View of the Heber Valley from Chop'd Coyote on June 5, 2015. Latest update July 15, 2024.
View of the Heber Valley from Chop'd Coyote on June 5, 2015. Latest update July 15, 2024.
Chop'd Coyote
with Stone Giants

The Chop'd Coyote and Stone Giants trails are found on the southwestern side of the Coyote riding area near Heber. Chop'd Coyote connects Upper Riverview (just south of the UVU Connector) to the Lonely Mountain Traverse trail and the Stone Giants trail. Stone Giants links the southern Coyote Trail to Chop'd Coyote at 7000 feet elevation.

This creates some fun loop options on the western side of the mountain. (In addition, Stone Giants offers an alternative path for the Coyote Loop -- plus a shortcut to the backside of the loop. See below.)

Chop'd Coyote was cut off by construction of a golf course in 2022. (When first opened for riding in 2015, Chop'd Coyote was a simple way of dividing the Coyote Loop into two smaller halves. It joined Upper Riverview directly to the back side of Coyote.) Now Stone Giants will take you from upper Chop'd Coyote to the southern side of Coyote for a loop ride. But this version of the Coyote Loop is only slighter shorter than the full classic loop.

I'm told you can still use Chop'd Coyote for a "half loop" ride, but you need to divert onto Stone Giants, then onto the Coyote Canyon doubletrack. This will take you to the old connection on the east side of the Coyote Loop.

Riding through a grove of tall oak on the best part of Chop'd Coyote -- which is now a golf course. RIP.
Riding through a grove of tall oak on the best part of Chop'd Coyote -- which is now a golf course. RIP.
Climbing further uphill on Chop'd Coyote after passing the connections to Lonely Mountain and Stone Giants.
Climbing further uphill on Chop'd Coyote after passing the connections to Lonely Mountain and Stone Giants.
You can still ride to the top of the hill as an out-and-back. There are nice views at the top. Done from the UVU trailhead, the out-and-back is 9.8 miles with 1700 vertical.

Most riders, however, will use Chop'd Coyote as part of a loop ride with either Stone Giants or Lonely Mountain.

Chop'd Coyote connects to Lonely Mountain (northbound) then Stone Giants (southbound) at mile 2.3 from Upper Riverview. Lonely Mountain offers a nice loop ride on the front side of the hill.

From Chop'd Coyote, Stone Giants traverses the hillside for two miles, ending on the southern side of the Coyote Loop. (See the map below.) If you go downhill from the intersection of Stone Giants with Coyote, it's 2.2 miles down to the fork between Upper Riverview and the Coyote trail.

Heading northeast on Stone Giants, with Timpanogos and Cascade Mountain across the Heber Valley.
Heading northeast on Stone Giants, with Timpanogos and Cascade Mountain across the Heber Valley.
View along Stone Giants heading south.
View along Stone Giants heading south.
Stone Giants can also create a shortcut that divides the Coyote Loop into two halves. At the midpoint of Stone Giants, riders can turn uphill onto the Coyote Lane doubletrack. In 1.2 miles the doubletrack will connect to the Coyote Loop on the eastern side of the golf course. (Obviously it's not as "clean" as the old half-loop route -- and I haven't personally checked out this portion of the Coyote Lane doubletrack since construction started -- but I was told it works.)
Recommended Trailheads
Bruce heads uphill from the UVU trailhead.
Bruce heads uphill from the UVU trailhead.

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.

Chop'd Coyote trail
The trail fork where Chop'd Coyote splits from Upper Riverview, looking north from Riverview.
The trail fork where Chop'd Coyote splits from Upper Riverview, looking north from Riverview.
Chop'd Coyote is a 3.7-mile trail that climbs from Rivendell (Upper Riverview) at 6250 feet to a dead-end on the ridgeline at 7250 feet elevation. While it can be done as an out-and-back, most riders will use Chop'd Coyote as a climbing connection to Lonely Mountain or Stone Giants for loop rides.
Chop'd Coyote begins on Upper Riverview. Climb 1.6 miles from the UVU trailhead on the UVU Connector trail. Turn right (south) onto Upper Riverview. Now pedal 0.4 miles south and find the bottom of Chop'd Coyote. Turn hard left onto Chop'd Coyote and begin climbing the hill.
Rolling off Rivendell onto Chop'd Coyote.
Rolling off Rivendell onto Chop'd Coyote.
Terrain on the west side of the hill -- mostly sage, a bit of oak, and cactus on the lower elevations.
Terrain on the west side of the hill -- mostly sage, a bit of oak, and cactus on the lower elevations.

The terrain is mostly sage brush with small stands of short gambel oak. The slope is sun-exposed after early morning, and tends to get hot in summer. As the trail zigzags cross the mountain face, there are constant views of the Heber Valley.

The trail is machine excavated, so it's broad and climbs at a gentle rate. Most turns have been worked so they're smooth and flow well for climbing. But there are some tight switchback-style turns on the steeper slopes that are difficult to clean. Downhill, they don't allow speed, and sometimes lack a decent run-out. Chop'd Coyote is not a high-speed descender, so for loop rides most bikers would use it as the climbing side of their loop.
Handlebar view while descending, looking west toward Cascade Mountain and Timpanogos.
Handlebar view while descending, looking west toward Cascade Mountain and Timpanogos.
High on the mountain, with Timpanogos and the Heber valley below.
High on the mountain, with Timpanogos and the Heber valley below.
In 2024, there are two connecting trails to upper Chop'd Coyote. The top of Lonely Mountain forks away from Chop'd Coyote at 2.2 miles from Upper Riverview. Lonely Mountain keeps straight while Chop'd Coyote turns 180 degrees to the right.
Lonely Mountain can take you down to Mordor for an expert-level continued descent or further down to Riverview and Upper Potatoes for an intermediate downhill.
There's a bit of embedded rock in the riding line, but overall the climb is fairly smooth.
There's a bit of embedded rock in the riding line, but overall the climb is fairly smooth.
View from the top: looking across the Heber Valley toward Deer Creek and Provo Canyon in October.
View from the top: looking across the Heber Valley toward Deer Creek and Provo Canyon in October.
At the next uphill turn of Chop'd Coyote (mile 2.3), you can keep to the right on Stone Giants, while Chop'd Coyote turns hard left here. Stone Giants takes you 0.8 miles to the Coyote Lane road, or 1.9 miles to the Coyote trail on the southern side of the Coyote Loop.
If you stay on Chop'd Coyote, you can climb another 1.3 miles and 350 vertical feet to end at the construction zone. (I have no information on whether the top of the trail will connect across or around the golf course at some time in the future.)
View from the top: looking across the Heber Valley toward Deer Creek and Provo Canyon in October.
View from the top: looking across the Heber Valley toward Deer Creek and Provo Canyon in October.
Stone Giants trail
Stone Giants generally contours the hillside, with short ups and downs.
Stone Giants generally contours the hillside, with short ups and downs.
Stone Giants is a two-way trail that links Chop'd Coyote to the Coyote trail on the upper west side of the mountain. It runs at around 7000 feet elevation. Stone Giants is 1.9 miles long and is essentially a traversing trail. There are some quick up-and-downs, but it's mostly fairly flat. The trail gains 100 vertical feet when riding north to south.
Southbound:
On the northern end, Stone Giants begins at mile 2.3 of Chop'd Coyote, just one switchback turn uphill from the trail fork with Lonely Mountain. Keep straight at this turn to start Stone Giants southbound at 6950 feet elevation.
View to the west from Stone Giants.
View to the west from Stone Giants.
Bruce passes a "stone giant" as he approaches Tom Bombadil.
Bruce passes a "stone giant" as he approaches Tom Bombadil.
At mile 0.6 from Chop'd Coyote, keep uphill and left as the DH trail Tom Bombadil forks downhill to the right. (Tom Bombadil is a popular destination for those who've climbed up to Stone Giants.)
At mile 0.6 from Chop'd Coyote, keep uphill and left as an under-construction trail forks downhill to the right.
Arriving at the Coyote Lane cross-over when heading south -- riding from Chop'd Coyote to the Coyote trail.
Arriving at the Coyote Lane cross-over when heading south -- riding from Chop'd Coyote to the Coyote trail.
Looking up the doubletrack Coyote Lane from the cross-over.
Looking up the doubletrack Coyote Lane from the cross-over.
If you turn uphill on the doubletrack here, you can reach the eastern side of the Coyote Loop in 1.2 miles. Or so I was told. Since the construction of the golf course started, I haven't pedaled this section of road to be sure you can still get through.
From the Coyote Lane crossing, Stone Giants continues south for another mile. You'll pass a lot of Stone Giants.
Meandering past lichen-covered outcrops of igneous rock.
Meandering past lichen-covered outcrops of igneous rock.
Arriving at the Coyote trail.
Arriving at the Coyote trail.
You'll reach the Coyote trail as it makes a switchback turn. Keep to the right and downhill if you're making a short front-side loop. If you go uphill to the left, you're committed to the Coyote Loop ride, with lots of miles and quite a bit more climbing.
Northbound:
To ride Stone Giants from the south, climb the Coyote trail uphill to mile 2.2 from the Upper Riverview trail fork, which is mile 3.2 from the Sheep Pen fork. (See the map!) At an elevation of 7050, keep straight onto Stone Giants as Coyote makes an uphill switchback to the right.
On the Coyote trail climbing uphill, we've reached the trail fork for Stone Giants, which is straight ahead. Coyote turns 180 degrees to the right.
On the Coyote trail climbing uphill, we've reached the trail fork for Stone Giants, which is straight ahead. Coyote turns 180 degrees to the right.
Rolling through the giant rocks northbound
Rolling through the giant rocks northbound
When riding this direction, you'll cross Coyote Lane at mile 1.1 and reach Chop'd Coyote at mile 1.9. If you're making a big loop that includes Lonely Mountain, head downhill at the intersection with Chop'd Coyote, then keep straight at the next fork to leave Chop'd Coyote and start the Lonely Mountain Traverse.

UVU Wasatch Campus Trailhead:
One mile south of the junction of Highway 40 and 32 (a couple of miles north of Heber), turn east (toward the mountain) at the UVU campus. Go to the uppermost level of parking behind the UVU buildings. Look for the duck-under and kiosk N40 32.798 W111 24.735. A singletrack trail climbs 1.5 miles to the Riverview Trail.

Isolated view of the front side of Coyote
Isolated view of the front side of Coyote

Trailhead options!

UVU Wasatch Campus Trailhead: One mile south of the junction of Highway 40 and 32 (a couple of miles north of Heber), turn east (toward the mountain) at the UVU campus. Go to the uppermost level of parking behind the UVU buildings. Look for the duck-under and kiosk. A singletrack trail climbs 1.5 miles to the Riverview Trail.

Wile E Canyon trailhead: The Wile E Canyon trailhead is located on the southern side of Highway 32, just over 4 miles from US-40. It's 1/10th mile east of the old Cutthroat trailhead (see below). There's room for about 8 cars here. From the parking lot, a connector trail takes you 120 yards uphill to the Wile E Canyon loop. To get to Beep Beep (or the Coyote Switchbacks or East Riverview), turn right at the trail fork, keep right at the next fork, then turn left onto the Coyote Riverview Connector trail as you approach the gravel road.

Coyote Riverview Connector trail (old Cutthroat): You can still connect through the old Cutthroat trailhead, although there's no longer a parking area here. For example, if the crowds have forced you to park where construction workers leave their vehicles along Highway 32, you can pedal to the gravel road to the new golf course leaves the highway, four miles east of US-40 and just east of the big rock-wall road-cut.

Puddy Tat parking: On Highway 3 around three miles from US-40, watch for a dirt road turning to the right in a huge sage meadow. There are a couple of buildings across Highway 32 at this spot. The parking spot is just through the fence, with a connection to Puddy Tat on the eastern side of parking. (This spot was still being worked on at the time of my review.)

Riverview trailhead: From US-40 just south of the Jordanelle reservoir, turn east at the traffic light onto Highwat 32 (at mile 14.2 from I-80 if you're coming from the north). On Highway 32, climb 1.1 miles. When you see the second entry into Riverview on your left and a road under construction to your right, the Riverview Connector trail starts on the uphill side of that road just after it leaves Highway 32. (In 2025, there's no longer protected parking here. It's unclear whether the trailhead will be restored when construction is complete.)

Coyote Trailhead: The southern Coyote trailhead has been lost to subdivision construction. Access to the southern side the trail system is in limbo, but some riders find their way through the construction zone by pedaling up the gravel Coyote Canyon road.

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.

Riding resources:
Lodging, camping, shops:   Links to area resources
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


Other Coyote area trail pages:
Riverview Trail page     Lower Riverview page          Coyote Loop page     Isengard/Mordor page     Chop'd Coyote page     Cutthroat (Wile E Coyote and Looney Tunes) page