The most mountainous state in the lower 48 isn't what you think, and its MTB trails are seriously underrated

Cave Lake State Park. Image appears courtesy: White Pine County Tourism and Recreation

What do you think the most mountainous state in the lower 48 is? Is it Colorado with its lofty 14,000-foot peaks? California, with the endless Sierra Nevada? While it depends a bit on how you define “mountainous,” actually, Nevada is often named the most mountainous state in the country, because it has more named mountain ranges than any other state in the contiguous U.S., with 314 named mountain ranges.

Nevada’s unique topography is known as “basin and range,” a landscape of alternating, roughly parallel mountain ranges and broad basins (valleys), formed when the Earth’s crust is stretched and broken along normal faults so some blocks rise and others drop. In actual practice, this means that when you’re driving across the state, you’ll find yourself constantly switching from climbing over rugged mountain ranges to traversing flat, arid deserts in between. The dichotomy is both jarring and inspiring, and it makes for a truly diverse landscape for mountain bikers.

While historically mountain bike trails in the state have been anchored by Las Vegas and the Reno/Tahoe area, in recent years, trail development has expanded too many smaller towns throughout the state. Even so, these two major metro areas still anchor the top five list.

Photos: Alex Silgalis and TAMBA

Tyrolian Downhill, Incline Village

The trail offerings near Lake Tahoe have exploded over the past decade, and one of the best new trails is the Tyrolian Downhill. This shuttleable downhill trail “is arguably one of Tahoe’s best,” according to local rider Alex Silgalis of LocalFreshies. “It combines easy access to above-alpine terrain, a pro-designed middle section by Cam Zink with optional jumps that get progressively bigger, and a lower third loaded with rock gardens, optional sidehits, and fast, flowy segments. It’s this mix of features that keeps my friends and me coming back to Tyrolian every summer, no question.”

If you string all of the various segments together and connect them with pieces of the Tahoe Rim Trail, the Tyrolian Downhill turns into a roughly 10-mile romp with about 700 feet of climbing and over 3,200 feet of superb descending. And if you’re looking for another new shuttle run for your list, be sure to hit the nearby Cap to Tahoe route, too.

Cowboy Trails, Las Vegas

The Cowboy Trails offer some of the highest-quality technical mountain biking in the Las Vegas Metro Area. The zone is formed by a series of sharp ridges and valleys, with technical lines dropping off the ridges back toward the trailhead. Popular descents include Boneshaker and Bomb Voyage, both of which earn double black diamond ratings on most maps.

Singletracks contributor Tim Wild raved about the Boneshaker trail. “Every turn, every rock garden, every hop and twist and change in position demands 100% concentration as it steeply picks its way down the side of the canyon. The effort required to keep both hands on the bars and soak up the impact of drops is intense.”

Even getting to the top is fun. “In all honesty, Kibbles and Bits is one of the most entertaining climbing trails I’ve ever ridden,” wrote Wild. “It’s over four miles of black technical trail with a 1,000-foot ascent, and I loved every bit of it. There are tiny cute cholla that nip at your ankles. There are foot-high rock ledges and natural spines just begging to be ridden over, and the black layer of lava washes over the top of the smoother rock underneath like the patterns of an Aboriginal painting. It’s challenging and beautiful, and I want to ride it again.”

Photo: Efrain Villalobos, Hollow Photography, courtesy BLTS

Peavine Mountain, Reno

Peavine Mountain is Reno’s go-to backyard trail system, but it’s so much more than just a quick after-work hit. Peavine has been developed by the Biggest Little Trail Stewardship (BLTS), Inc., over the past 18 years, and it now boasts over 55 miles of trails for all skill levels, from beginner to expert. “All the trails have spectacular views of the Reno community and the surrounding Sierra Nevada Mountains,” said Curtis Johnson, President of BLTS. In addition, the connected Sierra Vista Park offers an additional five miles of MTB-specific trails.

Over the last year and a half, BLTS has built three new trails totaling almost five miles of singletrack: Reno Vista, Hopper, and Golden Fleece. These new lines “offer world class flow trail and technical features,” according to Johnson. “We are in the process of building 12.9 miles of new trails that will expand the trail system to two more Reno neighborhoods on the north side of the mountain.”

Ice Plant Trail. Image appears courtesy: White Pine County Tourism and Recreation

Ward Mountain, Ely

Ward Mountain, located just south of the town of Ely, already boasts over 20 miles of singletrack. One standout trail is Ice Plant, a nearly four-mile descent that drops 1,400 feet that is now a downhill-only trail.

Now, a partnership between the Ely Ranger District, IMBA Trail Solutions, White Pine County, and the Great Basin Trail Stewardship is bringing nearly 18 more miles to the network. The project is backed by a $2 million grant secured by the US Forest Service through the Southern Nevada Land Public Management Act of 1998 (SNPLMA) and the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), and construction is already underway.

One of the first additions IMBA made to Ward Mountain is a climbing trail, offering a new route that gains over 1,000 feet in four miles, allowing Ice Plant to operate primarily as a downhill trail. Quite a bit of the additional mileage will also come in the form of intermediate trails, with the majority of the expansion around the existing trails. However, an advanced alpine trail will go a touch higher, heading toward Ward’s summit at around 8,200 feet.

Bootleg Canyon, Boulder City

Bootleg Canyon has long reigned as one of Nevada’s premier trail systems. This expansive network of singletrack provides everything from flowy trails for early intermediate riders to shuttle-served DH race tracks. This extensive singletrack offering and incredible diversity prompted the long-running Interbike bicycle industry tradeshow to host their Outdoor Demo here for many, many years.

Today, Bootleg Canyon might not offer the same allure as it once did, with so many other trails coming online across the state. At times, the trails here can begin to feel a bit old school, with the loose-over-hardpack tread wearing on riders.

And yet, you shouldn’t sleep on this iconic trail system, especially if you like technical, rocky testpieces. “This is the desert — sharp, jagged stones of all sizes, cliff faces scarred with deep red lines, and not a soft thing to fall into in any direction,” wrote Wild. “Mother is a black trail that goes from the very top of the trail system, and it looks and rides like someone made it lovely and smooth, then let an angry toddler smash it with a hammer. There are raspy, tire-ruining rocks of all sizes — some loose, and some that wouldn’t move no matter how hard you rammed a toe into them. It’s spicy to descend because you can never quite be sure if or when the ground’s going to ping out from underneath you, and the canyons below are waiting.” And Mother is just one of the many technical lines down the mountainside.