Trail Overview
Trail 196 is one of the more difficult ATV trails in this trail system. The north end starts at a small staging area, and the trail is highly maintained at the beginning, as it starts to wind through a lodgepole pine forest. The trail quickly becomes very rocky, with constant chunks of slab rock embedded in the trail. You will continuously be riding over small chunky boulder faces and large embedded layers of rock, with small roots and log debris mixed in. The trail is like one long rock garden. However, the path stays very gradual and flat, with no exposure, steep grades, or off-camber slopes, so the rock obstacles remain moderate and not too difficult. They are just bumpy and slow going and relentless. Sometimes the rock layers form 1-2 foot tall ledges that must be navigated. There are a lot of downed logs that have previously been cut in this forest, but even in early spring, the trail was free of any major downfall, as it looks more frequently trafficked and maintained. On the south end of the trail, there are two moderate creek crossings that are both about 15 to 20 feet long, a foot deep, with rocks in the creek bed. The trail ends at an intersection with Trail 110.
Difficulty
This is a moderate ATV route because it is full of intermediate difficulty rock gardens. There are relentless boulder faces, small ledges, and a constant rocky layer that make it physically demanding. The two creek crossings on the south end also add to the difficulty level. This is rated as Most Difficult by the Forest Service.
