KINGDOM MAID
Kingdom Trails; East Burke, Vermont
Developed by Thomas Seymour
Stats
75 miles, 6,957 ft elevation gain, 94 ft/mi. Counter-clockwise direction suggested.
Difficulty
Intermediate due to distance and elevation gain.
Terrain, Bike Choice
Light singletrack and gravel. Preferred bike rank: Rigid MTB, Gravel bike, Hardtail.
Camping
Lake-side campground. Reservations required.
Number of Nights
1 night ideal for the lake-side camping.
Food & Water
Small camp store at campground (with water), otherwise pack all your food.
Bikepacking Kingdom Maid
Kingdom Maid is a sub-24 hour overnight (S24O) leaving from the world class singletrack of Kingdom Trails in northern Vermont. This route takes gravel roads out to Maidstone State Park where you can swim and camp lake-side before looping back.
Highlights
- A small taste of Kingdom Trails
- Riverside gravel riding
- Maidstone lake-front camping
- Swimming in Maidstone Lake
- Beer, food truck, bike serivce at Village Sport Shop
Trip Beta
The route immediately jumps on the Kingdom Trail singletrack and as you head to the backside of Burke Ski Mountain. Feel free to explore the trails before making your way to Toll Rd. If you’re looking to bypass this singletrack at the beginning take Mountain Rd up to the Toll Road turn and you’ll be back on double track. The Burke Mountain Campground is the last place to grab spigot water before heading on to Maidstone. Once on CCC road you’ll enjoy some double track off the back of Burke Mountain passing two shelters along the way. Head east on the gravel of River Road to the Gallup Mills intersection. You’ll roll on a short section of pavement before a gravel climb to Granby (settled in 1761 and one of the last towns in Vermont to get electricity).
At the Connecticut River you’ll head north and climb up before descending into Maidstone State Park. Be sure to call ahead to reserve your campsite and bring something to swim in (and quarters for the shower). Ranger Tom may have ice cream for purchase in the summer months at the office. Wake up with the Loons and head north around the lake passing lake-front homes on a quiet gravel road. You’ll eventually link back up to Granby Rd to enjoy its descent to Victory road. Take Victory all the way back to Kingdom Trails. If you have the legs, Farm Junk and Skydive are fun descents off White School road. Either way you’ll climb back up to Darling Hill Road to finish back at Village Sport Shop. Enjoy a pint here and head to Freight House Cafe in Lyndonville for some amazing local, organic food before heading home. More East Coast S240 routes can be found on our Routes Page.
Important Information
- For overnight parking you must get permission from the bike shop to leave your car in their lot. If you park at the Inn next door your car will likely be towed.
- Bring US quarters for use with the shower at the state campground.
- Be sure to call ahead to reserve your campsite. Sites 2-8 are lake-front, however, they require a 2 night minimum to book online. Alternatively, call ahead to ask Ranger Tom for single night availability for bikepackers (greater chance during the weekdays). 802.676.3930
- Maidstone State Park camp map
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RockGeist guys and gals – this looks like a great route. Unfortunately, some of the single-track near the start of the route has been closed for the foreseeable future due to a few inconsiderate mountain bikers being disrespectful to the local land-owners. Plenty of options, just wanted you to know that Pines (one of my favorite trails) and connecting trails that lead to East Burke are now off-limits to bikes.
Thanks for posting this, I will definitely try a variation of it.
John! thanks for sharing this info, we’ll add it up above to let people know. Hope it all gets worked out…
cheers,
greg