In search of single track, Moab style

There's a joke people in Moab don't often tell, but people in Colorado do:

Guy goes to Moab to bike, walks into the bike shop and asks, "Where's the best single track in Moab."
The bike shop employee says, "in Fruita."

OK, it's sort of an insider joke (Fruita is an up-and-coming mountain bike destination 100 miles away) - and even then it's not that funny - but it does have a funny truth in it: Moab has almost no single track. Almost all of its famous trails are old jeep roads.

For years, the town has done nothing to change that, but about a month ago, it opened one of the first new single tracks ever in the area, and the first one designed specifically for bikes. The trail is called Baby Steps. We got a hand-drawn map from a local and headed out to check it out this morning.

I can't say enough about how good it is. We had about 8 miles of windy, tight single track mixed with another 10 of fun, incredibly scenic jeep road that had it all: wide open slick rock, fast, rolling hills, steep climbs, and a little bit of us getting lost (the hand-drawn map wasn't that good).

And here's the amazing part: It was the first time all week we were on a trail with no ATVs or dirt bikes. We didn't even see any other bikers. Right now this trail is a locals' secret, but it is worth blabbing about.

If you plan on a trip to Moab this spring, stay tuned to The Gazette's Out There sections (Fridays). I'll throw in all the info for the trail soon.