Park City Mountain Bike Trail Guide
By: Danielle Vilaplana, Product Content Writer | Last Updated: April 15th, 2024
Park City's mountain bike trails are some of the best in Utah, and one of the most impressive trail networks in the US. The town was designated as the first Gold Level Ride Center by the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA). The mountain town not only has access to some amazing cross country singletrack trails, but also three chairlift accessed bike parks.
Park City’s great bounty of mountain bike trails means there are options for riders of all abilities, and that the town is a great place to plan a mountain biking vacation. Most trails are rated intermediate with smooth flowing singletrack, but there are definitely some challenging rides, and lots of jump lines in the bike parks. More advanced riders will have a ton of fun turning the easier trails into their playgrounds, searching for speed and air, while the trails remain approachable for beginners and families.
The access to Park City’s trails is unparalleled and there are hundreds of miles of riding accessible from town. Riders looking to shred the Utah’s best bike parks have great options at Deer Valley, Woodward and Park City Mountain Resort. Meanwhile, cross country riders will love exploring epic trails like the Wasatch Crest, one of Utah and Park City’s best mountain bike trails. In total, there are over 450 miles of mountain bike trail in Park City. This huge volume of trails can get confusing, but trails are generally well signed, and the local saying goes, “If you get lost, point your bike downhill and go until you hit pavement.” Exploring and getting lost in this awesome trail network is part of what makes mountain biking in Park City so much fun.
Wasatch Crest Trail
Trailhead Directions | Trailforks | MTB Project
Intermediate/Advanced | 12.5 + Miles | 1,035' Climb | 2,595' Descent
The Wasatch Crest is a classic Park City mountain bike trail, with great high alpine riding and fun singletrack riding. There are many ways to include the Wasatch Crest in longer rides, with access from several different points, so the 12.5 mile route is only one option. The trail itself is descends 2,595’ over its length and has some punchy climbs throughout. From the nearly 10,000’ top, the Crest trail runs down the ridge separating Park City and Big Cottonwood Canyon. The trail has a great mix of fun flow, and a couple more techy sections. One rocky, skinny ridge line is hike-a-bike for most, but it’s short. While many mountain bikers shuttle the Wasatch Crest, there is definitely still climbing, including the infamous “Puke Hill,” although it’s totally worth it.The Shuttle route starts at Guardsman Pass, heads on Scott's Bypass, up Puke Hill, then onto the Crest trail itself. The Wasatch Crest is definitely a must ride trail for advanced riders in the Park City area. For visiting riders, or simply those looking for easier logistics, Big Rack Shuttles runs a Wasatch Crest Shuttle.
Wasatch Crest Trail Route Options
Wasatch Crest to Mill Creek Canyon
This route descends the Wasatch Crest, then on 3 miles of the paved Mill Creek Canyon Road, and ending with more 7.3 miles of singletrack on the Mill Creek Pipeline trail on the outskirts of Salt Lake City. The Pipeline trail is intermediate rated.
Wasatch Crest to Park City
Riders have the option to turn off of the Wasatch Crest trail onto Crest Connector and head back towards Park City. There are many options here including riding the downhill trails to the Park City Mountain Canyon’s base area, or traversing back to Park City Mountain on the Mid Mountain trail.
Climbing to the Wasatch Crest
For mountain bikers who like to earn their descent, there are several ways to climb to the crest trail, from both sides of the ridge.
Flying Dog
Trailhead Directions | Trailforks | MTB Project
Intermediate | 6.4 Miles | 1,000' Climbing & Descending
Flying Dog is a great intermediate cross country trail in the Jeremy Ranch/Glenwild area north of I-80 and the town of Park City. There are a handful of other trails in this area that are fun as well, but this descent is the gem of the area. The trail itself is mostly smooth natural singletrack that winds through aspen forests. The trail can be ridden in either direction, or other trails in the area can be used to make a loop. Glenwild to Cobblestone to Flying Dog, and returning on 24-7 makes a nice 17 mile loop.
Flying Dog is this writer's favorite trail in the Park City area, and the easiest way to ride it is to start the loop at Bob's Basin. This cuts off part of the Flying Dog route but is a more managable distance, takes you back to the same trailhead, and lets you hit one of the awesome downhill routes in Bob's Basin at the end, if your legs are up for it.
W.O.W. Trail
Trailhead Directions | Trailforks | MTB Project
Intermediate | 10.7 Miles | 319' Climb | 2,521' Descent
The W.O.W. Trail (Wasatch Over Wasatch) is an epic 10+ mile trail near Deer Valley Resort, reaching 8,300ft above sea level and descending nearly 2,300 vertical feet to Heber City. The trail hits all of the Wasatch ecosystems, from lush aspen groves to dry, powdery dirt in the sage and scrub. It's not overly technical and o hasnly a few challenging sections like high-speed, off-camber turns and occasional root gardens. Enjoy stellar dirt conditions and stunning views throughout the ride. Riders with energy at the end can hit the Pine Canyon Bike Park for flow and jumps to cap off an unforgettable adventure.Deer Valley
Beginner-Expert Trails
The Deer Valley mountain bike park offers access to over 70 miles of trails accessed by three chairlifts. A lot of the trails are flowy and smooth, but their are some more technical challenges like NCS and Fire Swamp. The bike park is a ton of fun, though more advanced riders will only want to spend one or two days here on a longer trip.
Holy Roller
Trailforks | MTB ProjectBeginner | 4 Miles | 485' Climb | 1,668' Descent
Holy Roller is an awesome beginner flow trail that snakes its way from the top of Deer Valley all the way back to the base area. This is a great trail for beginners, or mountain bikers riding chairlifts for the first time. Even more advanced riders will love to hit Holy Roller as a warmup, with it plentiful smooth berms and buffed out rollers. There are no gaps or intimidating features, just flowy fun.
Tidal Wave
Trailforks | MTB ProjectIntermediate | 2.5 Miles| 1,266 Descent
Tidal Wave is 2.5 miles of awesome machine built flow trail. The trail was built by Gravity Logic, the builders of many of Whistler’s famous trails. The berm and tabletop filled style carries over to this great Deer Valley mountain bike trail. Tidal Wave is one of the best flow trails in the area. The tabletops make it approachable and fun for riders of various abilities, with the 58 different jumps making the trail an awesome trail to practice jumping skills on.
Mid Mountain Loop
Trailforks | MTB ProjectIntermediate | 22 Miles | 1,800' Climb/Descent
Mid Mountain is one of the trails that ties the entire Park City mountain bike trail system together. It runs up and down from Deer Valley’s Silver Lake Village base area in the east through both Deer Valley and Park City Mountain to the Canyons base area on the west end. There are nearly endless options for rides and loops off of Mid Mountain, including dropping into both of Park City’s bike parks. Some favorite trails accessed by Mid Mountain are T&G Empire Link, and Mojave, all flowy, fast and fun. Armstrong trail, Deer Valley, and Holly’s are all common access points for riders climbing to the trail. If you don't know where to start, climbing Armstrong or CMG to Mid Mountain, then descending Spiro is a nice intermediate loops that is 9 miles climbing and descending 1,800'.
Tsunami
TrailforksExpert | 2 Miles | 900' Descent
Tsunami is a freerider’s dream, trails like this are what chairlift accessed bike parks are all about. One of the newer trails at Deer Valley, Tsunami steps up the size of the flowy features with huge berms, big tabletops, and different kinds of jumps. The biggest jump is around 25 feet.
NCS
Trailforks | MTB ProjectExpert | 1 Mile | 1,008' Descent
While most of the mountain biking in the Park City area is smooth and flowy, NCS is quite the opposite. An oldschool downhill race trail, NCS is one of the most technically difficult trails in the area, with great rock gardens, drops, and other features. NCS can be shuttled via the bus, too.
Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR)
PCMR Trailhead Directions | Trailforks
Beginner - Expert
As of 2018, the Canyons side of PCMR no longer has any mountain biking. The internet still has not fully caught up with this news, but all trails in the Canyons area will be marked as "permanently closed" on Trailforks and MTB Project. Fortunately, the Park City Mountain Resort side still has plenty of world-class mountain bike trails. There are three chairlifts at the Park City Mountain Resort base. Riders can also take CMG trail uphill. We recommend the following trails at PCMR:
Evil Empire to Empire
Trailforks | MTB ProjectAdvanced - Intermediate | 1.25 Miles | 993' Descent
The Evil Empire trail kicks off with steep inclines and intricate obstacles like roots, jumps, and gaps to put your skills to the test. It starts with a brief ascent to the peak and swiftly descends into a rugged ridge through a dense forest. Along the way, you'll encounter a mix of fresh challenges and remnants of older features to keep you on your toes.
Finish the ride by connecting to Empire, a fast trail with some small jumps. Evil Empire is considered a very advanced trail but Empire is a somewhat technical intermediate trail, so riders looking for an easier ride can skip right to Empire.
Black Forest
Trailforks | MTB ProjectAdvanced | 2,907ft | 429' Descent
Advanced riders wanting to hit Park City Mountain Resort's bike park and step up from the blue runs will enjoy the Black Forest trail. The trail loses it's elevation quickly with a whole lot of tight switchbacks, loose corners, and tree stumps to navigate, especially in the last 1/3 mile.
The Black Forest trail itself is short, so you'll want to combine it with other trails in the area. The easiest way to ride Black Forest is starting fromthe Blood Lake Trailhead on Guardsmans Pass Rd, but riders wanting a longer ride can start from the resort and ride other popular trails like Empire, Evil Empire, Spiro, Mid Mountain, and Jenni's Trail. Check out all of our PCMR trail recommendations below.
Pinecone Ridge
Trailforks | MTB ProjectIntermediate | 3.9 Miles | 1,581' Climb & Descent
The Pinecone trail offers some great riding and a pretty transition from alpine meadows, aspen forests, and pine forests. Mountain bikers commonly rise this trail both ways, as a fun descent or climbing trail to access the Wasatch Crest Trail. Climbing via Powerline trail to Comstock then Puke Hill may be a less crowded and downhill trafficked route to reach the top, however.
Upper Spiro
Trailforks | MTB ProjectIntermediate | 1.6 Miles | 507' Descent
Spiro Trail is a Park City staple and is a favorite among riders for its accessibility and stunning scenery. It winds through picturesque aspen groves above Old Town and offers fun flow that is great for intermediate and advanced riders alike.
Note that lower Spiro has been turned into an uphill-only trail, so riders will want to take the Seldom Seen trail to the bottom after riding Upper Spiro.
John’s Trail
Trailforks | MTB ProjectAdvanced | 1.8 Miles | 526' Descent
John's trail winds its way through dense aspen treees with numerous hairpin turns and root obstacles that will challenge even the most skilled riders. When ridden uphill, John's demands constant attention as you navigate tight turns, dodge roots, and maneuver through the dense forest. While the mile-long aspen section provides an exhilarating experience for advanced riders, it requires effort and focus to navigate effectively.
Mid Mountain
Trailforks | MTB ProjectIntermediate | 4 Miles | 1,581' Descent
Mid Mountain is one of the trails that ties the entire Park City mountain bike trail system together. It runs up and down from Deer Valley’s Silver Lake Village base area in the east through both Deer Valley and Park City Mountain to the Canyons base area on the west end. There are nearly endless options for rides and loops off of Mid Mountain, including dropping into both of Park City’s bike parks. Some favorite trails accessed by Mid Mountain are T&G Empire Link, and Mojave, all flowy, fast and fun. Armstrong trail, Deer Valley, and Holly’s are all common access points for riders climbing to the trail. If you don't know where to start, climbing Armstrong or CMG to Mid Mountain, then descending Spiro is a nice intermediate loops that is 9 miles climbing and descending 1,800'.
Getting to Park City
Park City is just a 45 minute drive from Salt lake City, making this trail epicenter easily accessible visiting mountain bikers and locals alike. Trailheads for the various mountain bike trails in Park City are spread all over the valley and the surrounding hills. Many of these trails at Deer Valley and Park City Mountain Resort can be pedaled to right from town, making Park City a very accessible destination for mountain biking.
If you're flying in without your bike or looking for a place to stay in the valley, the evo Campus has everything you need to get you fueled, rested, and on the trail. The Salt Lake City evo store is right off the highway and is a great stop to get your Park City mountain bike rentals.
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Weather & Riding Conditions
While the mountain biking in Park City is becoming an ever-growing draw to the Utah mountain town, the area is still more well known for it’s skiing and snowboarding. This means mountain bikers have to wait for the snow to melt off of the trails before the season gets going.
The season here usually runs from June through September. Due to the high altitude of the Wasatch Crest, it may not be snow free until mid July. The summer months can be hot and dry, making for dusty trails. Riding in the spring or the fall will have the best dirt conditions, but make sure you don't ride of the trails are wet. The soil is not as resiliant as it is in the PNW, and riding through the mud will damage the trails.
Where Can You Ride e-bikes in Park City?
Though ebikes and eMTBs have grown significantly in popularity, Utah has not quite warmed up to them yet. Some of Utah's most popular muntain bike destinations, including Moab and Park City, have strict regulations against ebikes.
Within Park City limits, ebikes are not allowed on any singletrack trail less than 5ft wide. Though some of these trails, like W.O.W. and the Wasatch Crest Trail, fall outside city limits in some areas, the Forest Service only allows e-bikes on motorized trails, not singletrack mountain bike trails.
These rules are subject to change though, so it's best to check with your local Park City bike rental shop for up to date regulations.
Park City does allow riders with mobility disablities and riders over 65 to get a special courtesy tag for ebike use, which can be found here.
