We had no reservations for night one, so we found a spot at the dusty crowed, and small site (10' x10' tent spots), Slickrock Campground. We were both glad to escape that and move to Moab Valley RV, where Doug had reserved a cabin for our first few nights. That stay was made more enjoyable with the presence of 20-some cyclists from the Sacramento Cycling Club. One of their members had suggested a trip to Moab, and 20-some agreed to go. They made for pleasant conversations in the mornings and at the evening hot tub sessions.
Moab, the very word is almost intimidating to a casual mountain biker like myself but since long ago when John Arland taught me what I know about mountain biking, it has intrigued me. A day by day description follows.
Day 1 9 May 2010
48.6 miles 5:14 riding time
Court House Loop (Bar M/Coopers Ridge to Sovereign Trail and Arches National Park)
Doug had purchased Rider Mel’s Mountain Bike Guide to Moab which we’d use to plan our daily rides. Day 1's route took us over the bike bridge on the Colorado and north to Bar M Trail. The weaknesses of the book were soon evident- Bar M trail seemed to turn into Coopers Ridge trail- which our book didn’t even mention. When the trail turned south while the map showed it continued north, we knew something was wrong. Cooper’s Ridge trail went our direction, so we decided to try it. We soon met a couple that confirmed we were on the right path- Coopers Ridge and Bar M merged for a while- and those who put up the signs simply alternated signs for the two trails that temporarily overlapped. Our book also failed to mention the Sovereign Trails which we’d turn on next, but despite these flaws, the book remained our best asset for planning routes- it just left out a lot of detail and seemed out of date. Our route over single track and jeep trails took us into the back side of Arches National Park- with a lot to see. Traffic on the park’s highway was fairly heavy with no shoulder. A good source for pre-planning might be http://www.discovermoab.com/biking.htm, to select routes and then buy specific maps.
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| Doug climbing the abandoned road up to Willow Flats Rd |
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| Doug still climbing |
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| First view of the Arches |
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| Doug in front of an arch |
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| Doug at our cabin at Moab Valley RV which I was glad to switch to |
Day 2 10 May 2010
Porcupine Ridge
31.3 miles riding time 5:44
The ride through Arches National Park provided some nice trails and was a great introduction to the Moab area, but it isn’t what made Moab the destination for mountain bikers. Porcupine Ridge is much closer to that, and provided some challenge to my skills and my hard tail. The route took us up the steep Sand Flats Road where we met a mid-west guy all psyched up to be in Moab- he’d finagled this trip as an addition to his daughter’s college graduation somewhere in MT. This biker had bought his wife a new bike, but she didn’t know how to shift. Moab has something to offer almost anyone- but maybe not those learning to shift. While his wife slept in he’d just made his first Moab ride on “Practice Trail” somewhat misnamed. It’s more of test of one's skills on a short trail to verify the existence of the skills that might be needed in Moab than a beginner’s practice route. Practice Trail will come up again in this blog.
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| Steve where Porcupine Ridge Trail leaves Sand Flats Road |
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| Doug where the trail almost looks like a road |
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| Doug climbing- the trail is losing its road like appearance |
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| Steve enjoying the view at the top |
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| Doug - another view from the top |
About a mile from the bottom, the trail seemed to end as it crossed a deep ravine or side canyon, and after the ravine, there were many rock slides making it a more of a hike-a-bike down to the Colorado River, where we alternated between a bike path and the highway back to Moab.
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| Steve crossing the side canyon - photo by Doug |
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| Steve nearing the Colorado River |
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| The Colorado River is in view - photo by Doug |
Day 3 11 May 2010
Hurrah Pass toward Chicken Corners
51.2 miles 6:19 riding time
After yesterday's Porcupine Ridge, we decided to do something less technical- like primitive roads, Hurrah Pass. This took us down the Colorado River for a few miles before crossing a big steep ridge into a side canyon with some dramatic scenery. Down that draw for several miles and then back over Hurrah Pass to the Colorado River toward Chicken Corners. This put us in some sand- which surprisingly enough I enjoyed. This sand was course- and with some effort in a low gear could be ridden through. I should say I enjoyed small stretches of it- the 30 feet or so I could get through. I could feel the front and rear tires going separate ways, but with a quick effort in a low gear I could keep the bike upright and moving forward. This skill applies only to the course sand; I never learned to ride through the powdery sand found elsewhere. We turned around because it was getting late, but we had fought headwinds all the way down, and we’d have a rather rapid return with a strong tailwind. With the dramatic scenery and steep climbs, this was my favorite day.
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| Doug on the road |
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| Doug |
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| Steve at the top of Hurrah Pass |
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| Yes, the rocks are this red |
Day 4 12 May 2010
Fins &Things
30.3 miles 4:54 riding Time
I suppose the choice of this trail was my suggestion. It was up the Sand Flats Road to the beginning of Porcupine Ridge- but we’d descend instead of ascend. I found the first section a bit scary. The upper section of Fins & Things had the drops of Porcupine Ridge, but it was littered with loose dirt, sand, and rocks! Fortunately, that section didn’t last too long- the loose dirt was gone and the loose rocks decreased in number. The scenery wasn’t as dramatic as Porcupine Ridge, but the fixed rock formations were similar. Then we got to the lower section- where large slickrock dominated. Oddly, Doug didn’t like the slickrock at all. Some of it was steep we had to ride over large boulders and there were sand traps between them. Doug didn’t enjoy this terrain. He was slowing down, and at the steepest rock he declared it was too steep to even push up, so we walked around a large boulder looking for a less steep route over it, and then we couldn’t determine where we had been! On our behalf, there were trails up the boulders in every direction. Then we saw cyclists at the top of a boulder maybe a ½ mile away. Doug favored going cross country to meet them though there were plenty of ATV’s where we were. So it was cross-country to find moving cyclists in the desert! When we got there, they weren’t there, but others were. We were now somewhere in the middle of “Practice Trail”, that somewhat misnamed trailed we’d heard about on day 2. We were also very close to the lower end of Fins & Things where it meets Sand Flats Road. Knowing he was nearly out of the slick rock, Doug forgot his tiredness, and took off. It wasn’t long until I caught him in the parking lot. I enjoyed the slickrock though and would like to ride it again.
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| The top section of Fins & Things rides rough like the roughest sections of Porcupine Ridge, but it lacks that spectacular beauty. Steve not too far below the Porcupine Ridge trailhead- photo by Doug |
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| the desert view from the upper portion of Fins & Things |
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| Doug on the lower section of Fins & Thing when it gets into slickrock |
Day 5 13 May 2010
Two Tortoise Rock via Bar M & Coopers Ridge Trails
47.6 miles 6:30 riding time
Choosing routes is a bit of a challenge, but today we decided on Two Tortoise Rock- which would take us out of town on bike path and Bar M trails again, and then over a small mountain for more dramatic scenery. Most of the route was on dirt roads- with moderate traffic when we were used to almost none. At the point we met 15-20 pre-teens mountain biking (see photos) we turned up a steep road which deteriorated into more or less a jeep trail that did a circle and ended up back here again. About the mid point in the loop the trail deteriorated with a lot of sand and some of that slick rock I like. Nonetheless, there was too much sand for me, and Doug likes sand less than I do. We were both glad to finish the loop and be back on firm ground.
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| looking back at our route in |
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| the pre teens are arriving! |
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| view from somewhere on the loop |
Day 6 14 May 10
The Green River- Mineral Canyon Rd to Taylor’s Canyon
47.8 miles 5:15 riding time
Doug and I both prefer riding without motorized assist of any kind, but we’d decided on driving to where the Mineral Canyon Rd meets the highway. That left us with probably 12 to 15 miles of riding on smooth clay roads to the top of the canyon and a steep descent to the Green River, where we met several college age girls starting up this steep road. All were friendly except one who was a florescent red, probably 75 pounds overweight, and who refused to speak or even look us in the eye when greeted. The college boys were back on the Green River enjoying a swim. We asked the driver of their support vehicle how many he thought he’d be transporting to the top. It seems this was a class, and he was clear he wasn’t picking anyone up, though he predicted how many would have to push! Perhaps that non-speaking gal had gotten herself into more of a recreation course than she’d realized. We rode down the Green River to Taylor’s Canyon and tried crossing it and going up it. Both ways were too sandy, so we turned around. The college kids were gone by the time we reached the top of the grade, but we met an extended family there with many pre-teen kids planning on a 100 mile ride through the area over 4 days. The ride from the top back to the pickup was a bit dull, no big hills, no interesting sandstone formations, just a high plateau- 12 miles. It’s amazing how dramatic terrain can spoil a person, so 12 miles of plateau becomes boring!
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| the road down to the Colorado |
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| Doug speeding down to the Colorado River |
That night was different. The friendly mountain bike club from Sacramento was gone, and a rain storm arrived early in the evening, forcing us into our tents by 2000 hours.
Moab offers interesting riding for cyclists of almost any ability- though one needs to know how to shift before going! Porcupine Ridge started me thinking of a full suspension bike. I am set up for a Hut to Hut ride of a week through the mountain between Durango, CO and Moab later this year! It was 8 ½ hours of driving back to Boise. Maybe I’ll make this trip again! I returned in 2016.
See Doug's Blog:
Doug's Perspective part 1
Doug's Perspective part 2
Doug's excellent photos.
Return to Moab in 2016
Happy cycling for fun, fitness, and transportation!
Steve
