Top 5 Utah trails

[Mtnbiker]

Ok so I've been in Utah just over a year now.. we've been able to hit some great trails and I'll give you my top 5, but I want to hear your top five too.

I have a buddy coming out in October for 10 days to ride as much as possible. I figure we'll be able to make 4 - 6 stops with one or more trails at each place, like Brian Head for example. (with a few recovery days hiking in the Swell and Zion)

If you could only ride 5 or 6 trails in Utah before being shipped off to Abu Dahbi in a cardboard box, which would they be?

Mine would be:
1) start at the tip top of Guardsmen, ride down Apex/Keystone, then back up to puke hill via Jupiter Bowl fire road. Ride the crest North, drop down onto Mid mountain and head back south toward Deer Valley. Finish in PC

2) Porcupine Rim, after riding the little known Upper Porcupine Singletrack.

3) Gooseberry!

4) Brian Head shuttle trails - Blow Hard, Bunker Creek, Dark Hollow.

5) Hurricane Rim/Gould's/JEM loop.

Have NOT ridden, but want to:
Virgin River Rim
Thunder Mountain
Portal/Poison Spider
Grafton Mesa
more St. George trails

Whatdya think, have any pictures of these?

[TreeHugger]

1. Virgin River Rim Trail
2. Brian Head downhills - Bunker Creek/Dark Hollow
3. Wasatch Crest Trail
4. Thunder Mountain
5. Sovereign Singletrack

[Shuntavi]

Okay, I am going to localize my top 5 to S.W. Utah. The ones we ride the most.

1. Gooseberry
2. Little Creek North and South
3. Guacamole
4. BrianHead (Blow Hard, Dark Hollow, etc.)
5. JEM and Virgin River Rim, Canal Trail

[Sombeech]

(with a few recovery days hiking in the Swell and Zion)

hiking during the recovery days. Man, you're really hitting it!

I know that whenever I plan a "tour" full of trails, my excitement is always bigger than my legs. I end up bailing out on the last trail(s).

But, if you guys are men enough to hit these trails, which you probably are, I wish you the best, and you'd better snap a ton of shots!

Rating my favorite trails may not be the best for your friend, as I've got strange taste. For example, maybe your friend has heard about Slickrock Trail all his life, and may want to experience it, but it may not make our top 5. OK, enough blabbin, here are my trails.

Gooseberry
Guacamole
Wasatch Crest
Thunder Mtn (have not done it either, but would love to)
Green Valley Loop

[live2ride]

I am going to stick with the Northern Utah Trails since I live up here and your question was "in Utah" These are some trails that have great climbs, awesome singletrack and you won't run into too many people.



Southern Skyline to Ben lomond or Lewis Peak

Ben Lomond (Northern Skyline)

Off/easy Day- Mueller Park

Art Nord (start at top of wheeler, ride up art nord for a warm up, hook onto greens pond, once you get into snowbasin trails, ride porcupine up to base of John Paul) Snowbasin.

I like your top five and everyone elses, no way can you go wrong with anyones!!!

Park City Mid mountain trail

[Mtnbiker]

That Guac trail is that good eh? Maybe I'll just have to go pre-ride it before he gets here. Sounds like fun. Is it green?

Hey Shuntavi, do you know of anyone in that area who might arrange a shuttle vehicle for us? We may have two vehicles but most likely just one and I'd love to hit Grafton. Are you the one who owns the shop there? I'll have to stop by if that's you.

And yeah SB I may just have to splurge on a 1GB card or something to hold all the pics I'll take, and bring plenty of MiniDV tapes. I'm such a picture whore

Live2Ride - you know what I forgot about Snowbasin. We rode the gondola last year several times and then took the forest service trails all the way down to the reservoir. That place is way up there on my list too!

[live2ride]

That Guac trail is that good eh? Maybe I'll just have to go pre-ride it before he gets here. Sounds like fun. Is it green?

Hey Shuntavi, do you know of anyone in that area who might arrange a shuttle vehicle for us? We may have two vehicles but most likely just one and I'd love to hit Grafton. Are you the one who owns the shop there? I'll have to stop by if that's you.

And yeah SB I may just have to splurge on a 1GB card or something to hold all the pics I'll take, and bring plenty of MiniDV tapes. I'm such a picture whore

Live2Ride - you know what I forgot about Snowbasin. We rode the gondola last year several times and then took the forest service trails all the way down to the reservoir. That place is way up there on my list too!

You let me know when you want to hit Snowbasin and I will gladly ride with you up there. I ride there at least 2-3 time a week during the summer and I love it. I was going to give you a holler because I was in Rock Springs 2 weeks ago but I noticed you were working (from the post on the moab trip)

[accadacca]

I will cheat and post my top three from another post.

Top Ten Utah Trails

A friend at the office gave me a free magazine that he got called Utah Health. It had an article about the top 10 Mt. Bike trails in Utah. I found it to be an interesting read. I located the website article. Have a look and list your top 3 in Utah. Here is mine:

1. Wasatch Crest: I believe this trail is around to 25 miles to the bottom of Mill Creek Canyon. The downhill is just plain sick on this trail. But the first climb to the towers really makes you earn it. We called it cardiac hill (others call it puke hill) growing up. Because if you made the climb without stopping you would feel like having an arrest. I would always gauge my shape by seeing if I could climb this hill at the beginning of the year.

Also a true test is if you can cross the "ribcage" as some call it. A rocky 40 ft long crossing above Dog Lake that will test your steering and balance. I have been told that I was "ridiculous" and other choice words by several bikers on the trail. When they see me cross this without stopping. Most people carry their bikes.

Then shooting the downhill and into Mill Creek Canyon is a blast as you blaze through two water crossings. Then dart between rocks and trees. It has to be one of the fastest trails around. And if you have big kahunas you take the bomb thru the trees at the beginning of the trail. Most come in from the bottom just below cardiac hill. The best route is from the top of guardsman

[Shuntavi]

Yeah, there are a lot of us that like to ride Grafton, if you want to do it on a Sat. morning I am sure someone would like to do it and help with the shuttle. Other days of the week there are a few that could swing it. Let me know and I will see what I can do. Give me or Mike a call at the shop 435-635-7328 www.shuntavi.com
Doug

That Guac trail is that good eh? Maybe I'll just have to go pre-ride it before he gets here. Sounds like fun. Is it green?

Hey Shuntavi, do you know of anyone in that area who might arrange a shuttle vehicle for us? We may have two vehicles but most likely just one and I'd love to hit Grafton. Are you the one who owns the shop there? I'll have to stop by if that's you.

And yeah SB I may just have to splurge on a 1GB card or something to hold all the pics I'll take, and bring plenty of MiniDV tapes. I'm such a picture whore

Live2Ride - you know what I forgot about Snowbasin. We rode the gondola last year several times and then took the forest service trails all the way down to the reservoir. That place is way up there on my list too!

[Sombeech]

I'm such a picture whore

We like picture whores here.

[derstuka]

Well, though I have tried to add to my list (see my Las Vegas thread about my rain delay in St George), I have only ridden 3 trials in Utah, all in Moab, Utah. Soooo, they are:

1. Slickrock
2. Amassa Back
3. Sovereign Trail

I loved all three of them, especially Slickrock and Amassa Back.