Hurricane Rim Trail

The Hurricane Rim trail climbs to the cliffs over the Virgin River near Hurricane. It follows the deep canyon of the Virgin River east of Hurricane before ending on the JEM trail. The trail is 7.5 miles long with moderate climbing in either direction. Because there are sections with very rough surface, it's recommended for strong skilled riders.

This trailhead serves the Hurricane Rim and Gould's trails. Other trails in the system are reached via these trails. In Hurricane, turn south on US-59 (towards the Grand Canyon). Follow the road uphill 0.9 miles, then turn left into the trailhead parking near the cell phone towers. The Hurricane Rim trail exits the east (uphill) side of parking for a clockwise loop ride. The dirt road 0.2 miles back down U-59 takes you to Gould's for a counterclockwise Hurricane Loop ride.
Option, Gould's Wash corral: As you head uphill on Highway 59, pass gravel Sheep Bridge road on your left (about half-way between Hurricane Hill and the JEM trailhead). Now watch for a dirt road on your right. It will take you to the corral. If you're heading for the rim, go directly west from the corral for 1/2 mile.

Hurricane City to Gould's Connector Trail
On Highway 9 eastbound in Hurricane, turn right at the Highway 59 sign. Go four blocks south to 400 South and turn left (east). Turn right on the narrow 60 East Street to go south again. Continue on cinders as the pavement ends. My GPS trail track starts at the dead-end, but you can also short-cut across a break in the old canal about 100 yards before the end of the road.

In Hurricane, turn south on US-59 (towards the Grand Canyon). Drive exactly 5 miles uphill. Turn left on cindered doubletrack right as you approach the base of Gooseberry Mesa. Drive another 0.3 miles to the parking area. Cross the cattle guard at the gate, then immediately turn right on singletrack. This section of JEM is one-way only.

This trailhead with bathroom and bike stand is found half-way along the gravel Sheep Bridge Road, which connects US-9 to US-59. Drive toward the upper JEM trailhead on Highway 59 as above. But at mile 3.3 (while still on the flat area), turn left on gravel Sheep Bridge road. Drive 2.9 miles on Sheep Bridge road to a fenced parking area with a bathroom. Cryptobionic and northern Dead Ringer can be found here.
Option, roadside parking off US-59: If you turned onto Sheep Bridge Road from Highway 59, immediately park on the right, just inside the fence. Pedal 0.4 miles northeast to where the JEM singletrack crosses.

From Highway 9 in Virgin, turn south onto Sheep Bridge Road. Drive 1.7 miles. As the gravel road drops into a dip, there are two paths on your right. The ridgeline road is the race staging area. There's a connector to Carne Asada in about 100 feet on your right. The second dirt road, around 50 feet downhill, is the primitive camping and trailhead area. JEM crosses this road at the bottom of the camping zone, and Carne Asada is found to your right on JEM downhill from the road.

My favorite riding direction is east to west. That is, start at the JEM Sheep Bridge Road trail off SR-59, then turn west to Hurricane Rim after a mile and a half. On a shuttled ride, this saves you 300 vertical of climbing. (On the counterclockwise loop, you'll continue to Gould's from the lower trailhead.)

For the west to east ride from the Hurricane Hill trailhead, you'll climb 300 vertical feet in a bit under a mile. After the initial climb to Panorama Point, the trail follows the Virgin River gorge eastward. As it veers south away form the gorge, it ends on the JEM trail after seven miles.