TRAVEL

Easy Arizona routes for mountain-biking newbies

Bob Young

The Republic | azcentral.com

Bell Rock Pathway in Sedona offers a wide, mostly smooth ride for beginning mountain bikers, not to mention hikers and trail runners.

Experienced mountain bikers know where to head for challenging, technical trails. But those trails are intimidating or impossible for beginners and casual riders looking for good scenery and a decent workout.

Now that summer's here, there are plenty of high-country options for novice riders in Sedona, the Payson area, Flagstaff and the White Mountains.

We asked experts around the state to recommend easy trails and roads where beginning mountain bikers and recreational riders will feel comfortable.

The tricky part was defining "beginner."

"It's such a loose term," said Matt McFee, who owns Hermosa Tours in Sedona. "Some will say that they're a beginner, but they're fit and adventurous and they don't have any problems. Others will say they're a beginner and they can't get out of the parking lot."

So when McFee takes "newbies" out, he gives all of them the same speech.

"I don't mind people pushing themselves," he said. "But if they're not comfortable with something, I tell them not to do it. If you come across something on a ride that makes you uncomfortable, just use the brakes, get off and walk around it.

"I've been mountain biking for going on 25 years, I run a tour company and there are still days when I come up to something on a trail and I'm like, 'Yeah, not today.' "

Sedona

McFee guides tours in Sedona and Durango, Colo., and recently launched Arizona Trail Expeditions, which provides support for unguided four-day mountain-biking, hiking or running trips on the Arizona Trail.

His Sedona recommendations:

Bell Rock Pathway: The trailhead is just north of the Village of Oak Creek, just past the roundabout at Bell Rock Road and State Route 179.

"When I have beginners and families looking for a really easy ride, the first place we take people is Bell Rock Pathway and I'd say 90 percent of them do great," McFee said. "It's a wider trail, not quite as wide as a road but a good, wide pathway. It does have some elevation change, but not a lot. It's reasonably smooth and benign. It's an out-and-back ride of a total of 10 miles. As far as scenery, it's unbelievable.

"It starts in the Village of Oak Creek and wraps around Bell Rock and one of the famous vortexes. They'll see Courthouse Buttes and off in the distance Twin Buttes and Cathedral Rock. It's a wide swath of Sedona's best scenery. It's a home run for scenery, but it does get a lot of users."

Upper Dry Creek area: McFee suggests starting at the Long Canyon trailhead off Dry Creek Road in west Sedona.

There are multiple options and difficulty levels here. McFee starts beginners on Long Canyon Trial, makes a quick left onto Deadman's Pass Trail, then makes a loop of the Aerie, Cockscomb, Dawa Loop and Arizona Cypress trails. Arizona Cypress intersects with the road, and it's a five-minute ride on pavement back to the Lost Canyon trailhead. It's about a 9-mile circuit.

It sounds complicated, but the trails are well marked. Be aware that Long Canyon Trail eventually enters the Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness and bikes aren't allowed on wilderness trails.

"It takes you off the main thoroughfare that is Bell Rock Pathway and it's a little more of a true mountain-bike experience, but it's very manageable," McFee said. "You're going to get a lot of views of the Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness, Doe Mountain, Cockscomb Rock, and there is reasonably good tree cover because it's close to washes. It's pretty lush for Sedona."

Details:www.fs.usda.gov/coconino.

The Panorama Trail weaves through open pine forest and meadows in a 9.5 mile loop.

White Mountains

Todd Fernau grew up in Lakeside-Pinetop and bought his bike shop, Cycle Mania, in 2002.

"I just love my area," he said. "We have what's called the White Mountain Trail System and a group called Tracks that manages the trails. We are really fortunate to have that group. Our trail system is easily the best-marked system of any place I've been. So that's really neat if you're not somebody who has lived up here your whole life."

The trails have numerical markings every quarter-mile so that in an emergency, a rider can tell a 911 operator the number on the nearest sign. First responders have the GPS coordinates for every sign.

Fernau's recommendations:

Country Club Trail: "It's so beginner-friendly I've literally had my kids do it with 16-inch wheels. There are a few outcroppings that get a little technical, but you can just get off your bike, walk over them and then get back on the trail again. A lot of our trails are like that.

"There's a little spur that takes you to the top of Pat Mullen Mountain, where there's a 360-degree view. Most cyclists can't ride up that spur, but they'll got off the bike and just hike up there for the view."

Panorama Trail:

"You ride up on the side of Twin Knolls and on a clear day you can see all the way to the San Francisco Peaks in Flagstaff," Fernau said. "There's a lot of wildlife around there. It's very normal to see elk, deer and turkey on those trails. There is a short loop of about 41/2 miles or a longer route of 7 miles."

Los Burros Trail: This trail starts in Los Burros Campground in McNary, about 12 miles from Pinetop-Lakeside.

"It's one of our prized possessions," Fernau said. "You can ride the first few miles and it's easy, then just turn around and come back. I tell all of my customers if they want to see a pretty part of the state, you need to go there. It's scenic. Aspen, spruce, ponderosa. You're in the prettier trees."

And if you're just looking for a casual spin in the woods, you have plenty of options in this area.

"You can ride on the Forest Service roads up around there and you will rarely if ever see another car or bike," Fernau said.

Details:tracks-pinetop-lakeside.org, www.fs.usda.gov/asnf.

Flagstaff

Few people know the trails around Flagstaff better than Mark Gullo, who manages the Flagstaff Nordic Center and has been hiking, biking and guiding bike tours and river trips for a quarter-century in northern Arizona.

Gullo's picks:

Schultz Pass Road: "It's pretty easy access, right past the Museum of Northern Arizona (off U.S. 180)," Gullo said. "It also is right by Schultz Creek Trail, and that's as easy as trails get in that system. The road gets some traffic, but not a whole lot."

Forest Road 151: This dirt road meanders through the woods for about 10 miles. You can get on it from U.S. 180 about 3 miles north of Snowbowl Road. It loops north to reconnect with the highway.

"It's a super-popular loop," Gullo said. "It's pretty darned flat for around here. You can go out and back or do the whole loop. It ties into Forest Road 418 on the north end of it, and there is a ton of aspen up there. It really doesn't get major use until September when the leaves are changing."

Forest Road 245: This is about about 9 miles north of Flagstaff off U.S. 180.

"It T's into Forest Road 171 (at 3.6 miles) and that takes you down to the Lava River Tube," Gullo said. "It's pretty flat with wide-open roads."

Campbell Mesa Trail System: This popular destination is a few miles off the Country Club exit of Interstate 40 east of downtown.

"It's kind of a clover leaf and it connects to the Arizona Trail by Walnut Canyon," Gullo said. "There are a couple of really nice loops in there, and for Flagstaff, it's as easy as it gets."

Details:www.fs.usda.gov/coconino.

A path follows the edge of the Mogollon Rim, just off of Forest Road 300 about 30 miles from Payson. Some segments of the path, which connects scenic overlooks, are paved and some are easy-to-ride trail.

Rim Country

Jeremy Lee has lived in Payson most of his life. He and some friends opened 87 Cyclery about a year and a half ago.

"We just wanted to help build the cycling culture in this area," he said. "We've been able to get a lot of people into mountain biking and cycling here, and that helps support the shop, too. Payson is starting to become a little better known as a mountain-biking destination. We have some really good single-track trails that have been built or redone and rerouted to make them more mountain-bike friendly."

His suggestions:

Pyeatt Draw Road: This ride starts on FR 198, which is off Houston Mesa Road north of town. It's about 4.5 miles to Pyeatt Draw, although one can ride beyond there.

"There are some good climbs and once you top out on it, it's pretty scenic and fun," Lee said.

Doll Baby Ranch Road: This paved road gets little traffic and is popular with road cyclists.

"Coming out of there is a good climb, but if you're looking for a view, there's not much better than you get out there," Lee said.

Park at Green Valley Park, 1000 W. Country Club Drive, and ride west past the golf course. The pavement ends about a mile down the road. The pavement returns after about half a mile and there is a short but steep climb, followed by a 5.5-mile snaking descent into a valley with awesome views of the Mazatzal Mountains.

Forest Road 300:

Also known as Rim Road, it's about 30 miles east of Payson on SR 260. Turn left at the Woods Canyon Lake exit. The road starts out paved but turns to dirt where it meets FR 105.

"On the first part of Rim Road there are some bike paths that go right along the side of the rim," Lee said. "There are a ton of forest roads up there to ride on, too."

Two miles from the end of the pavement, a left turn will take cyclists onto less-traveled FR 9350, a dirt road that goes right to the rim and offers views that seem to go forever. Or, continue on FR 300, but expect a lot of traffic — and dust — on weekends.

Granite Dells Road: This is just east of the Safeway at the intersection of SR 87 and SR 260. It starts out paved and turns into well-graded dirt after about a mile. The road skirts the Rim Club golf course and descends into Granite Dells, with beautiful rock formations and several trails that shoot off the main road. Out and back is 8 miles.

Details:www.fs.usda.gov/tonto, paysonrimcountry.com/Mountain-Recreation/Hiking-Trails/Payson-Area-Trails-System.

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