Hooligan - Sand Dunes Loop

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Not Allowed

Features Drops/Jumps

The Arkansas Hills Trail System, aka S-Mountain Trails, are renowned for their gnarly rock gardens and uber-technical lines. In fact, some of the tech trails—such as the historic Unkle Nazty and the newly-added El Duderino—are so difficult that many riders simply avoid them. However, one difficulty notch below those double black diamond lines, is the Hooligan - Sand Dunes trail combination. This steep, rocky descent is still no joke, but it's now the most popular tech line down the mountain thanks to its consistent pitch, fantastic features, and somewhat predictable line.

Begin by pedaling across the train tracks from the F-Street Bridge Trailhead, picking up the Frontside trail and turning left to climb the mountain. Continue uphill on Little Rattler, and then at the FS 173 junction, turn right and climb FS 173 to the Pauli trail.

Pauli is a short, rocky connector trail that leads to the top of both Hooligan and Unkle Nazty. Pull up your pads and opt for the right turn onto Hooligan. Prepare yourself for an onslaught of steep rock gardens punctuated by the occasional massive, exposed rock slab move. The most difficult slabs are all quite achievable, but they can also be bypassed. In similar fashion, lower down you'll spot numerous optional drops—again, you can bypass these if desired.

Hooligan dumps naturally into Sand Dunes, and you'll rip through more rocks on an older, more worn trail and slide through the sand dune before crossing the four-way junction with Backbone.

Lower Sand Dunes has been reworked in recent years, and in addition to the rocks, the wallride now flows better, and you'll spot a few optional hits here as well.

Lower Sand Dunes runs straight out of the valley and back to the F-Street trailhead, making this one of the most straightforward loops on the mountain.