“The Gem of the Wasatch.” The new Pinecone Ridge Trail in Park City has already earned that moniker, and is laregly considered an instant classic by those who have gone mountain biking up her singletrack. What originally makes Pinecone Ridge such a hit is the fact that riders have a new way to access the Wasatch Crest Trail from the Mid Mountain Trail. Turns out, Pinecone Ridge is also one of the most fun trails to ride on its own, with a perfectly pitched descent that flows.
Pinecone Ridge Trail begins on the Mid Mountain Trail, about half a mile south of the fork where Mid Mountain and Armstrong trails meet. Armstrong is an excellent way to get to Pinecone Ridge, although Spiro to Mid Mountain is another option. From the Mid Mountain Trail, the 4-mile long Pinecone Ridge rises for around 1,400 feet to the top of Puke Hill on the Wasatch Crest.
From the top of Puke Hill (no puking expected thanks to Pinecone Ridge) your options of descent are limitless. You can ride the Wasatch Crest down to the Crest Connect and into the Canyons Resort for a long loop ride. You can also ride down Puke Hill for a descent to Shadow Lake where Keystone, Apex, Crescent Mine Grade, Spiro and Powerline are all before your front tire waiting to be shredded.
But honestly, if you spend the time and effort to ride up Pinecone Ridge, you might as well ride back down. And boy, what a down Pinecone Ridge Trail is! Jumps, berms, whoop-de-dos, perfect turns, and flowing, buttery singletrack is the wild personality of this ride. In all honesty, going down Pinecone Ridge is about the most fun a mountain biker can have in Park City. There’s nothing technical or difficult, just a perfectly pitched flow track in the woods that will have you whooping it up like you’re neck deep skiing on a powder day. Plus, when you link the descent with Mid Mountain Trail to Spiro all the way to the PCMR base, it becomes a 3,000-foot, 9-mile epic downhill that will make you involuntarily giggle.
Overall, Pinecone Ridge Trail is a huge addition to the Park City trail system, and makes this recently awarded IMBA Gold Level area even better (how about a platinum designation?) It’s fun, never too steep, provides for lots of options to link with other trails, and when connected to Armstrong Trail, makes for a long, 3,000 foot climb that’ll give you one hell of a workout. Pinecone Ridge Trail truly is a Gem of the Wasatch.
For an even better idea of what to expect when you ride Pinecone Ridge Trail, watch this video we put together: