Coler Mountain Bike Preserve: What to Know Before Your First Visit
Coler Mountain Bike Preserve is one of my favorite places to ride in Bentonville. Learn what to expect before heading out there!
Quick tips for visiting Coler
If you asked me where the best mountain biking is in Bentonville, I’d have to say Coler Mountain Bike Preserve. This relatively small parcel of land is packed with awesome trails for all levels and styles of riders. From machine-built flow and jump trails (Fireline!) to one of the rockiest and techiest trails I’ve ever ridden (Here’s Johnny), Coler is a one-stop shop for mountain bikers.
It’s also just a cool place to hang out. There is a 2-mile paved greenway that spans the length of the park, a bike/hike-in-only coffee shop, a peaceful river, a campground, and some cool art sprinkled throughout.
Whenever I’m mountain biking in Bentonville, I make sure to spend at least a few days at Coler Mountain Bike Preserve – one day I’ll hit Drop The Hammer! If you’re planning a trip to Bentonville, I share everything you need to know about making the most of your time at Coler.
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Coler Mountain Bike Preserve Map
The Coler Mountain Bike Preserve is part of the Peel Compton Foundation, whose mission is to “connect the community through nature, education, recreation, and preservation”. They also own and manage the Peel Museum & Botanical Gardens, Compton Gardens & Arboretum, Osage Park, and the Quiver Archery Range.
Coler is located about 8 minutes/2.3 miles west of downtown Bentonville. You can bike there and if you take 3rd Street to the southside parking, there is a protected bike lane.
The Coler Hub
Before I talk about the trails at Coler Mountain Bike Preserve, I wanted to mention The Hub, since it’s one of the most distinguishing features at Coler. The Hub is a huge alien-looking structure at the top of North Coler that leads into the northside downhill trails.
There are two ‘exit ramps’ on The Hub that lead into Cease and Desist and Rock Solid/Rock Soft. There used to be three, but I guess they decided to take Fire Line’s entrance off, probably because it intimidated some riders.
If you take Oscar’s Loop to get to the Hub, it’s a paved path, which makes lapping the north side a lot easier!
The trails
The mountain bike trails at Coler literally cover any type of riding you might want to do. There are easy beginner-friendly trails, rocky and rooty old-school trails, freeride trails with big jumps and drops (maybe you’ve heard of Drop the Hammer?), and intro-level freeride trails to help you build up skills and confidence.
I highly recommend giving yourself enough time to check out ALL of the trails at Coler, but if you are just looking to ride Coler’s greatest hits, here are what I consider to be the must-rides:
Putting together your ride: For most of my trail network guides, I offer route recommendations, but you really don’t need one for Coler. Instead, I recommend choosing a few trails you want to ride and building your route based on those. If it’s your first time at Coler, here are the trails I would make sure to hit: Fire Line, Rock Soft (or Solid) Thunder Dome, Family Flow.
What I love about Coler & What I don’t
Pros:
Cons:
Honestly, that’s all I can think of for cons!
Where to park
There are three main parking areas for Coler:
- North Gateway: This parking area is located on the north end of Coler Preserve and provides the quickest and easiest access to the more advanced trails starting from The Hub. There are no bathrooms or water fountains here. There is a bike tool/repair station.
- South Gateway: Located at the south end of Coler, this parking area is quite a bit larger and has bathrooms, a water fountain, and a bike tool station.
- Coler Grove: This parking area is above South Gateway and provides instant access to Thunder Dome, a dual slalom track, and Family Flow, a great trail for kids or new riders. You will finish your ride on a short climb if you park here.
Watch BKXC shred the trails at Coler MTB Preserve
Coler Preserve Camping
There is camping at Coler Mountain Bike Preserve at a dedicated campground located literally trailside. The Coler Campground features:
- 17 hike-in elevated platform sites for tents (wagons available)
- 5 van sites (no hook-ups)
- Bathrooms with flush toilets
- Hot showers
- Bike wash & repair station
- Water bottle refill station
- Community fire pit
The campground is also within walking distance to Airship Coffee (see below) as well as some nice places to take a dip in the river.
For prices and reservations, head over to the Coler Campground webpage.
Airship Coffee
Perhaps the coolest and most unique landmark in Coler Mountain Bike Preserve is the bike/walk-in-only Airship Coffee. This modern, open-air, architectural piece of art is situated halfway between North Gateway and South Gateway parking lots along the paved path that runs the length of Coler.
Airship Coffee serves delicious Farm Direct coffee beverages as well as tacos, nachos, smoothies, baked goods, and other snacks. And beer/wine, too! It’s so cool.
Read next
Planning a mountain bike trip to Bentonville? Check out these related posts:
Facts & FAQs
Q: Are e-bikes allowed?
Yes, e-bikes are allowed and thriving.
Q: How many days do I need at Coler?
If you want to get the full Coler experience, I recommend at least two days.
Q: Is there a fee to ride at Coler?
Nope! It’s completely free.
Q: What else is there to do there?
In addition to the awesome mountain bike trails, you can also walk the greenway, relax on the swings at Airship Coffee, sit by the river, and check out the cool art.
Q: Do I need to be a good rider to mountain bike at Coler?
Nope! There are plenty of easy, beginner-friendly trails to ride.
Q: Is Coler open year-round?
Yes, but they do close the jump trails and Thunder Dome after rain.
Have you been to Bentonville? What did you think of Coler Mountain Bike Preserve? Does it live up to the hype? Leave a comment below!
Great information. Is the Coler Bike Preserve open year round; do they close for part of the season, and what happens when the weather turns bad?
Yes, Coler Preserve is open year-round weather dependent. They’ll close it due to muddy/snowy trails but there isn’t a ‘closed season’.
Great write up! How would you compare Coler to the Mt Kessler trails?
Coler is definitely more developed and popular than Mt. Kessler. It has a lot more jumps, features, and machine-built trails. They’re both fun depending on what you’re looking for!