Meat Sweats
49°22′ N 123°11′ WCypress and Black Mountain
Meat Sweats suits riders at home on the rooty descents of Vancouver's North Shore who want a freshly maintained trail on Cypress Mountain's lower slopes in West Vancouver. No land manager publishes a difficulty rating for it, so ride it first with someone who knows it.
Photo footloosiety · Flickr · CC BY 2.0
The North Shore Mountain Bike Association (NSMBA) looks after several trails on Cypress while it helps builders and land managers sanction the existing network, and Meat Sweats is on its list with OneUp Components as its Trail Adoption Plan partner. In the NSMBA's fall 2026 trail update the Cypress crew raked it top to bottom and cleaned out the drains. They added grade reversals, improved the riders-left line over the root drop, pulled out pedal-catching roots and rock-armoured several high-wear sections.
OpenStreetMap draws Meat Sweats as a one-way descent from West Lake Road down to Cypress Bowl Road. The Cypress East Climb Trail and Stupid Grouse meet it at the bottom. The Mountain Bike Hall of Fame's 2015 page on the North Shore trail builders says Todd "Digger" Fiander claims he first built a ladder bridge into a trail in 1984, when he crossed a swampy section of The Big I on Cypress Mountain. The page calls that bridge the catalyst for his trademark style of building.
Worth knowing
- BC Parks has barred cyclists from Cypress Bowl Road since 13 July 2026 while crews repave 12 km of it, and it expects the work to finish by the end of October 2026 (checked 16 October 2026).
- Inside Cypress Provincial Park, BC Parks allows bicycles on park roads only, so know where the park boundary runs before you ride the upper slopes.
- Leave a trip plan with a friend and carry North Shore Rescue's 10 essentials. If someone gets hurt or lost, call 911 early.
Quick answers about Meat Sweats
How hard is Meat Sweats on Cypress?
No land manager or trail association publishes a difficulty rating for Meat Sweats. The NSMBA's 2026 work notes mention a root drop with a riders-left line, so expect technical North Shore riding.
Can I ride up Cypress Bowl Road to reach Meat Sweats?
No. BC Parks has kept cyclists off Cypress Bowl Road since 13 July 2026 for 12 km of repaving, and it expects the work to finish by the end of October 2026.
Who looks after Meat Sweats?
The NSMBA's Cypress crew maintains Meat Sweats, and OneUp Components backs it through the NSMBA's Trail Adoption Plan.
Where is Meat Sweats?
Meat Sweats is on Cypress and Black Mountain.
Can you hike Meat Sweats?
Meat Sweats is listed for riding only.
In the journal and guides
