La Tierra East Loop

The La Tierra East Loop is an easy mountain bike ride that generally takes around 45 minutes to complete, depending on your pace and how often you stop to enjoy the views.

Yes, the La Tierra East Loop is considered an easy trail, making it very suitable for beginners and a great introduction to mountain biking in Santa Fe. It features mostly flowy terrain with gentle grade changes.

You can access the La Tierra East Loop from the La Tierra Trails - Calabasas Trailhead. There is good parking available at this location, which is conveniently accessible from town.

The terrain on the La Tierra East Loop is primarily flowy, consisting of interconnected paths. While mostly smooth, you might encounter some sandy sections and occasional rocky areas. There's also some doubletrack near a water tank.

Riders can enjoy expansive open desert views, rolling hills, and paths winding through juniper glades. The trail system offers amazing vistas of Santa Fe, the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, and distant views of the Sandias and Jemez mountains.

The trails are generally rideable year-round. However, they can become loose in drier months. It's advisable to be mindful of lightning during the monsoon season, which typically runs from July to September.

The route itself is a highlight, offering a great introduction to the broader La Tierra Trails system. You'll pass through sections of the Calabasas Trail, and the starting point is the well-known La Tierra Trails - Calabasas Trailhead.

Yes, the La Tierra East Loop is part of the larger La Tierra Trails system. The route itself utilizes sections of the La Tierra Trails, and also intersects with paths like 33-31, 31-32, and Tin Can, among others.

The La Tierra Trails system, including the East Loop, is generally dog-friendly. However, it's a multi-use system, so always keep your dog on a leash and be respectful of other users, including hikers and equestrians.

No, there are no permits or entrance fees required to access and ride the La Tierra Trails system, including the East Loop. It's a publicly accessible trail network.

While the East Loop is easy, the broader La Tierra Trails network does offer more technical challenges. Areas like "Hustle & Flow" provide well-regarded flow trails with tabletops and bermed turns, and the "Trashpit" area offers freeride-type technical riding and jumps for those seeking a greater challenge.