Two air opportunities on Mordor. Hit one or both. There's a big rock drop on the right and a launching lip on the left a bit further downhill.
Mordor DH TrailMordor is an expert-level descent from the top of Lonely Mountain to
Lower Riverview. At the time of this review, it's reached by climbing up
Lonely Mountain, but that will likely change as new trails are finished.
It crosses (and sometimes briefly joins)
Upper
Riverview,
Middle Earth, and the
Riverview doubletrack. Mordor includes some double-black optional
lines.
Mordor is 1.7 miles long, descending 700 vertical feet. It
originates on Lonely Mountain just above the Smaug Loop at 6550 feet
elevation. Mordor ends on Lower Potatoes just above the Lower Riverview
singletrack trail. The expected riding season will be early May through
October.
To reach Mordor via Chop'd Coyote and the top of Lonely Mountain,
you'll need to climb to 6900 feet elevation. This is the hard way to get
to Mordor.
Nice views from the top. Review by Bruce on June 3, 2022.
Hitting the UVU Connector to climb up above the canal, where Lower Riverview awaits.
UVU Trailhead
Most riders get to the Riverview area west-side trails from the UVU
Wasatch Campus trailhead. This is found on the far north end of Heber on
Highway 40, one mile south of the Highway 32 junction. At the UVU campus
entry, turn
east (toward the mountain). Go to the uppermost level of
parking behind the UVU buildings. Look for the duck-under and kiosk.
The UVU Connector trail climbs uphill from the trailhead to
the Upper Riverview (Rivendell) trail after 1.5 miles. On the way, it crosses the easy
rides on Lower
Riverview, the Riverview Doubletrack, and Middle Earth. (This trailhead is
also closest to Frodo's Playground and the beginner skills area trails at
Lower
Potatoes and
Isengard.)
Beginning the climb toward the top of Mordor on
the UVU Connector.
Looking
down the Riverview Connector toward the trailhead.
Riverview TrailheadOn US-40 north of Heber, turn east on Highway 32 and climb 1.1 miles. When you see the second entry into
Riverview on your left, note the gravel parking area on your right. That's
your spot.
Climb 0.3 miles up the connector,
then turn south on Riverview for 1.5 miles to Lonely Mountain and climb up
past the Smaug Loop.
The Coyote trailhead. Take the
singletrack east for connections to Coyote, Lower Riverview, Sheep Pen,
and Upper Riverview.
South Coyote Trailhead
You can get to Mordor from the Coyote
Trailhead in the south or the UVU Trailhead in the middle. Connect to
Middle Earth for the northbound trip and continue to the Upper
Potatoes/Lower Potatoes trail fork. Climb Upper Potatoes to Upper
Riverview and turn right. Pedal 0.3 miles to Lonely Mountain and climb one
mile to the Smaug Loop. Continue uphill to Mordor, on your right.
Navigation: The Journey to Mordor
UVU Connector and Riverview to Middle Mordor and Lonely
MountainClimb 1.5 miles on the UVU/Riverview Connector trail, crossing Lower
Riverview and Middle Earth. When you reach Upper Riverview, fork left to head north.
Arriving at Upper Riverview on the UVU Connector trail. Left turn here.
Take a
minute to enjoy the scenery!
After pedaling north and uphill for 1.1 miles, Mordor crosses
to start the Middle Mordor trail section. If you don't want to do the
short version, keep straight on Riverview and go to mile 1.5 from the
UVU Connector -- mile 3 from the trailhead.
Skidder 1
will cross just before the Lonely Mountain trail fork. Continue another 50 feet along Riverview and turn right uphill
on Lonely Mountain. Pedal uphill just over one mile, passing both
connections to the Smaug Loop. As you reach the top of a small rise,
Mordor forks away to your right.
Climbing Lonely Mountain. Here we're looking west at
Timpanogos.
The "easy" drop-in. Three drops then a turn on a rock wall. The harder line is the chest-high diving board at mid-left.
Mordor is an expert-level one-way downhill trail with some double-black optional lines. It
consists of three segments: Upper Mordor from the ridgeline down to Upper Riverview, Middle
Mordor from Upper Riverview to Middle Earth, and Lower Mordor from Middle Earth to Lower Riverview.
Mordor is 1.7 miles long, dropping 700 vertical feet. That's a respectable rate of descent.
Add the many engineered and natural challenges, and it makes Mordor a legit DH.
Roaring downhill into some table jumps.
A couple of rocks coming up. Rollover or straight-up drop? Who knows.
Upper Mordor is 0.6 miles from the top of Lonely Mountain to Upper Riverview. You'll drop 250
vertical. After the attention-getting drop-in, there are some optional rock stunts and table
jumps.
The final bit of Upper Mordor is an insane plunge through tight wiggles in a ravine. Veer left
at the bottom to find Middle Mordor on the other side of Riverview.
Gravity drags us relentlessly down the ravine. No stopping here.
Mellower section. A couple of bumps then a jump, then another jump.
Middle Mordor has some "cruiser" sections mixed with challenges. There are several A/B splits.
Usually you can see the easier route as you approach, but not always. A slower "scouting" run
really helps. It's not that hard to climb back up and hit it again.
We're well into an optional line before we see the rock drop ahead. Not too bad, but there's a turn as soon as you land.
And a bit further down the alternate line, we find this little jewel. Gotta keep some speed and hope your line holds.
The left line comes to a hip-high drop.
The ride alternates between open sage with views and maple-oak forest. Some additional stunts
and optional lines are still under construction.
When the trail hits Middle Earth, keep left, and after about 30 feet you'll see the entry to
Lower Mordor dropping downhill to the right. During this uppermost segment of Lower Mordor
(between Middle Earth and the doubletrack), the trail swoops around with few challenges.
Middle Mordor joins Middle Earth southbound for a few feet before turning off to the right as Lower Mordor.
This little beauty is a rim-bender. Hmm. Launch or roll?
Once you cross the Riverview Doubletrack, the trail's character changes. Now you're on hand-built
track in the bottom of a wash. There are plenty of alternate lines, and some of them are spooky.
Rock challenges are constant, and decisions about where to put your tires come quickly.
At the bottom of Mordor, you'll join Lower Potatoes. Watch for beginners and keep straight
as the trail turns south and joins Lower Riverview. You're done!
Almost there. Not quite so steep now, but still pretty tricky.
Map of the Mordor/Isengard area
Getting there!UVU Wasatch Campus trailhead: One mile south
of the junction of Highway 40 and 32, turn east (toward the mountain) at
the UVU campus. Northbound from Utah County, the UVU campus is a couple of miles
north of Heber's business area. Go to the uppermost level of parking behind the UVU
buildings and look for the step-over and kiosk. The singletrack UVU
Connector trail climbs to Lower Riverview at mile 0.2 and Middle Earth at
mile 0.7, then continues to the Riverview Trail at mile 1.6.
Coyote Lane trailhead: On US-40 just north of Heber, turn east on Coyote Lane.
Just after the road crosses a canal, turn left into the parking lot. The
singletrack starts at the northeast corner at the step-over, where you'll
also find a repair stand and a kiosk with a trail map. The Coyote
singletrack takes you uphill, where you can connect to Riverview after
climbing 2.1 miles. You can also connect northbound via the Riverview
Doubletrack and Lower Riverview trail or the Sheep Pen and Middle Earth
trails. (NOTE: There is subdivision construction in the Coyote Lane
area in 2022, which may affect your access plans. The trails below the
Riverview Doubletrack are closed at this time.)
Upper Riverview Trailhead:
From Salt Lake, take I-80 eastbound to Silver Creek Junction (just
past Park City). Go south on US-40, past the Jordanelle reservoir and
descend past the dam. At the traffic light at mile 14.2 from I-80, turn
left on 32 and climb 1.1 miles. When you see the second entry into the Riverview
subdivision on your left, note the gravel parking area on your right. That's
your spot.
From Utah County, drive up Provo Canyon to Heber. At the traffic
light on US-189/US-40, turn left and drive north through Heber. 4.7 miles
from the intersection, turn right on Highway 32 and climb 1.1 miles to the
parking area as above.Canal DT trailhead:
Just uphill from the light on highway 32, watch
for the canal crossing. Park along the road. Start riding south on the
doubletrack just uphill from the canal.
Cutthroat (Highway 32) Trailhead:
Drive up
Highway 32 four miles. Look for a gravel road on the right side N40 35.430 W111 23.389. You can
park along the road and clamber over the fence near the (locked) gate.
Ride uphill on doubletrack and find the singletrack on your left about 100
yards uphill. You'll reach the fork that starts the Coyote Loop 1/2 mile from the
highway.
Bathrooms: No public restrooms nearby.
Water: Gas stations in Heber, campgrounds.
Camping:
Hailstone campground at Jordanelle on US-40, about 6 miles away.
Bike services: Slim and Knobby's
bike shop, Heber
