Singletracks (March 12, 2025) by Greg Heil

Arizona is littered with thousands of miles of fantastic singletrack. Here are 5 of the best mountain bike trails to explore.

Thousands of miles of narrow, rocky, sandy singletrack trails lace the state of Arizona from north to south and east to west. Arizona has it all: from rugged backcountry trails to urban networks, from sandy desert to high alpine aspen groves. If there’s a type of mountain biking that you love, you can find it here.

When we first wrote about the best trails in Arizona in 2016, we said that the state has flown under some mountain bikers’ radars compared to other western states like Colorado and Utah. In the intervening nine years, it’s safe to say that perception has changed. Popular destinations like Sedona have become absurdly popular with riders, hikers, and tourists alike, and the Sedona Mountain Bike Festival launched in the intervening years. While cities like Tucson have long been popular winter training grounds, it now seems like every single pro rider worth their salt migrates to Tucson to train over the winter.

New trail development across the state has elevated numerous destinations. The Hawes trails have transformed from renegade lines to the best MTB trails in Phoenix. All-new trail systems like Bean Peaks in Prescott are adding modern flow trail flavor to the state’s offerings. And top destinations like Flagstaff, Tucson, and Payson continue to build new trails to expand on their classic singletrack.

It’s never been a better time to be a mountain biker, and that applies doubly in Arizona.

4. Arizona Trail

The Arizona Trail (AZT) is a non-motorized singletrack trail that runs 800+ miles across the entire state — north to south. While some portions of this trail are closed to mountain bikes (most notably, the stretch through the Grand Canyon), the vast majority is open to knobby tires — and in general, the singletrack is fantastic!

The AZT alignment is home to a plethora of iconic day rides, including out-and-back routes, point-to-point epics, and fantastic loop combinations thanks to other nearby trails. If you’re looking for an iconic day ride on the AZT, Tim Racette, Executive Director of the Mountain Bike Association of Arizona (MBAA), recommends the Picket Post segment.

In addition to endless day ride options, the AZT is also home to a bikepacking race every spring with two different distances: either 300 or 800 miles.

Unlike the Continental Divide Trail, the AZT already offers a continuous singletrack experience from border to border. Even still, the trail keeps getting better: reroutes in recent years have improved the bikeability of several previously brutal sections and have even increased the total length of the trail.

 

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