Barrel-Zen Link Up

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Not Allowed

Features Drops/Jumps · Views

This 10.6 mile link up of the Barrel and Zen Trail grants access to some of the very best riding in the area. It flows through beautiful desert singletrack and along cliff edges that overlook the Green Valley Gap. It's an advanced ride with jumps, drops, and technical climbs to challenge even the best of riders. Everything has optional walk arounds, but you can expect these 10.6 miles to be exhausting no matter what. The terrain changes between slickrock, chunk, and flow so expect a little of everything!

This trail includes large gaps and drops.

Start this route by climbing a mix of singletrack and dirt roads to the top of Barrel Trail. The descent begins with a few rollers into the first major feature, a complex rocky wall called the "Waterfall". Ride down the wash into a technical climb.

The next descent includes gaps, drops, and rock rollers. The largest drop near the top of this descent is called the Yeti drop -- an iconic big line off a boulder to a dirt landing. The option to ride around Yeti drop is to simply continue the singletrack around left (pass the drop on your right) and reconnect to the main trail. From there, ride through the Playground and follow the road back past your vehicle onto the next loop.

Continue by climbing the Zen Trail. This trail winds uphill through slickrock and singletrack. The climb starts off steep and quickly becomes more difficult the higher you get. Watch to your left as you climb for a large, near-vertical roller where people tend to circumnavigate the narrow canyon that is almost unrideable. After this, climb one of the hardest features of the trail, which is a steep rock garden. Continue to work your way up slickrock features and weave between boulders, following the white dots. Eventually an obvious trail leads you to the summit.

After you reach the top, follow the trail through a series of fast descents through chunky rocks and ledges. Follow the white dots, and make sure to control your speed so you don't blast off anything too tall. It's easy to gain a lot of speed on this one! Push your bike up a short unclimbable (for most people!) feature then continue the descent to the valley floor. Once on the bottom, climb your way back out of the "Hellhole" and traverse the slickrock terrain back to the car.