Best trails in early May

[tyreswapper]

Hi All,

I will be visiting the US from UK in early May this year for work in Dallas. I have a few days free to fly out and go biking somewhere, and would ideally like big mountain, high altitude, lift assisted singletrack. My research so far has concluded this will be difficult due to May being between seasons and there is likely to be snow around.

I am willing to do a 4hr flight max and need somewhere interesting enough to last 3 days. I prefer technical riding with good views, circa 20mile routes and mixed terrain. All this needs to be within a reasonable driving distance of an airport.

So far I have Angel Fire, Sedona, Colorado front range area and Park City, Utah area as possibilities.

Any recommendations greatfully appreciated, the more specific the better!

Many thanks,

Nick.

[Alvin Mullen]

Check mtbpark.com for other sites, but from what I see, Ski Apache in New Mexico, and Sunrise Park resort Arizona both open sometime in May for downhill mountain bikes.

[sissypants]

What about shuttling the Porcupine Rim Trail and the upper reaches as far as they are open?  Then hit the iconic Slickrock Trail, and a few of the other trails in Moab and Fruita, Colorado.  You will also enjoy seeing Arches and Canyonlands National Park and get the wilderness/desert experience.  Fly into Salt Lake City, rent a car, drive 4 hours, and rent a bike in Moab for 3-4 days.  You can even rent from the same company that does the shuttling, for convenience.  High-altitude singletrack will still be snowed over in most places, and as a Brit, you can’t miss the iconic American wilderness singletrack.  Utah is like no other place and the trails are world-famous and will not disappoint.

[tyreswapper]

Thanks for the replies. I have ridden the porc rim, slickrock, captain ahab etc a couple of years ago. As good as it is there and I will definitely go back, I would like to try somewhere else on this trip.

 

 

 

[John Fisch]

I’m confused.  You say you are ideally looking for “big mountain, high altitude, lift assisted singletrack” but then list Sedona and Colorado Front Range as likely spots when neither of those fit your ideal description.  And when you say “lift assisted singletrack,” are you looking for serious downhill biking or just singletrack that happens to be accessible by lift?

Lifts won’t be running at any high altitude, big mountains in early May, not even Angel Fire (which is itself neither big nor high by Rocky Mountain standards, although it does have highly regarded downhill trails).

If you want “technical riding with good views,”  and good conditions in early May, Sedona should be your number one choice.  Flying into phoenix is easy and it’s a short drive from there to Sedona.  Plenty there to keep you busy for three days.  Fruita is also excellent at that time and there’s a great variety of technical riding with good views there as well.  You should also consider Albuquerque, NM as well; it’s a quick flight from Dallas and there’s marvelous riding there.

 

Sedona itinerary:
Day 1- Highline/Baldwin loop (A great, sometimes technical introduction to the area)
Day 2- Hangover (infamously technical and beautiful)
Day 3- Chicken Point/Hogs/Llama (excellent mix of scenery and rocky fun)

Fruita itinerary:
Day 1- Kokopelli area trails (the funnest, most varied network in the area)
Day 2- Lunch Loops (serious tech scattered across numerous interconnected loops)
Day 3- Palisade Rim (challenging, ledgy climb, two great loops up top with awesome views, and a killer return descent)

Albuquerque itinerary:
Day 1- Otero Canyon (outstanding network with great variety in the attractive Manzanita Mountains, some tech along the way)
Day 2- White Mesa (very unique desert riding and scenery, but not highly technical)
Day 3- Faulty Trail (Faulty Trail-somewhat like Otero, but chunkier)

 

Colorado Front Range should be dry by then, but snow is always a possibility (year before last I had 11″ of fresh snow on my deck on Mothers Day (third Sunday in May)–and that was in Colorado Springs at only 6,000ft in elevation.  The mountain trails are higher.  Odds are good you’ll be okay, but no guarantees!
Day 1- Dakota Ridge/Matthew Winters Park (blocky, ledgy, techy goodness at a low enough altitude to facilitate acclimitization)
Day 2- Buffalo Creek (an hour’s drive into the mountains to a top rated network–be sure to hit Blackjack for the most serious tech)
Day 3- White Ranch (regional park typical of the area) or make the hour drive to Colorado Springs for oodles of tech at Palmer Park

 

 

 

 

[sissypants]

^^^You should do what John says, as always.  Every suggestion there is excellent!

Didn’t realize you’ve already been to Moab–you are well-traveled for being overseas!

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