Sly Park

(also known as Jenkinson Lake Loop)
Technical Level:    Intermediate
Strenuous Level:   Intermediate minus
Altitude Gain:       Not much
The Ride:              9 mile loop
Where:                 Near Polluck Pines
When:                  Most of the year, but gets pretty cold in the winter
 

To get There:

 Map Marking Trail Head
From Sacramento:  Take Highway 50 East towards Lake Tahoe.  Exit on Sly Park road in Polluck Pines.  Head South on Sly Park road.  In 5 or 10 miles you will pass the entrance to Sly Park and you will see Jenkinson Lake on the left.  After you pass the lake and the park, turn left on Mormon Emigrant Road.  Cross the first dam, and park somewhere near the second dam.  The trail starts on the far side of the dam on the left (South East side of the dam).  The trail head is marked.
 

The Ride

Critical Turns:
Well, there's a lot of turns, but they are all marked.  Watch for those signs, and stay off the horse trails!

The Trail

This is a really cool trail.  There is lots of single track, and quite a bit of technical stuff.  The trail goes through large pine forests, which smell really good.   The first part of the trail is excellent single track, and rolls a lot.  The trail is well maintained.  I am told that this is an excellent winter trail.  After a good hard freeze, the trees get frosty and the trail actually rises up from frozen ice underneath.  Pretty cool!  If you want to explore some, there is a really long tunnel through the hill side not too far from the trail.  At about 3 miles you will cross a small arched wooden bridge (you're crossing the lake's feeder river I presume).  If you turn right just before the bridge and go up the hill, the tunnel will be on your right.  It is pretty long, over 1/2 mile I'm told.  The end of the trail cuts through picnic and camping areas.  The single track kinda mixes with the road in this area, so keep a watch out for the cool stuff (but if you get off the trial, you can just follow the road).  The single track is really thin in places with a small drop off to the left -- it will test your riding precision.  The trial ends at the first dam on Mormon Emigrant Road.

Trail Details:

 Sunrise/Sunset
 Weather
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