Moab’s Amasa Back Trail got a whole lot more interesting with the opening of a new, official network of trails in the area, including the Pothole Arch Trail. Now, instead of the typical out-and-back, you can make your Amasa Back ride longer by adding Pothole Arch to the trip.
Pothole Arch Trail is a really fun sideshow that’s totally worth doing if you’re either going up or down Amasa Back. It’s only 2.2 miles out of the way, and the slickrock scenery is well worth the effort. Plus, it’s cool to get off the bike and explore the arch that is the trail’s namesake.
There’s a few other ways to get creative around Pothole Arch Trail other than the usual Amasa Back route, including Rockstacker and the uber-technical Jackson Trail. So for those of you who are not sick in the head or are looking for a more mellow ride (which is hard to do on Amasa Back anyway) then the Pothole Arch out-and-back is the ticket.
To get to Pothole Arch, start out riding up Amasa Back from Kane Creek Road in Moab, and climb almost 1,000 feet of jeep road, slickrock and technical steps. After the slight descent to the Jackson Hole overlook, you’ll reach a three-way intersection with a sign pointing the way to Pothole Arch and Rockstacker. From here, choose to continue up Amasa Back to its end and ride Pothole Arch on the way down, or tackle Pothole first and save the views from Amasa’s top for later.
The trail to Pothole Arch is obvious and easy. It begins with singletrack that soon turns into slickrock. The vast sandstone sections are marked with red paint so you won’t lose your way. The ride alternates between singletrack and slickrock, with some sections featuing very fast, fun descents.
Pothole Arch marks the end of the trail, and it’s an obvious, round hole in the red sandstone cliff. From here, go right onto a rock dome for awesome views, or hang out at the arch for pictures. To get back to Amasa Back, simply go back the way you came, or take the Rockstacker/Jackson trails down for a more technical adventure to the river below.
To ride the Pothole Arch/Amasa Back Trail, drive from the south end of Moab’s Main Street onto Kane Creek Drive (by the McDonald’s.) Follow the road through a neighborhood into the canyon where you will pass campsites and several home built right into the sandstone cliffs. After a few miles the road becomes dirt and the Amasa Back parking area will appear on the right. Park here and ride your bike a 1/2 mile up the road to the trailhead.