Park City in 5 Days: Wasatch Crest, WOW, and Lift-Served Gravity

Morning: Do not start with Wasatch Crest. Spend day one at Park City elevation on a loop from the Armstrong and Spiro trailhead just north of Park City Mountain. Armstrong is an uphill-only climb to Mid-Mountain, a steady way to get your legs and lungs on Park City time without the Crest's altitude.

Afternoon: Ride Mid-Mountain south to the top of Spiro, then drop upper Spiro to Seldom Seen, a downhill-only bike trail back toward town. Lower Spiro is uphill-only for bikes, so Seldom Seen is the way down. Confirm current trail directions before you ride. It is a real ride with a good payoff, so keep something in the tank. This is a warm-up, not the objective. For more climbing, ride Armstrong to Mid-Mountain and keep going up Pinecone to the Crest at the top of Puke Hill, then turn around and drop Pinecone to Mid-Mountain and Spiro. Pinecone ridden both ways makes it a bigger day and tops out at Crest elevation, so save that version for when you are feeling the altitude well.

Eats: Post-ride food and beer in town.

Morning: Gravity legs before the ridge. Park at the PCMR base off Kilby Rd at the Action Sports Hub and lap the Crescent chair, 1,700 feet of descent per run across 70+ miles of lift-accessed terrain. Woodward's Hot Laps lift serves the jump lines if you want to work on air.

Afternoon: Session the black tech to get your bike handling sharp for Wasatch Crest tomorrow. Watch the sky. Summer storms can shut the lifts for lightning.

Eats: Base-area food, early dinner, early night.

Morning: The signature day. Wasatch Crest is a ridge line above 9,000 feet that starts near 9,800 feet at Guardsman Pass. There is no parking at the pass, so take a commercial shuttle up: from Park City on odd calendar days or from Salt Lake on even days. Or ride the free Park City bus to the Bonanza Flat lot and pedal the last couple of miles up Guardsman Road. Expect Puke Hill, about 350 vertical feet in half a mile, and the Spine, a rock fin above Desolation Lake that most riders walk.

Afternoon: Your finish depends on the date. Upper Mill Creek Canyon is open to bikes on even-numbered days only. On other days, finish in Park City: Crest Connector to Mid-Mountain, a long traverse south, then upper Spiro and Seldom Seen. If you end in Salt Lake, you need a ride back to town, so most people drive down, shuttle up and ride to their car. Carry two liters, food, and a shell.

Eats: You earned a proper sit-down dinner in town.

Morning: A 10-mile ecosystem-hopping descent from the high country down toward Heber and Midway, aspen glades to pine to high sage with berms in the middle of nowhere. It rides best top-down. Set up a self-shuttle with two cars: drop one at the Midway finish, then drive up SR-222 in Wasatch Mountain State Park to the upper trailhead. State park day-use fee applies.

Afternoon: If you are solo, you can pedal back up the paved SR-222, or just climb the 2,300 to 2,500 feet from the bottom before you drop in. Fall riders come for the aspens, but midsummer the dirt is prime.

Eats: Grab food in Midway or Heber before the drive back, or dinner in town.

Morning: Ease off with a lift-served day at Deer Valley, which skews more XC and flow than Park City Mountain's gravity. The bike park lifts, Silver Lake Express and Homestake Express, run daily 10am to 5pm through September 20, then weekends only after Labor Day. Lap the Deer Valley trail network at whatever pace your legs have left.

Afternoon: Spin an easy favorite or call it and let the legs recover. Five days at this altitude adds up. If you would rather finish with a big pedal day than a lift day, ride the Pinecone bus loop: take the free bus up to Bonanza, cut across some of 9K, climb Blazing Saddles and then Puke Hill, and drop Pinecone to Mid-Mountain and upper Spiro to Seldom Seen. Bus bike racks hold roughly 8 to 10 bikes between them, so on a busy morning you may wait for the next bus, and summer schedules change. Check Park City Transit before you go.

Eats: Last-night dinner in town.