One of the most popular loops up into the mountains for Los Angeles-area mountain bikers.

Statistics

1 - 2

hrs

431

m

431

m

6

max°

Difficulty

FATMAP difficulty grade

Difficult

Description

The El Prieto trail is a true gem for Los Angeles-area mountain bikers.

Where many trails in the mountains just outside of LA are extremely steep and nearly unrideable, the pedal up Fern Truck Trail to access the top of El Prieto is steep, yes, but achievable.

This creates an absolute gem of a lariat route when looped with the El Prieto descent that can be ridden from the Altadena area.

While the ease of access helps boost El Prieto's popularity, unlike some routes in the area the quality of the singletrack lives up to the hype! The El Prieto trail itself drops into an uncharacteristically lush valley, following and crossing a stream that runs out of the mountains and into the city.

Small dams along the way block up the stream, providing interesting trail features, and small rock gardens and drops punctuate the flowy swoop of the singletrack.

The delectable descent is over all too soon, and it's back to the car...

unless you decide to just keep riding laps of this absolutely excellent little trail!