Bar M Loop

The Bar M Loop is a fairly easy ride technically. Elevation change is modest at about 300 feet. Many families ride this trail, including baby trailers and trail-a-bikes. (Occasional washouts and other erosion changes may occur -- ask for current conditions.) The loop is 8 miles long.

You can ride this trail either direction from the Bar M trailhead (named for the Bar M restaurant near the trailhead). Most do it counter-clockwise. I like clockwise -- I'm going slightly uphill for the interesting parts, so I can take more time to watch the scenery, then flying downhill after leaving the sandstone.

Despite its reputation as an "easy ride," the Bar M is definitely worth doing. Use it as an afternoon "quickie" or a recovery-day ride. Advanced riders will get their fill by branching off the Bar M onto the Moab Brand Trails.

There's only one spot on the trail that will make new riders nervous. At the far northeast corner of the loop, a singletrack takes you along the edge of the cliffs of Seven Mile Canyon. But you don't have to ride this singletrack, as there's an alternate dirt road that bypasses it. If you're riding with kids going clockwise, you might want to fork right just as you spot the canyon and stay on the doubletrack away from the cliff.

The "business side" (east half) of the trail hugs the border between red dirt and the top of the Entrada sandstone. There are a couple of spurs that take you to overlooks. Along the loop are connections to new trails. To the east are slickrock trails Circle O and Rockin A. On the south are tech singletracks Bar B, Deadman's Ridge, and Longbranch. On the west is the easy beginner singletrack Rusty Spur. Inside the Bar M loop are two singletrack loops, the easy Lazy-EZ and the intermediate North 40.

One popular riding option is to climb from Moab on the Old Highway 191 paved trail. After riding the Bar M, you bomb back to town the way you came. This makes a fairly quick 17-mile ride. The north end of the Bar M connects to the Sovereign ATV trail, which heads north to the Sovereign Singletrack mountain bike trail.

You'll notice a lot of agate lying around on the trail, as well as occasional volcanic cinders. You'll see the slope of the salt-dome anticline that, when it collapsed due to loss of the salt between two fault lines, produced the Moab Valley. This is an interesting ride geologically.

Several "shortcuts" go between the eastern and western half of the trail. There are little roads everywhere! But the trail is well-marked. Just follow the signs. At the southern end of the loop, you'll notice a lot of tires continuing straight where the trail does an "almost-180". These bikers were heading for the box canyon overlook, just a short distance south. It's worth taking the trip. After passing the canyon, double back. There's little of interest further south.

New slickrock and singletrack rides have been added since the original trail review. Together these make the "Moab Brand Trails," and include the Rockin A, Circle O, and Bar B.

This is great riding, with a lot of not-scary but challenging rock. For those who crave gnarly, there's Killer B and (less gnarly) Deadman's Ridge For those looking for mellow singletrack, try Rusty Spur or the Lazy-EZ loop. Experienced beginners can ride Circle O or North 40.