Pubview

Ridgeline climb with the whole town at your feet

Pubview earns its name honestly — from the ridgeline you’re looking straight down on New Castle, and yes, you can pick out the pub. The half-mile trail climbs about 115 feet to gain the western end of Medaris Ridge, which makes it the key to looping the whole Medaris system instead of riding it out-and-back. The tread is classic high-desert dirt through sage and some genuinely ancient, twisted junipers, with arrowleaf balsamroot blooming yellow along the edges in May. Views run down the Colorado River corridor past town to the ranges beyond. Locals ride it at dusk on purpose: the sun drops behind the western peaks and the town lights come up right below your front wheel.

Ride it as the opening leg of a Medaris Ridge loop, or walk it as a short evening stretch with a big payoff-to-effort ratio. The grade is gentle and steady, manageable for most anyone on foot. It sits in the sun most of the day, so summer laps are better early or late — which happens to be when the light on the valley is best anyway.

A tilted sandstone slab on the crest makes a natural sit-spot — there’s even a juniper-log seat — and families hike up to it. Balsamroot blooms yellow against the valley view in spring, and the wooden junction sign flags West Medaris as foot-traffic-only. A massive ancient twisted juniper snag stands right by the trail, and night riders have been known to wrap their bikes in holiday lights out on the ridgeline over town.

More on this trail: View on MTB Project → (original description contributed by community members on MTB Project)