Santa Clara River Preserve Trails Overview

The Santa Clara River Preserve is a protected area (one that allows mountain biking) along the river gorge southwest of Santa Clara. There are riding trails north and south of the river.

On the north side of the river is the Anasazi trail complex. The main draw is the Anasazi trail, which visits petroglyphs and features a one-mile zone of fun upper-intermediate technical Gooseberry-type riding. Shorter trails on the eastern end include Upper Graveyard, Lower Graveyard, Fishhook, and Cholla. There's also a nice doubletrack ride along the river through the gorge.

To the south of the Santa Clara River is the Barrel Roll trailhead. Barrel Roll is for mountain biking and hiking; Black Brush (at the same trailhead) is signed for hiking and horses -- I recommend it as a hike with the kids. Barrel Roll is a fun intermediate-level trail that has quickly become a St. George classic.

Note: Barrel Roll is NOT the same trail as the "Barrel Trail", which is found a few miles south in Green Valley.

Further south across Cove Wash is the Rim Rock trail system, with easier Rim Reaper and Rim Rambler trails, and the more technical Rim Rock and Rim Runner trails. There are multiple ride options here, with a typical see-everything ride being about 6 miles.

Cove Wash is the big divot you pedal through on the way to Rim Rock, but it's also an official trail. ATVs use the washbottom to reach a viewpoint over Cottonwood Wash. The trail is 4 miles, but it connects to other options for big miles, if you don't mind riding ATV-track.

Sidewinder is a trail that climbs the ridge to the south of Barrel Roll. You can reach it via Barrel Roll, or via Precipice (under construction 4/14/09). It's a bit more technical, but fun and very much worth doing. Most riders add it as an out-and-back to their Barrel Roll loop.

Suicidal Tendencies is a 5.5 mile trail that forks off the top of Sidewinder. It crosses through the valley to the next mesa on the south. It should be considered advanced technical.