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New Mexico’s Western Highlands Loop

CRoP Routes

 

Region: New Mexico

Season: Spring to fall

Miles: 285  |  Elevation: 20,000′

Days Out: 4-6  |  Tire Size: ≥ 1.75″;

Difficulty: 5/10 Physical   |  4/10 Technical

 

The New Mexico’s Western Highlands Loop! This 280-mile-long rough “gravel” bikepacking route meanders through the Black, Mogollon, San Francisco, and Gallo Mountains of western NM and the gorgeous Blue River Canyon in easternmost AZ. The loop takes riders on very, very quiet roads (~80% dirt, 20% paved) through almost entirely public lands, linking small communities, passing widely scattered ranches, and traversing a landscape where wolves still roam. Most of the loop is above 7,000 feet in elevation, making it a cool shoulder season ride or a relatively comfortable summer ride passing through beautiful ponderosa pine forests, high grasslands, and aspen glades.

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Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Bikepacking Tour

CRoP Routes

 

Region: Arizona

Season: Winter

Miles: 125/190  |  Elevation: 5,000/12,000′

Days Out: 3-5  |  Tire Size: ≥ 2.4″

Difficulty: 5/10 Physical   |  5/10 Technical

 

This delightful desert tour is on 100% dirt, 100% public lands, through stunning mountains, and with reliable water sources – it’s a fantastic 3- to 5-day winter bikepacking trip! The long version of the route includes 2-3 opportunities to scramble up desert peaks and hike into deep canyons along the way, and the shorter version bypasses those side adventures.

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Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument High Plateaus Loop

CRoP Routes

 

Region: Utah

Season: Late spring to late fall

Miles: 170  |  Elevation: 13,000′

Days Out: 3-5  |  Tire Size: ≥ 2.4″

Difficulty: 6/10 Physical   |  5/10 Technical

 

This 170-mile loop follows the most seldom-traveled and arguably most scenic backcountry roads through Grand Staircase – Escalante National Monument through beautiful and remote Colorado Plateau country. Best ridden in late spring or autumn, this loop offers 3+ days of 4×4 riding and solitude.

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Alpine #7

CRoP Routes

 

Region: Montana

Season: Mid-Summer – Early Fall

Miles: 76  |  Elevation: 14,000′

Days Out: 2-3  |  Tire Size: ≥ 2.3″

Difficulty: 8/10 Physical   |  8/10 Technical

 

Offering some of the most stunning ridge crest riding in the northern Rockies, the Alpine #7 experience is a particularly rewarding (and technical) one. This trail is most often ridden as a series of day rides, but it can also be enjoyed as a bikepack over a few days, as a longer loop combined with part of the Great Divide MTB Route, or an absolutely massive one-day effort.

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A Chihuahuan Desert Loop

CRoP Routes

 

Region: Arizona/New Mexico

Season: Fall/Winter/Spring

Miles: 256  |  Elevation: 11,000′

Days Out: 3-5  |  Tire Size: ≥ 1.75″

Difficulty: 4/10 Physical   |  3/10 Technical

 

A Chihuahuan Desert bikepacking experience among the Sky Islands, desert grasslands, and diverse valleys of the Arizona/New Mexico borderlands. The route follows gravel roads, quiet pavement, and a few mellow sections of 4×4 tracks. It’s a fast-riding route that can be done on a gravel or mountain bike (just know that Arizona gravel tends to be a bit rougher and bigger than gravel in many other parts of the U.S.).

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The Western Wildlands Route

Routes

 

Region: Idaho, Montana, Utah, Arizona

Season: Summer to Early Fall

Miles: 2,700  |  Elevation: 120,000′

Days Out: 40-65  |  Tire Size: ≥ 2.2″

Difficulty: 5/10 Physical   |  4.5/10 Technical

 

The Western Wildlands Route is a non-technical expedition, immersing riders in vast expanses of wild and public lands in the Intermountain West.

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The Pony Express

Routes

 

Region: Missouri to California

Season: Spring to Early Fall

Miles: 2,208   |   Elevation: 80,000′

Days Out: 30-55   |   Tire Size: ≥ 2″

Difficulty: 4/10 Physical   |   4/10 Technical

 

The Pony Express Route follows the famed mail trail from smoother riding in the East to rugged and remote riding in the West, tracing Indigenous and settler history along the way.

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The Northwoods Route

Routes

 

Region: Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin

Season: Late Spring to Early Fall

Miles: 630   |   Elevation: 25,000′

Days Out: 10-14+   |   Tire Size: ≥ 1.75″

Difficulty: 4.5/10 Physical   |   4/10 Technical

 

The Northwoods Route circumnavigates the west end of Lake Superior following gravel roads, smooth two-tracks, and rail trails, through thick forests, along countless lakes, and to Isle Royale National Park.

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The Bears Ears Loops

Routes

 

Region: Central Utah

Season: Late Spring or Early Fall

Miles: 647   |   Elevation: 47,000′

Days Out: 9-14   |   Tire Size: ≥ 2.3″

Difficulty: 6/10 Physical   |   4.5/10 Technical

 

The Bears Ears Loops immerses bikepackers in the magnificent, immense, complex and threatened landscape in and around Bears Ears National Monument.

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Intermountain Connectors

Routes

Region: Intermountain

Season: Varies

Number of Routes: 7

Total Miles: 2,416

The Intermountain Connectors are literal and figurative links between the Western Wildlands Route (WWR) and the iconic Great Divide MTB Route (GDMBR) that has inspired thousands of bikepackers worldwide and the creation of the WWR itself. Adventure Cycling Association (ACA) released the GDMBR in 1998, and it has been the most influential of all bikepacking routes out there. As soon as Bikepacking Roots (BPR) released the WWR in 2017, riders inquired about links between these two epic routes to allow for loops of a variety of scales. We’re excited to now share these Intermountain Connectors, a collaborative project of BPR and ACA, with the bikepacking world.