman Bay. Craft breweries, characterful coffee shops, colonial British architecture, the most sunshine hours of anywhere in New Zealand. Traditionally the kind of place where 40 somethings come to raise a family and 60 somethings come to retire.

But just under the surface you’ll find the ripples of something else. Something less expected. A counter-culture altogether more exhilarating and, for anyone reading IMB, a whole lot more exciting. Nelson has a history of being one of the raddest places on planet Earth to ride a mountain bike - and those in the know have been coming here and having their minds blown for decades.

Let’s start with some facts to qualify that outrageous claim. Nelson has the biggest mountain bike club in the world (certainly as far as ChatGPT seems to know). It’s over 30 years old and has circa 3500 paid up, active members. Within 1hr of the centre of Nelson there are over 400 km of trails, mostly handmade and sculpted for your riding pleasure. Nelson is one of only six IMBA Gold-Rated Ride Centres in the world outside of N America. In the 90’s, a very generous gentleman spent $30m building himself a private bike park then gifted it to the Nelson MTB club and now, anyone can ride there. There are twelve bike shops and five uplift services. I could go on but you can see the foundations for future greatness are well and truly in place. 

So now I’ve piqued your interest, whet your whistle and generally warmed you up, let's get stuck into the main course. What’s going to get Nelson on your bucket list of must visit places to experience the ultimate MTB holiday - because, let’s be honest, New Zealand isn’t quite-so-easy a place to get to, compared to other international destinations. 

Nelson is quite a long way from, well, anywhere actually, but it’s relatively easy to get to from a planning point of view. A couple of flights from almost any major city in the world, several movies and a bit of timezone hopping is all it takes to get here. Nelson’s airport is the biggest regional airport in New Zealand and literally 15 minutes drive from the city centre - so, while it is a long journey from Europe or the USA; it’s a relatively simple one. A steady stream of European and USA pro riders passing through each summer filling up the top spots on local Strava segments shows it’s easy enough to get here when you set your mind on it.

And once here that can be the end of the travelling until you leave if that’s what you want. There’s over 150km of really great trails (grade 3-6) within easy riding of the city centre. Four main zones have their own character and geography, and being mostly hand built are a step above the digger built blandness often plaguing purpose built ride centres these days:

Sharlands is probably the spiritual home of easy access riding in Nelson created over 30 years by an army of volunteers. Featuring a mix of lush native forest and pine blocks there’s a rich variety of trails to explore, all less than a 20 minute ride from the city. Everything from grade 6 DH tracks to old school technical but low risk grade 4 trails that fall squarely into the ‘techflow’ category. Easy going forest road climbs are the primary way to gain altitude. There are 10 standout trails in there each dropping around 400/500m.

The Codgers area backs onto Sharlands and has slowly evolved into an easy access general ride zone catering to all skill levels - grade 3 to 6. With a maximum height of around 350m the trails are a collaboration between the city council and the club’s volunteers and feature the majority of Nelson’s flow/jump trails if that’s your jam. The area has two sides, the one facing town is more beginner/family focused, and the side leading to Sharlands is where you’ll find the more technical, natural and steeper trails.

Fancy something a bit more adventurous? How about a 32km offroad loop trail that takes you into the Alpine environment 1000m above Nelson? The Coppermine Trail is a Grade 4 very well maintained trail that initially follows the route of New Zealand’s first railway up Dun Mountain before plummeting down over 12 km of flowing descent back to the Maitai River, which you then follow back to the pub/cafe/showers in town.

And to top it all off we have the Fringed Hill riding area - the domain of those with a bit more experience and riding bikes with a bit more travel. An 800m climb up a steady gradient fire road delivers you to the top of Fringed Hill, looking almost straight down onto Nelson. Head off the seaward side and you’ll be treated to several grade 4 and 5 routes back to the bottom, all well over 10 minutes long and hand built to get your juices flowing. These trials are a lot of fun, but head inland and you begin to experience the true nature of Nelson’s riding character.

Black Diamond Ridge and Sunshine Ridge are the entry points to Nelson’s ‘easy access’ trail gold. Peaking Ridge, Whaimana, Crankenstein, 629, Mutley’s, Maggie's Farm - these are all hand built hero trails created to preserve the wild side of Nelson’s native Beech Forest riding. Giving the impression of being at one with their natural environment the skill of the builds disguises the effort that went into making them amazing to ride. With around 600m elevation drop on each of them there is a day’s worth of riding just in this area. And the best bit - you’re never more than 45 minutes away from the pub. Nelson also happens to be the epicentre of NZ Craft brewing, and is well as world-renowned for its wines - helped by the Mediterranean climate which whilst being perfect for riding, is ideal for growing hops and grapes.

Nelson city has at least a full week’s worth of riding and 15,000m of descending all within a 10km radius of Nelson’s centre. For the fit and keen pedalling is no real hassle with a variety of easy fireroad access trails and dedicated singletrack climbs, but there’s also a range of high quality shuttle services running from town that make things a whole lot less draining (and arguably more fun). E-bikes are also very welcome on all of Nelson's trails and make a lot of sense if you want to maximise your descending time.

The next layer of Nelson’s riding onion is a 20-30 minute drive from the city centre - which will see you being introduced to the Cable Bay Adventure Park, Richmond Hills and Silvan Forest areas. Cable Bay in particular is somewhere you’ll want to spend at least a full day, probably two. Privately run the park is home to a range of outdoor activities, its MTB trails winding down through 1500-year-old native rainforest, with views over the blue waters of Tasman Bay. The riding here is sublime - there’s not much else we can say. Ranging from grade 3-6 there are around 50km of descending trails to enjoy, each one hand built by the small army of 30+ volunteers that get together each week to build, maintain and generally fluff the land into peak trail riding heaven. Climbing is relaxed and shady, but you can also book a private shuttle or jump on the regular scheduled shuttles that run several times a week that will take you up the hill for only $10. Cable Bay was chosen as the venue for the inaugural NZ National Enduro Championships this year, and racer feedback was off the charts. It’s free to ride there - but why not take $20 and have a beer and a feed at the base cafe as a way of saying thanks to the owners Richard and Elina.  Like everywhere around here, you’ll soon be on first-name terms with everyone you’ll meet.

While Nelson is a single venue holiday dream, dealing up more riding variety and volume than you could fit into a one week visit, it would be a real shame if you didn’t head off for at least one backcountry adventure to switch things up. Luckily there’s a Landcruiser or helicopter just waiting to transport you to the start of a truly memorable experience. Crisscrossed by old pioneer pack trails, and surrounded by the start of the Southern Alps, the Nelson Region has a reputation for assisted backcountry adventure riding, and the best way to the top is by helicopter. This can be rather pricey as a one-off charter but if you plan ahead you might jump in with a larger group; which brings the costs down.  Choose this option and you can arrive on a 1500m+ peak with nothing but a vaguely marked singletrack trail inviting you to get back to our sports roots and have a two wheeled gravity assisted adventure. Routes to choose from include some you might have seen Brendan Fairclough, Jesse Melamed or Bernard Kerr post about in the past as regular Nelson visitors. Real ‘bucket list’ stuff but easily accessible from Nelson, and can be relatively inexpensive if you line it up through the right channels.

If it’s multi-day adventure rides that tick your boxes, Nelson is a great base for these, too. NZ has invested millions of dollars to create a series of ‘great rides’; point-to-point backcountry routes with overnight mountain hut stopovers.  Two gems that are within easy striking distance of Nelson are The Old Ghost Road (85km) and The Paparoa Track (55km). We advise booking your hut early since they are often oversubscribed.

What does that leave us with? Well, I guess there’s the Billionaire’s private bike we mentioned earlier? What’s that? You don’t have one of those in your local town, too? Wairoa Gorge Bike Park, almost mythical thanks to its backstory and the unique quality of the riding, it's seen its fair share of visiting pros and Youtube specials over the years. While this amazing spot nestled in a secluded river gorge around 50 minutes drive from Nelson has a reputation as a tough place to ride the club has spent years polishing some of the easier trails to make it a great venue for riders of all skill levels, no matter what age. There are daily shuttles running (no uphill riding here) and there are also two on-site accommodation options, the functional Barriers Lodge and ‘Eagles Nest’ style luxury accommodation at Gibbs Hut. A trip to The Gorge is a very special experience for the mind, body and soul. Take your time, soak it all in, and make sure you have a fresh set of brake pads because you’re going to be doing thousands of metres of descending!

While this article is about introducing you to the hidden riding gem that is Nelson and the unique flavour of a holiday here I would just give a nod to our South Island neighbours who also have a lot to offer. Kaiteriteri, Craigieburn, Middle Hill, Christchurch, Queenstown, Alexandria, Dunedin. If you have time I would highly recommend adding another 7 day road trip to your plans - start in Nelson, get a hire van and make your way down to Dunedin sampling the very best MTB riding New Zealand has to offer. No more than one day's drive in-between each stop it’s a trip you’ll never forget (or get tired telling you mates and family about). Real bucket list stuff. This is a controversial comment, but honestly, I wouldn’t worry too much about skipping the North Island altogether. Every venue listed here is unique, welcoming and well worth a visit.

Blatant Plug for the NZ MTB Rally

Nelson will take centre stage to an original 6-Day Enduro-Adventure launching in March 2024. The NZ MTB Rally is a whole week of racing across the Top of the South Island, in a circular route that starts and finishes in Nelson but loops out deep into the region’s backcountry. Organiser Ali Jamieson (the man behind The Trans-Savoie (France) and Enduro2 Pairs-Format Series) is promising to take things to the next level with quite the logistical masterpiece: Heli-Drops, Boat-Access, and 4x4 shuttles are all incorporated into the week, limited to 120 participants. We even plan to head down to NZ ourselves to get involved in this one, so watch this space for our full review in IMB next year. (www.nzmtbrally.com)

Local Recommendations

Shuttles: Nelson City: Gravity Nelson | Backcountry: Scottish Express

Bike Shops:  Bike Station | EVO Cycles | Village Cycles | Torpedo 7

Accommodation: Budget: Prince Albert Backpackers | Mid-Range: Whare Iti | Premium: Hardy School House

Food: Street Food on Washington

Pub: Spring & Fern Brewery Milton St

Heli-Drops: Helibike Nelson

Guided Tours & Route Advice: trailAddiction

About The author:

Paul Jennings washed up on New Zealand’s shores 16 years ago, drawn here by the mountain biking, sunshine and natural beauty of Nelson. Rumour has it he placed 5th at the ‘92 Olympics, is a Commonwealth Games medalist and was national champion 10 times back in the UK, but you can’t believe everything you read on the internet. Paul is former president of the Nelson MTB club, but these-days can more often be spotted in wig and moustache disguise taking the sneaky E-bike option up the hill (primarily so he has extra time to enjoy a second round of cake & coffee, at the end of the ride).

 

By IMB

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