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Little South Fork Trail
You won't see a lot of bikers along the Little South Fork of
the Provo River. This trail has potential, but it's a bit out-of-the-way
for what it offers. The singletrack trail itself is 8.7 miles.
View down the canyon, with the peaks
of the Uinta Mountains in the background. Photos October 2, 2001 by Bruce
Argyle
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| Because of
narrow trail, steep spots, roots, occasional quick dips and turns, rocky
sections, and deadfall, this trail is rated advanced technical. The
trailhead is at 7200 feet, the ridgeline 9700. If you're going the loop or
out-and-back option, it's very strenuous aerobic. |
| Point-to-point from the ridge above Mill Hollow to the
highway near the river (using a shuttle vehicle), it's 9.5 miles. This
would be my recommendation for most riders.
Ridden out-and-back (up and back down) on the singletrack for a 17.4 mile, 2700-vertical
ride, it can be tiring, rough, and frustrating. The uphill trail is hard
to navigate (I headed a mile or two up wrong trails twice). It's a pretty
mean climb.
Ridden as a loop (using U-35 then the Mill Hollow road to Campbell
Hollow road before heading downhill), it's 23 miles -- over 14 miles on
tedious road. Most riders will be ready to quit and go home before they
ever see the singletrack. But it's a lot easier to find your way using the
loop route. The Little South Fork of
the Provo River. |
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View of the trail's riding surface. Rocky road. |
Uphill navigation:
0.3 trail fork, keep right (left is Willow Hollow)
0.5 sloppy steep hill, walk
1-2 intermittent vicious rockpiles
2.7 drop down and cross to the west side of the creek
3.8 trail hits dirt road, continue south on road
3.9 Do NOT go hard-right uphill on Camp Hollow Trail
Ignore small roads
that go down to creek
Pick up singletrack
on right about 200 feet past first trail
Immediately cross 2
tiny creeks
5.0 Trail forks, go left across branch of creek
Keep left at
fork after creek
5.2 Trail crosses to east side of main creek
5.6 Trail comes in from left, continue uphill
6.9 Cross back to west side of creek
8.7 At doubletrack, top of ridge |
Loop or shuttle navigation:
0.0 Junction of Little South Fork dirt road and U-35
Leave vehicle here
5.5 Turn right on Mill Hollow Road
7.0 Just past guard station, turn right to Cambell
Hollow
Keep left at 2 road
intersections after mile 9
OR drive up Mill Hollow Road
12.6 Intersection, head west towards Heber Mountain on
road 096
13.5 Just after short descent, look for wooden post
marking trailhead on right
Reset odometer!
2.0 Ruin of old cabin, trail fork left (north and
downhill)
3.1 Trail fork, keep left (right goes down to jeep
road)
Continue downhill
as uphill trails come in from left
4.8 Trail dumps onto dirt road
Ignore smaller
roads going down to creek
Ignore singletrack
going left uphill
4.9 Just as road turns left, singletrack continues
straight on right
6.0 Cross creek
6.5 Occasional rockpiles next mile
7.5 Begin climbing ugly hill
8.7 Singletrack reaches dirt road, head right then
downhill
9.5 Arrive at highway U-35 |
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| Recent fire has damaged the forest in the middle to upper
sections of the singletrack. In these areas, you may ride on ash, fall
into holes where roots have burned away, and carry your bike over a lot of
deadfall. |
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Near the bottom of the singletrack, there's a brutal hill
(200 vertical feet in less than 0.2 mile) each way. Because horses have
churned this steep section of the trail to deep rocky slop, it's virtually
impossible to ride. (The over-hill route avoids traversing around the hill
through private property. Unfortunate.)
Blackened tree trunks stand amid a
wasteland of ash.
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Between the last creek crossing and this hill, there are several areas
of ugly rocky treachery, plus some deadfall to lift your bike over. In the
pines, it seems like the trail turns pointlessly uphill through rough
rock, then needlessly descends through the rockpile again. (Typical horse
path.) If you're heading uphill for an out-and-back, just hang on, because
it gets much better once you cross to the west side of the creek.
Willows put on their fall colors,
matching the aspens of the hillside. |
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I can't give this trail an unqualified recommendation right
now (year 2001) -- I found it tedious walking over and around deadfall in
the fire-damaged areas. And going uphill, it was very hard to know what
was trail -- and what was just another cow path. (It's easier to find your
way downhill, although still very possible to get lost.) As the fire
damage is fixed and trail usage increases, things will get better. If you're looking for some adventure, or just want some different
scenery after riding a dozen other singletracks, give this trail a try.
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Getting there: From US-40, turn towards Kamas on
US-189. Arriving in Kamas, turn right at the stop sign, towards Francis.
One mile later at the stop sign in Francis, turn left towards Woodland.
Drive 9.5 miles from the stop sign. Just after crossing the river, note a
dirt road on your right, labeled "Little South Fork Cross-country Ski
Area." Drive up the road, through 2 gates, 0.8 miles to a gate with
an underground pipeline warning sign. There's a wide spot for parking,
with the trial starting on the south along the fence.
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