Gooseberry and JEM

[nelsonccc]

Jason and I did the Gooseberry Classic loop on friday and the JEM trail on saturday. Both days we we're pedaling by 8:30 and it was nice and chilly. On friday it was my first time to Gooseberry and it was a blast. A bit tough at times but pretty fun. Had to hike a bike thru quite a few sections. Jason got a flat new the junction with rattlesnake. When we first got there to the TH there wasn't a single other car but when we were coming back on the north rim we were passing people left and right and when we got back to the TH it was full of cars so I'm glad we got an early start.

JEM was amazing and I can't believe Jason lives right there in Hurricane and has never ridden this area. There is a deceptive amount of uphill involved in the JEM. Especially when you miss the turnoff and go up the road a mile too far. The singlerack coming back down was some of the funnest I've ever done. Again no one there when we started bu just passels of people on the way down. I was blown away by the beauty of the rim sections! Easy to get sucked into the VERTIGO. I wonder if anyone has ever fallen over the edge?

Overall we had a great time!

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[blueeyes]

So I am looking at your map and realize that I haven't rode all of JEM. I have done it twice as a downhill and once started from the bottom but rode the downhill route up. Just to make sure I am reading the map right you parked at the bottom and headed East out of the parking lot instead of West? Didi you go up the switchbacks that take you to HWY59?

Not sure if you have seen the single track just off HWY 9 towards Quail but it would be a nice quick ride to add to a day of biking on JEM or Goose. It is short sweet but keeps you on your toes. It is called Rhythm and Blues. It doesn't look like much but once you are riding it you better have good balance and the last section is pretty technical.

[accadacca]

Awesome. Yep, those are two classics. I have also wondered if anyone has lost control and went over the cliff.

[nelsonccc]

So I am looking at your map and realize that I haven't rode all of JEM. I have done it twice as a downhill and once started from the bottom but rode the downhill route up. Just to make sure I am reading the map right you parked at the bottom and headed East out of the parking lot instead of West? Didi you go up the switchbacks that take you to HWY59?

Not sure if you have seen the single track just off HWY 9 towards Quail but it would be a nice quick ride to add to a day of biking on JEM or Goose. It is short sweet but keeps you on your toes. It is called Rhythm and Blues. It doesn't look like much but once you are riding it you better have good balance and the last section is pretty technical.

Yep. We went back to the sheep bridge road and followed it for 2 miles and then branched off at a wash/road for another 4 miles. Most of the road was great. There is singletrack that branches off from the sides for a mile here and there. It's the old classic JEM loop. I read about it on Utahmountainbiking.com. We were looking for a 12-15 mile loop at the hurricane ridge. We didn't want to do the whole hurricane/gould/jem loop at 22 miles so we took the JEM classic. Way worth it. The old jeep 4x4 road switchbacks up to hwy 59 but I don't think that's what you're talking about.

[Sombeech]

Epic trails down there, best in the state. We're always lazy - I mean more resourceful with our time and do a shuttle on JEM.

[nelsonccc]

Epic trails down there, best in the state. We're always lazy - I mean more resourceful with our time and do a shuttle on JEM.

I fully support the "you value what you earn" approach. Plus I need all the cardio I can get. I routinely pick routes that are 50% work and 50% play just so I can get more of a work out, though I've been known to shuttle bootleg on the weekends! JEM wasn't that bad, it's just that we did 12 miles the day before and then we're doing all this uphill for jem and it was rough, but it is beautiful country.

Imagine how awesome it would be if they could somehow switchback up the backside from jem to the north rim at gooseberry! Pure awesomeness!

[REDFOX]

Looks like you had a great ride and took time for some pictures. My favorite routine for the mesa is to ride the south rim out to the point and then to ride back on the same trail to the hidden canyon turn off. I ride that back to the jeep road and then follow it to the parking lot. I did this same ride earlier this year with bogley up to the point. When they chose in my opinion a less scenic route, I went back on my tracks to ride hidden canyon. Since Redspecialized had never been there, I showed him other unique features of the mesa. We both went on to ride bearclaw poppy later that same afternoon. I would have liked to ride with you guys, but due to limited time, I mostly rode in the St. George area during the holiday.