Bikepacking Arizona’s Black Canyon Trail

Pedaling through the endless landscapes of the Black Canyon Trail. Margus Riga photo.

For some, adventure is defined by harrowing near-death experiences. For me, having the intent to adventure is what defines it—even just getting away from civilization for a short while. And with that in mind I organized a trip to Arizona’s Sonoran Desert for an overland bike-packing trip–three self-supported days on the Black Canyon Trail’s 80 miles of secluded single-track.

Alex Cogger's kit for the trip. Coffee a must. Margus Riga photo.

Our roll-call included Olympian Andreas Hestler, freshly tattooed freerider Geoff Gulevich, renowned filmmaker Brian Vernor, Rocky Mountain product guy Alex Cogger, and a washed up old freerider: yours truly. Our first goal was to escape the Pacific Northwest’s winter weather, and our second goal was to test Alex’s fancy new bike design.

Finding respit from the Southwest heat. Margus Riga photo.

We fumbled with our gear for hours in the parking lot of a Prescott motel the night before departure, packing and re-packing, adding and discarding. Ultimately we probably did pack too heavy, but there are the necessities of course: coffee, chocolate, down, wool, and whisky. Fully loaded, our steeds probably tipped the scales at 45 plus pounds, and I was becoming less and less sure that this trip was going to be fun.

But there was something liberating in the first few pedal strokes that next morning leaving our drop-off zone–an innocent abandon of responsibility and order that comes with an uncertain weather forecast and only a vague itinerary.

Gully makes it look good despite all the baggage. Margus Riga photo.

Fortunately, the overland bikes performed just as Alex had promised. It was evident in those first few miles that having our houses and kitchens packed along with us weren’t going to keep us from having fun. It might have been the combination of increased overall mass and over-sized tires, but whatever it was we were having a blast absolutely ripping up the desert terrain on these fully loaded pack-horses—skids, drifts, airs, and all.

Drifting through the detritus of the local, informal, gun club. Margus Riga photo.

The Black Canyon Trail runs roughly 80 miles North to South. Beginning on a high plateau, it winds through rolling grasslands before descending into a landscape of Saguaros, Chollas, and other Sonoran Desert flora. We were treated to chilly nights and frosty desert mornings, but once that sun rose, layers were peeled and we had to contend with the steady, relentless heat of the day.

Author Wade Simmons keeps it tight–but not too tight–around corner cacti. Margus Riga photo.

The landscape we encountered was fully alien to us, full of incredibly beautiful things just waiting to stab you the moment you stray from the trail. Between the bullet-holes in everything and the buck-naked rider we ran into on day three, it was clear this trip was about getting weird in the desert.

Sweet dreams and pray for no scorpions! Margus Riga photo.

We had been pretty modest in planning our daily mileage expectations–allowing for explorations up various drainages, relaxed lunches by the Agua Fria River, and the necessary sessioning of all the worthy trail features. Each night, however, our camp site was reached a little later than expected, leading us to assembling tents and cooking dinner by the light of our headlamps.

Ripping under the heat of the Arizona sun. Margus Riga photo.

Grizzled old-timers and keyboard adventurers alike might be disappointed by the lack of hardship we encountered—water wasn’t hard to come by, we ate well, the bikes worked flawlessly, and the dire weather forecast never materialized. So for obvious reasons, the trip was a complete success. We had a blast, it was an insight into new possibilities, and the best adventures are the ones that inspire future adventures.

-Wade Simmons

Film by Brian Vernor
Produced by Brian Park
Music by Brandon O'Connell
Photography by Margus Riga
Featuring the Rocky Mountain Sherpa
Ridden by Wade Simmons, Geoff Gulevich, Brian Vernor, Alex Cogger, & Andreas Hestler

Presented by Rocky Mountain Bicycles, Manitou, & Pinkbike.com
Supported by Overland Journal, Arc’teryx, Porcelain Rocket, Exped, & Defy Products
Thanks to Scott Struve, Luke Musselman, Julian Coffey, Christophe Noel, Jo Salamon, Scott Felter, Benoit Deshayes, & Paul Breedlove