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Big_papa_nuts
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I'm heading there in Jan for 2 days of riding.  Plan to do the 35 mile loop Barry did (I think it was Franklin Mountains) on day 1 and then find something else to ride on day 2.  Only question is if I ride the 29" HT or the 29" FS bike.  I'm leaning towards the HT with some 2.4 or 2.5 tires.

I'll take both bikes just in case.

Any ideas\suggests are much appreciated.

 

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Remember Juarez is just across the reever. El Paso used to have a reputation for a very high rate of vehicle theft. When I lived in Fort Davis decades back I knew several people who lost their cars while shopping at the Mall there.

Also, El Paso is the home of Pancho's Mexican Buffet, FWIW.

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17 hours ago, JRIDER said:

I'm heading there in Jan for 2 days of riding.  Plan to do the 35 mile loop Barry did (I think it was Franklin Mountains) on day 1 and then find something else to ride on day 2.  Only question is if I ride the 29" HT or the 29" FS bike.  I'm leaning towards the HT with some 2.4 or 2.5 tires.

I'll take both bikes just in case.

Any ideas\suggests are much appreciated.

 

 

I was glad to be on my fs trail bike. I rode the Mini Puzzler race route (on MTB project) and the was a lot of super chunky extended rock gardens and fast decents punctuated by rough wash out and arroyos. A HT would do it but you'd probably have less fun with more effort.

 

80% of the people I saw on the trails on at the trailhead had squishy bikes fwiw. 

 

I'm planning to go back in early January to do the mountain loop too. We parked in Chuck Hendrick Park on the Northeast side of town and didn't worry about the car for a second. It was a nice neighborhood with tons of park goer traffic.

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I'm loving all this info.  I have work trips to Juarez in my future (we stay in EP) and was toying with the idea of driving early with my bike.  My biggest concern would be with what to do with the bike during the work week?  I wouldn't want to just leave it in the hotel room during the day.

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Wife and I are going to do a MTB trip over christmas and have been considering EP, but curious about the weather. If it's too cold/rain/snow we'd be stuck in EP with one of the most boring drives back home. 

Trails look cool though and there's actually some gravity stuff up there too.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Okay, I've been twice now, and I can say for certain that Franklin Mountains has some really great trails. The singletrack is a good mix of both fast and technical trails. I'd put it about on par with some of what you'll find on Big Bend's Dome and Fresno Divide trails. And the more technical bits kind of reminded my of Reveille.  I've put it together in 2 different ways, once including Mundy's Gap, and once without Mundy's Gap. Both area really great options, and if you're going to be there for multiple days, I'd suggest doing Mundy's Gap at least once. Pretty much the entirely of both of those rides is singletrack with the exception of a few short connections, and Mundy's Gap. Mundy's is basically a VERY old road that is effectively loose cobble grinding up for almost exactly 1000ft, after climbing up singletrack for 600ft, And that overall 1600 ft is gained in just 7 miles.

 

There are quite a few other trail systems out there, but the only other ride I've yet done is the Sierra Vista Trail. This is some really great desert singletrack, so long as you skip the southern 15 miles of "trail." The first 7 miles is an okay but beautiful gravel grind...but that is followed by followed by 6 miles of horrific sand and unmarked trail. Much of the "trail" and the wilderness looked the same. Massive sections are simply washed away. Much of the time I was just frustratingly navigating. It took about two hours to go those 6 miles. But then it opens up into really great trail. So, I suggest bypassing all of that nonsense. Drive up highway 10 into NM, and then travel east on 227 until you intersect the trail. Park there, and ride north. That will give you about 15 miles north of very gentle climbing, with the option of hooking up many more miles of trail once you get to the other end. And then you get a very fun fast slight downhill back to the parking spot. 

 

I had been told that El Paso was a shit-hole, but I didn't see any evidence of that that. Maybe by Texas standards, but perhaps the person who told me that hasn't been to many places in the northeast. We didn't try a lot of restaurants, but I can say that Leo's Mexican has crazy good shredded beef crunchy tacos. And as you leave town, do yourself the favor and go eat at Cattleman's Steakhouse. I don't want to say much about this one...you should experience it for yourself. But it isn't overly expensive for the quality. The steak is every bit as good as Perry's or Ruth's Chris, but way less expensive. 

 

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One thing I forgot to add about Franklin Mountains...my favorite trail there was the short Mule Shoe Loop. this is a short and very technical and fun trail that reminded me of RPR. Much of the trail is on conglomerate rock. It's a really good time. 

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9 hours ago, Barry said:

One thing I forgot to add about Franklin Mountains...my favorite trail there was the short Mule Shoe Loop. this is a short and very technical and fun trail that reminded me of RPR. Much of the trail is on conglomerate rock. It's a really good time. 

Couldn't agree more. One of my favorite trails out there. Super chunky but unbelievable amounts of traction. Sooo fun.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Been in El Paso for 4 days now.

 

Rode Palisades Canyon day one and it was a lot of climbing and a decent amount of walking up hill for not much pay off. Honestly I'd skip it.

Rode the Mini Puzzler course again. It was still awesome. We actually we're out there during the race but didn't realize it until we rolled through the start/finish a few miles in and saw the commotion.

We walked up to Mundy's gap, which is part of the mountain loop, to see the eclipse. I honestly don't think I'd wanna ride up there as it's just a very steep Jeep road but if anyone who has done the loop thinks it worth it they can chime in.

We rode the west side of the mountains today and I honestly think they are better then what I've rode on the east side. The guys at the Trek shop over there are awesome too.

I'm gonna have to do some more research on the city itself but I think I may rather winter here then in Austin.

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  • 1 year later...

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