The Raptor Route offers a more forgiving way to finish The Whole Enchilada, arguably Moab’s most legendary mountain bike ride. This alternative ending swaps the demanding technical challenge of Porcupine Rim for 11 miles of swooping singletrack. Comprised of four different stages — Eagle Eye, Hawks Glide, Falcon Flow, and Kestrel Run — the route drops riders through exposed slickrock, pinon forests, and grasslands with breathtaking views the entire way down. While Porcupine Rim saves its most brutal riding for the end when you’re already exhausted and dehydrated, the Raptor Route eases off the gas as you tire out, making it a safer alternative that’s designed to reduce the number of Search and Rescue callouts in the area.
Even without tackling the Whole Enchilada, the Raptor Route stands on its own as a fantastic shuttle or loop ride, delivering the quintessential Moab experience of narrow singletrack punctuated by slickrock features and optional hucks. Unfortunately, to loop these trails, riders have to climb the steep Sand Flats road. In addition to a sometimes brutal grade, a constant stream of side-by-side traffic dusts out riders and churns the fragile road surface into a sand pit, which can make pedaling impossible in spots.
“Throughout the whole Raptor Route system, there’s been a number of reported collisions and near-miss incidents with people and two-way traffic.”
Tyson Swasey, Operations Manager for Grand County Active Transportation and Trails
To make matters more complicated, all of these trails are technically designated as two-way trails, even though they were designed as a cohesive route off the Whole Enchilada. Falcon Flow, in particular, is a rolling trail with climbs in both directions, and some riders have taken to pedaling it as an out-and-back.
“Throughout the whole Raptor Route system, there’s been a number of reported collisions and near-miss incidents with people and two-way traffic, due to the nature of the trail — it’s in pinon juniper forest, so sight lines are limited in a lot of places — and the way the trail was designed, it was designed to be pretty fast,” said Tyson Swasey, Operations Manager for Grand County Active Transportation and Trails (GCATT).
“The whole thing really should be one way,” Swasey continued. “I mean, top to bottom, but because it was put into the system as a dual directional trail, we tried to make that work.”
A new climbing trail is coming to Moab
To address the safety concerns and general suck factor of riding Sand Flats road, GCATT is about to begin construction on a new climbing trail, dubbed “Falcon Climb.”
The new trail will measure 3.75 miles long and will begin at the existing Falcon Flow trailhead at the bottom, then climb to the top. The trail stays on the north side of Sand Flats Road (the same side as Falcon Flow), so riders won’t have to contend with traffic crossings.
“People can also use this if they’re going up to maybe do Hawks Glide, or even all the way up to Eagle Eye, or even feeling like Porcupine Rim from town, which is common,” Swasey continued.
Swasey said that the new climb will be beginner/intermediate friendly and offer classic Moab singletrack flavor, with some stretches traversing sandy areas before transitioning to slickrock slabs. There won’t be any intentional ledges or step-ups, and it will offer a 5% average grade.
Falcon Flow will soon be downhill-only
The new 3.75-mile singletrack climb will replace 2.6 miles of road climbing, meaning the trail will provide a lower, more pedalable grade. That said, the existing Falcon Flow trail measures five miles long. Of all of the segments of Raptor Route, Falcon Flow is one of the most pedally, with over 300 feet of climbing in the “downhill” direction.
While some riders might be tempted to take the newer, more direct trail down the mountain, according to Swasey, once the climbing trail is complete, Falcon Flow will be designated downhill-only and the new Falcon Climb will be uphill-only.
“Making this loop one-way will significantly reduce user interactions on the trail, which will improve the flow and make it feel less congested,” said Swasey. “It will also enhance safety on the higher-speed sections of Falcon Flow and minimize off-trail impacts that result from two-way passing.”
Construction on Falcon Climb will begin soon
GCATT currently has 5-7 seasonal in-house trail builders, plus two full-time staff members and Swasey, who also works seasonally. GCATT plans to build the new climbing trail with its own crew and local volunteers, and construction is set to begin in early November.
“We need to have it completed by the end of February, [because of] a raptor and migratory bird closure for new construction” in the area, Swasey clarified. He hopes that construction will be completed before the seasonal closure and that the new trail will open to the public in Spring 2026.
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