You’ll have to pay for that solitude, though! The climb up Buck Gulch from Pine Valley is a grunt that climbs straight up the mountainside. While the singletrack is classic Buffalo Creek kitty litter, meaning smooth and non-technical, the grade of the ascent makes this trail a real chore. Once higher up on the side of the ridge, the grade mellows out for more agreeable pedaling.

Once at the top of Buck Gulch, turn left onto Skipper Trail and follow that singletrack until you reach a junction with Strawberry Jack and Homestead. The loop mapped here descends Strawberry Jack back to the place you started. This descent is old school singletrack, with sections of steep, loose kitty litter singletrack punctuated by roots and rock gardens, and the occasional stream bed crossing.

On the other hand, if you want more pedaling, from the junction of Skipper Trail and Strawberry Jack you can access the rest of the Buffalo Creek Trail System. At this junction, you can go straight and then left to access the double black diamond test piece known as Blackjack. If you follow Homestead straight, that will bring you to the iconic Sandy Wash descent. Finally, turning right on Strawberry Jack will take you deeper into the network and higher up the mountainside, allowing you to access a veritable smorgasbord of singletrack.

Whatever route you choose from this junction, know that if you opt to head deeper into the network you’ll end up dropping down a mountainside. Then, you will be forced to pedal back up and over the ridge you’re on top of presently, in order to drop down Strawberry Jack and back to Pine Valley Ranch. It’s completely doable but just plan for one big climb before your final descent.