EMTB DESTINATION TOUR

HOWLER BIKE PARK | MISSOURI

THE MIDWEST’S BEST?

With the continued growth or eBike riders joining the fold, we continue to seek eMTB-friendly destinations and trails to ride. Our goal is to provide you with knowledge that alleviates the stress of planning your next mountain bike trip. In this series our crew will highlight some of the hidden gems we’ve come across in our search for the best electric mountain biking destinations and provide you with everything you need to know to enjoy your next eBike vacation to the fullest.

In this episode we’ve got the incredible up-and-coming mountain bike playground that is Howler Bike Park, located in southwest Missouri. If Howler sounds familiar, it’s because this special spot hosted our 2024 eMTB Shootout, providing a purposeful testing ground that was extremely fun to lap endlessly, even in the less-than-ideal weather conditions we were presented with last Spring. Not only did Howler provide the good times on the bike, but the awesome basecamp and comfortable accommodation offered us everything we needed to stay entertained, fed and well rested as we logged the hours testing and shooting for our biggest project of the year. And that’s no easy task.

We couldn’t be more appreciative of the support that Pivot Cycles and ABUS helmets and bike locks gave us this year to support the production of the latest season of our eMTB Destinations Tour series. It’s not just the excellent equipment they provide, but the contribution to our travel costs and keeping us fed and fueled up as we burn countless calories and gas exploring the country in search of awesome trails and people. Without them, this style of series wouldn’t be possible, and we think that would be a great shame. If you’d like to see more of this type of content and interviews showcasing the awesome people and trail groups as we travel, please consider joining our YouTube subscriber/member page as it directly goes towards funding more high quality productions.

This year we continued to enjoy the performance of the Pivot Shuttle LT (170mm front and rear) thanks to their versatile nature. Abus have kept us feeling safe with their excellent helmets, while their high-quality locks protected our bikes as we ate way too much roadside BBQ.

ABOUT HOWLER BIKE PARK

Howler Bike Park opened its doors to the mountain bike world in 2022, delivering a unique offering to the cycling community in southwest Missouri. Owned by the Penny family with Max Penny running operations with the support of his parents John and Jennifer, you can feel the family spirit running deep on the 200-acre Howler site. With everything you need on site, friendly staff throughout and one of the coolest hangout zones at the basecamp, you really feel like you’re welcomed into the family during your visit.

And what about the name? The Howler is a mythical creature said to roam the Ozark mountains. This bear-like beast makes up the theme for Howler Bike Park, with various logos and caricatures throughout the park. Sadly, we didn’t manage to spot the Howler roaming wild during our time at the park, but that’s not to say you won’t be more fortunate when you visit.

TRAILS AT HOWLER BIKE PARK

We wouldn’t vouch for an eMTB Destination if it didn’t have a selection of trails that met our high standards. Howler may not be blessed by great elevation, with the hills topping out at 400ft vert. However, what they’ve made from this limited elevation is very impressive, and most importantly excellent fun.

When we arrived at Howler, there were a range of eight descents starting from Peak 4 – the first of their four peaks to be built on. On this peak the trails range from the flowing green berms of Stroller Coaster to the huge freeride features on The Wizard and Taco Cat. We found ourselves lapping the more technical and chunkier Momo and Mustard Tiger trails over and over, with both offering some gravity-fed chunk and proper testing terrain for us to put our eMTBs to the test.

To satisfy our trail building desires and make our mark on this awesome mountain bike destination, we set about flagging and clearing the new “Howlin’ Wolf” trail on Peak 1 during our stay. We’re stoked to have had this trail accepted into their official trail system, offering a slightly different flavor to Howler’s typical trail style. We can’t wait to go back and ride it once it’s had some more abuse, as we think it’ll only get better and better with some tires down it! As the trails expand to cover Peak 1 and make it onto Peak 2 and Peak 3 in the future, Howler is going to have a serious amount of varied trail to go at.

Getting up the hill can be achieved in a couple of different ways. On an eBike, the “Say Uncle” climb trail made for a fast way to blast up to the top, taking around five minutes on turbo before we summited Peak 4. This climb is possible on a human-powered mountain bike, but we were certainly thankful for the assistance of the motor on the steeper pitches.

For those who aren’t blessed with an eBike, or looking to save their legs, Howler’s shuttle service is a comfortable and efficient way to get the laps in. The huge military 4×4 trucks are fitted with custom Kuat bike racks, getting 16 bikes and riders up the hill in quick time.

ACCOMMODATION AT HOWLER BIKE PARK

Howler offers a few different accommodation options for those looking to stay on site during their visit, catering to a variety of budgets and preferences.

If you’re looking for a glamping setup, there’s a choice of four luxurious tents that really provide the “glam.” They are built on separate wooden platforms that are nestled in the trees. Each feature two full-size beds with full duvet setups for high levels of comfort. They both have air conditioning and heating to get the temperature just right, as well as lighting and power outlets. On the deck there’s a seating area to relax after a long day on the hill.

Essentially a huge glamping tent, the Bunkhouse can sleep up to 16 people in four full-size bunk beds and offers all of the same comforts as the glamping tents.

If you’re less bothered by the glam, there are primitive campsites on offer to pitch a tent for the night. These use elevated wooden platforms to keep you dry and ensure you get a nice and flat pitch. If you’ve got a camper or RV, you can get a flat spot in their parking lot to spend the night.

All of these accommodation options are served by a newly built bathroom and shower setup in Basecamp, letting you get cleaned up after a day on the trails.

On site, the final and most luxurious option is the Hideout Apartment. Located in basecamp, this 700 sq ft apartment has all of the homely comforts you could ask for. We were very thankful to have the use of this apartment during our eMTB Shootout to use as a team base and ensure Drew’s snoring didn’t keep anyone else awake…Or maybe it was the Howler’s mating call?

OFF THE BIKE

ACTIVITIES AT HOWLER AND BRANSON, MISSOURI

With the weird and wonderful city of Branson just a seven-minute drive away, Howler Bike Park is a location we’d happily vouch for families and mixed groups of riders and non-riders to visit. And for those reading this without an eBike, Howler has you covered with their excellent shuttle service and a fleet of well-spec’d mountain bikes to let you enjoy their trails that span all levels of ability.

For the visitors who aren’t so excited by two wheels, Howler has a mile long, dog-friendly mellow hiking trail. Or if you’re thinking about giving mountain biking a try, they also offer lessons to get you rolling confidently.

The Growl Grill is located on site and offers a great mid or post-ride feed, with the chef rustling up some of the most delicious food we’ve ever eaten at a bike park. There’s also the Howler Coffee Shop serving up delicious barista-style coffee, delivering some quality espressos that obtained coffee aficionado Dusten’s nod of approval, through to the extra-sweet caramel macchiatos that fueled Drew through the week of eMTB testing during our visit.

If you’ve exhausted the excellent on-site catering options, Branson has a wide variety of excellent eateries to take your pick. We particularly enjoyed the “Gettin’ Basted” barbecue joint, and the pizza served at Ozark Mountain Pizza. And of course, to follow a good feed you should always check out dessert spots like Andy’s Frozen Custard. We went there twice because we’re fat, lazy eBikers afterall.

THE WOLF’S LAST WORD

We thoroughly enjoyed our time at Howler Bike Park, and speaking with the other riders it was clear that it’s not just us who can have a great time there. Just about everyone we spoke to was coming off the trails with a huge grin and dying to get back up for another lap.

Add that to the great accommodation offerings on site, and the entertainment and dining possibilities offered by nearby Branson, and we’d highly recommend adding Howler Bike Park to your hit list of eMTB and mountain bike destinations. In fact, with its close proximity to Bentonville, Arkansas, we’d almost say it’s a MUST HIT if you’re in the region and growing tired of what Bentonville has to offer.

Visit Howlerbikepark.com to learn more.

We’d like to thank Pivot Cycles, Abus Cycling for making our 2024 eMTB Destination Tour series happen and allowing us to help share eBike friendly locations to our readers. After having traveled long distances only to arrive and find out that eBikes are not welcome, we wanted to do what we could to prevent others from similar frustrations.

If you’d like to see us visit and share more places, please leave a comment or suggestion and consider joining our YouTube Subscription page so we can keep this series going!