Sechler Park River Bottoms Trail

Dogs Unknown

E-Bikes Unknown

Accessible via paved trails and adjacent to downtown Northfield, this two-way short singletrack winds through the flat, wooded floodplain through Sechler Park along the west side of the Cannon River.

It's mainly green level in difficulty, with some optional skinnies and logovers, and several optional blue level trail segments. One in the middle is called The Spine which runs on top of a series of mounds along the edge of a backwater pond. Some of the mounds are steep and there are several tight passages between trees.

The Spine can be avoided by riding the very wide and flat white-level Sechler Park Doubletrack that runs close to the river. It connects to the other end of the trail by the pavilion.

A small skills park in the middle of the trail, adjacent to the ball fields, was added in 2015. Obstacles: a small teeter-totter, two skinnies, and a logover. More are planned.

Near the southwest end of the main trail, there is a short blue-level Sechler Park Figure 8 Loop segment which has some challenging climbs, berms, and logovers. (Locals refer to the series of berms as 'the velodrome.') The Loop has an optional exit on the southeast end that connects to the Sechler Park Doubletrack, which is the preferred route for many beginning and intermediate-level riders who want to head either way along the river. More advanced riders usually loop back to the main trail so they can ride The Spine.

At the far southwest end of the trail, there's a short, optional, blue-level segment called The Pipeline. It begins near the concrete beam and cement block remnants of the 'house.' It then traverses the top of a long spine-like mound where a large iron pipe (home to a geocache) sticks out of the ground. An optional log across the face of an adjacent mound provides a difficult technical challenge. The short segment drops back down a steep embankment and rejoins the main trail.