Pinyons and Pines 2026 - Views from the Trail Sweeper

 

Logo by Wyatt Spalding

Pinyons and Pines has been on my radar since its inception, and I finally made it to the starting line this year. This race is unique in that the route changes year to year. This provides a really cool and distinct feature that most other routes don't - that being a participant, you really have to do the research and full planning for the route. These days, there are so many blogs/guides about all the big routes out there (AZT, CTR, etc) that you can kinda find one from a person that you think you are comparable to and have a good idea of supplies you might need and timing to each POI. Of course, I think most of us who do these things like to research and plan (that is one of the most rewarding and fun aspects of these events), but it still needs to be done and then you get to live with your choices and then adapt and pivot as things happen out there. 

This year was a beast, coming in at 413 miles and about 40k feet of elevation gain. In my opinion, the route seemed more difficult than that, likely due to several ultra long and mostly carefree descents that gave away vast amounts of elevation. All I know is it seemed like every time a climb came up on my bike computer, it always seemed like it was closer to Colorado ratios (200ft per mile) rather than Arizona which is usually under that. 

My goals for this race? As always, I just want to finish. I don't really care on the results side of things. I just want to come out of these events feeling physically good while putting in solid efforts each day. For me that means riding moving between 17 - 19 hours a day on the route. To that end, this adventure was a success, even if I did finish DFL (Dead Fuckin' Last).

It is funny, because I feel like quite an impostor out there. I was never an "athlete" in my younger years, and dealt with obesity up into my late 20's. I didn't get into mountain biking any significant miles until my early 30's. Dabbled in a handful of small overnight bikepacking rides before finally signing up for my first event, the 2017 AZT300 right before my 40th birthday. Beyond that, my MTB skills are very average at best. I tend to also ride ultra cautiously especially on downhills. I am really not interested in injuring anything (especially upper body extremities) as my decidedly more important hobby (performing music) is very important to me and I don't want to cause injury that could prevent me from being able to do that. All that to say - while I don't really care about the results, sometimes I do get in my own head and I do wonder just why exactly I am out there and if I really belong out there with all these amazing people. Of course, comparison is indeed the thief of joy, so when I find myself in those dark mental places I do my best to pivot to concentrating on what I am doing right out there. How I am taking care of myself. How I push when I don't want to anymore. That I am so very thankful to have the physical capability to do these absurd things, even if that means doing it at the "back of the pack". Let's get into it!

Day 1

The ride started at 6am and I woke up in a bed for the last time for at least a few days at 4:45am. Drove the three minutes from the hotel to the start point at Flagstaff Bike Revolution where people had started to gather. Vibes were awesome and it was fun touching base with other folks I knew.

The gathering begins...

Riding what I got - Ari Signal Peak - set up basically identically to how I had it for the AZT 800 attempt last fall. 

Dylan said a few words - then we were all off for a neutral rollout through Flagstaff proper. 

While the rollout was "neutral" it was pretty clear there were some fast folks up at the front. I found myself near the back, having done enough of these things that I just need to settle into my pace and not do what anybody else is. 

The singletrack exiting Flag was sublime. 

Can you spot the rider in the trees?

Sooo good. 

The singletrack started showing minimal rockiness, as it was slightly amusing to see things that had been ejected from the riders in front of me. I saw snacks, bottles, etc. 

We got spit out onto mostly smooth forest roads. 

Rider ahead. 

Wide open spaces

Saw this guy with a slashed sidewall. I didn't realize who it was at the time, but it was @darwin_onthetrail - Nic Rakestraw. I have watched his videos quite a bit, but people always look different with a bike helmet. I dug into my kit to give him a tire boot of which I had several. Hoped it would help get him to Cottonwood and the bike shop there, but he ended up scratching. Bummer. 

I had never been back here and it was a really cool bit of riding. I was looking forward to what the dropoff from the rim was going to be like. I was looking forward to the scenery for sure. 

Neat terrain back here. 

Trees becoming a bit more sparse

Looked like it was going to start getting way more exposed, so stopped to apply sunscreen. #melanoma awareness. Get your skin checked fam! It probably saved my life. 

Amazing red rock views beginning to come into view. I found #powerful Hannah back here, she was taking a shade break. This would begin our leapfrogging that lasted the entirety of the race. 

Getting onto the Casner descent. What a beast. Super loose and steep in places. 

Dang, we get to be out here?

Steep AF!

Hi! It was starting to get toasty. 

I continued the drop off the edge of the earth - saw some riders ahead but I wouldn't catch them here. I got caught by Hannah and another rider on the descent when I walked down some stuff they rode down. 

That ribbon of dirt of the left was sketchy

Beginning the switchbacks 

Not many people have ever had this view. 

Things flattened out a bit. Ran into this guy doing work with his excavator on the curve in the road. 

These cows probably taste better because they have better views than most. Sue me PETA.

It was officially hot AF now - found some shade to eat and sit down for a few minutes. 

The singletrack heading towards Cottonwood was fantastic, but it was too hot to really enjoy. And it just went forever. You would head towards town then turn away. Rinse and repeat. Just wanted to get into town. The whole time Big Daddy Mingus was watching over us, awaiting our arrival so he could begin to dish out the punishment. This is what Mingus does. If you want over, you're gonna work for it. 

Ahhh, pavement was very welcome. 

Verde Valley Bicycle Company treated us very well. Cold drinks, some burgers, chips, etc. Even a hose to get lovely flowing water. Thank you!

Didn't have to ask me twice. 

Give these guys some love if you are ever in Cottonwood with your bike!

I took down a few cold drinks and a burger, but the real destination was the Maverik gas station just up the road. Let's go!

Temp was showing 94 in town. 

Maverik stations are THE bikepacker resupply of choice. 

Signs be damned.... but pretty sure we left it better than we found it. 

The assault of Mingus begins tame enough, though very exposed. 

Yay, singletrack!

One of a couple short shade breaks I took. Hannah and Nico passed me on one of them. I told them to take a look at the view behind them. Hannah was stoked and then mentioned putting on some "Megan Thee Stallion" and getting to work. That made me feel old AF because I know what I was listening to on my playlist, and it wasn't that. But at least I knew who it was so I am not quite in ancient territory yet. Getting close though. 

Looking back on what we have traveled through today.

Surprisingly good trail back here. Wow!

The blessed arrival of some shade. 

I have no idea how this pathfinder made it here - but I guess it is named appropriately? It was all singletrack around. Crazy. 

I can see why they bailed where they did. Going forward wasn't really an option anymore. 

The end of golden hour below. 

The valley far below - but still lots of work to do. 

Things got dark and rugged real fast. I was having flashbacks to my Coco 250 ride back in 2020. Same story - got melted in the desert approaching Cottonwood then got beatdown getting to the top of Mingus. 

Riders errrrrr hikers high above. 

Mercifully, I "topped out" which allowed for some riding, but it was still plenty steep in places so the pushing continued, I was excited to see that I was passing people who had bedded down for the night. I was also excited to see some unexpected water in what I think was fed by Black Canyon Spring. I took full advantage of it and the pressed on - I really wanted to get through the rest of the steep stuff tonight. I ran into Hannah, Allison and Cami who had set up camp. Later they posted something showing that they had camped right next to a "bear activity high" sign lmao! To be fair, I think that is probably pretty accurate everywhere on Mingus. That and big cats *yikes*.

Grades on the forest road I was on started to mellow out a bit, and I was ready for a rest. Good enough for today!

87 miles, 8800 ft elevation gain. 17.5 hours.

Day 2

I heard a couple riders pass maybe around 4:30?? I have a thing against packing up in the dark, so I laid for a bit longer but then finally got packed and on moving just a touch before 5:30am. 

Very peaceful spot despite its proximity to the forest road. Only one early morning truck had passed by. 

Waking up the legs on this beautiful new day. 

Big views to the south open up indicating the upcoming massive downhill

Dirt turned to pavement for a blistering rocketship ride off the mountain and to the valley below. The sun felt like it was going to be mean today. 

After crossing Hwy 169, the road turned back to dirt and it was a smooth pedal over to the very northern reaches of the BCT, which I have never ridden. 

More new singletrack to put in the mental atlas. 

Good riding, but it was warming up quickly, and as you can see, very exposed with minimal shade available. 

The BCT really is a gem of high desert AZ riding. It is always a bit harder than you think as it requires constant mental engagement.

These cows had the right idea of huddling under a source of shade. 

I came across the Agua Fria river which surprisingly had some water flowing. I wasn't expecting it, but I took full advantage by dunking my shirt and that helped a ton. It was oppressively hot out there, and this provided some welcome relief. 

Tunnel under Hwy 69 (heh) to reach the Big Bug TH. 

Somehow I punctured my rear tire leaving the underpass and it wasn't sealing. Ugh. I walked the bike over to the pit toilet where there was a small slice of shade. Had a hard time getting my plug tool to puncture the tire and get the plug inserted. The puncture was so small it should have sealed without any help. Maybe this was because it was the very last of the "homebrew" sealant and it wasn't as effective as it would have been if it was "fresh". While I was fiddling with this, a guy came over and asked if I needed anything and where I came from and where I was going. It's always fun trying to explain to people what you are in the middle of - most people can't comprehend it. He was trying to be helpful - offered me a ride, offered me food, the whole nine yards. I thanked him and said I was gonna be good. 

I was mostly annoyed because I really wanted to be at the Spring Valley gas station. It was agonizingly close, I just had to get there. If I had to mess with my tire more, I would much rather do it with cold drink in hand and in more shade. 

I got the plug inserted finally, and then used the pit toilet which is always in great shape. Whoever takes care of this one is an angel. It actually appeared that it had just been cleaned as of that morning. The smell of bleach solution hung in the air and the floors still held some of that solution. I guarantee it was cleaner than what I would find at the gas station lol. 

A quick pedal up the road got me to the goods. A couple spicy V8's went down the hatch immediately along with a burger. I picked up other supplies and a burger to pack away for later. Oh yeah, I was officially over sour gummy anything. So standard gummy bears were purchased instead. I knew the upcoming climb to Crown King was gonna be exposed, so had some extra fluids on board as well. Brent was there then Nico and Joe joined in. Brent took off, and I left before Nico and Joe.  

Heading back out into the furnace. 

Cool abandoned gas station. All kinds of relics from the past on the property. 

Heading up into those mountains. 

It was hot and the climbing was relentless. Took a shade break here. 

I had been anxiously waiting for this moment. Finally the sun goes behind the mountain, and suddenly I am able to ride again. 

This fella didn't want to move. I thought he was dead, but finally I nudged him and he slithered off the road. Alive for at least one more day... a car came down not a minute later and he would have been *Mr Myagi voice* "squish just like grape"

The surrounding landscape reminded me of the area near Molino Basin on the AZT. 

Big guy!

Last bit of light, and still a way to go to CK.

David caught me and he was hurting. Said he was gonna scratch in CK an that he already had a cabin booked up there. Bummer. I didn't think I was going to make the open hours of the saloon in CK for food, but I didn't really want to deal with people anyway haha. I did bring the burger from Spring Valley just for this purpose though. I told him I was gonna pull off at a flat spot to eat. Burger and the mountain dew I had brought with hit the spot. 

I got up into town and filtered water at the stream that runs next to the road. I knew that there was a climb still to get out of town, but I didn't really realize how steep it was to get out of there. It did relent a bit then I spent about an hour just continuing forward on the route looking for a good place to lay down. Finally found something suitable and wrapped up the day. 

71 miles, 7600 ft elevation gain, a touch over 17 hours. 

Day 3

Up and riding right at 5:30am. I got lulled into feeling good as the day started with a big elevation loss. Then the work of the day kicked in as we approached the Mt Union area. 

Good enough sleep spot for me.

Rugged beauty back here. 

Totally remote back here. Followed these fresh (notice how they are on top of other bike tires prints) bear prints for what seemed like maybe a mile. 

Climb away

The path laid out before me

Making progress towards town

The day started to warm up, and the next nemesis was revealed: gnats. These things would swarm your face if you weren't going fast enough and the joke is on me because I am slow AF! I usually have a bug net in my pack, but I realized it was in my other pack. Ugh. I got one or two in the eye (that's what she said) and ingested a few. Extra protein!

I did reach out to the leader of the gnats and they provided me a still photo from their archives:

Actual footage from Gary the Gnat. ;)

I started seeing some riders who had already made the loop around Prescott. That got in my head a bit, but whatever. Onward. 

Sad to see a property that has fallen into disrepair and vandalism. 

What are you doing, turkey?

Made it to the Prescott Circle Trail. To this point I had never ridden this direction. I was curious about how it was going to go. 

Goldwater Lake looking super inviting. It was toasty, but at least we were in the trees now. 

A bumblebee DEEP in the goods. 

Shade breaks around the Wolverton climb. This was by far the worst part of riding this direction. 

I think I always see deer over here. 

Trail conditions have smoothed out a bit, and the sun is relenting. 

Oft photographed chimney structure. 

These were so vibrant in real life. 

The last rays of light touching Thumb Butte. 

Got through the hardest bits of the Circle Trail before it got dark on me. 

I was smoked and tired, but wanted to keep going. Decided to take a 10 minute lay down session in here. 

"Team Hey Bear" (Cami, Allison, Hannah and Joe P) caught me in here. We chatted for a bit and they said they were hitting up a local hotel. It sounded tempting to maybe splurge, but I decided against it. I came out to sleep in the dirt each night, so that was it. They took off quickly, motivated I am sure by an indoor sleep. I got riding shortly after them, but they were all riding strong and I couldn't catch them. 

The lights of the baseball fields below. I wanted to get to the 24 hour am/pm but I fell short by about 6 miles.

It was nearly impossible to find a spot to sleep on all the benchcut trails. Finally I found a flatish spot of sand (I thought it was an ant nest at first) but I kicked it a bit and when no angry insects emerged, I just pulled the bag out. No ground cloth or air mattress. Just my air pillow and bag. Out in a second once I laid down. 

74 miles, 8100 ft elevation gain, 18.5 hours

Day 4

I was rudely awakened by emergency vehicle sirens that didn't sound like they were moving. Just went on and on. For the best I suppose. I wanted to be up an moving before anyone came upon me since I was so close to town. Mission accomplished and I was riding by 4:50am. 

Just a quick bit of singletrack before crossing to the other side of Hwy 69

I surprisingly ran into Ben and Brent at the am/pm where I had a hard time figuring out what I wanted to eat and get. Brain was still half asleep. They didn't have the full assortment of hot food ready yet, but there were microwavable burritos which did the job. Got some other things and then got gifted some cookies that were on the "expiring" shelf from the cashier who seemed thankful to have some action early in his day. Time to make the massive push up to the mandatory Mt Union summit. 

A little bit of singletrack on the west side of Walker Rd, before transitioning to the eastern side and getting on trail 305. 

Some super buff stuff in here but some steep climbing too before getting spit out onto the road for more climbing. 

Love these small communities. 

If shit goes down, I want to be friends with this guy. #murica

Grind away. 

A few houses next to the small lake created by a dam on the Hassayampa River. It doesn't even look like Arizona. 

More deer friends. 

Easy dispensing of frosted donuts. 

Towers at the top of Mt Union come into view. 

Almost there!

Summit attained. I didn't go over to the hang glider ramp as I have been there many times and I wanted to get moving.

I knew it was a big downhill trend to get to Mayer. There was still a lot of work to do though. It started out easy enough. 

It was hot now. 

Turkey Creek provided a nice place to dunk the head and dunk the shirt. The water in the road was dirty, but just upstream off the road it was clear and refreshing. 

Oof.

Guess I need to earn the downhill...

I am so curious about the story behind this sign. 

The leaning guard of cattle? Cattle guards are usually highly indicative of a high point, and this was no exception. The Circle K in Mayer is indeed within reach. 

Looking back on what I just travelled on to get here. 

Took a moment to take it in. 

You never know what you might see in the desert, this RV had been toppled over onto its side. 

This large hawk trolling from above. I'm not dead yet, go find something else. 

I made it to where riders had to go slightly off route to get to the Circle K. There isn't a way to put it really on route due to the way the roads are routed here, so you have to go there then backtrack the way you came. The lady inside was super nice, she talked about how she had charged many gps/phones over the last 24 hours. I purchased my first ever "Clamato" and it was delicious. Grabbed a chicken patty sandwich for later and plenty of fluids as it was still super hot and I knew I had to deal with a bit of BCT again. I sat in the shade near the Amazon locker and mentally prepped while eating and drinking. The wind had started to whip and I wasn't really stoked on that. 

I got moving and the short steep climb up the road back to the route was below average but over quick enough. It was time to grind on more gravel. It was mostly a cross/headwind for now. 

 

A memorial for a ... cow? 

Jumped on a familiar bit of BCT to get back the the Big Bug TH for the second time on the route. 

I am torn between liking stuff like this on the trail, and being annoyed that people do this. In this case though, it lifted my spirits right before droppiing down to the TH

It was Sunday late afternoon, which is normally when I give my brother Joe a call and we chat. The wind was whipping and I really didn't want to stop for long, so I texted him and told him what I was up to then sent him a goofy picture. Shown above. 

Back on ranch roads. Was getting absolutely obliterated by the wind. Would be riding then get caught by a gust that would push me half way into the road. Luckily there was minimal traffic out here. One car that approached me from the front and one more from behind. 

The big ranch roads out here reminded me of Colorado. 

My rear end was starting to bother me but at least the views were awesome. 

Looking back on the route. 

A few jets streaked across the sky. #sprinkle me mang

Getting ready to rejoin the BCT once again. 

The BCT was a bit easier this direction, and it was obviously not boiling hot so it was good riding. One thing I took note of was something while I was riding was glistening light back at me like a diamond. When I investigated, it turns out this source of distraction was owned by these very large Wolf Spiders - their eyes are reflective. I must have passed hundreds just in the close proximity of the trail that might light hit. I shudder to think about how many are out there. Safe to say, you won't ever catch me sleeping in this area. No sir. That's something out of a bad movie.

View from the high point of BCT before it drops back down to the dirt road heading north. 

I stopped at the trailhead and sat and ate. I was exhausted and trying to figure out what I wanted to do. I thought maybe to try to get up to the dispersed camping area near the top of the upcoming paved climb but I was doing the math in my head of how long it might take. I couldn't quite decide, so I just started riding north on the road. If I found something to pull off on before the pavement, I would stop - my ass was angry and I just needed to rest. I did end up finding a pullout about a half mile before the crossing of Hwy 169. It wasn't even 10 yet, but my mind was made up. Sleep kit laid out and right before laying down, I saw "Team Hey Bear" and their lights up at the high point of the BCT. I expected them to pass me sooner than they did, I actually thought that maybe they stopped for the night. But just as I fell asleep, I heard them pass me. Not sure if they saw me or not, I saw someone's light shine my way but wasn't sure if they actually saw me. At this point I knew I was DFL, and that I wouldn't see anyone again on route. In my mind I was trying to figure out what was really achievable tomorrow. Could I actually wrap this thing up without an all night push? Seemed pretty unlikely and I figured I was looking at a 24 hour push to finish which would have me wrapping up around daybreak on Tuesday. Guess we will see.

72 miles, 8200 ft elevation gain, 16.5 hours. 

Day 5

I woke up feeling good after an extended rest - my longest of the ride. I was determined to finish thing thing without sleeping again, but I still wasn't quite sure what that meant. In my mind, it was one hundred miles from Camp Verde to the finish of the route. Gonna need to be a big day...

It felt later than it was, but I was riding by 5:30. What a beautiful morning. 

Back on pavement, the cows were up and grazing. 

Some bits were pretty steep but management since it was paved

Oh, ye blessed cattle guard. Bringer of good things (including downhill assisted riding). I was surprised with how quickly the climb went. I was annoyed with myself that I didn't knock this out last night. Oh well. 

The pavement turns to dirt and goes through Cherry, AZ. What an idyllic little community.  

Cool a-frame house far below

Super fast descent - that was fun!

Some quick pavement delivered me to Camp Verde where I saw bikepackers!!!! What?!?! I thought they would be long gone by now but I ran into Team Hey Bear (THB) at the convenience store. They had made it into town last night for a hotel. I asked what their plans were for the day and if they were going to roll to the finish. They said that was the plan, so I knew I was for sure going to try now too. Hell yeah my spirits were raised by our meet-up. The day might have been completely different had I not run into them. I told them I was gonna grab burritos and that I hoped to see them later. Indeed I would. 

I jumped over to Filibertos where the TV inside was obnoxiously loud, but whatever. Ordered up a couple bacon burritos and a drink. I did some housekeeping, tossing trash, applying sunscreen, etc. I ate half a burrito and drank as much of the soda as I could but it was too cold to drink and I couldn't finish it. Topped off my water and then got on the road. I had no intentions of thoughts of being able to catch THB, but at least I had a rabbit to "chase".

Leaving Camp Verde on the 260. Not a bad ride. Monday morning meant minimal traffic and it has a good shoulder almost the entire time. 

Crossing over West Clear Creek

Turned off of the pavement and now to head north. First checkpoint being Wet Beaver Creek

Still a ways to go. The climbing, while manageable, was incessant. 

The saving grace for today was overcast skies. I don't know how this day would have gone if it was blasting the sun all day. In the moments when the sun was fully visible, it was drastically more unpleasant. 

Wet Beaver Creek. I have never been here. Shame on me. I stopped briefly after this to eat some food and prep for more climbing. 

Hey there. 

I never really knew this was here. Just off the I-17 and accessible from the Sedona turn off. Very minimal traffic today. Just grind. And grind. 

Proof that you can grow anywhere if you want to.

It was lonely and isolated back here. There was a crew of folks with chainsaws who were taking down larger brush/trees. Maybe for firebreak purposes - not really sure. Not long after seeing them, I felt like I was going to fall asleep. No way was I going to make it to the end feeling like this. I eventually relented and pulled off the road and laid down in some loose pavement gravel. Set an alarm for 10 minutes. I was floating in that asleep but still aware of things phase. Then I freaked out thinking I had slept for hours. Looked at the phone at I had 20 seconds of timer remaining. Jumped back on the bike feeling much better. 

Onward!

This felt like the longest climb ever and I was over it.

Almost in an instant the landscape changed. Damn I am getting somewhere. 

The dirt road quality also improved dramatically 

Mormon Lake. Yes!

I was starting to get a bit chilly, the wind had kicked up again, and I was suddenly wishing it wasn't overcast. I knew the store wasn't going to be open, but I didn't need it. What I did need was a water top off and a quick break to eat some burrito. I went a couple hundred yards off route to Double Springs campground. The normal spigots weren't on, but they had a potable water tank available. I sat on the pallet stack and drank some hydration mix and ate half my burrito. I started to get cold, so got moving knowing the upcoming climb and summit of Mormon Mtn would warm me up. 

Start the climbing. 

Grabbing a quick slice of AZT. This section is so freaking good.

Cue the hike a bike

Views are hard to come by due to the dense trees, but here is a view off to the east-ish...

Cool little markers in the trees. 

Right here the alert on my Coros went off indicating that the "final boss" was done. The next waypoint came up as Flag Bike Rev in 27 miles!! I thought it was going to be like 37 miles because I thought it was 100 miles to the finish from Camp Verde. It was actually 90. I had a renewed sense of urgency. I can finish this thing before midnight! Lets fucking go!

Last picture of the ride. 

It was now a race to the finish. It was mainly downhill and good riding but I started to get cold and both my lights were getting low on battery. I slammed on my breaks in a panic thinking I missed a turn off as I was showing as being off route. It was dark and I could't see anything around me, but it just turned out to be a slight discrepancy in the track. as when I rejoined it, there was nothing on the ground that would indicate missed trail or road. I took the opportunity to switch out batteries so I could turn my lights on a higher mode and I also needed to put my warmer gloves on. It was getting chilly back here. 

Eventually I saw a weird light that kept flashing and in my tired state it took me a while but I realized it was from the airport! Let's go! I finally ended up on the pavement leading to the finish. So close yet so far. I always get turned around in town I felt like I was going in circles. I made the final turn and was shocked when there was a group of folks at the finish. The DFL chant made me laugh and that might be the coolest thing that I have experienced in a long time. I was certain that nobody would be there, but to have a full group including the RDs Dana and Dylan made it something special. I was so positive that THB had finished hours before me, but it turns out that they had wrapped up maybe 10 minutes prior. Within striking distance the whole time but it felt like nobody was out there. I guess that is the nature of these events. I got a cupcake from Nico which was delicious. What a freaking adventure. The race is over, the trail sweeper has arrived!

A gathering of rad folks!

Boom. Done. Photo by either Dylan or Dana I can't remember. Brain was broken. 

I can't thank Dylan or Dana enough for investing their time, energy, and money to bring this thing to life every year. The bikepacking community is amazing. I am really stoked to get this one done and it was fun sharing time out there with some of you. Till next time!

110 miles, 9600 ft elevation gain, 17.5 hours.