Calling myself a bicyclist would be an insult to those who spend thousands of dollars on equipment, entry fees, and those fancy, tight-fitting uniforms that make me gasp for air merely looking at them. I don’t do much street cycling because it’s too dangerous and I’d sooner walk. When I do bicycle, I love to go into the mountains, the Shoreline Trail which wanders all along the Wasatch Front (past our house), or the famous Rail Trail.
The Rail Trail is a former railroad that starts in Park City and goes 24 miles northeast toward the Wyoming border. It’s been turned into a bike path that meanders through red sandstone hills, ranch land, along the Weber River and some of the best tubing and trout fishing in America, through little towns like Wanship and Coalville, and ultimately into the Uinta Mountains (you can only cycle to Echo Reservoir where the trail ends at an old bridge that’s fenced off. That’s where I took the pic).
There are places to stop and have a picnic, towns to explore, spots to swim and fish, plenty of animals and wildlife. Cows, horses, goats all watch placidly as you pass by. Big and beautiful sandhill cranes scour the fields, groundhogs scurry, foxes hunt, and hawks circle ominously. There’s a mild slope descending about 1500 feet from Park City to Coalville. But if you drive to Coalville, start there and head toward Park City, you get the uphill part out of the way first and coast back to your car. However, the round trip to and from PC is easily doable if you’re in any kind of shape.
The trail’s only paved in some parts. It’s mostly gravel so mountain bikes, not street bikes, are your best vehicle. Don’t forget to bring water. There are a couple of shops along the path to get a bottled drink but this is Mormon country and most places aren’t open on Sunday. Also, bring your tire repair kit and/or some of those small, emergency tire inflation tanks. We’ve had a couple of flats during our excursions. Nails, barbs, thorns, and other tire killers are rare but this is farm country. Fortunately, the Rail Trail is right along a state highway (not to mention Interstate 80) so you’re never too far from civilization or a lift if you have a technical problem.
The scenery is spectacular, it’s less than an hour from Salt Lake, there are no crowds, and no motorized vehicles allowed. You can’t spend a day much better than that.
