John Krein

Tucson, Arizona

It was late in the afternoon, and I started climbing up around Katt Mountain on the south side of Starr Pass when a mountain lion slinked in front of me. I was only a few hundred feet from the developments on Kinney road, and at first I thought it was just a deer that walked funny. But it wasn't. It kept its hips low and level as cruised across the trail and down into a nearby wash. I was climbing and trying to get better and better views, but I could just see flashes of him in the vegetation.

That's the second time I've seen a mountain lion this year. The first time was on a remote part of the Umpqua River Trail in southern Oregon, when I came around a corner and nearly ran into him. He was golden brown with a dark tail and was scrutinizing something in the middle trail. He saw me and leapt onto a pile of boulders and vanished in the wet forest.

What amazes me is that I've spent 12 years mountain biking and hiking and these are the first two cats I've ever seen! There have been a few false alarms and maybes along the way but here are my first two cat sitings and they were just a few months apart. One was in a remote part of Oregon, and this one today was right in our backyard.

I suppose I should mention the trail. I'd been curious about John Krein for some time, perched as it is on gorgeous bluffs. I'd climbed up to a prominotory once before, but I heard there was a way to drop down the other side and back to the Starr Pass area. The answer is, yes, there's a way, but it's mostly a matter of carrying your bike down a steep, rock-strewn slope. Unless you're looking for adventure, I'd recommend just catching the first half of John Krein for a technical climb and turning around for the descent.

How to get there: Take Speedway toward Tucson Mountain Park. Turn left on Silverbell. Right on Ajo Way. Head up Ajo way until you get to Starr Pass Resort. Turn left and go up the hill to the stop sign. Turn left. Take the first right on a dirt road along the golf course. Go to the end of the road and park.

Length: 10 miles, 2 hours, 1800 foot climb.

Trail Conditions: There's some great new singletrack at the trailhead so you don't have to ride up and down that rocky road anymore.

The Map: Lots of trails out here, but it's hard to get lost. The best way to explore is to get The Map at your local bike shop. SDMB also offers a map. Below is the map for the John Krein loop.


The Ride: Through Starr Pass, up and over John Krein, and back to your car.


View towards Starr Pass from John Krein


Like a big ugly amoeba, the Kinney road sprawl has taken over on the south side of the mountains.

Suffering Gulch

Tucson, Arizona
"There's doubletrack. There's singletrack. And this is quarter track," said SAMBA's John Pollock as we started our ride through Suffering Gulch just north of the 24 hours of Old Pueblo trail. It was a trail insofar as a couple of rock piles and flattened grass maketh a trail. It's nearly impossible to find on your own, and once you find it, it's very easy to lose.

All this will change, John hopes, when riders discover its rewards. And in truth, it's rewards are many. So are it's perils. At first, I cringed when I saw the SAMBA old-timers had gaiters on over their tattered biking shoes, looking like a bunch of hobos on two wheels. But after nicking my legs with umpteen thousand thorns, I realized I was the fool, and I should never underestimate the wisdom of my elders.

As far as the terrain goes, I've always lamented the fact that the 24 hour trail hardly penetrates these boulder-strewn mountains streaked with otherworldly veins of snow white quartz. One leg of the race course wraps around a tiny peak, but the rest of the land has been a big question mark for me. That's the same reason why John and his buddy Stan decided to start blazing some new trails, turning hoof prints into tire tread.

The first five miles are rather faint, but with a little luck the frequent rock piles will keep you on the right track. Once you climb over the back side, and enter the gulch the fun really starts. The downhill -- though no highway -- is easier to follow than the rest of the trail, and is at least as fun as the best parts of the race course.

How to get there: Take Oracle north past Catalina. Turn left at Willow Springs Road. Drive down Willow Springs Road about 10 miles (past the Willow Springs Ranch arch). Keep a lookout for a road coming in from the left side -- it's kind of hard to see and you have to turn almost 180 degrees to get on it. Follow this road for about 1/4 mile until you come to the 24 hour race start/finish line. You'll see a wide dirt parking lot and a trail blazing through it.

Length: 10.5 miles. 1-2 hours. ~1000 feet of elevation.

Trail Conditions: I would say its overgrown, but that would imply that there was once a real trail there in the first place. Get ready to deal with serious thorns and a few wrong turns.

The Map: Good luck!


The Ride: Head uphill on the race course (you'll be going UP the DOWNHILL). After you go through the pass, the trail begins to descend and loop around to the right, keep on the lookout for a small cattle track to your left. It should be marked with a couple of stones (see Photo). You'll wind your way around the back of the property where the trail is pretty faint, windy and hard to follow at first. It's also mostly uphill. Keep with it. You'll go under the first of four barbed wire fences. By the third fence, you'll begin your descent into Suffering Gulch, where the trail becomes much easier to follow and much more fun. It will eventually spit you out back at the race course, a couple of hundred feet from where the faint trail first took off from the main track.


On the left of this photo you can see the wide singletrack of the race course. The rider stands on the faint cow path that leads to Suffering Gulch. Notice the small pile of rocks in the foreground, topped with a white chunk of quartz.

Other Options: Start at the Willow Springs Arch parking lot to add 4-5 miles to your route.

Cougar Trail

Tucson, Arizona
Did you bring the map? I obviously didn't, because I never made it to the trail I wanted to get to. I know I made a stupid mistake along the way, but it doesn't matter. Let's just pretend I really meant to ride the Cougar.

The truth is I had a nice sunset ride and explored some of the rolling trails and jeep roads around the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum. This is a great beginner ride.

How to get there: Take Speedway until it turns into Gates Pass Road. Take Gates Pass Road over the pass to the intersection with Kinney Road. Drive through the intersection and park in Parking Area K16.

Length: 9 miles. 1 hour. ~1000 feet of elevation.

Trail Conditions: Good.

The Map:


The Ride:Cross Kinney Road and head into the brush on the NE corner of the intersection. After 0.35 miles, turn left when you reach the graded road to Sonoran Arthropod Studies Institute. Follow this road for 0.85 miles then turn left onto the marked Orcutt Trail. When you will hit the T intersection at the power line, turn left and head down the hill. Turn right at the fence at the bottom of the hill. This is the Cougar Trail. Keep going straight and cross a deep wash. You'll come to a T-intersection and follow the rock arrow to the left down to Kinney Road. Turn right on Kinney Road and go 1.2 miles. Turn left into the Juan Santa Cruz Picnic Area. Jump the curb before the road loops back. Head down into the wash and catch the trail going to the left around Brown Mountain. It will eventually parallel Kinney road. After 2.5 miles, you'll come to the end of the singletrack. Cross McCain Loop Road and head into the Gilbert Ray Campground. Take the A loop and catch the trail marked with a TRAIL sign on the left at campsite 52. Follow this trail for 0.35 miles, and you'll come out at parking area K16.

Other Options: Now that I know what I'm doing I think I'll climb the Cougar Trail, and then take the Brown Mountain trail back for a more exciting descent.

Aspen Draw

Tucson, Arizona
I told Aviv not to worry: the top of Mt. Lemmon couldn't be colder than 50 degrees. After all, it had already started warming up down here in Tucson, and Mt. Lemmon was a mere 6000 feet above us.

As we drove 25 miles up the Catalina Highway, Kathy and I showed our out-of-town guests the awesome topography of our craggy mountain -- boulders piled upon boulders leaning precariously over deep ravines and cliff faces. We wound our way from the desert floor through oak forest, finally topping out in the pine and aspen forest that clings to the town Summerhaven like a verdant toupee.

"That's snow!" Aviv said, pointing to the side of the road. I complimented him on his powers of observation, but said not to worry, once we started riding we'd have no problem warming up. The temperature was 40.

After leaving Kathy and Hilary to eat pie and drink hot chocolate at the Summerhaven cafe, I warned Aviv about the faulty shifter and the incessant clicking noise that my hardtail still makes. "Now you tell me," he said.

He pulled up his knee-high socks and cinched up his fleece jacket. The first mile up the mountain is always painful, the air is so thin and dry your lungs hurt as you try to spring over each rocky hill. Our tires crackled over an inch of snow -- just enough to remind us that it was winter -- but not enough to steal our traction. We crossed a frozen stream and pressed our way up to the ski area, where children were laughing and giggling while we were panting and massaging the nubs of our ice-cube fingers.

The climb flattens out as you make it onto the concrete service road, and we crossed patches of icy snow. By the time we made it to the Aspen Draw trailhead the sun bathed the mountain in a tawny glow, and I offered Aviv the opportunity to make "one quick loop" around the Meadow Trail. He declined.

The descent was glorious, fast and smooth, and nearly the whole trail was covered in snow. The faint track of a ghost rider preceded us, but other than that there was no one around. For good reason: by the time we arrived at the cafe, the sun was blocked by the peak and the temperature had dropped to freezing. "You said it would only take an hour," Kathy said, "You've really lost a lot of credibility here." Maybe I have.

How to get there: Take the Catalina Highway to Summerhaven.

Length: 7 miles. 1-2 hours. ~1500 feet of elevation.

Trail Conditions: One inch of snow.

The Map: SDMB provides a nice map and trail description for Aspen Draw, but it differs slightly from my route. Unfortunately, my own GPS ran out of batteries.



The Ride: From the Summerhaven cafe, head up Turkey Run road, which follows the Upper Sabino Canyon. This turns to singletrack and you take it to the ski area. Then, you take the ski area service road up the mountain. At the summit, you'll see a gate and radio towers off to your left. Go through the gate and go down a little dip and just past the chairlift you'll see a small sign for the Aspen Draw Trail. You follow this singletrack for two miles, and it will spit you out back on the singletrack through the Upper Sabino Canyon. Bike down to your car.

Other Options: You can combine this with the Mt. Lemmon / Meadow Trail to make a slightly longer ride. I've also done Aspen Draw as an out-and-back, which was pretty darn tough.

Lower 50 Year Trail

Tucson, Arizona
I used to think this trail was just a way to warm up before you got to the Upper 50 year trail. But in the wisdom of my years I've come to appreciate trails of all sorts, even this humble affair.

The Lower 50 Year Trail is neither thrilling nor aerobically challenging. What it is is just a mellow grind that will give you a good workout when you're not in the mood for an epic. The descent has a few rocky water bars, a few nice turns, but all in all it doesn't get your adrenaline flowing. A ride is a ride, and it's nice to mix things up sometimes. You don't always have to order a boilermaker. Sometimes, a cold one is good enough.

How to get there: Head north on Oracle road about 5 miles past the intersection of Ina and Oracle. Turn right into Catalina State Park and follow the entrance road past the booth. The first road you pass is restricted. Turn right at the second road towards two campgrounds and the Equestrian Center. The ride begins at the Equestrian Center. To avoid paying state park fees, riders typically park their cars at the Honeywell or a nearby shopping center.

Length: 13 miles. 1-2 hours. 1000 feet of elevation.

Trail Conditions: Trail is in great shape, but gets a bit sandy as you approach Golder Ranch Road.

The Map: Click on the map below to head to Motionbased. There's also a good map at SDMB.


The Ride: This is a quick out-and-back after work sort of ride. The trail is super easy to follow. It winds through undulating hills from Catalina State Park up to Golder Ranch Road where you can keep going to hit the Chutes and the more technical upper section. About four miles into the trail you'll pass through a gate to exit the state park and enter cattle country. I turned around just past Equestrian Trail -- a wide chalky road. (If you turn left there, you'll come to the Golder Ranch Road parking lot.) The return trip on this 6 mile stretch is the best part of the ride, fast and smooth with a few moderate climbs.

Other Options: As I mentioned above, you can turn this into a 4 hour loop if you do both the lower and upper sections of the trail. There are other tracks in the area (e.g. Baby Jesus) that I haven't had a chance to explore.

Kentucky Camp

Tucson, Arizona
Kentucky Camp is one of the best rides in Southern Arizona. It's higher in elevation than Tucson and parts of it look like my old stomping grounds in central California. The whole area is crisscrossed with canyons, some of which have running water almost all year round. There are tons of jeep roads, abandoned mines, and caves to explore. Today, I went out with SDMB and rode the southern chunk of the IMBA Epic Loop, which is a real blast. My favorite part is the Ascent O' Death, a hellish climb that separates the men from the boys. We were all boys today. But we tried really hard.

How to get there: From Tucson, take I-10 E. Exit at HWY-83 toward Sonoita. About 5 miles before Sonoita, you'll turn right at the Gardner Canyon sign. Take the first right and follow signs 5 miles to Kentucky Camp.

Length: 15 miles, 2 hours, 2000 foot climb.

Trail Conditions: Trail is in great shape, but, as usual, some sections are a tad overgrown with grass and calf-shredding catclaws.

The Map: Click on the map below to head to Motionbased. There's a good map and description of the Kentucky Camp singletrack at SDMB, and the IMBA epic is described here.


The Ride: I won't replicate the great description of the IMBA epic that is available at SDMB. We did the southern section that begins just above Kentucky Camp and is about half jeep road and half singletrack.

To find the trailhead from the parking lot, continue on the dirt road you came in on for about 0.5 mile and you'll see the trail marker on the left. Take this trail down to Kentucky Camp and follow the directions above. On the way out, we skipped this last bit of singletrack and climbed the short 4WD track from the Camp to get back to our cars.

Upper 50 Year Trail

Tucson, Arizona
The 50 year trail is a classic Tucson ride through some serious cattle country. In addition to the overabundant prickly pears on this trail, you're going to have to test your riding skills dodging cow patties and sometimes the cows themselves. Although it hasn't happened to me yet, the tight squeezes on this narrow trail make it a great place to snap off a derailleur hanger.

The quick loop I like to do is the more technical upper section, although I usually end up spending a good amount of time hoisting my bike up the steepest parts. You'll follow a fast windy trail from the Golder Ranch Parking lot to the infamous "chutes" area. After climbing out of the chutes, you'll enter huge boulder fields and steep canyons. The terrain is so gnarly, it amazes me that you can ride your bike through here at all. There are also probably more cacti per square inch then any other trail in this state.

The final descent from the mesa is a total blast and makes all those nasty climbs worth it: windy banked turns through boulders and prickly bushes until you finally come to this creepy dry forest with head-high grass all around you. This loop is just one of many possiblities. Enjoy.

How to get there: Head north on Oracle road about 11 miles past the intersection of Ina and Oracle. Turn right on Golder Ranch Road. You go about 2 miles before crossing a bridge and entering the dirt parking lot.

Length: 9 miles, 1-2 hours, 1000 foot climb.

Trail Conditions: The lower sections are sandy. The upper sections are heavily rutted. Still a blast to ride.

The Map: Click on the map below to head to Motionbased. There's also a good map at SDMB.


The Ride: From the Golder Ranch parking lot, cross the cattle guard and start to head left on Equestrian Road. You'll see the singletrack immediately on the right side of the road. After about 1000 feet, the singletrack will join a jeep road. Follow this jeep road for another 1000 feet and you'll see the first marked singletrack. Follow the 50 yr. trail signs north. There are lots of trails out here so its best too stay on the marked ones your first time around.

Eventually, you'll descend into the "chutes." I make a quick loop, cross two washes, and climb out of there --still following the signs for the 50 yr trail. This steep technical ascent will eventually lead you to a barbed wire fence that you'll need to cross. This section has a lot of hike-a-bike, but has some great views. After about 1-2 miles of toil, you'll cross a sandy wash and make one last ascent before descending on the killer singletrack I mentioned above. The singletrack will come out at another sandy wash. You cross that and follow trail until you come to a jeep track and a cattle guard. Cross the cattle guard, and you'll see the spot where you crossed this road earlier on the trail. Turn left and follow the trail back to your car.

Other Options: I've barely explored this place and there are a lot of great options out here. One common route is to park outside Catalina State Park and take the Lower 50 year trail all the way to the chutes. That's about a 12 mile round trip. There's some other singletrack out around Golder that I'd like to add in later postings.

The climb up takes zen-like concentration, planning, and endurance, but if you have to dab do yourself a favor and look around.