The Palisade Plunge is Here // Phase I, Lands End Down (30 Minute Special)

Palisade CO - Mountain Biking the Palisade Plunge from Lands End Road. This is not the fully completed trail and ride. This video is a first look at one of the most highly anticipated new trails in the United States.
It's here! A first of its kind, purpose built virgin singletrack trail with a shuttle in mind. When complete, the head dirt of the Palisade Plunge will begin on the top of the Grand Mesa on Colorado Highway 65 and descend to US Highway 6 in Palisade. At the time of the recording, Memorial Day 2021, the upper half of the Plunge had yet been completed and was covered in remnant winter snow. The Full Plungilada should open by mid summer 2021, when it's too hot and monsoon rain hopefully will be ever present.
Memorial Day 2021 marked the opening weekend to a trail that's been years in the making. The Palisade Plunge was a massive collaborative interagency feat between the Bureau of Land Management, the US Forest Service, the City of Grand Junction, private landowners, and local Mountain Biking Non-Profit COPMOBA. We can all thank Scott Winans personally for being a catalyst for delivering the Plunge. A few years ago, Singletrack Trails entrenched themselves in this unprecedented project. Trail builders enjoyed the full Western Colorado line dig experience. This included being eaten alive by swarms of gnats, ticks, sweltering heat, impossibly thick Gambel Oak, and pesty outcropping of basalt. The trail should be called the "Miracle on the Mesa" for the massive effort made by stakeholders and trail builders alike. THANKS!!!
In this video you'll see the lower half of the Palisade Plunge. Singletrack Trails has been calling this "Phase 1 of the Palisade Plunge" and this portion is the main course of the 6000 ft. descent. We start this ride at the intersection of Lands End Road and the Plunge putting this descent at a tick above 4K ft and I've been calling it Lands End Down, an homage to Burro Down which is the original name of the Whole Enchilada. There are a number of shuttle companies that will get you to the trailheads when this becomes fully open at a price tag of around $30. I self shuttled this with Brian to the Wild Rose Picnic area and climbed the gradual Lands End Road 2 miles to the intersection with the trail.
I refuse to rate brand new tracks because oftentimes they are very raw and the dirt conditions make them difficult to ride. Over time, the trail will be packed by volume biker traffic and I can give you an assessment 2-3 years from now. I felt the Plunge was a blue trail with 3-5 black diamond sections of rollers and switchbacks and 1 double black feature. Otherwise, features were few and far between. The vast majority of the trail rode very intermediate with sections of moderate exposure. I did not feel like sections of the trail held a clear and present danger of falling off a cliff and if you didn't feel like riding a section, it was reasonable to walk. There is still a level of risk in certain sections. Towards the end heat and uphill traffic caused rockfall will be you primary concerns. You'll also find inconsistent trail conditions and ALOT of sand. This is usually a problem associated with new trails.
The Plunge is not a beginner trail and it requires strong effort and solid base skills. Despite the trail serving a significant amount of downhill, it does not feel like a 4K descent. My Strava picked up 1500 ft. of climbing in that 18 miles. You will do ALOT of pedaling and the trail seems favorable to mid travel trail bikes. On your first trip, give it a good pre-ride and ride it in moderation, the track is littered naturally with traps and inconsistent trail conditions. Bring ALOT of water, the final section can be a bit toasted. AND BE CAREFULL, there are no bailout points on the trail, you must be self sufficient to make this run. If you are not prepared, you will do a lot of walking. Early starts on sunny days in the early fall are going to be your prime time to take a plunge. Bikers Wanted. Give it a ride, help us pack this thing down.
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[@Veionacycling-kw7sg]

Keep living the dream brother!

[@debbiepace5739]

Im not a bike rider on that type of ride, plus OLD! But you gave a wonderful view of the Plunge. You did an AWESOME job filming and you sounded like you really enjoyed it!!!! Thanks, GJ resident

[@UnprofessionalKyle]

We've missed you ❤️

[@OutdoorGold]

I miss you Kyle

[@dirtwolfmtb]

I really need to ride this. Looks fun. Definitely a workout. And probably need some ice after 😂

[@themiddleagemasher8108]

Ahhh the FIRST Comment on the outdoor gold video!!!! STOKED!

[@huntstyle]

Damn it. Jeff beat me!

[@OutdoorGold]

Actually third place Jeff!

[@themiddleagemasher8108]

@@OutdoorGold but first in spirit!!

[@TheCrashingDad]

Oh man... That feature at 26:00 had me puckering 😳😬

[@OutdoorGold]

A black diamond feature with double black diamond conditions!

[@MTBFlowRider]

RC always bringing out the GOLD standard in videos.

[@OutdoorGold]

Hell yeah! Orbie! Hope you're riding well out there in CA!

[@thim8009]

Good to see you back in the saddle.

[@OutdoorGold]

Good to have you back in the comment Thim, hope you're doing well.

[@christianholmstedt8770]

A new RC video and I like it before watching it. ;)

[@workhorsemtb7075]

No kidding

[@OutdoorGold]

And you are the winner in the first to comment category!!! 🤘🤘🤘🤘 yeah buddy!

[@christianholmstedt8770]

@@OutdoorGold Wooooohoooo! Looked like a really great trail too. ;)

[@mguzikowski]

Awesome riding! We both slid out on the same stair case feature

[@walterottenhoff8003]

RC, glad to see another UTube of yours. I follow a number of guys (and girls) but always enjoy yours as one of the best. That had some sketchy sections. Makin my hands sweat. Thanks

[@OutdoorGold]

hahaha awesome! thanks for checking the vid out Walter!

[@juliebirb7162]

So happy to see you. Loved watching you ride that super scary trail. Great job, RC.

[@OutdoorGold]

Thanks for staying in the comment section Julie! Keep shredding rubber side down!

[@Getoutside2day]

Awesome brother. Finally get to see the trail system. It definitely offers sketchy sections. Thanks for sharing 🤙🏼

[@OutdoorGold]

Thanks for tuning in OEB! Good to have ya in the comments and a catalyst for making this vid!

[@vindeta360]

Can't wait to ride the plunge. Awesome video dude!

[@OutdoorGold]

Thanks for tuning in Stephen! Its here and its only going to get better.

[@Roaming50]

This opened the month I moved away from Colorado. So bummed. Well it's on ky to do list for one of my trips back.

[@campingalan]

Hello from Ouray! Very awesome video! I am a mid 50s, quasi broken army guy. We may even consider a relocation down to Palisade, Fruita, or Grand Junction. This is an awesome looking ride. It has been quite awhile since ridding a mountain bike like that. But, I have to say it looks very fun. Your video is motivation to knock out a bit of conditioning and go give this ride a try. QUESTION: what do you use for your bike videos? Is it a video camera on some kind of chest mount? It makes for a great POV look!

[@dj_ath]

That trail looks sketchy. I'll pass on this one. Thanks for the video

[@OutdoorGold]

Not for everyone, but to me it rode mostly as a blue trail, not too ridiculous on the exposure mark. Thanks for tuning in PEZ

[@endoalley680]

Cool trail. The upper trail does not seem to be out sloped in many sections. I hope it holds up.

[@thunderdogproductions]

im a little late to the party, just subbed last week... i love your channel! all the moab stuff! speaking of which, do you ever get down here to the Sedona area? I noticed the spartan rides sticker on your helmet

[@chumpmtb2554]

Outdoor Gold, Baby!!! I've been hearing about this trail for a while. I was hoping to plan a trip in the fall and check it out once it was open. Kinda looks like one giant sand pit, unfortunately. Not sure how well I'd handle all of that cliff edge/ off camber stuff either. This one might be a bit out of my league 😂

[@OutdoorGold]

Brian! It’s not as hard as it looks. I have my fingers crossed that the sand is not a permanent fixture!

[@keithgarn9038]

All the sand is a major buzz kill. My question is. Will it always be sandy, or will it eventually pack down?

[@TruckeeNuts]

Some of it will pack after some time. Get a couple winters on it.

[@glollanez]

I’m a beginner- intermediate rider my friends and I are going in 2 weeks and I needed to see this, thank you.

[@OutdoorGold]

Just a heads up, there is alot of climbing on this trail that is not in the video

[@rehn_1989]

Solid review. Nice to see that it's built more on the intermediate side, at least this section. Great to see a video from you. What makes you decide to ride with your Yeti versus the Evil?

[@OutdoorGold]

LOL it depends on which one needs to be fixed, I have a bent rotor on my evil. Thank Rehn!

[@10emac27]

How long was the ride time wise for you?

[@OutdoorGold]

My Strava has 2:40 minutes of moving time so this probably took around 4 hours

[@masonlangland7836]

Are you going to the powderhorn shuttle opening tomorrow?

[@OutdoorGold]

Sadly, wasn’t in the cards! I’ll come back to the full plunge in the fall

[@workhorsemtb7075]

Woohoo!

[@Steffgmtb]

What kind of hubs are you rolling?

[@TruckeeNuts]

Sounds like an i9 to me!

[@invisibleazn9330]

The link for trailmanos in your description 404s =( . I checked all over their website, i couldn't find any shorts. I did get some new gloves and a jersey tho.

[@OutdoorGold]

Nice, the shorts are Tasco Scouts. Been riding them over a year and they are very nice for more than just biking. www.tasco-mtb.com/products/the-scout-a-t-mtb-shorts

[@razmtb5028]

It's been a while

[@OutdoorGold]

Too long! But at least I came back with an original vid!

[@waterbuddy92]

please consider a contribution to COPMOBA, especially if you live and ride the western slope! thx for the sweet video.

[@zigzachmtb2821]

There's nothing like riding super loose and dry AF trails with legit fall to your death exposure!! 💀#wildwildwest Thanks for sharing this video 🤘🏻

[@OutdoorGold]

Its not as exposed as it looks! But definitely looser than what the camera suggests! Thanks for tuning in!

[@zigzachmtb2821]

@@OutdoorGold No... Looked like there was a few spots in the 15-18 min range. Must be the first time anyone has ever said the gopro made it look gnarlier than it is in real life!😜

[@OutdoorGold]

@@zigzachmtb2821 When I was riding it I was like "this ain't that exposed!" Going back and looking at the footage tells me a different story. I think I'm jaded!

[@LUCKYSOB]

I had to go directly to your channel to make sure I was still subscribed since I haven't seen anything from you in a while. Get to work man. 😡😡🤙

[@OutdoorGold]

Next vid is a fly fishing video!

[@billwestervelt2393]

Great Video. Appreciate the commentary while you ride vs. some lame soundtrack.

[@OutdoorGold]

This is how all Mtb KZbin vids used to be a couple years about. Thanks for tuning in Bill

[@huntstyle]

FOURTH!

[@OutdoorGold]

There we go! All that storm chasing has slowed you down Matt!

[@huntstyle]

@@OutdoorGold hey, at least I'm still in the Top 5!

[@adriankozubal]

broi what happened to you

[@RealMTBAddict]

I don't know why KZbin keeps showing me all these dead channels.

[@coskier1969]

This trail is not worth the effort. I live in the Grand Valley and I feel that COPMOBA and the Forest service/BLM did a crappy job. One person has died already. It could have been done so much better.

[@OutdoorGold]

I share much of the same sentiment, I found the trail a dud. Lack of features on poor rock formations. Nothing to write home about. As far as mtb fatalities, there is always risk in the sport. Dehydration gets people all the time in Moab so I’m not putting to much stock in it being an over dangerous track, but people need to be well prepared

[@adriankozubal]

all the content creators that i once knew are now dead noooo