SE Michigan vs NE Ohio SSS Final: The Big Ones

Poto and Mohican are at the top of my list, and neither one can be defined as the “better” mountain bike trail. But there will be no ties in this final round, so I’ll make the tough decision.

Mohican Pro:
– 25 miles of singletrack, 2500 feet of elevation gain, making it the closest that Ohio, Michigan, Indiana have to offer in terms of true “mountain” biking
– some killer climbs and medium-length descents
– a nice river stop halfway through
– a dedicated trail association that works hard to keep the trail cleared after storms
– old school singletrack without any major machine-built “improvements”
– kind of a rite of passage trail: if you can do Mohican, you’re past the Spoke Junkie phase
– a real sense of remoteness, especially the pine forest section around mile 18
– ridden backwards, it offers challenges for even the most advanced rider

Mohican Con:
– it’s a single loop that doesn’t offer many bailouts
– it’s close to Loudenville which offers plenty of a canoe livery-type summer tourists
– the new machine-built stuff near the lodge really isn’t worth riding, except for the new connector at the dam
– I didn’t start liking it again until I got an ebike. Now it’s the best.
– I had a mountain bike stolen in the main parking lot. I’m bitter.

Poto Pro:
– it was one of my favorite trails before I got an ebike, and it’s even more fun now that e-bikes are legal there
– the short, rooty, eroded descents are what makes Poto Poto. Even though I’m in favor of some limited upgrading, Poto has some rawness to it that keeps the DTE people away.
– the scenery is outstanding, particularly the numerous lakes you pass by that make it feel like Northern Michigan
– nearby Chelsea and Ann Arbor give the area a cultured classiness
– now that the Waterloo Connector is legit, you can link up DTE for an epic day-long ride
– can be ridden when many Ohio trails are shut down for the weather, but just make sure your name isn’t Mud
-I’ve never felt trashed at the end of a Poto ride. Maybe that’s good, maybe bad.

Poto Con: my buddy Egg is always bitching that there are too many hikers. Not sure I totally agree, but I got jammed up a couple times again on my ride today, so maybe he has a point
– there’s a certain snootiness among the core local riders that I’ve witnessed in other areas where people think they invented mountain biking

All in all, if I had a day to ride my mountain bike and I was faced with deciding between Poto or Mohican, I’d have to go with Mohican. But just barely, and I wouldn’t have said that two years ago. Fortunately, mountain biking continues to move forward, and Mohican on an ebike is the best long ride you’ll find in SE Michigan and NE Ohio.

Poto 19
Mohican 20

The upcoming bonus round will award points for some intangibles, as well as that missing Michigan trail.
The points will be tallied, and we’ll have a definitive answer to which region has the best mountain bike trails.