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South Austin Trail Network, The SATN


The Tip

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I have a question unrelated to people intentionally riding in mud.. 

What is the easiest/best way to get from the Circle C trails over to the Slaughter Creek Trail?  In the past I've gone all the way down to the end of Slaughter Lane and then left onto 1826.  Yesterday we took a shorter route that cuts some of that off..

SlaughterLaneShortcut.thumb.png.4909c189a9f3ff99eec53cd30c4601f4.png
 

Are there other alternatives? 

Thanks, 

 ..Al

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That is the shortest way.  That's how you approach the Slaughter Creek gate from the north.

If you don't want to repeat trail then when you exit your Slaughter Creek ride you can turn south on to the single track that continues along 1826. Then turn left onto Spruce Canyon. Continue until it intersects with LaCrosse.  Enter the Hielscher Greenbelt at the swimming pool. Travel eastward on one of three trails there. Phoenix North (very muddy and impassable right now by the way), Phoenix South, or Digo's Shortcut (next to the houses). This comes out at another part of LaCrosse. Continue straight, or go up LaCrosse to Escarpment and down back to Circle C. 

 

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5 minutes ago, The Tip said:

That is the shortest way.  That's how you approach the Slaughter Creek gate from the north.

Thank you for the confirmation

5 minutes ago, The Tip said:

If you don't want to repeat trail then when you exit your Slaughter Creek ride you can turn south on to the single track that continues along 1826. Then turn left onto Spruce Canyon. Continue until it intersects with LaCrosse.  Enter the Hielscher Greenbelt at the swimming pool. Travel eastward on one of three trails there. Phoenix North (very muddy and impassable right now by the way), Phoenix South, or Digo's Shortcut (next to the houses). This comes out at another part of LaCrosse. Continue straight, or go up LaCrosse to Escarpment and down back to Circle C. 

We did exit south onto 1826 yesterday, then rode the trail in the middle of 45 (Boneyard?), and made our way back north via the trails on the western side of Mopac..  I'll take a look at the route you described, thanks!

https://www.strava.com/activities/2160382809

 ..Al

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4 minutes ago, The Tip said:

Oh, your route back is much more interesting and fun. I was just giving the "other shortest route" way.

PS, lol, I see we crossed paths yesterday on Stroller Roller. 

Ha, I remember you letting us pass, thanks!  🙂  I haven't ridden this trail in the opposite direction yet, will have to do that next time I'm down there. 

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1 hour ago, Albert said:

I have a question unrelated to people intentionally riding in mud.. 

What is the easiest/best way to get from the Circle C trails over to the Slaughter Creek Trail?  In the past I've gone all the way down to the end of Slaughter Lane and then left onto 1826.  Yesterday we took a shorter route that cuts some of that off..

SlaughterLaneShortcut.thumb.png.4909c189a9f3ff99eec53cd30c4601f4.png
 

Are there other alternatives? 

Thanks, 

 ..Al

If that is what I think it is, that trail has been repeatedly blocked and marked "no trespassing" by the land owner. We should stay out, lest we jeopardize access to everything else down there.

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2 hours ago, RidingAgain said:


BTW... Is that wide tire mark from a mountain bike or a motorbike?

That is a MOTORCYCLE track. This is a motorcycle trail. Mountain bikes are allowed to use the motorcycle trail. We call it City Park or Emma Long. Most MTB's know this trail is a tough technical trail. That is why we want to ride the trail - because it is challenging. So those riders (both MTBrs and motorcycles) find this "rock garden" too challenging to ride.  Some how, I am not following the logic here.

But the evidence shows that some people want the challenge of a difficult trail but not the challenge of a "rock garden" that is almost paved by the flat rocks that were hauled in and placed carefully by hand. Note the rocks between the camera and the model. To get it much flatter we would have to use concrete to make it like a sidewalk.

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42 minutes ago, mack_turtle said:

If that is what I think it is, that trail has been repeatedly blocked and marked "no trespassing" by the land owner. We should stay out, lest we jeopardize access to everything else down there.

The singletrack along Slaughter Lane forks left onto this trail, most of which appears to be an old road. We did not see any "no tresspassing" signs.  At the end where the "road" exits onto 1826, there was a large pile of brush blocking the entrance, but you can easily ride/walk around it on one side.  No idea what the other end on Slaughter Lane looks like, since we didn't see it. 

If that is indeed private property, I'll avoid it in the future. 

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2 hours ago, Albert said:

The singletrack along Slaughter Lane forks left onto this trail, most of which appears to be an old road. We did not see any "no tresspassing" signs.  At the end where the "road" exits onto 1826, there was a large pile of brush blocking the entrance, but you can easily ride/walk around it on one side.  No idea what the other end on Slaughter Lane looks like, since we didn't see it. 

If that is indeed private property, I'll avoid it in the future. 

Yup, that blockage at 1826 was recently put there by landowners along with a sign that said "no trespassing violators will be prosecuted" but it sounds like someone cut a workaround and tore down the sign. It's clear to me that the landowner does not want anyone on that land, as evidenced by the giant pile of brush blocking the "entrance".

Edited by mack_turtle
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1 minute ago, mack_turtle said:

Yup, that blockage was recently put there by landowners along with a sign that said "no trespassing violators will be prosecuted" but it sounds like someone cut a workaround and tore down the sign. It's clear to me that the landowner does not want anyone on that land, as evidenced by the giant pile of brush blocking the "entrance".

We weren't sure if maybe people were driving in there and it was to stop vehicular traffic.  I'll certainly avoid it in the future.  It's not a big deal to go all the way to Slaughter Lane and ride the singletrack along the side of 1826. 

 ..Al

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Weird. I did the same route yesterday: Slaughter, that weird cutoff, 1826, Slaughter Creek loop, south to Boneyard. I didn't see any of yall.

I always assumed that the blockade on the old road was for people dumping trash off 1826. I've cut through the the storage place parking lot too and they have a gate on the 1826 side. So either way you have to ride around someones gate. Unless you ride all the way to the end of Slaughter. ಠ_ಠ

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Not sure how accurate the boundaries on google maps and Travis CAD maps are, but that little piece of trail shows up on google maps and looks like it is (just barely) on the self storage place's property. Not sure who the complaining landowner is, but it sounds more like something a home owner would do rather than a company- so does anyone know if the person putting up no trespassing signs/brush obstacles actually owns that land, or is just pretending to because it's close to their place?

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It's not bad, really, there's singletrack all along 1826, north and south of the Slaugher Creek Trail entrance.  The only sketchy bit is right before the SCT entrance heading south.  There's a culvert that yesterday was full of water, with no way around it but to ride briefly on the road.  We just waited for a clearing in traffic and jumped onto the road over to the SCT entrance. 

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What part of that is "near roads" enough to be a concern?

 

If you are leaving Circle C and heading northwest on Slaughter, it's tempting to stay on the south side of the street and ride the dirt path there. It ends just past the water tower thing and forces you to ride into oncoming traffic near a blind turn. Not good.

Instead, cross Slaughter near the middle school and cross again at 1826. The vehicular traffic there is usually very sparse and there is a sidewalk. there is a singletrack on the east side of 1826 that leads all the way to 45, past the SCNP entrance, and none of it is anywhere near traffic except for one short section where is crosses the creek. That takes 15 seconds and any rational person can manage it. It's not scary.

Edited by mack_turtle
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I've never ridden up to the traffic lights at the junction of Slaughter and 1826, so I am not familiar with the path that's on the grass bank. We've normally just taken the trail section that's in question. I'll have to ride it and see.

The part that you need to come out on the road to cross over the creek on 1826 freaks her a bit because of how fast she's seen cars traveling on 1826. And they do go fast.

 

Edited by RidingAgain
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The Meridian Bowl. Or Meridian Mountain. Or Little Spider Mountain. Call it what you want, but this is a special area, unlike anything in the SATN and pretty much unlike anything else in town. If you want to see if a lift assisted area is appealing to you, as in doing the same downhill trails over and over, then the Meridian Bowl would be a nice low commitment test run. The side benefit is that the climbing will make you a stronger rider.

There are cross trails now that intersect the seven main trails. The good thing is that there are now untold combinations to get down the hill. It literally will take hours to ride everything, every way. But the bad is that the intersections can be potentially dangerous. An effort has been made to insure good sight lines, but a greater effort will have to be made to LOOK and use those sight lines.

The area needs some rules to insure it's continued accessibility to us:

-Be respectful to the homeowners. Thank them if you see them. Be pleasant. Don't give anyone any reason to turn against us. 

-Local rule: Yield to downhill riders at all times. Especially intersections. It will be very difficult for the downhill rider to stop when they are flying over a ledge at 20 mph!

-Take those earbuds out while there. Sight lines are good, "Rider!" shouted by the downhilling guy is better. Be able to hear that.

-Assume someone is coming downhill at all times.

-Most trails are designed as downhill only. If you are riding uphill on anything other than Ski Lift and Up or Down, assume a rider going 20 mph is coming at you head on and be ready to bail.

-Take care your first time down a run. Some big ledges pop up quickly.

I'm concerned about someone getting hurt and making a stink about it. The liability thing is a big reason land owners deny access to their lands. Of course an HOA has insurance as there is a much greater risk of some kid drowning in a pool then dying on a trail. But still it's a worry. So if you do get hurt, suffer in silence!  lol

I was torn whether to post this or not. The area does not need promoting. One reason I have always pimped the SATN is to get enough wheels on all the trails to keep the vegetation beat back. That is not going to be a problem here. So my two concerns for the area are in conflict. Those being the need to promote safe use of the area but at the same time hoping that overuse does not cause access problems in the future.

Did I mention the being respectful to the homeowners thing yet?

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Sorry to sound like a Debbie Downer... But the way you describe it sure makes it seem like it's a problem waiting to surface.

Was there no other way to build the trails, meaning not having them intersect with each other? Or maybe make one or two trails heavy in tight switchbacks so that up or down speed is regulated. That way when going up you can avoid the faster dowhhill trails?

And what about hikers... Is the rider doing 20mph down the hill suppose to give them a friendly wave and a cheery "Hello" as they zoom past a homeowner/hiker or two pulling to the side of the trail?

I'll get up maybe into the low 20s doing the short downhill at Slaughter Creek, but I know it's one-way for bikers and I have a pretty clear line of sight most of the way down (last ride out I did notice that some vegetation has grown up about mid-way down and is now blocking the sight line at that point... needs to be cut back)... Would hate to meet a horse there though.

Just wonder about the risk vs. reward on these types of things.

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