Mountain biking the Mill Creek Canyon Pipeline Trail

June 16, 12:50 PMSalt Lake City Outdoor Recreation ExaminerJared Hargrave

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Coasting into the Elbow Fork entrance to the Pipeline Trail

The Pipeline Trail in Mill Creek Canyon is a well known and crowded trail filled with mountain bikers, trail runners, dog walkers and hikers. Despite the traffic, as a mountain bike trail it's really fun and great for beginners. Overall, the Pipeline Trail is flat with only a few steep up and down sections. The dirt single-track is buffed out well with few rocks to dodge. The Pipeline winds along the north side of Mill Creek Canyon through groves of scrub oak and open spaces that deliver sweeping views of the Salt Lake Valley.

For mountain bikers just starting out, the Pipeline Trail is an easy introduction of single-track riding. There are very few technical sections and the few areas that do get hard will help boost a beginner's confidence. There are some spots that may intimidate the less experienced, such as a section of hairpin turns on the descent into Burch Hollow, steep drop-offs on the side of the trail, and stretches of loose rocks just before the rides end.

Although the ride is easy, intermediate and expert mountain bikers keep coming back to enjoy the ride as it's a fun and fast quickie that is easily accessed from the Salt Lake Valley.

There are many possible ways to ride the Pipeline. Several entrances line the canyon road such as Rattlesnake Gulch, Church Fork, Burch Hollow and Elbow Fork. The most popular way to ride is to drive up the canyon and park at the winter gate. Ride up the road to the Elbow Fork trail-head and enter the Pipeline from there. Ride the whole length of the trail out to the overlook, then come back the other way and descend down Burch Fork where a short ride up the canyon road leads back to the car.

The Pipeline Trail can be ridden from spring through the fall, although during times of wet weather the ride will get very muddy and rutted out. Due to the low elevation and long, treeless sections, the ride can be very hot during the summer months. In order to drive up Mill Creek Canyon, a $3 fee is required though it is free to ride a bike up the road.