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JEM Trail

RECOMMENDED ROUTE
Intermediate Intermediate
 4.1 (95)
  1. Areas
  2. UT
  3. …Southwestern Utah
  4. …Hurricane and La Verkin
  5. Hurricane Cliffs Trail System
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“A great fast and flowy trail. ”

Kevin Christopherson
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Map Key

7.1

Miles

11.5

KM

90%

Singletrack

4,318' 1,316 m

High

3,455' 1,053 m

Low

40' 12 m

Up

892' 272 m

Down

2%

Avg Grade (1°)

17%

Max Grade (9°)

Dogs Unknown

E-Bikes Unknown

Overview

JEM trail is an amazing trail that winds through the beautiful desert singletrack of the Hurricane Cliffs area. This trail features a few downhill-only sections and you can expect mostly easy singletrack riding with a few hard sections such as the JEM drop. While it can be descended in one fell swoop from the Upper Jem Trailhead all the way to the Virgin River, it can also be ridden in sections or linked up with over 20 miles of other trails in the area.

Description

Parking: Start parked at Sheep Bridge Trailhead or at the Upper JEM Trailhead; the lower lot is now closed to mountain bikers.

From the top, begin pedaling the dirt road out of the parking lot to a well-marked sign on your right indicating the JEM trail. Follow the smooth singletrack for a little over a mile before reaching the hardest feature of the trail, the JEM drop. This downhill-only section consists of over 100 feet of steep rocks and switchbacks, marking the most challenging part of the trail. After navigating this section, continue following the obvious singletrack through desert terrain until reaching the Lower JEM trail. At this point, the trail becomes a little rockier but still offers overall easy riding. As the trail nears its end, it runs unnervingly close to the Virgin River along a tall cliff edge. Once reaching the bottom, avoid riding through the nature conservancy and take Carne Asada back up. From there, take the JEM trail, turning right on Deadringer before reaching the downhill-only section of the JEM drop.

Contacts

Local Club: Trail Alliance of Southern Utah (TASU)

Land Manager: BLM Utah - St. George Field Office

Shared By:

Kevin Christopherson with improvements by Wild Mesa Guiding
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  4.1 from 95 votes

#2

in Hurricane Cliffs Trail System

#149

Overall
  4.1 from 95 votes
5 Star
43%
4 Star
37%
3 Star
13%
2 Star
5%
1 Star
2%
Recommended Route Rankings

#2

in Hurricane Cliffs Trail…

#23

in Utah

#149

Overall
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51,169 Since Aug 30, 2013
Intermediate Intermediate
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Photos

Jeremy takes in the view from the lookout about 1 mile into the ride. Expect pretty spectacular views from the JEM Trail!
Mar 6, 2017 near LaVerkin, UT
A little pause to take it all in...
Mar 26, 2018 near LaVerkin, UT
This is the part where JEM really gets rockin'
Apr 2, 2015 near Hurricane, UT
Here comes a storm...
May 3, 2016 near LaVerkin, UT
Almost at the end on Jem trail.
Apr 18, 2017 near LaVerkin, UT
Teena bombing it down the JEM trail back to the Sheep Bridge trailhead. You can see the town of Virgin, and Zion National Park in the background.
Aug 11, 2013 near LaVerkin, UT

12 Comments

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Weather

Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 46 days ago
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Check-Ins

Jul 1, 2024
Mark Shofner
Dec 18, 2023
Keenan Barr
You can no longer access the north end of this trail to start. It has become pedestrian only and does not allow bikes to start there.
Nov 26, 2023
Rose Sorenson
Parking and rider access closed. Need to use Sheep Bridge Trailhead a few miles away for access.
Jul 8, 2023
Curtis Evans
Oct 24, 2022
Katharine Wilson
May 14, 2022
Holly Godsey
Beautiful and fun, as always!
May 4, 2022
David Knupp
Noticed that JEM trail is one way going downhill. Recommended direction is the wrong way. Is the downhill only pretty recent and an update in order?
Apr 27, 2022
Riley McDonald

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Stewarded By

Stewarded by Trail Alliance of Southern Utah (TASU)
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