Bike-Boating Comb Ridge in Utah

When I pulled a permit for 8 on the San Juan River one Monday morning, I didn’t expect that within just 24 hours I’d wrangle up a group entirely of women to fill the slots. We had big dreams of loading bikes to the front of little boats, paddling along the river, and biking Comb Ridge with a group of rad women - and when it all came together, it was magical.

Day 1: Paddle Splashes and Sunshine

Our trip began with a gear sprawl on the banks of the San Juan River as we all learned the best ways to attach our bikes our packrafts. For some of us, this was the first time we had blown up one of these little boats, and the excitement was palpable. We helped one another break down bikes by taking off wheels and pedals to make the bikes sit compactly on the front of our rafts and stored our overnight gear in the boat’s zippered internal storage systems. It was an ideal day on the water as we paddled along, and we took plenty of breaks to sight-see and enjoy the canyon. The San Juan has a reputation for
its intimacy with the region’s archeology, geology, and wildlife, and our trip did not disappoint. The day was filled with beautiful sandstone walls and our exit from the river was the site of River House Ruin, an 800-year-old Ancestral Puebloan dwelling sitting three stories high, tucked into a perfect alcove overlooking the river.

Paddling with your bike’s tires piled on top of the frame and strapped to the front of your raft sounded somewhat intimidating, but I think we were all surprised at how smoothly it went. That particular stretch of the San Juan is very mellow, and the paddling was fun, with our bikes staying secure during the whole float.

The transition from boating to biking included rolling up rafts, breaking down paddles, and finding places to store our bulky PFDs. It took some time to learn the best ways to strap down our excess gear as we stuffed our bikepacking bags to the brim and attached boats to our handlebars. Thankfully we had many sets of hands- it took a lot of teamwork to hold everything in place while we cinched gear as tightly as we could.



All loaded up, we biked and bushwacked through tamarisk tunnels up and away from the river, and began pushing our bikes through deep sand, getting slightly sunburned in the hot sun. It was a fantastic first day out.







Day 2: The Sand-Sloge

Waking with the sunrise the next morning, we began brewing coffee and packing up camp with a fair bit of apprehension. Was this day going to be filled with more of the deep sand we encountered on the way out from the river? We knew our 35-mile goal would be far more difficult to hit if the sand remained, as we saw how much it had slowed us the day before.

And, surprise! There was a fair bit of deep sand sloppiness in store as we climbed. Overall, the biggest struggle of our trip turned out to be the very sandy road up Comb Wash, which we were not quite prepared for, and the skinnier tires on the trip definitely succumbed to the deeper sections. Luckily everyone had a great attitude and made the best of it, still enjoying the beautiful place we were in. It helps to have other ladies to laugh at your sandy misery with as you hike-a-bike up hills!

On this night we collapsed into camp after a hard-won day, thoroughly pleased to be off our bike seats and laying on the ground. As we enjoyed dinner and shared chocolate for dessert, we watched the setting sun turn the sandstone pink all around a large cave tucked high up on the ridge. We knew that cave was special, and fell asleep with excitement to venture up in the morning to see what it held.







Day 3: Downhill Surfing

On our third and final morning we woke before sunrise, below the mouth of the giant cave that demanded to be explored. We were not disappointed in our early-morning efforts, as the hike up to this site was through a lush canyon and held multiple dwellings and a large collection of pottery fragments. The cave contained a delicate hanging garden along the back wall, pictograph hands painted along the walls, and a smattering of metate grinding stones with ancient corn cobs still scattered on the ground. As the sun crested over the other side of the canyon, we were in awe at the golden amphitheater we found ourselves in.

We knew our last day of riding would trend gradually downhill, but a bit of skepticism remained as we knew first-hand that even downhill in sand didn’t necessarily mean easy-going. We lucked out with a decent amount of hard-packed ground and slickrock along the backcountry road as we surfed through our downhill portion of the trip. As we wound our way closer and closer to the end of the ridge feature, we enjoyed the little bit of coasting we were afforded, and gave joyus shouts when we found sections of slickrock to cruise on. We basked in the sun and took longer breaks, knowing our mileage was short and we weren’t quite ready for the day of riding to be over. As all good trips are, though, it was over too soon- we arrived back at our cars where we had put on the river.




A Love of Place: Sharing Experiences with Friends
The Comb Ridge feature is a magnificent sight- it swells high above the river with a sweeping rock face seen from miles around. When looking at a topographic map of the area your eyes are drawn to the upheaval, and to bike around it was incredible.

This landscape is filled with a wealth of archaeological remains; large dwellings, pictograph and petroglyph panels, and pottery shards can be found all along this route. Comb Ridge is one of the few sections of the original designation of the Bears Ears National Monument that remains after the recent cuts made by President Trump. Now it is a separate, much smaller Monument known as “Shash Jaa”, and it is all that remains of the Monument in this particular area. As you ride through this section of canyon country it is hard to believe that protection could be limited to just this small swath of land, as all of its surrounding landscape is equally as stunning and as full of ancient artifacts and histories. It would be ideal to spend a week riding along this route, extending it and exploring side canyons and sites as you go, as there is so much to experience here.

Spending time in places like these is only heightened by the company you keep. Ultimately, there is no better way to try something new than with a group of supportive women by your side. Everyone on this trip had moments of trying hard, having fun, and enjoyed exploring a new route together. We can’t wait to plan more adventures for our bikes and boats!

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