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Flintstone Trail [CLOSED]
The Flintstone Trail is a mile of expert downhill singletrack with
multiple man-made stunts. It lies on the northeast corner of Lake
Mountain, with a trailhead in Eagle Mountain's Mountain Ranch Bike
Park. A
loop ride is 4.7 miles. Vertical change is 500 feet, to an altitude of
5400 feet.
View over a ramp toward Utah Lake and
Timpanogos. Ride and review by Bruce and
Jackie, December 2, 2009. |
| IMPORTANT NOTE!
2017. The Flintstone Trail is CLOSED at this time. Please DO
NOT use the trail until further notice, as this will complicate future
access. The trail lies on school trust lands. The administrators of the
land are biker-friendly and have approved bike trails on adjacent school
trust lands. In 2017 the entire area was closed to EVERYBODY because of
issues with (1) Gunheads blasting up the mountainside illegally, including
shooting onto and across the bike trail and (2) Party Goblins leaving tons
of trash after their revelries. Tickets are being issued to riders
($500). The plan is to finish a public-use plan for the area, which -- if
trespassing bikers don't piss them off --will include access for bike
riders. |
| It's probably possible to shuttle this ride with a drive
around the northern end of the mountain. Below I have driving instructions
to reach the singletrack via Hidden Canyon Road. (See GPS multi-track
file.)
There's also a singletrack route from the Pony Express Parkway using
the Hidden Canyon and Cow Tracks Trails,
with a bit of doubletrack at the end. See the second ride description
below. GPS tracks for these trails are found in the multi-track file.
The ridgeline ride that connects to
Flintstone has long areas of loose rock, and some largish embedded rock.
This is not a ride for soft intermediate bikers. |
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The loop starts at the bike park. As you enter the park from
the kiosk at the north end, ride the broad gravel path southward along the
west border of the park. Turn left as the path ends on gravel doubletrack.
Follow the DT as it turns southwest to climb to the top of the hill.
(Extra point route: as the DT turns, go L on ST, then R at the fork, R at
the next fork, then straight to where the ST hits the DT, where you'll
turn L.)
View northeast over Saratoga Springs,
with the clouds of a cold front kissing the top of Lone Peak (mid left),
Pfeiferhorn (mid) and Box Elder (just to R of middle). |
| At the top of the mountain, turn left on continuing
doubletrack. At the next couple of forks, keep left and straight as you
climb up the ridgeline. It's a bit of a grunt. The surface has a lot of
small angular rock. In general, you want to stay close to the east side of
the rim. Small roads forking to the west (right) may take you off the
mountain.
View southwest from the ridge. Good
views, even in winter. |
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The ridgeline DT will wind around through juniper trees and
pass a newly-constructed water tank (wet cement on the top December 2,
2009). Keep left and on the ridge. As you reach a small rise with no
trees, you'll see a singletrack on your left, heading toward the edge.
Easy to miss. Hopefully, you'll see tire tracks turning into the trail.
This is the beginning of the
Flintstone trail form the ridgeline doubletrack, aiming toward Provo
Canyon. As you cross over the top, the trail becomes very obvious. |
| Note: The trail is located a lot
further south along the ridge than you'd think. If in doubt, keep going!
Those who get lost are those who quit looking too soon. You'll pass five
small valleys to your left (with a continuous broad valley to your right)
as you follow the long ridge. If you're looking for this trail by
yourself, I strongly recommend an odometer or GPS! |
| Now it's time to change from Grind-it-Out gear to
Downhill-Flight. The trail is designed for expert downhillers. Turns have
high banks for speed. And you need to take them with speed. The apex of
the turns have steep slopes, so you can't crawl through with your brakes
on. And you can't put a foot down. The loose stuff on top of hard clay
guarantees that you'll slip and go down hard. Get the idea? No Beginners!
Jackie waits while I snap a photo as
the trail veers northwest. Not to the steep part yet. |
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Most of the man-made stunts have ride-arounds. On the other
hand, in some spots the trail reaches control points (such as little
cliffs) that function to keep horses, ATVs, and other trail-destroyers off
the route. You won't be able to see what's downhill from that rock ledge
on your first ride.
A diving board jump, about a foot
wide, with its landing transition. The ride-around is just uphill of the
photo.
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| As you reach the bottom, turn left on the dirt road. When
you reach the subdivision, find your way to the northwest corner. Here the
Golden Eagle Road takes you over a low pass (unpaved in 09 up to the
pass). Follow the road back to your car.
At right, a four-footer. The riding
line is between my bike and Jackie.
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Nearing the bottom of the
mountain, an alternate
riding line can take you over the teeter.
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Flintstone Trail from Bike
Park via ridgeline doubletrack:
0.0 Uphill from kiosk, N40 21.414 W111 58.695
Stay on broad gravel path
0.4 R on DT, N40 21.144 W111 58.961
Follow DT around turn and
uphill
0.6 Fork L uphill on DT N40 21.060 W111 59.076
0.7 Keep L (follow ridgeline)
N40 21.038 W111 59.034
0.8 Keep L N40 21.021 W111 58.929
In general, stay L on ridgeline
1.6 Pass water tank
2.0 Flintstone ST on L, N40 20.328 W111 58.152
3.0 At fence, L on DT, N40 20.452 W111 57.665
3.3 Enter subdivision, follow streets to NW corner
Aim for gravel road going over
rise to NW
4.1 On gravel road, becomes paved
4.7 Back at parking |
Riding notes, Singletrack route
from Pony
Express
0.0 From Hidden Canyon Rd, east on paved trail
Veer right uphill on Hidden
Canyon trail
N40 21.344 W111 59.483
0.7 Cross DT N40 21.069 W111 59.065
100 feet, then fork R (Cow
Tracks)
N40 21.049 W111 59.032
50 feet, cross DT N40 21.038 W111 59.036
1.0 Keep R (L = Ridgeline ST)
N40 20.943 W111 58.911 |
1.6 Straight on DT to stay level along hillside
N40 20.597 W111 58.592
1.8 Turn R (southbound) on DT
N40 20.512 W111 58.408
2.1 Keep straight (Road Runner ST crosses)
N40 20.341 W111 58.265
2.2 Keep straight (Jackrabbit ST on R)
N40 20.341 W111 58.184
2.3 Top of ridge, Flintstone on L
N40 20.327 W111 58.151
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Getting there, bike park TH: Take the I-15 Lehi Main Street
exit and turn west. Continue west on SR-73, crossing Redwood Road (11600
West). Just after climbing the hill, turn left at the stop light onto The
Ranches Parkway. Stay on that road as it narrows and turns. When you come to a T intersection at the end of The Ranches
Parkway, turn right on Golden Eagle Road. Drive about 1/3 mile and watch
for the trail kiosk on your left. Park by the trail kiosk and begin your
ride by climbing up the trail heading south. (The only bathroom is here by
the jump line.)
Singletrack route: Turn right off Ranches Parkway onto Pony Express
Parkway. After 1.1 miles, turn left to Hidden Canyon Road and find a
parking spot. Start on the eastbound paved trail on the south side of Pony
Express.
Shuttle to top: As above, head south on Ranches Parkway. At Pony
Express Parkway, turn right. Just over miles later, turn left on Hidden Canyon
Road. Keep heading generally southwest, staying along the edge of the hill
to your left. (Mile 0.4 keep L, 0.5 keep R, 0.8 keep L, 1.3 L then quick R
-- don't take steeper DT up hill -- to continue southwest, 1.5 turn R, 1.8
you're there.)
Drive to bottom: From Ranches Parkway, go east on Pony Express
Parkway about 3/4 mile to Porter's Crossing Parkway and turn right
(south). Go about 1/2 mile south on pavement, then keep straight onto dirt
road. At mile 1.5 from Pony Express, the exit from Flintstone will be on
your left. |
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