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Outlaw Trail
0 reviews
0 of 5
This is a new trail, not even dedicated by the Forest Service when I rode it. It starts at about 9000 ft elevation and meanders across the high country meadows and for 15 miles before heading down into Water Canyon to the trailhead there outside of Springerville. The trail across the meadows is about half single track and half 2 track that is seldom used but maintained by the FS. There are some good downhill thrills in this section, twice winding through large groves of aspen, but mostly it is a real sweat to get over the meadows and up to the point where you can start down. Here it gets really fun as the trail is newly graded and rough with lots of bumps, some water bars and switchbacks. Part of the fear is waiting for the mountain lion or wolves or bears to attack. This country has plenty of them all. The trail is easy to follow with good markings. You are really out here alone with no sign of other humans. At each fence, they have these neat bike cattle guards that you can roll over at top speed. This trail needs riders. The FS is really trying to please the mtn bikers with this trail. They went to a lot of work and this is a good one. I may have been the 3rd one on it. The only down side is the slightly too deep gravel on some of the uphill 2 track. I think it should pack down over time, but the cows tramp in it too. The altitude makes you suck wind, but it''s too beautiful and remote to care how much it costs to ride it. It is undiscovered so far.
Travel to Springerville from Phoenix via hwy 60, turn right to Eager, then right again onto 260. Go three miles to hwy 261 and take a left up the mountain. In about 20 miles you come to a T where you turn left toward Big Lake. Directly in front of you at this T is Crescent Lake. Travel about a mile down the east shore of this lake and turn into the boat ramp parking area on the south end of Crescent Lake. There is a restroom there as well. The trail starts out from this parking area, crossing the highway, over the first bike cattleguard and you are on your way. There are several options for shortening the high meadow grind with access at two other points closer to the downhill section. The FS in Springerville can show you these new trailheads, but avoid Apache as that is a different spur trail of the Outlaw. The lower end comes out at the parking area to the trailhead in Water Canyon on FS road 85, just 3 miles South of Springerville.
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