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50-Year Trail

Mountain Biking Trail

Hard
19.53 mi
1,542 ft
Ride one of Tucson's most renowned stretches of singletrack.

The 50-Year Trail is a classic Tucson singletrack route that’s long been popular with mountain bikers, hikers, and equestrians. While shorter loop options are available by starting at Golder Ranch, if you want to experience the entire 50-Year Trail, you’ll have to start further south at Catalina State Park.

The route as mapped forms a 19.5-mile out-and-back with a short loop at the end. It’s possible to lengthen this ride even further by climbing higher up the Around the Mountain trail and then dropping back down on either the Rattlesnake Trail or Cowboy Slickrock, as mapped in the “[Best of Golder Ranch]( route.

However you choose to slice and dice the route, you’re in for a true gem of Tucson singletrack! The ride begins with a long stretch of mellow, relatively non-technical singletrack in the state park. After a short climb, you’ll gain a low ridge and traverse the ridge for several miles, before reaching Golder Ranch itself. As a friendly reminder, know that "this area IS multi-use and gets a lot of equestrian traffic." []( advises that mountain bikers "be conscious of your riding and yield… STOP and let the equestrian riders go by. They’re all nice folks and we’re all out to enjoy these fantastic trails together."

After riding through flowy, swoopy singletrack for a few miles, the trail character changes abruptly. When you reach the loop portion of the route, the trail transforms into a steep, rocky singletrack that climbs into the hills above Golder Ranch. This is also where you have the option to extend your ride, if you desire.

After completing a loop of your desired length in Golder Ranch, turn around and return to Catalina State Park the way you came.
Sources:

Written by Greg Heil
Created By
Strava Routes

Route and Elevation

Segments

NameDistanceElev. Diff.Avg. Grade
50 Year 1st Mile Climb0.95 mi259 ft5.0%
Warm up race to the gate2.54 mi410 ft2.8%
50 Year Initial Climb1.74 mi397 ft4.3%
#10.34 mi89 ft4.8%
First Fifty climb out of Equestrian Center0.08 mi39 ft9.1%
#21.18 mi282 ft4.5%
hammer it to the gate0.97 mi-49 ft-0.1%
UpTheCactusGarden1.33 mi164 ft2.3%
Reverse Rockets0.59 mi85 ft2.7%
Intersection to the Chutes2.62 mi92 ft0.4%
Corral-bypass Trail Flail1.10 mi26 ft0.1%
Upper Suther0.54 mi33 ft1.1%
Upper 50 to Gem trail cross-over0.36 mi95 ft4.5%
chutes to top of gem0.89 mi253 ft5.1%
Upper 50 Chutes split to Gate0.93 mi269 ft4.8%
N Ridge Rock Trail Climb (50 year trail)0.73 mi266 ft6.8%
50 Yr - Upper Up and then Down1.64 mi-335 ft-3.0%
Middle gate cattle guard to rock rolls1.05 mi-328 ft-3.4%
The NEW Upper 50 Descent0.62 mi-299 ft-9.1%
Upper Fifty Year Descent0.55 mi-289 ft-9.9%
Westbound Middle Gate0.36 mi-39 ft-0.6%
top of chutes to junction2.44 mi-112 ft-0.5%
Everybody's Doin' It0.99 mi-20 ft-0.2%
fun and fast2.23 mi-177 ft-1.4%
Rocket Ship Full Blast (all stages to Y)1.31 mi-161 ft-2.3%
Rocket Ship Stage 10.61 mi-98 ft-3.0%
Rocket Ship (Stage 2: G.R. rd to Rollins rd)0.27 mi-13 ft-1.0%
Rocket Ship Stage 20.87 mi-79 ft-1.7%
Rocket Ship (Stage 3: Rollins rd to The Y)0.44 mi-49 ft-2.1%
Catalina State Park: Gate to Equestrian Center2.53 mi-417 ft-2.9%
Catalina State Park DH (Descent to Water Tank)1.25 mi-292 ft-4.4%
50yr Full CSP Descent1.61 mi-400 ft-4.7%
Driftin' turns and catchin' air0.87 mi-210 ft-4.6%