Bygdsiljumbackens Bike Park: guide & story
Between Skellefteå and Umeå is the small village Bygdsiljum. A picturesque and quiet place that houses one of Sweden’s northernmost bicycle parks. A small hill full of MTB goodies including jumping tracks, singletracks and a couple of very technical slopes. Run by a group of local volunteers, you can see that a lot of love has been poured into the trails and maintenance of this place. A must if you are in the area.
Swede Shreds S2E4: Bygdsiljum Bike Park & DH World Champs 1999
It is a park that gives you a sense of tranquility when you are so far away from city life. Out here you feel embedded in nature with rolling green hills as far as the eye can see. A fantastic part of Sweden and a sick little park that does not make as much noise as many of the larger and southern spots in the country. But is well worth a little praise and totally worth a visit.
When it comes to the paths, you can say that the hill is divided into two parts. The easy and the hard side. If you turn left when you come from the t-bar lift at the top, you will reach some of the easier paths such as the blue and red paths Moss, Jumped, Banana and Mosquito. The latter is one of the best trails on the hill. Simple corners mixed with a little more technical sections, it has enough speed to keep you afloat, but still enough roots to keep you maintained and on your toes. One of those trails that just goes super well and makes you grin from ear to ear. In addition, Hoppet is a really impressive course full of jumps of varying sizes and with some more difficult alternatives along the way.
These trails are not your usual wide machine-built bike park trails but are slightly narrower, which gives more of a cozy single track atmosphere. The good variety.
The hard side also has a more singletrack-y feel, but still much coarser and rougher than the simpler trails. Here you will find both cliffs, cliffs and technical sections in abundance, and that cycling knowledge is much needed when you go down black paths that Vittran, Cobarde and Östdroppet. Back 2016, the Swedish championship in downhill held at Vittran – a fast and technical path with a bit of everything: open corners, off-camber roots, lots of nasty rocks and a couple of big jumps. A good test of cycling skills and surprisingly challenging, but still fun, to ride.
Bygdsiljumbacken’s bicycle park is not a large park compared to say Åre or Järvsö, but it definitely has enough paths to carry its own. And unlike larger parks, this one is actually built and run solely by volunteers.
From managing the lift to maintaining and building new trails, this small group does a tremendous job for the MTB community. Today, the group consists of four to five people who make sure that everything works before opening hours to please the 50-year-old riders who will normally enjoy the park during a weekend.
It all started in the late 2000s, when a group of local mountain bikers went to Norway and were inspired by some of their bike parks, such as Hafjell. They came back fully enlightened and began to build the first paths on the hill. It really went from there and since 2012, the lift has been spinning for mountain bikers.
Maria Hedberg is one of those who help run the park today. She first discovered it in 2012 when she rode here for the first time and has been with it ever since. “Today we are four or five people who help with the park. Everything is voluntary work and I guess we mostly do it for ourselves, so we have something fun to go on in the summer “, she explains.
And they do a good job with it. The trails are well maintained, the lift runs well and the place just gives off a nice family atmosphere. One where you can come and cycle, relax with friends and take a dip in the nearby lake at the end of the day. What more could you ask for?