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USFS National Forest System Trails · Idaho · Updated June 2026

Payette National Forest Mountain Bike Trails

DBike Access Grade D — 20% of rideable miles open to bikes. How we grade

Payette National Forest earns a Bike Access Grade of D: 20% of its rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes, with Class-1 e-bike access on part of the network. Limited — only a small share of rideable trail miles are open to traditional bikes.

Payette National Forest carries 2,257 mi of mapped National Forest System trail, of which 169 mi across 47 segments is designated for mountain bikes, typically open Year-round. Class 1 e-bikes are designated on 148 segments (836 mi).

Reviewed by CanIBikeHere Editorial Team · Updated
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What the USFS data shows for Payette National Forest

Of the 2,257 mi of mapped trail in Payette National Forest, 8% — 169 mi across 47 bike-designated segments — is open to mountain bikes in USFS travel-management data.

Tread is overwhelmingly native dirt: USFS lists native material on 529 of 599 surfaced segments (88%).

On the USFS difficulty rating, advanced is the most common designation here — 23 of 23 rated segments (100%) — across all uses, not bikes alone.

USFS records a year-round bike season for this forest, though 2 different season windows still appear on individual segments at higher elevation.

The longest single named bike segment in the data is Bear Pete Ridge at 17.69 mi on native dirt.

Class 1 e-bikes are designated on 148 segments (836 mi), and 7 segments carry an ADA-accessibility flag in the same dataset.

D
Bike Access Grade
20% of rideable miles bike-open
156
Ridable trails
with their own page
169 mi
Bike-designated
47 segments
2,257 mi
Total NFS trail
619 segments
836 mi
Class 1 e-bike
148 segments

Trail surface

  • Native Material529
  • Snow68
  • Imported Compacted Material1
  • Other1

USFS trail class (1 = primitive · 5 = developed)

  • Class 3283
  • Class 2210
  • Class 1105
  • Class 45
  • Class 51

8% of this forest's mapped trail is bike-designated. Note: USFS records trail grade (steepness), not technical MTB difficulty — we surface grade where present but do not infer a black/blue/green rating from it.

Largest bike-designated trails

TrailMilesSurfaceTrail classBike season
Bear Pete Ridge17.69Native Material——
Indian Ridge17.56Native Material——
French Creek16.58Native Material——
S/F Salmon River East15.45Native Material——
Tailholt14.74Native Material——
Rapid River Ridge14.68Native Material——
Secesh River14.65Native Material——
Loon Creek/Loon Lake14.51Native Material——
Council Mountain14.14Native Material—Year-round
Patrick Butte13.81Native Material——
Crestline13.55Native Material——
Raines Creek/Slaughter Gulch12.74Native Material——
Grouse Creek/Grizzly Creek12.6Native Material—Year-round
North Fork Kennally Creek12.46Native Material——
Buckhorn Creek12.44Native Material——
Fitsum Creek12.02Native Material——
Loon Creek11.83Native Material——
S/F Sheep Creek11.54Native Material——
Rainbow Ridge11.32Native Material——
Boundary11.15Native Material—Year-round
Grass Mountain (Off 257)10.91Native Material——
Twenty Mile10.86Native Material——
Four Mile10.66Native Material——
Victor Creek10.63Native Material——
Cougar Creek10.37Native Material——

Every trail in Payette National Forest

All 156 ridable trails in this forest — every trail where USFS data designates mountain-bike or Class 1 e-bike use, grouped by grade-based steepness. Grade reflects slope, not technical difficulty. Each trail links to its full data profile.

Advanced grade (2)

Steep grade band.

Grade not recorded (154)

No grade band recorded in the USFS data.

CSV

Payette National Forest bike-legal trail list (CSV)

Download all 156 bike- and Class 1 e-bike-designated trails in Payette National Forest — name, miles, surface, grade, season, and e-bike class per trail, straight from USFS data.

E-bikes in Payette National Forest

Class 1 on 148 segments · Class 2 on 148 · Class 3 on 148. See full e-bike rules for Payette National Forest →

Where it is

Approximate center of Payette National Forest. USFS trail geometry isn't mapped here — use the ranger district for trailheads.

Frequently asked questions

What is the bike access grade for Payette National Forest?
Payette National Forest earns a Bike Access Grade of D: 20% of its rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes, with Class-1 e-bike access on part of the network. Limited — only a small share of rideable trail miles are open to traditional bikes.
How many miles of mountain bike trail are in Payette National Forest?
Payette National Forest has about 169 mi of bike-designated trail across 47 segments, out of 2,257 mi of total National Forest System trail.
What is the riding season in Payette National Forest?
Most bike-designated trails in Payette National Forest carry a Year-round season in USFS data; higher-elevation trails clear later.
Are e-bikes allowed in Payette National Forest?
Only where designated. Class 1 e-bikes are recorded on 148 segments. See the e-bike rules page for the class-by-class breakdown.

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Where to stay near Payette National Forest

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