If mountain bikers somehow tire of the 900 miles of singletrack in Central Oregon, they can head to Post Canyon just west of Hood River along the Columbia River Gorge.

These trails feature more free-ride flavor, and this time of year it is more likely to have better air quality in Hood River than in Bend.

According to traveloregon.com, Post Canyon is one of the original gravity networks in the country, “and it has aged exceedingly well. Over time an enthusiastic group of local trail builders has populated these forested hills with a plethora of features, from perfectly bermed turns to steep roll-downs.”

The Post Canyon trail system is mostly located on the 30,000-acre Hood River County Tree Farm and is managed by the Hood River County Forestry Department. The vast network of trails includes 3,400 feet of vertical descent from the top down. The Hood River Area Trail Stewards build and maintain trails at Post Canyon.

After a quick visit to the Portland area last month, on my way back to Bend I made the one-hour drive east to Hood River and to the Seven Streams Trailhead at the bottom of the Post Canyon network. (Hood River is about a 2 hour, 40 minute drive from Bend.)

Post Canyon includes four main trailheads: Post Canyon Road, Seven Streams, Family Man and Binns Hill.

I started from Seven Streams, which included a small parking area about a mile up Post Canyon Road just west of Hood River. A Hood River County Parking Pass is required to park at any of the HRC Trailheads. Visit the Hood River County website (hoodrivercounty.gov) to purchase daily or yearly parking passes, which can only be bought online.

I began by climbing the Seven Streams Trail, and continued the challenging climb all the way up to the Family Man Staging Area.

The Family Man area includes several skill building areas, built for beginners to experts, and is one of the most popular areas at Post Canyon. It includes a progressive dirt jump line, a dirt pump track, skill-building bridges and ramps, an intermediate jump line and an advanced drop line. I stuck to the intermediate line, and those features were plenty big enough for my skills.

After a half hour or so at the Family Man area, I began a climb up the El Dorado Trail, leading me along switchbacks through the deep forest.

Eventually I arrived at a spot where I could see Mount Adams above the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. To the north was the sprawling, orchard-dotted Hood River Valley on the clear, late-summer day.

Exhausted after the long climb, I began the descent back toward the Seven Streams Trailhead, starting on trail No. 140. The intermediate path included numerous switchbacks and tremendous views.

I eventually connected to Upper Grand Prix, a black-diamond (advanced) trail that featured swooping drops and berms. From there, it was blue (intermediate) trails Lower Grand Prix, Spaghetti Factory and Kleeway all the way back to Seven Streams Trailhead.

After another relatively quick climb up the Seven Streams Trail, I rode another few short laps through the Family Man area before descending the swooping, bermed trail called “Float On.”

Back at the Seven Streams Trailhead, I was pretty exhausted after riding 15.3 miles in nearly three hours, with 1,600 feet of ascent and 2,400 feet of descent, according to my Garmin watch.