#TrailTuesday: Braving Highland Recreation Area's A-B-C-D Loops
- Dan Cooke
- Mar 21, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: 13 hours ago
Welcome back to our weekly #TrailTuesday Series! This edition tackles the only "Black Diamond" rated trail within our series: the rugged and respected hills of Highland Recreation Area's "A-B-C-D" loops. Check out what draws Detroit's best mountain bikers, trail runners, and hikers flock to these alphabet loops all year long.
"BEST DAY EVER." Those are the three words that I force myself to say - audibly - whenever I get back on my feet after flipping over the handle bars on my bike. Or losing an edge on my skis. Or tripping over a root during a steep decline. If you're not falling then you're not trying, right...?
I couldn't tell you how many times I've said those positivity-reinforcing words since I started implementing the practice back in 2020. Let's just chalk it up to a lot. But what I can tell you, with absolute certainty, is that I have declared more "Best Day Evers" on Highland State Recreation Area's A-B-C-D loops than any other trail in the Detroit region - combined.
If you've been following our content since we launched last fall, Highland's "Alphabet Loops" should be ringing some bells by now. We first introduced the A-B-C-D loops to our community in an article on the Detroit region's three "Black Diamond Trails," where we anointed this trail - and specifically its notorious "D Loop" - as our region's single most challenging trail. This trail system also made the cut for one of the "Top 5 Mountain Biking Trails," despite standing out as the only "Advanced" trail on the list.
Here's the unadulterated truth: Highland's A-B-C-D Loops are intentionally very, very difficult. Which is why they are so awesome.
There's a reason that Detroit's best mountain bikers, trail runners, and endurance athletes flock back to these hills for their ritualistic ass-kicking. Just like any intense workout, the Alphabet Loops will leave your body flooded with euphoric endorphins and all but ensure your return. Training for your first trail marathon? Running the Loops will virtually guarantee that you'll hit the trailhead in prime shape. Heading out west for a bucket-list MTB trip? Hit the Loops to dial in your skills. Looking to hunt within our region's least hospitable terrain? Loop it up.
Before we get into the trail, let's reacquaint ourselves with Highland.
CONQUER HIGHLAND RECREATION AREA'S A-B-C-D LOOPS WITH EXPEDITION DETROIT
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