Kentucky Lucky Chicken on Webb Hill

Typical trail view as we near the top, heading northwest -- rock patches alternating with dirt. Yeah, that's a fat bike. Initial review and photos by Bruce on March 25, 2016. Latest update December 3, 2018.

Kentucky Lucky Chicken (KLC) Trail
Webb Hill in St. George

The Kentucky Lucky Chicken trail circles the rough-looking mountain southeast of St. George called Webb Hill. You've seen the hill. It's the little mountain with the radio towers on top, just east of I-15 and south of the Virgin River. The trail requires expert riding skills, but an upper-intermediate can manage -- with a lot of dabs and walkovers.

The Kentucky Lucky Chicken (KLC) trail forms a loop of 3.8 miles. A good rider should allow about an hour to ride the trail. The rock will slow you down. KLC can be done either direction, and seems like a very different ride when the challenges are turned around. Overall, most riders go clockwise, while I see the majority of weekday locals riding counterclockwise.

The soil and rock on Webb Hill seems resistant to moisture, so I think this trail can be considered a year-round ride.

There will be some large rock challenges. Be prepared for significant handlebar action to get up and over. Here we're on the north side of the loop riding the 29er.

Hairpin turn over the cliffs. My Rocky Mountain Blizzard fat bike took the challenges, but it requires a very aggressive riding style to get the heavy bike over the bigger rocks when climbing.

On the southeast corner, there are two spots with dangerous cliff exposure. These turns are butter-smooth although tight. When going counterclockwise (descending), you'll need to slow and get control.

There's 350 feet of elevation change between the ride's high and low points. However, the rock challenges make this loop a bit of work. Your overall climbing is only 400 vertical feet, but it will seem like much more.

Before the trail was marked with white dots, I sometimes had a problem staying on course through the rock gardens. Trailgoeswhere? Now it's easy.

Looking toward the Pine Valley Mountains from the upper parking, as if we were riding counterclockwise. For the clockwise ride, the trail is across the dirt road behind us.

In the counterclockwise direction, the trail starts out as dirt ribbon passing through low sage. Hardly impressive. But it won't take you long to start hitting technical rock. In this direction, the loop is a long up-and-down traverse, then a climb to the top and fairly rapid return to parking.

Clockwise, the loop starts with a lot of tricky riding on the climb uphill. Intermediates will immediately become discouraged. I find the clockwise direction very challenging for the first mile, but the reward is easier romping on the following miles.

The Webb Hill KLC trail reminds me a bit of Little Purgatory and the Scout Trails There are lots of rocks to bang over. But it's not constant. After a techy section, there will usually be a very short bit of cruising.

On the southeast corner, the rock challenges come closer together, and at times seem constant.

Here the trail runs down the flattish rock, then bangs some rougher stuff near the photo middle. Since this photo, white spots have been painted on the rock to mark the riding line.

This ramp is about 60 degrees incline and 5 feet in height. We're heading back east.

Be prepared for some handlebar work. There are ramps and ledges both directions. And early morning shadows will disguise the ugliness of some ledges. What you think will be an easy rollover may slam your front wheel violently. Expect to get knocked out of the pedals a few times.

Clockwise ride around Webb Hill...

[Back to video list ]

You'll note older trails that cross over. These are DH routes. If you want to try the downhill routes, you're on your own. I don't know if they're legal (I assume no). I rode a couple of them, entirely by accident. And I'm sticking to that story. If the trail gurus close DH trails off, please respect that!

Just another sample of a rock outcrop you'll need to bang over.

A rare stretch of smooth cruising.

The trail is now well-marked with carsonite signposts and white spots that guide you over the rock areas.

The rock-to-dirt ratio for this singletrack is pretty high. You'll do some real work riding this trail. The plus side is, this is a trail that you can ride when it's wet. Even the parts that look like dirt have a lot of larger grain in them rather than clay.

Sometimes hard to get in position for a sudden turn on a rock outcrop, because you're so busy looking at your front tire as you hit sharp rock ledges. It takes a bit of experience to ride this trail cleanly. I'm not even close to doing that.

Another area of banging rock-to-rock.

View south along the cliff edge on the west end. To the right of the photo is I-15 and Bloomington.

At the west end of the loop, there are views of cliffs and badlands (and the freeway at Bloomington).

At the south corner, you reach the highest point of the ride, as the trail crosses over the dirt road just below the radio towers.

The southeast corner has a different character. Here, the trail meanders through a long series of long traverses. The traverse sections are filled with rock challenges. The trail doubles back when it reaches the cliffs on the south side, and the approach of these turns to the cliff is VERY close. Not a spot to be riding too fast, or riding in twilight.

Climbing along the cliff edge past a cholla cactus. Yesterday my fat bike rode snow in Cedar City; today I'm rocking the rocks. November 20, 2016.

Skirting the southern edge of the mesa just below the radio towers, looking east.

Bottom Line!

Fun trail for expert riders, very much worth riding, but a trickier ride than you'd think. Good bad-weather ride close to town. Great for a quick ride as you arrive in town, or the morning you depart. Nice views over the St. George area.

Riding notes, counterclockwise from upper parking:
0.0   Find trail west (upper) corner
        N37 03.954 W113 33.951
0.1   ATV and DH route cross
        N37 04.031 W113 34.061
0.2   Keep R (L = DH jump)
        N37 04.071 W113 34.091
0.6   DH crosses, keep straight
        N37 04.105 W113 34.301
1.3   Critical fork, R uphill
        N37 04.041 W113 34.614

1.4   DH crosses, keep level
        N37 03.980 W113 34.621
1.5   DH crosses N37 03.941 W113 34.719
        Crosses several times, stay level
2.2   Cross tower road
        N37 03.864 W113 34.427
2.3   Cross DT N37 03.848 W113 34.404
2.4   Stay R along cliff as DH goes L
2.8   First of 3 sharp turns along cliff edge!
3.8   Back at parking

Getting there:
From I-15 southbound, take the Bluff Street exit. Turn left onto Riverside. Go 1.5 miles east. At River Road, turn right (south). Go about a mile south and turn right onto Ft. Pierce Drive North. Go about 0.3 miles and turn left onto Bloomington Hills Drive. Watch for the south end of Ft. Pierce Drive and turn right. The second left is Hillrise Ave, heading steeply uphill. You can park on the left where the pavement ends and pedal uphill, or drive another 0.4 miles uphill and park in the rock-lined spot on your right. The singletrack starts at the upper (northwest) corner for a counterclockwise ride. To go clockwise, cross the dirt road to the southbound trail.
Note: The Larkspur paved trail (coming uphill from the south Virgin River paved trail) ends on Hillrise Circle, directly opposite the dirt road. As you enter the circle, turn right, cross Fort Pierce Drive, and pedal uphill. See the St. George paved trails page for paved path GPX files.

Bathrooms: no
Camping: no
Water: no

Riding resources for this trail:
Single-page riding guide
GPS Track File:
Kentucky Lucky Chicken Track
Lodging, camping, shops: Links to St. George area resources