Where could two newbies go for an amazing mountain biking adventure in April?
 

I have a week off in early April and I'm itching to spend it on a bike on a trail.

The thought of trail riding in open country really appeals to me. I live in the North and all our trails are basically tree tunnels. I'm thinking something like Moab but our free time is in early April. Is that too early for Moab?

What are some other places where I can find beginner to intermediate terrain? We are both experienced road bikers but new to off road. We would need rentals.

MTB for newbies.
 

Whistler might have some blue and green trails. Definitely Moab is a must. Sedona and Las Vegas have some good ones but not sure if they have beginners. Of course here in California we have TONS. Washington state has some good stuff too.
Like mtblhill suggested, BKXC is a good resource but he's way advanced in riding. Also check out Awesome MTB, Singletrack Sampler, Daily MTB Rider, MTBing Adventures, and MTBdropIn channels for US and Canada trails that they've ridden.

We have a million mountain bike areas around here. Santa Cruz is maybe the hub, you can demo a Santa Cruz or an Ibis right out of the factory. But there are definitely a ton of places all over the Bay Area and further inland. By April the winter is over and it's pretty dry although we do usually get one big late storm.

Arizona and Colorado are other places I'd look with very active communities of MTB'ers and lots of trails. Arizona has a lot of state trust land you can just explore in, whereas California is very strict about what's a MTB trail and what's a horse trail.

I was in the same boat a few years back and went to Las Vegas for a work convention and spent an afternoon riding mountain bike trails about a half hour out of the city. It was very scenic, good flowy trails for a roadie getting into mountain biking, and there was a bike shop that had great rentals -- I got an Ellsworth Epiphany for a reasonable day fee.

I can't compare it to many other places, so someone with more experience surely has a more informed view, but in terms of trip planning, LV is usually a pretty cheap and easy destination, and early spring would be a good time to go.

I called rimtours.com and they have a couple of trips planned but not yet confirmed (lack of committed riders). I'm going to check back at the end of the week. Are there similar outfits in California? Might be nice to fly into LA and do a bit of skateboarding then MTB. Or fly into San Francisco and fortify on crab and Anchor beer before heading out for a 3 day MTB tour.

I don't mind renting and doing day trips but the ideal for me is a supported 3 day camping trip in a fairly wild area.

I'm pretty sure there are similar outfits.

Squamish BC Canada
you can check out the trail maps on the SORCA web site

Mulberry Gap near Ellijay Georgia is supposed to be very nice. They have cabins, food, and guided rides if needed. The bike shop in Ellijay rents bikes. https://www.cartecaybikes.com/ Of if you want less rustic accommodations Blue Sky Cabin rentals has places all around Ellijay. We getting a Blue Sky Cabin for 8 days this year, but being from Florida we are waiting until summer when their temperatures are closer to what we are used to. In April average high is 69F average low 47F.

Dive right into bikepacking.
Of course I live for getting on the bike and heading out for a few days in the wilderness with all of my gear on my bike.

Moab is great, but may be a little rough for new riders. The trails around Albequerque NM are epic also.

Go to Moab! Tons of trails there, plenty of stuff to ride even if you're not the most experienced mountain biker. Scenery is absolutely epic everywhere you look out there.

Was going to recommend NM as well, ABQ and/or Santa Fe. Nice time of year, though you can get some cold and snow in April in SF as it's at 7,000 ft. But it melts that afternoon. Lots of options all thru that area, if it snows one morning in SF, head south an hour to ABQ.

TrailForks is good at showing where all the riding areas are as well as difficulty.

The northern NM area as well as the best food you will find in the southwest.

Haha, Squamish isn't exactly newbie territory. Blues are other people's blacks.

To the OP - - Kingdom Trails might be just the ticket and closer to you that a lot of other suggestions. Never been there but they bank their sell heavily on flowy, all-abilities-friendly trails.

At the moment, everything here in Santa Cruz is soaking wet.

It really depends how dry March is, but I wouldn't count on it this year.

Moab would be great. I've been before in April. Weather obviously can be variable, but at least the heat won't kill you.

Whistler won't be open in April. The goal for the mountain is to usually dig out lower mountain for a may 24 opening. Some of the xc stuff will be available lower in the valley, but they have had a good snow year unfortunately. Of all the areas this is likely the most range in trails from true greens to true double blacks. Since their focus is family adventure they need to be absolutely accurate in their ratings. Even then some of the greens are kind of nuts. I took some fit newbs out on lost lake trails and quickly realized just how technical those blues were. The skill jump between green and blue was kind of intense. :) Fun... and with some time they started to get it and look ahead and work the brakes instead of grabbing fistfuls, but it was a coaching session more than a riding session

"Vancouver" BC would be good, but slick and wet.

I happen to be in Sedona now, and it would be perfect in a month. The riding here is mostly blue to black riding, but I will be honest, the blues are pretty reasonable. Skywalker for example is a trail that is easy and I would gladly take my wife on. Lots of options in the "valley" too. You can progress as fast or slow as you like AND their is a tonne of bike rental options. Sedona partially rates on "exposure" vs the actual technical features. Taking sky walker again, it is easy, but one misstep to the left and whoops you fall. Its not that extreme but the rating is there.

Trailforks would be your friend in any west coast riding (West of Dallas), since the trails are updated frequently. East of dallas I think MTB project would be your friend.

Just a pre-warning, a blue trail on the north shore of Vancouver does NOT equal a blue trail in Scottsdale and does not equal a blue trail in Sedona. Definitely check out various you tube channels to see how technical the riding is so you don't end up in an area where the blues are so deep you end up over your head. I tend to get around quite a bit and speak to the rating system in my vids on my youtube channel Clydesdale Mountain bike. Mostly Dallas, all of BC, Arizona and some California biking. :) Its getting better with ratings being split between the climbability and the technical aspects. Makes my selection easier when I find a black climb, and green technicial. :)…

It would be a great way to learn what steep is pretty fast. Welcome to mountain biking, here is a rock face... :)