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WELCOME! If you arrived at this page directly, you may want to read the introductory page: Roger's Favorite Singletrack Mountain Bike Rides
Please realize that I am an older, strong, intermediate mountain biker with a passion for singletracks and am suggesting these trails to others such as myself. Please do not rely totally on my descriptions -- get maps and trail guides locally.
Suggestions for minimizing trail damage:
-do not let your tires slide when climbing, descending, or
turning.
-ride over water bars, not around them.
-avoid riding on wet trails.
-carry your bike over or around deep mud.
-ride under control so that you do not run off the edge of the
trail.
Two books are necessary for any visit to Arizona:
Fat Tire Tales And Trails by Cosmic Ray
Sarah is very helpful in leading one to the trailhead, but the
"junk cars and a old refrigerator riddled with bullet holes" are
gone. I just kept taking trails that headed southeast and eventually
ran across a sign stating that I was entering Walnut Canyon
Recreation Area. This led me to the bottom of Walnut Canyon and a
junction with the Arizona Trail. Make a left turn up to Fisher Point,
and enjoy mile after mile of mostly high quality singletrack.
(Occasionally you will be riding on dirt roads or doubletracks that
are being changed into singletracks.) The trail is well marked, and
takes you mostly downhill (with some steep ups and downs) from a
Ponderosa Pine forest to the high desert. You will pass several side
roads providing access to the trail. The last part of the trail is
smooth and fast and little used, and dumps you out on a frontage road
for the I-40 freeway. Turn right and ride up to the overpass. Ride
over the overpass (no, there isn't any water or food in the
vicinity!) and head for Flagstaff on the shoulder of I-40 for two
miles then take the Route 66 off ramp and keep pedaling uphill until
civilization (food and drink) are reached. Turn left on Interprise
and right on Butler and left on Lone Tree to head back to where you
started. I rode this trail on a weekend in June and ran across 4
people in the 12+ miles of singletrack!
This is one of the best set of singletracks that I have ridden! I just rode the dirt road up to the lookout, spent some time looking around up there, and then worked my way down and up and down and up and DOWN the single-tracks. The top was fairly technical in places. I walked some of the more technical ones... What I enjoyed most about these trails was that they passed through a fir/spruce/aspen forest. It is hard to find good singletracks passing through this kind of forest. Once the Schultz Creek Trail is begun, the riding surface becomes less technical, smoother, and faster. This is mountain bike heaven at its best! Even though I rode these trails in the middle of day on a Sunday in June, few people were encountered.
if you do a ride and enjoy it, please let the land manager know that you did enjoy it and that the existence of single-track trails is important to you! A small donation for trail maintenance and development might also be helpful! I will slowly add email and snail mail addresses and phone numbers of land managers of the trails that I have described so that you may more easily contact them.
Coconino National Forest
2323 East Greenlaw Lane
Flagstaff, Arizona 86004
(602)527-3600
Minimizing Trail Conflicts On Singletrack Trails
Minimizing Trail Impact On Singletrack Trails
Hints For Beginning Singletrackers
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