(February 21, 2019 / Author: Tim Bondy) The Teapot Dome Trail is my home-turf mountain biking area. It’s a place I can drive to in 20 minutes and be on a doubletrack within 30 minutes. The scenery in places is semi-dramatic and there are a few additional trails and spurs to make this ride interesting enough for a quick getaway. It’s neither technical nor overly strenuous unless I ride one of the northern spurs. Technically this ride is in the Mount Bennett Hills but I call the area “Teapot Dome.”
Coordinates and Link to featured image: 43.1994018, -115.536911 & https://photos.app.goo.gl/wsiCz7y65SGJG8o28
Introduction to the “Ride all the way Around Teapot Dome”
This is the fourth time I have ridden this area and because it’s close to home, it’s a ride I will continue to do, especially on the spur of the moment.
Pros: Close to home with little or no planning required. Also, it’s a rough trail and getting hurt or breaking down doesn’t mean an overnight stay.
Cons: Bad environmental landscape with cheatgrass and cow poop as the main ground cover.
Teapot Dome Ride Trip Report Basic/Stats
- Adventure Date: 9 Sept. 2018
- Consider Doing it Again?: Yes
- Trailhead: 43.198183, -115.554921
- Turn-Around Point or Furthest Out Point: This was a loop but the halfway mark is at 43.155673, -115.500157
- 7.5 Topo Maps: Teapot Dome and Bennett Mountain
- Land Ownership: Mainly public lands but there is one section owned by Simplot that I previously got permission to trespass on. A vast majority of the ride and trails were on BLM land but there are also a few plots of state-managed land. Be aware that some portions of the trails ridden on this adventure border directly on private property.
- Mileage: 9.67 miles
- +Vertical Feet: 746 feet
- Avg Slope from Google Earth Vertical Profile of the GPX File: 2.6%
- Google Photo Album Link: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Nt5W4HfwvWEZSTsP6
- Google Earth KMZ: TEAPOT-Bike-EXTENDED-trails.kmz (local file only)
- GPX File Name: 20180909-143023.gpx (local file only)
- Driving Time to Trailhead: About 18 minutes
Summary of Ride: This “close to home” ride provides a few good trail options and a respectable distance. The hilly terrain also provides an aerobic interval type workout and I need that.
“No planning needed for this Teapot Dome ride so there is no excuse for not adventuring in the future.” ~ Tim Bondy
On this ride and all previous rides, the BLM owned gate near Highway 20 was impossible to open. I started calling it the “impossible gate” and contacted the BLM to see if they would address the issue. I informed them that at some point someone will leave the gate open and cows will start roaming on a 65 mph speed limit section of Highway 20.
The BLM came out and fixed that gate after my phone call to them. Cudos to how responsive the BLM was to my little gate problem.
Originally published elsewhere on September 26, 2018
Sincerely,
~ signed ~
Tim Bondy – Freelance Writer
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” ~ Neale Donald Walsch