While Moab didn’t invent mountain biking, it certainly has become a mecca for it, if not the capital. The Slickrock Trail reports more than 100,000 annual visitors alone. Here are some favorite trails, and why.
SLICKROCK TRAILS
Slickrock in Moab isn’t actually part of the Slick Rock layer, but is made of Navajo sandstone (but usually only geologists care about the difference). Instead it gets its name from the fact that its slick surface grabs ahold of bike tires and doesn’t let go — until, of course, it does, and then maybe it grabs ahold of your skin and, ouch, really doesn’t let go. If you manage to stay upright, you’re able to do all kinds of fun things, like go up a hill so steep you look like you’re nearly vertical, and then jump around on the bumps and cracks more effortlessly than if they were on a forest or dirt floor. Check out these slick slickrock spots.
Hidden Canyon North is one of my favorite places to play in Moab, a 6.8-mile, out-and-back trail on a four-wheel-drive road that links up endless slickrock. But don’t think of it as a trail so much as a series of playgrounds that are especially appealing for beginner/intermediate-level bikers looking to achieve better slickrock skills. At the end of the double-track — which features some shifty sand that can be a riding challenge — is an almost indescribably gorgeous canyon. Get there: Take U.S. 191 north of Moab for 18 miles. Turn left on Blue Hills Road and go 2.4 miles; stay to the right at Bartlett Wash. At 3.7 miles, turn left onto a dirt road. Keep to the left and at mile 4.4, pull into the parking lot on the right.
Slickrock Trail isn’t just a slickrock trail; it’s THE slickrock trail, the one that made Moab famous. The first time, it’s impossible not to just grin like a little kid the whole time, except that you should also be scared, well, witless, because one bad endo could scrape your face off. Take the practice loop, 0.8 of a mile to see what you’re made of before heading out to the real deal, 9.7 miles of steeps and deeps, dips and waves that in season sometimes require you to wait in line to get through. Smart riders walk the stuff they can’t bike, and in following the white directional dashes painted on the rock, know that the “easier” and “harder” options mostly refer to ultimately how much climbing you’ll be doing. Get there: From Main Street, take Center Street east 0.3 miles and go right on 400 West. Go to Mill Creek Drive (the well-known Dave’s Corner Market is there) and turn left. Go straight at the stop sign; you’re now on Sand Flats Road. Take it into the Sand Flats Recreational Area, where you will need to pay the $5 per vehicle fee, good for three days. They will give you a map to the trailhead.
Poison Spider Mesa is a classic, technical slickrock trail that runs 12.8 miles out and back, although most riders add the 2.5-mile singletrack Portal Trail to make it a loop. The beginning climb just about takes it all out of you, but that’s just the start of the fun, because then there are crazy sand traps and slickrock that’s as technical as it gets, and when you think it can’t get any tougher, the Portal has a skinny, rock-choked section that a lot of people just carry their bikes through. The payoffs? Killer views of the La Sal mountains, seriously buff muscles and major bragging rights. Get there: Take U.S. 191 north to Potash Road (Utah 279). Look for the end of the Portal Trail and park close to that (past the ruins).
SINGLETRACK
“Singletrack” refers to a trail that’s only slightly wider than the bike tire. There are quite a few trails in Moab that are some combination of singletrack, doubletrack (made from 4×4 roads) and sometimes also slickrock. “Sweet singletrack” is a common phrase thrown around when the trail is particularly fun, usually somewhat technical but not so hard that a strong intermediate can’t ride it, with good views, some climbing that offers a challenge but doesn’t kill you, and a downhill payoff.
Porcupine Rim is one of the sweetest of Moab singletracks, and offers a screaming downhill to boot. It is very technical, however, and by technical, we’re talking about stretches of incessant rock-hopping, ledges and teetering runs along exposed cliffs, some of this while moving rather briskly downhill. Don’t look. The trail is 15 miles long and very strenuous as a loop; many do it as a link to other rides or run a shuttle. Get there: Take 400 West out of Moab for 0.4 mile, then take a left on Mill Creek Drive (at Dave’s Corner Market). Go straight at the stop sign; you are now on Sand Flats Road. Continue up into Sand Flats Recreation Area and pay the fee ($5 per vehicle, good for three days). They will give you a map; the trailhead for Porcupine is 7 miles in.
Moonlight Meadow offers a gorgeous alpine ride with views of the La Sal mountains through aspens and then a steep, technical rock-jumper, as well as a pass by Clark Lake. The meadow about halfway in offers an unexpected hazard: Beware the cattle and their gifts, which will stay with you for a while. Get there: Take U.S. 191 south out of Moab to the sign for La Sal Loop Road and Ken’s Lake, about 8 miles. Turn left and drive 0.6 mile east to La Sal Loop Road, turn right, and go 12 miles to Geyser Pass Road (gravel). After 3 miles you’ll come to a turnoff and the trailhead.
Flat Iron Mesa is for beginners, the one families head to the first time out, a pretty dirt, gravel and sand trail that offers side options for those wanting to improve their skills, and a couple of spurs off the main trail to add mileage, which is 13 miles round-trip. Hatch and Kane Springs canyons are worthy, slightly more difficult add-ons. Get there: Take U.S. 191 20.8 miles south from Center Street at Main Street in Moab. You’ll see a sign for the trailhead on the right.
Kyle Wagner
