This. Is. AWESOME. Strava, the app which lets cyclists upload GPS data from their rides, have put it all together in this one massive heat-map, which shows you pretty much every mountain bike trail on the planet.
Click on the up-arrow underneath their Facebook icon to close the “map options” then zoom in and scroll around!
OK so this also includes a lot of data from road cyclists too (you’ll notice there are massive hot spots around central London and New York for example) but there’s shedloads of mountain bike data on there too.
“Zoom in on Afghanistan and you can see where NATO servicemen have been riding around Bagram airbase.”
Want to know what the most popular trails in the Brecon Beacons are? Zoom in and scroll around. Heading abroad and want an idea of where to ride? Simply click across the ocean and check it out! You can see the tiny green snakes of the less well-travelled mountain bike routes everywhere. Seriously, this is so cool.
There are some crazy things on here too. Zoom in on Afghanistan and you can see where NATO servicemen have been riding around Bagram airbase.
And while you’d imagine Tajikistan would be really remote, a glance at this map shows that the legendary Khorog to Osh route is pretty popular.
If you zoom in on Nevis Range outside Fort William, you can even see the course where the Downhill World Cup will be held next month!
Anyway, have a look around, and happy exploring!