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Mary's Loop / Horsethief Bench Mountain Bike Trail
Fruita, Colorado
MTB TRAIL STATS
Avg Rating:   |
22 trail reviews |
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Status: updated 3/21/11 by david_darling |
Difficulty:  Intermediate |
| Length: 8 miles | Global Rank: #Not yet ranked. |
| Tread: Other | Configuration: Network |
| Ridden: 229 | Wishlist: 39 |
| Avg. Speed: 5.66 mph | Avg. Time: 2hr 1min |
| Elevation Gain/Loss: +2,091/-2,154 ft |
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Description: Suggested route: Start by climbing the jeep road along the rim for 2 miles till you come to a small gate on the left for horsethief. Suggested to hike-a-bike the first time down to the trail. At the bottom of the decent, turn left and ride the loop clockwise. Upon returning to Mary's Loop, ride left to continue on Mary's. At 8 miles, you can return to the parking area using the frontage road or continue left to ride Steve's Trail and a 12.5 mile return on the frontage road. The network offers great fast singletrack, really technical sections and amazing views. A must ride in Fruita.
added on January 12, 2006 by 
SIMILAR TRAILS
Riders who liked this mountain bike trail also liked:Monarch Crest Trail in Salida
Phil's World in Cortez
Bergen Peak in Evergreen
Elk Meadow in Evergreen
TRAIL REVIEWS review this trail
reviewed by sugarfree135 on May 21, 2012
The wife and I rode this trail (horsethief) for the first time yesterday and I have to say it's an awesome ride. The climb up that's allegedly 2 miles only really feels like 1 and the technical parts of the trail are all doable yet challenging at the same time. The only negative i'd have to give this trail is on the last mile or so, It goes from fun to just climbing, hike a bike, and a dreary ride through some brush ending in more climbing lol Kind of like your typical action movie, great beginning and middle but a lacking ending :-P Overall though like I said this trail is very fun and challenging with some great views :-)
Similar Trail: lemon squeezer, moore fun
reviewed by grotegutj on September 24, 2011
Very fun trail, one of the best on the western slope, can be challenging in spots. Gravel, sand, and mostly sweet single track with some rocky drops.
reviewed by bryanwbass on August 22, 2011
I used to live in GJ and rode this trail System often. I'm in Texas now and miss it. I definitly suggest riding this trail system, and like others said DO NOT SKIP HORSETHIEF! And if you have the "minerals" try the ride down it!!
reviewed by kuala_tahan on May 6, 2011
Only rode Mary's, not Horsethief. Mary's is phenomenal, very reminiscent of Amasa Back in Moab. Technical in parts, fast singletrack in others, with a desert look and feel to it. Ride along the rim of a beautiful canyon for a while, get close to the edge sometimes. Awesome trail - rode Wrangler to Mary's to Moore Fun
Similar Trail: Amasa Back
reviewed by cmack819 on May 3, 2011
I just moved to Grand Junction almost a year ago. Growing up in Chicago and attending college in Nebraska, I did not even know what a true singletrack was like... I feel confident in saying that this trail can be poster child for trails on the Western Slope of Colorado, and the High Desert surrounding us. It provides a large amount of technical sections but allows for riders of all abilities to ride/hike. If for nothing else, I highly recommend this trail for the outstanding views of the Colorado River from above.
Similar Trail: Pet-E-Kes -> High Noon -> Raven's Ridge -> Kurt's Lane The Lunch Loops on Broadway Trail
reviewed by BUDDAH on March 28, 2011
sweet sweet and sweet!!! this trail was a blast to ride, rode it last year in October. Can you say perfect weather! My buddy rode the ledge drops and clear all but like the last10 feet. FUN FUN FUN except for the climb back up...
reviewed by maddslacker on March 15, 2011
This trail is pure high desert singletrack. All of the trails in this network are pretty similar: fast singletrack punctuated with technical features or rocks. The entrance into Horsethief Bench is a huge set of ledges. Bring a snack and a camera and watch people break themselves and their bikes attempting it!
reviewed by Haebe04(WSC) on January 24, 2011
Some great views and some technical desert riding
Similar Trail: Desert Trails
reviewed by tcbroncs on December 23, 2010
This is one of my favorite rides. If you go to Fruita, you need to ride this. It's not incredibly technical except for when you drop down into Horsethief from Mary's Loop, but the trail is just plain awesome.
reviewed by PaulMiller on July 12, 2010
Good climb up marys loop to warm up the legs.drop down to horsethief if you can! after that a intermediate ride alot of fun. Rated it more difficult unless you ride dow to horsethief then you can give it a very-extremely difficult 2-3' drops in some spots
* Review edited 7/12/2010
reviewed by jpk8888 on June 21, 2010
Horsethief is one of my favorite rides! Mary's loop is just OK compared to the other trails that Fruita has to offer. So I would say, if you know how to handle your bike do not ride Mary's and pass up Horsethief, you will be missing out on the best views and the most fun part. I usually just ride up the beginning of Mary's, do Horsethief and then come down Kramer's Cutoff, pretty fun downhill with some opportunities for big air. This will eliminate the 2 mile ride on the gravel road back to the car and leave you more time to explore more trails.
Similar Trail: Troy Built, Rustlers Loop (easy but fun), Handcuffs. (all at the same trail system)
reviewed by rich67 on May 11, 2009
Simply awesome. Scenery with nice technicals made for an outstanding ride.
reviewed by david_darling on May 7, 2009
Challenging and always fun. Horsethief Bench never fails to deliver a great time. Works well with combining various trails.
Similar Trail: All of Kokopelli Trail System
reviewed by arnolda14 on September 13, 2008
This is a really, really great trail and the views are some of the best of any trail I know. I plan to do this ride every time I visit Fruita (which is hopefully a lot). I gave it a black diamond rating because there are quite a few rocks bigger than 8" (not counting that infamous section that drops from Mary's). But it really feels more like a blue/black so regardless of your skill level, RIDE THIS TRAIL!! You can always walk the tough sections and the views are worth it.
reviewed by barc2703 on August 5, 2008
Great intermediate ride in Fruita, spectacular views, very fun trail, technical challenge but still a fast fun trail.
reviewed by barc2703 on May 19, 2008
Excellent example of what Western Colorado has to offer. A few exposed sections might scare of those with a fear of heights.
* Review edited 5/19/2008
reviewed by skibum on October 10, 2007
This is definitely a Fruita must-do. Much of Mary's is doubletrack, so it can be less interesting, but the singletrack parts are ultra sweet and the whole of Horsethief is fantastic. One of the best combinations of variety, scenery, swoopy fun and technical fun you will ever see.
Similar Trail: Anything in this or the 18 Road areas plus the Tabeguache area in Grand Junction
reviewed by dougsmith on September 23, 2007
I just rode Marys Loop. Most of the trail you could just get in the big ring and fly. There was some technical sections where I hiked a bike because I didn not want to take a tumble and fall into the Colorado river. Great, fast run with good views of the river.
Similar Trail: This is the only trail I rode in Fruita.
reviewed by Lancefan on December 2, 2006
Horsetheif is deffinitly the highlight of this trail, it has some technical spots and the vies from the edge looking in to the Colorado are breathtaking. P.S.: Laast time I rode this trail, I saw someone go down the descent into Horesetheif, it was insane.
reviewed by dauw on October 16, 2006
Good to great trail with excellent views of the Colorado River, and just enough techical to keep you on your toes.
reviewed by bonkedagain on January 14, 2006
R3 suggests hike-a-bike the *first* time you drop in to Horsethief??? I would suggest hike-a-bike *every* time, unless you are Hans Rey or something. Anyway, yup, this is an excellent trail. Also, instead of riding the frontage road back, stay on the top of the ridge and go east to the Moore Fun trail. A good grunt on the way up, with a fun and challenging technical ride on the way down -- way better than riding the road.
Similar Trail: Book Cliffs, Porcupine Rim
reviewed by Rebus on January 13, 2006
One of the trails that everyone I knew said "You HAVE to ride this trail." Every video you see of the Fruita area includes the Horsethief Bench trail drop-in. Mary's offers awesome scenery and great singletrack. Horsethief gives you technical challenges, sweet singletrack, and rock hopping. You also follow along a dried out creekbed that drops you deep in the canyons. What a great trail system!
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