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Little Creek Mountain Trail Network
4 reviews
4.75 of 5
Across the road from the center of the parking area, is a faint singletrack, which becomes much more well defined, after the first 30 yards. This is the access spur to "The Magic Carpet Ride", one of several interconnected loops that blanket the mountain. This access spur is approximately 1/2 mile long, and crosses a seldom used doubletrack Jeep trail, just before connecting with the loop. MAKE SURE TO TAKE NOTE OF WHAT THIS INTERSECTION LOOKS LIKE AND WHERE IT IS LOCATED, BEFORE YOU PROCEDE. OTHERWISE, IT CAN BE DIFFICULT TO LOCATE, FOR THE RETURN TRIP! This loop, (as well as all of the other loops on Little Creek Mountain), can be ridden in either direction. Trail marking on the mountain are mostly intermittent rock cairns, with some corners bordered on the outside by a single row of rocks and/or logs. The trails here are very similar, (a mix of sweet singletrack, through the woods, with slickrock that ranges from parking-lot-smooth, to bizzarrely technical), to those found on nearby Gooseberry Mesa, except WITHOUT the paint dots on the slickrock portions, or Carsonite signs marking trail intersections, that Gooseberry now has. I highly reccomend riding the trails on Gooseberry Mesa first, before attempting these trails. If you find the trails on Gooseberry difficult to locate or follow, DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT RIDING LITTLE CREEK, AS YOU WOULD MOST LIKELY DIE OUT THERE! If you have ridden Gooseberry, and enjoy that type of riding, AND are a capable route finder, Little Creek offers the next higher level of riding consciousness!
From Springdale, drive 2.75 miles west on highway 9. Turn left (south) onto Bridge Road. Follow Bridge Road (staying on pavement as far as possible) 1.6 miles to intersection with Smithsonian Butte Scenic Backway. Turn left onto S.B.S.B. and follow it for 7.8 miles to Highway 59. Turn right (west) on 59 and follow just .6 miles to Little Creek Mountain Road. Turn left onto Little Creek Mountain Road. Stay on main road at all intersections. (This area is a maze of roads and doubletrack Jeep trails, so there are shorter ways to get to the trailhead, but they are nearly impossible to describe.) If you arrive at radio towers, you went wrong direction at last major (not minor) intersection, about 1 1/2 miles back. The main road ends with a 7 mile, teardrop shaped loop, which you should be driving in a clockwise direction, if you have taken no turn-offs. Approximately 2/3 of the way around the loop, (probably 11 or 12 miles in from Highway 59, although I've never measured it), you will come to a cattle stock pond on your right. Park on the smooth slickrock patch, also on your right, just before the pond. Just beyond the pond, there is a 100 yard long section of very rough road, where it crosses over the slickrock. (If you crossed 100 yards of rough slickrock just BEFORE the cattle stock pond, and the pond is on your LEFT, you've merely gone the other direction around the loop and should park on the slickrock patch JUST BEYOND the pond, on your left.)
Summary: A great, adventurous, and fun ride that will work your upper body just as much as your legs. I rode this for the first time last week and found that if I kept looking for the cairns I could follow the trail. This is like Gooseberry, but w/o the people and longer.
Recommended Route: Here is the way to get there from Hurricane, Utah: Follow Hwy. 59 South toward Colorado City, Arizona passing a gas station on your left just before mile marker 9. At mile marker 9 on Hwy. 59 continue 2/10 of a mile on Hwy. 59 and turn right onto the unpaved and unmarked little Creek Mountain Road. Set your odometer to 0.0. Go 0.9 miles and take the right fork. At 1.8 miles take the right fork. At 2.8 miles take the left fork, the right goes to a quarry. At 3.1 miles cross a cattle guard. At 3.3 stay left. At 4.3 cross a cattle guard and go straight at a 4 way intersection. At 6.5 miles take the right fork. At 7.1 miles take the left fork. Come to a cattle guard at 8.0 miles. Reach the cattle pond (sometimes dry) at 8.7 miles. Look for the trail cairn on your right across from the slickrock parking area. Ride into the pine trees and enjoy what God gave us. Make sure you have the time to ride. It took me 3.5 hours for one loop of fairly fast riding, but I may have missed a shorter loop. Have fun.
Other recommended trails in the same area: Gooseberry, Green Valley Loop in St. George, Thunder Mountain Trail near Bryce Canyon N.P. in Red Canyon.
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Review Date April 7, 2002
Overall Rating 5 of 5
Ridden Trail: Ridden Once
Reviewed by: dangerous dan
, from west linn OR
Summary: I thought I was a pretty compitant backcountry rider, until I rode this maze of slickrock. luckily, my folks were smart and got me a guide for this trail. If I had tried to go alone, I would most likely have been picked apart by the vultures. not even a map would have been able to save my sorry ass. but the guide knew the place like the back of his hand and was able to take me to a heaven of drops, rolloffs, and jumps. plus he took pictures of me grinding my face on the beautifull slickrock. I highly recomend this trail if you have somebody to take you out and show the way, or a guide from BikeZion.
Recommended Route: not a clue.(I wasn't driving)
Other recommended trails in the same area: bryce canyon.......NOT!!
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Review Date January 31, 2000
Overall Rating 5 of 5
Ridden Trail: Once a week
Reviewed by: slim
, from hurricane
Summary: And again boys and girls the Harris brothers do it again, and brought to us another great trail. The trail is becoming more and more marked from riders galore. take it easy at first and become familar with the trail. Look for the stacks of rocks and the flags hanging from the bushes. If you get lost just ride around on the abundent amount of slick rock, more slick rock then meets the eye. Remeber to keep it clean also so we do not lose this trail as others have been lost to careless mindless but heads. And remember to give thanks to Mike and Morgan Harris if hurricane when you see them for such a godly trail. Little creek is the sister trail to gooseberry, but with alot less of crowds.
Recommended Route: From hurricane head to colorado city, turn right pass little creek gas station, and then follow the directions as above.
Other recommended trails in the same area: gooseberry, jem trail, gooseberry, gooseberry, green valley in st george, church rock in washington, gooseberry
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Review Date December 10, 1999
Overall Rating 4 of 5
Ridden Trail: Ridden Once
Reviewed by: Tom Loughery
, from Port Chester, NY
Summary: Once you get out into the rock 'playground', just go crazy, riding every obstacle in sight. be careful of crevices between the different sections of rock, and make sure you have an idea what direction you came from, so you can get out when it is time. I didn't actually ride the rest of the trail, so this is just a suggestion to go to the playground. It is amazing.
Recommended Route: For a great practice session on the (slick?)rock of this area, you need only go a mile or so into the trail, following the cairns (rockpiles), and you will find yourself in a vast stretch of rock outcroppings, where it is possible to spend a whole day just playin' around, getting better and better on the rocks. We did half a day here, had a blast, and learned a lot.
Other recommended trails in the same area: any of the ones listed on mtbr around St. George or Hurricane.
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4.75 of 5
5 of 5
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