 | Pioneer Trail (Ephraim Canyon)
The Pioneer Trail is a bicycle-only singletrack trail in Ephraim Canyon. It starts at 8300 feet elevation and drops 1400 feet over 3 miles. Tech requirement is upper-intermediate or advanced. It's a downhill route usually done with a shuttle -- but you can make a loop by pedaling up the Ephraim Canyon Road. Combined with the Flume Trail, it's a 6.6-mile downhill with 2500 vertical. Pedaling from the bottom, the ride is 13.2 miles. |
| Riding notes, from canyon bottom: 0.0 North on paved road N39 20.425 W111 33.882 0.3 R on Ephraim Canyon Road N39 20.646 W111 33.903 2.3 Pass Flume DT N39 20.260 W111 31.590 3.2 Pass end of Pioneer N39 20.370 W111 30.985 6.1 Pass Lake Hill CG road N39 19.935 W111 29.737 6.6 L on doubletrack N39 19.565 W111 29.760 7.5 L off DT onto singletrack N39 20.036 W111 29.263 9.5 Veer L along fence on DT N39 20.425 W111 30.957 | 9.6 R on canyon road N39 20.362 W111 30.985 |
 | Getting there, lower parking (bottom of Flume):
On US-89 in Ephraim, go to 400
south and turn east towards the mountains. At 300 East, turn right. You're
on state road 29, the Ephraim Canyon Road. After 0.6 miles, the road turns
90 degrees left. Go 0.8 miles to (I think) 920 East and turn right. At
the
gate where the road becomes a "private driveway" (which, BTW is
your return path), park on the west side of the road. Begin the ride by
backtracking north on the paved road. |
| Upper parking (bottom of Pioneer):
From the
90-degree corner where Ephraim Canyon Road turns toward the mountains,
drive 3.7 miles up the canyon. Watch for a doubletrack on your left with
a
fence along the uphill side, and a wooden step-over in the fence (note:
the trail doesn't go over the stepover; it's the doubletrack). See the
photo above. Find a spot to park in the broad area at the mouth of the
doubletrack. Upper trailhead (top of Pioneer for shuttle rides): From the 90-degree corner, drive 7.0 miles up the canyon. Pass the Lake Hill campground (on the right), then watch for a doubletrack on the left just as the gravel road turns to the left. The only sign was a carsonite marker numbered 51105. There are several broad areas on the side of the Ephraim Canyon Road suitable for parking the shuttle vehicle. Begin the ride by pedaling down the doubletrack. |
Copyright 2011 Mad Scientist Software Inc. Trail conditions change. Use this trail guide at your own risk.