Downhill mountain biking in Medellín doesn’t actually happen in Medellín. It happens 50 km south, in Santa Bárbara, and we pick you up at your hotel to get you there. The trails we ride are steep, long, narrow and technical. If on top of that you also want to ride gap jumps and drops, our double-black downhill tour might also interest you.
Santa Bárbara is an agricultural municipality an hour and a half from the city. A network of old muleteer trails drops from the town toward the Buey River, which divides Santa Bárbara from Abejorral. Riders here call the area Cairo Bike Park, though there’s no gondola and no lift. Just our shuttle, and 1,000 metres of vertical on every run.
Trails with a race record
These trails aren’t a tourist invention. They’ve hosted the third round of the Copa Nacional de Enduro Colombia (August 2019), a round of the Copa Colombia de Enduro (2022), and an avalanche race in 2024. This is where Colombian enduro and downhill riders come to ride.
There are three: Carpintería, Trapiche and Las Eses. We ride each at least once, then you choose which ones to lap. We’ve done days as short as two runs and as long as seven.
What you’re riding
Long, steep, narrow, technical. Endless switchbacks; this is a cornering education. No jumps, no drops, no bike-park berms. Old-school singletrack that descends through mango, avocado, cacao and sugarcane plantations, and in harvest season we stop and eat what’s hanging.
It doesn’t demand much pedalling. It demands upper-body strength, braking control, and body language. It’s hot and humid down there, so drink constantly.
The riding is only half of it. We’ve built real relationships with the farming community of El Cairo over eight years, which is why we’re welcome on their land. On one trail, a farmer usually meets us with fresh juice squeezed from her own garden. And the day ends in the river.
New to descending? Start with our Arví Park trail tour and come back for this.
