A typical, highly-banked turn. Trail review by Bruce on April 13, 2024.
A typical, highly-banked turn. Trail review by Bruce on April 13, 2024.
Revenant Trail System

The Revenant trails are located on BLM land two miles west of the summit of Utah Hill. This is around 25 miles from downtown St George. At an average elevation of 4500 feet, the expected riding season will be March through December.

The trails are divided into an eastern and a western zone, each with its own unique climbing trail and a set of three DH trails.

The single climbing route for the trails west of parking is Rally. You'll find it at the uphill end of the parking zone. The three downhill trails on the west side are (1) Bullwinkle, suitable for beginning riders, (2) Ninja, which functions as both an intermediate and expert trail depending on which line you pick for your tires, and (3) Rock House, a double-expert line. Connections between the middle of the downhill trails let you mix your ride.

A spot where the beginning and intermediate DH routes touch, allowing you to swap trails.
A spot where the beginning and intermediate DH routes touch, allowing you to swap trails.
Looking east as the easier Quickdraw descends.
Looking east as the easier Quickdraw descends.
On the eastern side, the climbing trail is Time Warp, found on the eastern side of the entry road just downhill from the parking lot. At the top, all three DH trails begin as a single route, then split during the descent.
The three DH trails on the eastern side are (1) Quickdraw, suitable for strong beginners or the tech-averse, (2) Skyline, an intermediate trail with tables and optional jumps, and (3) Drop In, an expert trail with a bit of high-expert non-negotiable gap jumping at the bottom.
Approaching the lip of a table on Skyline.
Approaching the lip of a table on Skyline.

Trailhead

Looking northwest over the parking area.
Looking northwest over the parking area on opening day.

Drive west from St George on Old 91. Keep left at the Gunlock turnoff and climb Utah Hill. Two miles after crossing the summit, look for mile marker 7 on your left. The dirt road turnoff is on your right, just past the mile marker. Drive 0.4 miles and turn left into the primitive parking area. Low-clearance sedans should park at the highway and pedal to the trailhead. The uphill trail is at the north (uphill) end of the parking area. It will cross to the right side of the entry doubletrack.

There's a plan to install a toilet and improve the road and parking, but this must wait for funding.

West-side trail group

Rally (climbing trail)

Heading up Rally. At the top we can hit one of three downhill routes.
Heading up Rally. At the top we can hit one of three downhill routes.

The Rally trail is the route uphill for the trails on the west side. It's 0.7 miles in length, gaining 250 vertical feet in elevation. The climbing trail is narrow hand-made singletrack with a steady but gentle rate of climb. You'll follow the edge of the wash as you head up the valley.

At the top, Rally connects to Bullwinkle -- with all the west-side DH routes starting on the same trail.

Bullwinkle (easy downhill trail)

A couple of bumps leading to a banked turn. Beginners can roll, speedsters can jump.
A couple of bumps leading to a banked turn. Beginners can roll, speedsters can jump.

To descend the easier downhill trail Bullwinkle, simply keep to the left at all trail forks as you head down. Like all the downhill options, Bullwinkle is highly engineered with a wide riding surface. Roller bumps keep things interesting between the highly-banked turns.

At 400 feet down Bullwinkle there's a trail fork for both the intermediate and double-expert routes. Keep to the left.

The next fork is an optional crossover. You can veer right to exit Bullwinkle and descend Ninja. Riders from Ninja may be entering Bullwinkle at this point.

Keep to the left to stay on the easy line.
Keep to the left to stay on the easy line.
Finishing one turn and aiming for the next.
Finishing one turn and aiming for the next.

From top back to trailhead, Bullwinkle is 0.9 miles long. The trail joins a common return trail just downhill from the trailhead, and you'll climb 0.1 miles of doubletrack to get back to the uphill singletrack. The full beginner loop will be 1.7 miles with 400 vertical feet of climbing.

Ninja (intermediate/expert downhill trail)

At the fork where Ninja and Rock House separate.
At the fork where Ninja and Rock House separate.

The Ninja trail forks away from Bullwinkle after 400 feet. This is also a downhill-only highly-engineered flow trail. Its course falls between Bullwinkle and Rock House. Around 100 feet after forking away form Bullwinkle, keep left to stay on Bullwinkle as Rock House takes the higher line to your right.

To descend Ninja, it will be a total of 0.9 miles from Rally back to the trailhead, with 350 vertical feet of descending. The turns on Ninja are tighter with steeper berms.

Ninja functions as both an intermediate and an expert-level trail. Most of the bumps have a line for intermediate-riders and a second expert-level option adjacent.

The line to the right involves some significant air and can't be rolled at speed, so intermediates will want to keep left for the easier table jump.
The line to the right involves some significant air and can't be rolled at speed, so intermediates will want to keep left for the easier table jump.
Whipping through an S-turn.
Whipping through an S-turn.

Ninja will touch on both Bullwinkle and Rock House during the descent, so you can swap trails in the middle.

Like the other west-side trails, Ninja extends down below the parking area to end on the common return trail. A full up-and-down loop will be 1.7 miles.

Rock House (double-black downhill trail)

In contrast to the table jumps of Ninja, Rock House features some "straight up and down" dirt jumps.
In contrast to the table jumps of Ninja, Rock House features some "straight up and down" dirt jumps.

Rockhouse is a double-black (high expert) trail. You should be comfortable with dirt jumps, as not all features have ride-arounds. On many areas, there's either a scouting path alongside the stunts, or an alternate stunt that's less tricky.

Rock House forks away from Ninja around 100 feet after the combined trail leaves Bullwinkle. Veer to the right for Rock House.

There will be spots where the trail splits into A/B options and mellow ride-arounds. This is a good spot to let the speedster behind you get by. I counted 5 separate lines at the downhill end of Rock House as it turns east to cross the wash.

Approaching a rock drop of around 4 feet.
Approaching a rock drop of around 4 feet.
Looking back uphill from lower Rock House.
Looking back uphill from lower Rock House.

At the bottom, Rock House has a last gasp of technical stunts -- including a gnarly gap jump over the wash -- before it turns east and collects traffic from Ninja and Bullwinkle. The combined trail ends on the doubletrack below the parking area.

Loop of Rally and Ninja

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East-side trail group

Time Warp (climbing trail)

View north as we climb through yucca and joshua trees.
View north as we climb through yucca and joshua trees.
The Time Warp trail is 0.8 miles long. At this time (summer 2024), the trail begins on the entry road just downhill from the parking area as old doubletrack. After 100 yards, singletrack forks away and begins the climb.
Time warp climbs just under 300 vertical feet. As it arrives on the top of the ridge, it hooks to the left and becomes the downhill trail Quickdraw. (All three downhill trails begin as this single route.)
Heading up the climbing trail.
Heading up the climbing trail.

Quickdraw (easier descending trail)

Quickdraw begins southbound on the ridge, relatively flat.
Quickdraw begins southbound on the ridge, relatively flat.
Quickdraw is the easiest way to get to the bottom. The curves are tighter than the easy downhill Bullwinkle of the west-side trails. It's 0.9 miles long, with 280 vertical feet of elevation loss.
Quickdraw begins as a segment of flat trail on the ridgeline. At mile 0.1, Quickdraw turns to the left, while the combined Skyline and Drop In trails continue to the right.

Quickdraw has tight, highly banked turns. There are some rollers but no engineered jumps.

Here all three DH routes are combined.
Here all three DH routes are combined.
A couple of rollers lead into a banked turn on Quickdraw.
A couple of rollers lead into a banked turn on Quickdraw.
The intermediate trail Skyline joins Quickdraw from the right at mile 0.8. The combined trail arrives at the entry road across from the lower entry to the parking lot.
Skyline (intermediate descending trail)
Hitting the first trail fork. Quickdraw is to the left, while the intermediate and expert lines are combined on the right.
Hitting the first trail fork. Quickdraw is to the left, while the intermediate and expert lines are combined on the right.
Skyline forks away from Quickdraw at mile 0.1, veering to the right. It will rejoin Quickdraw 0.1 miles from the bottom.
Skyline has highly banked turns, but is generally straighter than Quickdraw. There are tables and jumps, but no requirement that you take air.
Rolling into a banked turn on Skyline, with a view of the west-side trails in the middle of the photo.
Rolling into a banked turn on Skyline, with a view of the west-side trails in the middle of the photo.
Straight sections of Skyline invite high speeds.
Straight sections of Skyline invite high speeds.
Skyline is 0.5 miles long, ending on Quickdraw about 0.1 miles from parking. Adding the first and last 1/10th mile of Quickdraw makes the descent 0.7 miles.
Drop In (expert descending trail)
Drop In is to the right here.
Drop In is to the right here.
Drop In is an expert level descent that forks away from Skyline 0.3 miles from the top. The trail is fairly straight with constant slope, with a series of jumps and tables.
Drop In is 0.5 miles long, making the total descent 0.8 miles. It ends on the entry road across from the lower entry into the parking lot, just a tad uphill from the end of the combined Quickdraw and Skyline.
Coming up on a ramp leading to a drop.
Coming up on a ramp leading to a drop.
Looking back uphill on the final section of Drop In.
Looking back uphill on the final section of Drop In.
The final descent would be rated high-expert. After a steep high-speed turn, the trail hits a series of three mandatory gap jumps. And these are big gaps.

Loop of Time Warp and Skyline

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Getting there:  Drive west from St George on Old 91 (the continuation of Sunset through Santa Clara and Ivins). Keep left at the Gunlock turnoff and climb Utah Hill on Old 91. Two miles after crossing the summit, look for mile marker 7 on your left. The dirt road turnoff is on your right, just past the mile marker. Drive 0.4 miles and turn left into the primitive parking area. Low-clearance sedans should park at the highway and pedal to the trailhead. The uphill trail is at the north (uphill) end of the parking area. It will cross to the right side of the entry doubletrack.