Park City

Beta: Best parking is Silver Lake Lodge at upper Deer Valley, but weekend spots are scarce. Park at lower Snow Park Lodge and take the free Deer Valley shuttle up. Alternate access: PCMR via Silver King Dr to Crescent Rd trailhead, or Canyons via the Cabriolet. Mid-Mountain is a traverse trail at ~8,000 ft, 28 miles of rolling contour. Ride it as a point-to-point (Deer Valley → Canyons) using city buses to shuttle cars. Altitude is real; pace yourself, and the trail gets packed after 10am on weekends, so start early.

Season: Primary season is mid-June through September/October, managed by USFS Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest and Mountain Trails Foundation. At around 8,000 ft, Mid-Mountain needs snowpack to melt off, so opening depends on the winter: big snow years push the first ride into July. Trails above 7,000 ft can stay muddy into late June. Closes once fall storms arrive, typically mid-October.

Lift: Town Lift gives you a head start but the trail is fully pedal-accessible from town.

Beta: The ridge itself is open to bikes every day. The date changes your finish and your shuttle. Upper Mill Creek Canyon is open to bikes only on even-numbered calendar days (Forest Service rule), so the Salt Lake finish down Big Water works on even days only. The Pipeline trails are open any day. Shuttle schedules follow the same calendar: Salt Lake-side shuttles run on even days and Park City-side shuttles on odd days, so confirm the current schedule with the operator when you book. Shuttles drop at the top of Guardsman Pass, which is drop-off only with no roadside parking, and they do not take e-bikes. Finishes: Mill Creek (even days), Mill D and Big Cottonwood via Desolation Lake, or back to Park City: past the Spine, near the north end of the ridge, turn right on the Crest Connector, a singletrack that drops through forest to Mid-Mountain just north of Red Pine Lodge at The Canyons. Ride Mid-Mountain south toward town, a long traverse, then descend upper Spiro to Seldom Seen, a downhill-only bike trail that ends near Park City Mountain. Crescent Mine Grade is another way down. Lower Spiro and Armstrong are uphill-only for bikes, so confirm current trail directions before you ride. If you finish in Salt Lake, plan how you get back: most riders stay in Salt Lake or drive down, shuttle up, and ride to their car. The Park City bus leaves no car waiting at the bottom. Puke Hill is about 350 vertical feet in half a mile. The Spine, a rock fin above Desolation Lake, is the hardest section. The advanced sections on this ride are short and walkable.

Season: High-alpine trail on Forest Service land with the start near 9,800 ft. It usually opens between late June and mid-July depending on snowpack, and rides through September, sometimes into early October before fall storms. Upper Mill Creek Canyon is open to bikes on even-numbered days only, which affects the Salt Lake finish.

Shuttle: Most riders take a shuttle to the top of Guardsman Pass: from Salt Lake on even calendar days, from Park City on odd days. You can also pedal the Guardsman road up, or ride the free Park City bus to the Bonanza Flat lot and pedal the last couple of miles.

Beta: Pinecone drops from the Crest at the top of Puke Hill to Mid-Mountain, and it is ridden both ways. It starts on Mid-Mountain between the Armstrong and Spiro junctions. The bus loop: ride the free Park City bus to the Bonanza Flat lot, link some of 9K, climb Blazing Saddles and then Puke Hill, drop Pinecone to Mid-Mountain, then ride Mid-Mountain to Spiro and drop upper Spiro to Seldom Seen. The pedal version is the one the IMBA Epic uses: Armstrong, which is uphill-only, to Mid-Mountain, then Pinecone up to the Crest. It is a long day at altitude, so acclimate first. Bus bike racks hold roughly 8 to 10 bikes, so check Park City Transit before you go.

Season: The top end sits near the Crest at roughly 9,800 feet, so it can hold snow later than lower trails. Aspen color in mid-September through early October is a draw. Check conditions before you go.

Shuttle: The free Park City bus to the Bonanza Flat lot sets up the classic loop with no car and no shuttle fee.

E-bikes: Park City bans e-bikes on most singletrack, with a Class 1 exception for riders 65 and older or with a mobility disability. MTB Project lists e-bikes as not permitted on the Pinecone loop.

Beta: Park at Wasatch Mountain State Park day-use lot in Midway (state park fee required) or the Pine Canyon dirt pullout 1/4 mile past the state park campground on SR 222. For the shuttle setup, drive up SR 222 another 3.4 miles past the lower trailhead to the upper lot. WOW rides best as a top-down shuttle: 200 ft of climbing then ripping berms, loose dirt, and off-camber singletrack. If you self-pedal, climb the 0.7 mi up from the day-use lot then fork hard left; the climb trail is separate from the descent.

Season: High-alpine descent in Wasatch Mountain State Park (Utah State Parks). Typically rideable late June through mid-October depending on snowpack. Tops out at ~8,400 ft. Fall colors through the aspens in September/early October are spectacular.

Shuttle: Shuttle up from SR-222 trailhead in Wasatch Mountain State Park. Not lift-served. State park day-use fee applies. You CAN pedal up but it's a 2,300-2,500 ft climb before the descent.

Self-shuttle: Self-shuttleable with two cars: drop one at the Heber/Midway finish, drive up to the SR-222 trailhead. Solo riders can pedal back up the paved road (SR-222 / Pine Canyon): narrow, steep, windy, mostly road cyclists but doable on an MTB. Big fall leaf-peeping draw through the aspens.

Beta: Park at the PCMR base area off Kilby Rd / Action Sports Hub (free, plentiful). Single-lift access is via the Crescent chair (1,700 ft in a few minutes), and Woodward's Hot Laps lift serves the progression jump lines. For beginners, start on Holy Roller (wide, smooth, mellow grade). Woodward is the friendliest place to learn. Deer Valley (separate resort) has 3 lifts (Silver Lake Express, Sterling, Homestake Express). Check construction closures and altitude-adjust before hammering.

Season: Lift-served season typically runs early June through early October, with PayDay and Town Lift opening first (early June) and the higher Crescent Lift following in late June once upper-mountain snow clears. 70+ miles of lift-accessed terrain. Summer storms can close lifts briefly for lightning. Closes mid-October ahead of the ski season.

Lift: Lift-served laps are the draw, but you can pedal into the bike park area from the town trail network.

E-bikes: Park City Mountain will not load e-bikes on its lifts unless the bike has a Park City courtesy tag, issued to riders 65 and older or with a mobility disability.