Rolling up and down near the highest elevation of the loop. Review and photos by Bruce on August 30, 2024.
Bonanza Loop
The Bonanza Loop is new in 2024, constructed on nature conservancy land between Guardsman Pass and Empire Pass above Park City. The loop connects to the Park City trail system through the 9K Connector trail, and will connect to WOW (lower in Pine Canyon) through a trail under construction in fall 2024.
The loop circles the Bonanza Flat area at the top of Pine Canyon, just south
of the Empire Pass summit above Park City and east of Guardsman Pass at the top
of Big Cottonwood. The loop can be reached through Midway via Pine Canyon, from
the Salt Lake Valley via Big Cottonwood Canyon, or from Park City through the
Deer Valley area.
The singletrack through aspen and fir forest offers the feeling of old-fashioned riding between banked engineered sections.
Bruce descends the second half of the loop.
The top elevation on the loop is 9050 feet, with a low of 8650 where the loop
crosses the Pine Canyon Road (SR 222) at the bottom of the loop. The riding season
is July 1st through September 30th. (The loop closes for the winter on October 1st, but opens temporarily to fat bike riding once there's a good snowpack and the
trails are groomed.)
The Bonanza Loop is designed to ride counterclockwise. (Hikers can go either
direction.) The loop is 5.2 miles around, with 700 feet of elevation change over
the course of the loop. Overall, the trail would rank intermediate in
difficulty. Strong beginners will enjoy this loop if they hike over some
of the rock challenges.
Some rocks you must hit. Other rocks are optional trailside opportunities.
Trailhead and alternate access
Looking southwest at the Bonanza Flat trailhead from the 9K Connector trail.
Bonanza Flat trailhead
Most riders will start at the Bonanza Flat trailhead on Guardsman Road, 1/2 mile west of Empire Pass and 0.4 miles west of the Pine Canyon road intersection with the Guardsman Road. The trail entry is on the southwest side of the parking area, heading west into the grove of aspen trees. (The trail on the southeastern corner (just downhill from the toilet building) is the return path, while the trail going uphill across the road is the 9K connector trail.)
Most riders will start at the Bonanza Flat trailhead on Guardsman Road, 1/2 mile west of Empire Pass and 0.4 miles west of the Pine Canyon road intersection with the Guardsman Road. The trail entry is on the southwest side of the parking area, heading west into the grove of aspen trees. (The trail on the southeastern corner (just downhill from the toilet building) is the return path, while the trail going uphill across the road is the 9K connector trail.)
Note! If this trailhead is full, do NOT park along the road. You'll likely get a ticket. Find another trailhead and pedal to the loop.
Heading out from the Empire Pass parking area on the westbound doubletrack.
Empire Pass
The trail can be reached through the Empire Pass parking area. This is a very small trailhead, and will usually be full on weekends. Take the doubletrack west past the top of Corvair, then turn LEFT 0.1 miles after leaving the parking area. Descend to the west for 1/2 mile, crossing Guardsman Road to the Bonanza Flat trailhead.
The trail can be reached through the Empire Pass parking area. This is a very small trailhead, and will usually be full on weekends. Take the doubletrack west past the top of Corvair, then turn LEFT 0.1 miles after leaving the parking area. Descend to the west for 1/2 mile, crossing Guardsman Road to the Bonanza Flat trailhead.
There's also parking one mile downhill to the north of Empire Pass, where the Midmountain Trail crosses the Empire Pass road. You can climb Corvair, Tour des Suds, or Boulder to Empire Pass, then descend the 9K connector to Bonanza Flat.
Arriving at the upper WOW trailhead from downhill.
Upper WOW (SR 222) trailhead
The upper WOW trailhead will connect to the Bonanza Loop once the new connector trail is finished. But for now, you can park there (note that this requires you to pay the Wasatch Mountain State Park entry fee) and climb the road to the loop. This parking area is five miles up the Pine Canyon Road from the lower WOW parking. It's around 1.3 miles from this parking lot to where the Bonanza Loop crosses the Pine Canyon Road.
The upper WOW trailhead will connect to the Bonanza Loop once the new connector trail is finished. But for now, you can park there (note that this requires you to pay the Wasatch Mountain State Park entry fee) and climb the road to the loop. This parking area is five miles up the Pine Canyon Road from the lower WOW parking. It's around 1.3 miles from this parking lot to where the Bonanza Loop crosses the Pine Canyon Road.
Bonanza Loop
Exiting the parking area to begin the ride.
Go to the western side of the parking area and look for an
opening in the fence onto a cindered path along the downhill side of the parking lot. The singletrack will divert
downhill off of this cindered area heading westbound into a small grove of
aspen. This starts you on the Bonanza Loop heading counterclockwise (as
recommended).
Descend 0.4 miles on a singletrack trail that passes through
sage, low shrubs and grass, then cross Highway 222 (Pine Canyon Road) to
continue across Bonanza Flat.
You'll be crossing back over the Pine Canyon Road near the end of the loop, at mile 3.8.
Looking west as the trail meanders through Bonanza Flat.
Emerging from an aspen grove for more open views in the meadow.
After this initial descent, the trail will begin climbing
through groves of aspen, sage and wildflower meadows, and stands of fir.
The trail will wind up and down but with a general tendency to climb,
until it reaches a high of 9050 feet at 2.6 miles from the trailhead. Here
it begins a steady descent, although there's nothing to mark the
transition from up-and-down climbing to continuous descent.
The trail is a mix of smooth bench-cut dirt -- with
engineered banked turns --and hand-cut narrow singletrack with
aspen-dodging and occasional rock challenges. The loop is a good mix of
varied alpine terrain and different styles of riding, while generally
falling within the scope of a cross-country route.
Bruce climbs over a small rise.
Climbing uphill on smooth bench-cut dirt.
While there's only 400 feet of elevation difference between
the ride's highest and lowest spots, you'll do 700 vertical feet of
climbing to complete the loop. During the first half of the ride, climbing
and descending sections alternate as the trail trends uphill.
There are frequent beautiful views on this trail. All of
them will occur within the first half of the loop (assuming you're riding
counterclockwise). For the second half, you're riding in aspen forest. Pretty, but no epic mountain vistas.
At mile 2.6, around the loop's highest point, the Bonanza Loop is joined by a hiking trail on your right. Keep left to continue the loop.
Near the ride's highest point, we're looking west as we head toward fir forest.
Some rock roll-overs are trivial, such as this one, while others take a bit of skill.
The rock challenges should fall within the skill set of any
experienced intermediate rider. Some rocks are natural outcrops that
you'll need to cross, while others are pathways of artificially-placed
"paving" rock to help you get over an obstacle or cross a
ravine.
The major creeks and ravines have wooden bridges. In a
couple of spots, the trail turns quickly onto a bridge, which may cause
anxiety in beginning riders. Or any biker who lacks confidence holding a
riding line.
Jolene poses on a wooden bridge during the descending part of the loop. Photo by Kris.
Bruce heads through the aspens.
Once you've crossed the Pine Canyon Road again at mile 3.8,
you'll begin a steady climb on bench-cut trail until you reach the parking
lot's eastern side.
Kris attacks uphill and cleans the rocky outcrop.
Bottom Line!
This is a very fun trail that's surprisingly satisfying. Views are awesome and the riding mixes it up. Not boring. The five miles may not be enough to satisfy hard-core riders, but you can either do another lap or connect to loops in upper Park City.
Once the WOW connection is complete, there will be singletrack from the edge of Midway all the way to Empire Pass. Epic rides!
Getting there, Bonanza Flat trailhead
Most riders will start at the Bonanza Flat trailhead on Guardsman Road, 1/2 mile west of Empire Pass and 0.4 miles west of the Pine Canyon road intersection with the Guardsman Road. The trail entry is on the southwest side of the parking area, heading west into the grove of aspen trees. (The trail on the southeastern corner (just downhill from the toilet building) is the return path, while the trail going uphill across the road is the 9K connector trail.)
Most riders will start at the Bonanza Flat trailhead on Guardsman Road, 1/2 mile west of Empire Pass and 0.4 miles west of the Pine Canyon road intersection with the Guardsman Road. The trail entry is on the southwest side of the parking area, heading west into the grove of aspen trees. (The trail on the southeastern corner (just downhill from the toilet building) is the return path, while the trail going uphill across the road is the 9K connector trail.)
