ATV Adventures: Manti Mountains will come alive with OHV jamborees in 2023
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- A sample of the fall colors you can see on the fall Manti Mountain ATV Run.
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- Crossing a stream in Manti Canyon.
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- Riding a trail to Duck Fork on the Arapeen OHV Trail System.
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- Crossing over a meadow on the Arapeen Trail System.
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- Lynn Blamires
With the record-breaking snow levels we have in the mountains this year and with the lingering winter weather we are experiencing, it is little wonder people are getting itchy to get into the backcountry and ride. Sanpete County in conjunction with some of its cities is gearing up to receive them.
Here are three jamborees scheduled for the Arapeen Trail System this year in the Manti Mountains. That is just on the Manti side of the mountain; two others will be held on the Ferron side.
With over 600 miles of trail to ride in the Arapeen Trail System and trail elevations ranging from 5,800 feet to the highest point on the Skyline Trail at 10,897 feet — this is mountain riding at its best. Cities along the west side of the mountain including Manti and Ephraim offer a wide variety of services to enhance your riding experience. Restaurants, motels, grocery stores and ethanol-free gas will have your riding agenda covered in Sanpete County. Ephraim even has a Walmart.
Fishermen will be delighted to know that there are 53 fishing spots designated on the Arapeen Trail map with GPS coordinates. Some of these are best accessed by OHV and many of these are known for the fighting tiger trout.
Well, I could go on about this trail system all day. Let’s take a look at some of the jamborees scheduled:
Arapeen Sunset UTV Ride
Sponsored by Sanpete County and the city of Ephraim, this ride happening June 19 features a chance to show off your bling. Registration is online at https://utvevents.weebly.com/june-ride.html and sign up will be at 5 p.m. at 50 E. 100 South in Ephraim, where you will also line up. The cost is $20 per rider.
Once in line, everyone will meet at Roy’s Pizza near the lineup for a pre-ride dinner. Tummies topped off, the ride will start at 6:15 p.m. The trails on this ride are going to be kept at lower altitudes because this early in the year there will still be snow on trails on top of the mountain.
Choose from two rides. Both will start up Ephraim Canyon and turn down into New Canyon. The Pigeon Creek Ride is more advanced and will take an alternate route out of New Canyon. The other ride is the New Canyon Ride and it is more moderate. At 9:30 p.m., they will join back together for a bonfire to chew the fat and have some refreshments on the mountain.
At 10 p.m., all will join a light parade that will head back down Ephraim Canyon. Everyone with light whips, rock lights and light bars will be lit up for this grand entrance into Ephraim.
Riders are encouraged to spend the night in Ephraim and enjoy a ride on their own on the Arapeen trails the next day. Instructions are on the registration page to download the Avenza Map app and then download the Arapeen Trail map. You will then have a full-color map on your phone that will show your location on the trails at all times.
20th Annual Manti Mountain ATV Run — Summer
This is a Manti City-sponsored ride scheduled for July 11 and 12. The $85 registration fee includes two continental breakfasts, two sack lunches for the trail, a dinner and a long-sleeved jamboree T-shirt. Register online at https://www.mantiatvrun.com/atvrun.
Riders are divided into groups according to the size of their machines and the type of trails they will feel comfortable riding. All of the trails lead to the top of the world on the famous Skyline Trail. They will just take different routes to get there.
The Arapeen Trail has three designated trail widths — 50 inch, 66 inch and open to all OHVs. The 50-inch trails are seeing fewer machines because there are more of the larger UTVs on the trails these days.
20th Annual Manti Mountain ATV Run — Fall
This is the second of two exclusively Manti-sponsored events for this year. It is scheduled for Sept. 14-15 and the setup for registration, event fees and what is included are the same. The purpose of this jamboree is to catch the amazing colors of autumn that dress these mountains in the fall. It also makes it easier to schedule when you have two dates to choose from and the trail routes are the same for both jamborees.
When you go, take plenty of water, keep the rubber side down and plan to ride the beautiful Arapeen Trails.
Contact Lynn R. Blamires at quadmanone@gmail.com.