Tyson Swasey mountain biking on the Portal Trail, Moab, Utah.
THE MAG 7, AN EPIC DESERT RIDE!
Mag 7 is a series of trails linked together into one spectacular traverse. Trails include a variation of Getaway, Bull Run, Arth's Corner, Great Escape, Little Canyon, Gold Bar Rim, and the Portal. This point-to-point ride starts off with happy, flowy singletrack and ends on the Portal which is a ledgy, fast and fun experience. TOTAL MILES: 18
If you are not up for an epic you could do a Mag 5 version of this trail system. The easier and flower way is to ride Getaway, to Arth's or Great Escape, to Little Canyon and then exit out the Gemini Bridges Road, following signs to HWY 191 (14-ish miles). You can end here or link up with the Moab Brand Trails area for some extra credit adding on another 6-10ish miles (recommended) or you can just ride the bike path down toward town. This version makes the Mag 7 intermediate by avoiding Gold Bar and Portal (both advanced) and is still a point to point ride. TOTAL MILES:14-25
With this shuttle, you have the choice to stage your vehicle at the trailend if you don't want to ride back to town. We meet and load bikes at the Chile Pepper Bike Shop and then you can follow us with your car and park at one of three places depending if you choose the intermediate or advanced ride. Parking options are; at the bottom of the Portal Trail, at Courthouse Wash parking area just north of the Colorado River (recommended) or at the Moab Brands Trail.
Both ride options start at the intersection of Gemini Bridges Road and Hwy 313. Highway 313 is the road to Dead Horse State Park and the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands
This trail is in the thick of the desert and gets very hot in the summer so we shuttle here spring and fall only. We generally depart twice daily from the Chile Pepper Bike Shop at 8:30 and 10:30.
MOAB BRAND TRAILS
The best trails to warm up on or for newer mountain bikers include the Bar M doubletrack loop, Rusty Spur and Lazy/EZ. If you want to see what it is like to ride on all rock you can try the Circle O. While this isn't an easy trail, it is easier than the famous Slickrock trail and if done as an out and back you can get a good taste of what singletrack is like.
The easier trails aren't just for beginners, they are fun and great to warm up on. After getting your legs, try North 40, Maverick and Circle O. And if you are feeling techy and fit, try your bike handling skills on Deadman's. From here you can try Bar B, Long Branch and Killer B. While all of these are more advanced, there isn't anything too scary, no big jumps or drops and with the exception of Killer B, nothing too steep. If you are riding back to town, the most fun descent at the end of the day is, (in our opinion) Sidewinder.
The Moab Brand Trail/Bar M trail system is its own area and is located about 13 miles north of town off of Highway 191.
The Moab Brands Trails and the Mag 7 are on the same route and share the same bus. Your driver will have a list that indicates that you are going to the Brands but please make sure you load your bikes after all the Mag 7 folks have loaded as you will be dropped off first. After your ride you get to ride the beautiful bike path back to town. The path is paved and mostly downhill and takes about 30-40 minutes.
The Moab Brands/Bar M area is comprised of a bunch of trails and is great for the family, for a warm up ride, for your second ride of the day or in conjunction with the Mag 7. The terrain stays interesting as it covers slickrock, doubletrack and also a bunch of fun singletrack. You can loop away up here! Because of the variety, the Bar M is well suited to families or groups with different levels of riders as you can ride easy or hard trails and for an hour or hours and when you are done, ride the smooth downhill bike path back to town.
