HorseTrailDirectory.com
Trail Riders Helping Trail Riders

Reviews for Bass River State Recreation Area
(click on name for more information)
Allendale, MI

Overall TRAIL RATING with 4 votes:
Enter your Trail and/or Campground Review 

Individual Reviews

Trail Rating: 
Camp Rating: 

Nice trails, although not very long. The water was fun - nice rocky, solid bottoms - not real muddy. This is an old gravel pit, so some of the trail is pretty rocky. It was a nice quiet ride - only saw one other horse the day we went.
Reviewed by: A. on 11/11/2009 4:34:58 PM
Experience: Intermediate Ride Date: 9/1/2009 Hometown: Marne, MI

Trail Rating: 
Camp Rating: 

Day use trail only, no water pumps, no tie ups, no camping. The horse staging area is off of 104th Ave.. On Johnson St. South of Sleeper St. This is the West park entrance. Drive beyond the area where the self check in and trail maps are located. Ignore the sign that says “no motor vehicles beyond this point”. The day use area is about 100 yards beyond that sign. This was confusing. Best secret on the West side of Michigan, if you want to spend a day at the “lake” with your horses. Just don't be stupid and drown your horse or yourself and ruin for the rest of us. It is an area with several old gravel pits and the Grand River. You can ride all around the gravel pits and river and then cool off by taking a dip in the water. The gravel pits and the Grand River is extremely deep with a quick drop off (around 2-3 ft off shore), so be careful. We only found one area that was shallow (15-20 feet beyond shore). To get to the water from the staging area, take the two track (not the gravel road) Northwest and you'll run right into the water. We never ended up riding on the bicycle trails because we had so much fun riding around the water and watching all of the boats come and go. Many boats are beached so it is fun to stop and talk to the boaters. The trails are not marked very well, but just follow the two tracks and gravel road or the bicycle map -http://mmba.org/library/maps/BassRiver.pdf or the DNR http://www.michigandnr.com/Publications/PDFS/RecreationCamping/bass_river.pdf Here is the cyclist description of the trails. Twisting continuously, this tight, mostly flat trail system was designed for mountain bikers by mountain bikers. Maintained by the Michigan Mountain Biking Association, the narrow singletrack is home to whoop-de-dos, sand mounds, narrow tree passages, and roots. The small trail system is really two trails. The North Loop is a little straighter than the South Loop and twists through dense pine trees before crossing over the dirt access road. The South Loop twists relentlessly, making the short trail seem much longer. The route described in this eTrail begins with the North Loop then merges with the South Loop. Tread: 5.4 miles of singletrack. 19-20 miles from Grand Haven. Look into camping at Silver Creek, Allegan.
Reviewed by: Lisa on 8/20/2006 10:21:58 PM
Experience: Expert Ride Date: 8/20/2006 Hometown: Williamston, MI

Trail Rating: 
Camp Rating: 

Russ Forest in Marcellus, MI. Nice wide trails - big enough for carts. Now motor vehicles. Only a few riders. Outhouse, water, bridge crossing is optional. Very nice. Low key. Several hours of riding on both sides of road.
Reviewed by: Nancy on 3/8/2005 2:51:16 PM
Experience: Beginner Ride Date: 9/1/2004 Hometown: Three Rivers, MI

Trail Rating: 
Camp Rating: 

Nice place. There are some hills you can choose to go up or not. Lots of water--we had a wonderful time swimming with our horse last year. We like it to go for a week night ride or a 3-4 hour weekend ride
Reviewed by: MichiganHorseLovers-Tami on 3/4/2003 9:14:38 AM
Experience: Expert Ride Date: 3/4/2003 Hometown: Allendale, MI