Mountain bike · Spring Mountains
Mountain biking on Mount Charleston
Where you can and can't mountain bike on Mount Charleston: wilderness rules, the Bristlecone Trail closure (reopening estimated 2029) and Lee Canyon.
Updated Oct 22, 2026 · 5 sources · mountain bike
Photo: Famartin / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
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- Distance
- Bristlecone Trail: 6.3-mile loop (upper portion closed)Source: USFS: Bristlecone Trail
Each stat shows its source. We only list figures a land manager or named source publishes; a missing stat means we found no published figure.
Conditions at the start
NWS forecast for this spot ↗The live National Weather Service forecast for the start of Mountain biking on Mount Charleston loads here. If it doesn't, use the NWS link.
Map
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On the map
This page covers several trails with partial closures, so the map shows the trailheads the Forest Service names instead of a single line.
Download GPX for Mountain biking on Mount CharlestonPlan your own ride
Rules, fees and who runs it
- Managed by
- USDA Forest Service, Spring Mountains NRA
- Wilderness
- No bicycles in the Mt. Charleston Wilderness
- Bristlecone Trail
- Upper portion closed; reopening estimated 2029
- Closure order
- 04-17-25-04, through May 12, 2027 unless rescinded
- Lift-served riding
- Lee Canyon bike park
- Forest office
- (702) 872-5486, Mon–Fri 8–4:30
Mount Charleston is the cool escape from Las Vegas, but it’s not an open playground for mountain bikes. Most of the high country is designated wilderness, and the one trail the Forest Service lists for bikes is partly closed. Here’s what the Forest Service says as of October 2026.
Wilderness means no bikes
The Forest Service’s trail pages for the Spring Mountains say wilderness restrictions apply in the Mt. Charleston Wilderness, and that bicycles, mountain bikes and other wheeled or mechanized transport are prohibited there. That covers e-bikes too, since they’re motorized. Trails such as Bonanza lead into the wilderness, so check a trail’s page before you ride it.
The Bristlecone Trail
The Forest Service says bicyclists are allowed on the Bristlecone Trail, a 6.3-mile loop in upper Lee Canyon that climbs from the Upper Bristlecone Trailhead through fir and aspen to stands of bristlecone pine, then follows an old WPA road down to the Lower Bristlecone Trailhead.
The upper portion, up to the junction with the Bonanza Trail, has been closed since Tropical Storm Hilary damaged it in August 2023. A Forest Service order (04-17-25-04) keeps the Upper Bristlecone Trail closed through May 12, 2027 unless it’s rescinded, and in May 2025 the Forest Service estimated the trail would reopen in 2029, once it’s surveyed, reviewed and rebuilt. Going onto a closed trail is a federal misdemeanor under the order.
The Forest Service lists only the upper portion as closed. If you plan to ride the lower road section, call the Spring Mountains office first to confirm what’s open: (702) 872-5486, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Lift-served riding at Lee Canyon
For downhill riding on the mountain, the option is the Lee Canyon bike park, which runs the Bluebird chair on its remaining 2026 bonus weekends.
Riding the road up
If you’d rather climb on pavement, the Mount Charleston climb covers the road ride up Kyle Canyon. Motorcyclists use the same roads; see the motorcycle hub.
Before you go
Weather on the mountain changes fast, and storms have closed trails and roads here before. Check the Forest Service’s alerts page for the Spring Mountains NRA before every trip.