[Closed] Moab

I went along time ago

We were on longer trip and weren't in a hurry but..

I thought navigation was easy. Not quite trail center easy but certainly way easier than the uk Bridleway network. Now maybe the guides know about things I missed but things like Porcupine Rim didn't have many junctions. Yes bike shops were helpful. We had a latitude 40 map and a trail guide book as well

The area is spectacular scenically as you will know from climbing. Well worth seeing Arches national Park etc.

The White Rim Trail was lovely and would be worth paying to do as a trip as its hard to do logistically without a 4wd drive support vehicle. We did it our selves but there was alot of faffing carrying and filtering huge quantities of river water. Its a scenic not bike handling experience (However I still rate it very highly)

If I went back I'd be looking into rafting trips or maybe a guided trip through a Canyon along the lines of 127 hours

We did some short bolted routes but hey were nothing special

Tick

I'd suggest earlier if you can.
We went March and it was already getting toasty.
Don't pay for a human guide, just get the book guide.
Poison Spider Bikes were great. Swapped the brake levers round no problem

great place

do Poison Spider into Portal Trail
Porc Rim
Slickrock

Only been Sept so can't comment on May but I would guess it will be ok, start your rides early to avoid the worst of the heat.
Rent a condo or house depending on people going.
Car hire - get a big SUV - easily fits 3 and 3 bikes plus bags
Bike hire in Moab is expensive
All trails are easy to navigate with a map - you don't need a guide.
You can use the shops for their shuttle service for the harder to get to rides (Whole Enchilada. Use your own cars and a fit person to get to others and to fetch them back at the end of the ride.
If you fly to Denver stop off at Fruita on the way for a day or two, if the snow has receded enough on the way back try doing some of the divide route from Breckenridge on the return.
If there's still snow in the mountains the Colorado will be good for rafting
You have got to spend time in Canyonlands national park and watch the sun set across it.
Milkshakes at Milts on the way back from the Slickrock trail
Gelato from Moab Brewery (Raspberry & balsamic)after all other rides
Beer from Moab brewery 🙂

HTH

Yeah Milts is great.

We went in the height of summer (as part of a larger trip elsewhere). I loved it , it was insanely hot and we went out at 7am and after 6 at night.

I do remember bike hire from chilli bikes being great value, a pair of sultans for not much at all. They even gave us a bike rack and we just did the beginner trails and Bar-M and dead horse point. Truly awesome and pretty incomparable to anything in the UK.

We stayed out of Moab at a Ranch which was a bit far away but a great setting.

Whole Enchilada
Mag 7 and the Blue Dot Trail
Captain Ahab
Pipe Dream

http://www.utahmountainbiking.com/trails/idx-moab.htm

I went this September and it was baking, especially doing the exposed slick rock trail. Poison spider are great for bike hire with loads of choices. Porc rim shuttle for the whole enchilada was $20. That one is a must do. Captain ahab is good fun too.

There are a few hotels in town, I stayed in motel 6 which was the cheapest I could find at short notice. There are lots of camping areas next to the river also.

I would recommend guided riding out there. You'll get so much more from a local who really knows the trails. There are a load of new trails being built out there and they do stand up to the 'classics'.

I can't recommend Magpie enough. Mike has been out there riding for 25 years and is now an IMBA Level 3 coach. He is the nicest guy and loves showing people the best that Moab has. I do plan to get out there and do one of their multi-day trips to see the real wild country.

[url= http://magpieadventures.com/moab-bike-tours/ ]http://magpieadventures.com/moab-bike-tours/[/url]

Wouldn't go back to Moab. Would go back to Oregon.

Utah is high on my list for MTB if I can get some other people interested in going, but been loads of times skiing and love the place, though that's up in the north (though I'm told there's some pretty good stuff around Park City etc, but it's not the desert canyon style stuff of Moab).

Anyway, only annoyance of Utah is the lack of direct flights from UK to SLC. Just means the whole flight with stops is looking at 14hours or so. Though for Moab you could get a direct flight to Denver and drive across, but the only direct flight is with BA and their prices to Denver have gone insane.

Would be interested in places to stay. Loads of cheap options with big hotel rooms and plenty to do at night up at SLC, but it's a long way to drive every day to Moab so that's not really an option.

Randomly I think Paris CDG is the last European airport for direct to SLC, not done Moab but hope to on the back of a work trip one day. With regards to the guide/self arguments if the group is big enough to cover it then I'd always go guides, local knowledge, backup, point to point rides with organised pickup etc. even if it doesn't make the riding better it makes it less stressful.

Thanks for all the advice folks, really helpful. Sounds like I need to start doing some planning! Thanks again!

I've been in May - hot but doable. But you'll know if you've climbed (I took bouldering slippers and found it hard work in the sun). Up the Creek is/was a good campsite in town. We've had S-Max type cars which I think we're cheaper than 4WD and fine for 4x once you jiggle the seats. Easy enough to DIY.