Rainbow Rim Trail

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Not Allowed

Features Commonly Bikepacked · Technical · Views

Located in the Kaibab National Forest of Northern Arizona, the remote and aptly named Rainbow Rim Trail follows along the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, connecting five large overlooks that peer into one of the largest and most fascinating canyons on Planet Earth!

The trail is located in a very remote area, the nearest services are many miles away, so be prepared for backcountry conditions. Because of the trail's remoteness, many riders will take advantage of the plentiful primitive camping at one of the five overlook points and spend a couple of days exploring the area. Bring everything you might need including water and food, shovel for human waste, and pack out any garbage. Use has become heavy due to the trail's popularity, so please pick up after yourself.

Rainbow Rim Trail #10 offers 22.5 miles (one-way) of exceptional solitude on a remote edge of the Grand Canyon in Kaibab National Forest. The trail offers an extremely unique experience; it is the only singletrack trail on the rim of the Grand Canyon open to bikes. Trails in nearby Grand Canyon National Park are closed to bicycles. E-bikes are prohibited on this trail.

While riding the Rainbow Rim, the views are fantastic, but somewhat infrequent, which make you appreciate every time you come across a glimpse into the great abyss. In fact, you never are very far from the rim, but the majority of the riding is through pine forest. It's a well-designed and sustainably built trail, up and down shallow drainages, and across flower-filled meadows. Each of the trail's five overlooks offer a distinct view and perspective of the Grand Canyon's features including the Powell Plateau, Steamboat Mountain, Tapeats Amphitheater and Great Thumb Mesas.

Forest roads access various points along the trail, so you can choose your base camp according to how you want to ride. Many riders prefer the flow of the trail from north to south, but it rides well either way. Setting up camp at Locust Point for example, which is the midpoint of the trail along the rim, enables you to divide up the trail as two separate out-and-back rides: 1) Locust Point south past Timp Point and back and, 2) Locust Point north to Parissawampitts Point and back.

Mileage from each trailhead are as follows:
Parissawampitts Point to Fence Point - 5.5 miles
Fence Point to Locust Point - 3.0 miles
Locust Point to North Timp Point - 6.5 miles
North Timp Point to Timp Point - 3.0 miles
Timp Point to FSRD 250 - 5.5 miles
FSRD 250 to Rainbow Rim East TH - 4.0 miles
Total = 27.5 miles one-way

Thanks to collaboration between IMBA and Kaibab National Forest, as of 2019 the trail has been extended from FR271/271A intersection all the way to FR 293 near the intersection with FR294. This new trailhead is named, "Rainbow Rim East". The trail is now around 28 miles one-way. Currently there is no plan for more extension of trails on the Rainbow Rim.