I rode the lower "Frank" trail yesterday after work. It's totally dry all the way up to the saddle (where you take a sharp left and start the climb up to Dry). It was nice to get a little higher than the BST. My watch showed the high elevation at 6,200 ft.Does anyone (Dug) know where the trails goes if I go straight instead of hang left at this point? I climbed the trail for a little ways until it started to get sloppy.
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Straight is a SWEET trail! I've done it several times. It goes through a few meadows with a gentle climb then gets a bit steeper in spots as you gain the ridge south of Dry Canyon. The descent into Dry is a blast with a few pretty steep spots. I usually continue down and out Dry, and if I want more I take the BST (north or south). But there also another trail that connected north above the grey cliffs to the Curly Springs trail.
When I first rode it there were a few spots that took some exploring to figure out the route, but I've got it dialed now. I'd be happy to play tour guide once it drys out up there. I think you'd really like the trail. I think I've got a GPS track too.
Now going right (up north), I have not done. I hear it's pretty steep and goes to the top of Dry Canyon and the saddle of Big Baldy. Navigation is tricky.
Hey, good to hear Frank is dry. Was the dirt service road dry?
And also good to see the "altar" (pile of rocks) is back. It was flattened last Fall (heathens!).
I've been riding it too. It looks like you ride about the same time of day on the same trails. we should start riding together. call me next time you ride.
ricky, i'm guessing we have an orientation problem here. sounds like you're riding up the steep paved climb to the shooting range, then up the water tank road, and then you're hanging a hard left and going reverse frank up that steep climb, and across the ridge to the big rock pile. is this true? that's the only thing i can figure from your question of "if i go straight, where does it go?" because i know you've gone frank to dry, as kanyonkris describes it. but it's possible you haven't gone up the gwt, straight in your case, or RIGHT in the case of someone coming up the traditional frank way.
anyway. if you go toward timp from the rock pile, that's the gwt. or francisco, as we used to call it. it's a great way to go, as short or as long as you want. it's pretty rocky at first, and very twisty, light scrub oak, but if you persist, it gets into the bigger trees, and gets smoother and better. you can take this up to the saddle of little baldy, and turn around, or keep it going, steeper, but still good, to big baldy.
however, once you're past little baldy, the trail will turn VERY primitive and rough and overgrown. once past big baldy, of course, it's good again, drops to the top of battle creek, and climbs to the top of grove, and on around the north peak of timp, eventually to timpooneke.
um. is that what you wanted to know?
dug- yes, this is exactly what I wanted to know. I've gone left and have gone right but never straight. I might need to try that.
dug, good info and good eye. I didn't study Rick's photo, but I agree with you that "straight" into the background of the photo is the GWT heading up to Baldy.
When I hear Frank I think of starting at Canyon Glen park and climbing up the ridge past Johnson's Hole then a short jog on the road then up on the trail to the altar - so I assumed that was Rick's route.
So do you consider Frank to also include the trail down (south) of the altar back to the dirt road? Or does that segment have another name?
Also, there is a new trail for jumping off the dirt road to do reverse Frank (as described by dug). It's about 100 yards before the old turnoff. It's a nice trail. The old trail was OK except for that one short, steep, loose spot.
Furthermore, the newish trail that avoids the old washed out gully about half way up to the altar is good, but there is a another branch off it I did last Fall that avoids the one steep loose section of the newish trail.
AND, I found a new trail up there last year that I like. So cool that there are so many good trails up there - right in my backyard! Makes me happy.
BTW, does that trail from the altar over to Dry Canyon have a name? I found a USFS map that called it 051 like it was an extension of the Curly Springs trail. Hmm, was there a number on some of the carsonite signs?
I'd like to ride with you guys up there for some show and tell. I'm always interested in discovering more trails.
rick, k, i figured.
just so we're all on the same page. you haven't been riding "lower" frank, you've been riding a reverse upper frank.
traditional frank goes from the park n ride at the mouth of provo canyon, along paved trail, bout two miles, to the canyon park outhouses, where you turn hard left and up, couple switchbacks, past pipe, and up rock field, through johnson bowl, along ridge, to gate and upper road. THAT's lower frank. to complete a lower frank you would go across on the road over to the cliffs, and back down through race course.
to do UPPER frank, you would go along road quarter mile and then hard right, up the steep climb to the rock pile. to complete an upper frank you would go left at rock pile, along ridge, over to water tank road, hard left, and down cliffs.
to do francisco, you would take a right at the rock pile, up gwt.
to do frank to dry, you would go straight at rock pile and over the hill and down into dry, down stairs, to bst.
not that i care.
wait, yes i do. please use the correct terminology from now on.
Rick, if you'd like some company as you try that upper GWT heading to Baldy, let me know. I've never been up it either. You can e-mail me from my blog.
on the other hand, i'm loosing my credibility on this. i don't ride down there anymore.
i hereby pass the mantle to kanyonkris. kris, you're in charge of route finding and naming from now on.
dug, thanks for outlining those routes as I've always been a little fuzzy on them. Crytal clear now.
All this trail talk is making me anxious to ride. Seriously, I'm a little jittery like an addict that needs a fix. Unless the weather goes crap I'm heading up there Saturday morning. Anyone is welcome to join me.
kk- next week, I plan to have my mtb with me every day and will ride during lunch or after work...sometimes both. Let's hook up and explore that area.
Dug- It's as if you have a GPS in your head. It makes me tired trying to follow all these directions. I have an idea. Come down here and ride it with me.
I'm not worthy of the mantle! But I'll try. Actually Kerry S. (Yamabiker) is pretty well versed in the trails up there.
I've got GPS routes for most of the trails. My plan is to put together a map and post it on the web this year. Would that annoy anyone? I'd like to get the main trails out there with the names to avoid confusion like this.
Rick, yer on. I work in Bluffdale so lunch doesn't work for me (unless you'd like to come this way and do some Corner Canyon stuff), but after work I can do 1-2 hours most days. I live near Timpanogos High School and can be home by 5-5:30.
I think Kenny also has the mantle - he know the trails up there.
I don't know if I'd trust kenny on those trails. He's been known to break major bones up there.
Botched
Correction: When I talked about a new way to jump on reverse Frank, I didn't yet have dug's description of Frank. The end of the Frank single-track, as described by dug, is at the base of the last climb on the service road (I rode it today). An alternate ending (or start if doing reverse) is farther up the road after it turns north - it forks off on the left. Farther on is an old trail that goes up to Frank, but it has one steep and loose spot that really tough to ride.
It's worth going straight up for a few miles and turning around. There's a couple moves up there called "the champ" and "Fransisco" I used to go up and over baldy, but like dug said the trail gets real primitive. Depending on the time of year you'll be covered in those little velcro weeds. You know the feeling when a trail is barely rideable. You go 10 feet and then walk 20. It's very frustrating and I swore off that trail years ago. If I'm going around timp, I always cross the front on the bonniville shoreline and then climb up grove. It's just as challenging, but the trail is in a lot better shape.
Kris, I think the trail you're refering to is what I call "Crank". That's actually the trail that I broke my hip on.
kenny
I put together a Google Map of the Provo Canyon race track a while back.
http://tinyurl.com/297s2f
Be sure to use Satellite mode. I have a few annotated waypoints. I'll see if I can do something like this for Frank and some of the other trails up there.
Kenny, thanks for the trail info. A few questions:
So Crank is from the altar (Frank) to Dry? That trail has a few spooky spots, and now that I know you broke you're hip there, I'll be even more nervous.
Instead of BST and up Grove, have you tried going up Curl Springs then crossing the top of Battle Creek? I know Battle Creek is a mess (steep and loaded with baby heads), but Curly Springs seems like it would be OK (I've only gone up as far as the spring). I guess I'll have to try going up Grove one of these days, even though it must be a grunt.
Kenny and Kris- This is all good info. I'm trying to mix it up and try some of the other trails. I think Kenny should rename that section where he broke his hip. It's that the rule?
Rick, looks like the weather has conspired against us. Maybe Thursday or Friday? I'll be riding somewhere this weekend - Hell of The North or Moab. So it may not be until next week.
I agree, Kenny has earned the right to name that trail, or at least the crash site.
kris, if you're going towards dry from the alter the "crank" trail turns down on the left about a mile from the top. It starts as double track with some single track variations. It ends up at the bottom of reverse frank or slightly down the upper fire road towards the shooting range depending on how you decend it. It's all going to be mudded out for a couple more days now.
kenny
Sorry for the wardrobe malfunction - kris and kanyonkris are both me.
Kenny, thanks for the description of Crank. I've done the lower part of it, but not the upper. I've looked up there and wondered where it goes - thanks to you, now I know. That top part looks STEEP! If that's where you crashed, I can understand why. Looked pretty loose too. Do I dare try it? Hip Breaker Hill?
There's a fun little single-track that connects Frank to Crank about midway down. You've probably done it. If you're doing reverse Frank, about 1.5 miles up in the flat-ish bowl area there is a trail fork on the left. It angles up a hill to the left then enters a small gully and climbs it. At the top of the gully is a T, I went right and the trail climbs a bit more then crosses a small meadow. Then it climbs and crosses the length of a narrow meadow and climbs a gully to gain a rounded ridge and join into a wider trail (ATV?). I went west a ways and got onto the rounded ridge Crank comes down. I went west into the bottom of the shallow gully and took the trail that goes down it. It looked new, like it had only been created in the last year or two. Pretty fun ride. It joins back into Crank about 1/2 mile before the road.
Someone ought to label the trails by name like at Lambert
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