USFS National Forest System Trails · Prescott National Forest · Arizona · Updated June 2026
Charcoal Gulch (USFS trail 9419) is a 4 mi trail in Prescott National Forest, Arizona. Mountain-bike use here is accepted but discouraged in USFS data, with Class 1 e-bikes also designated.
Can I bike Charcoal Gulch?
| Use | Status | Season on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain bike | Accepted but discouraged | — |
| Class 1 e-bike (pedal-assist, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 2 e-bike (throttle, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 3 e-bike (pedal-assist, 28 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
Zooming out: across Prescott National Forest, 85% of rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes — a Bike Access Grade of A.
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About this trail
In Prescott National Forest, Arizona, Charcoal Gulch (USFS trail 9419) covers 4 mi of National Forest System trail. This profile summarizes what the official US Forest Service trail record says about riding it: how long the trail is, what it's built on, how steep the route grades out, and which forms of bike use the agency has designated. USFS records list its surface as native material. USFS slope data puts it in the Advanced band (grade band 12-20%), meaning a steep climb — keep in mind this measures steepness, not trail technicality. For traditional mountain bikes, use is discouraged according to USFS data. On the electric side, Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are also designated — Class 1 being pedal-assist only, Classes 2 and 3 adding a throttle and higher assisted speed. The route is mapped as USFS Trail Class 2 on the agency's 1-to-5 development scale, where 1 is the most primitive, minimally maintained tread and 5 is the most developed. For day-of certainty on closures or seasonal orders, check directly with the ranger district, since this reflects the USFS data as of the latest refresh.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you mountain bike on Charcoal Gulch?
- Mountain-bike use on Charcoal Gulch is discouraged in USFS records, though Class 1 e-bike use is designated. Confirm current rules with the managing ranger district.
- Are e-bikes allowed on Charcoal Gulch?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Charcoal Gulch in the USFS data.
- How long is Charcoal Gulch?
- Charcoal Gulch measures about 4 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Charcoal Gulch?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Charcoal Gulch as native material.
- How difficult is Charcoal Gulch?
- Its grade-based difficulty is Advanced (grade band 12-20%), derived from USFS slope data. This reflects steepness, not technical mountain-bike difficulty.
How we read this data
Grade-based difficulty above is the USFS grade (route steepness), not a technical mountain-bike rating — a gentle-grade trail can still be rocky or technical, and vice versa. Bike and e-bike status come verbatim from the USFS managed-use fields for this trail; we never infer access we can't cite. See our methodology for how the dataset is built and what each field means.
Where it is
Approximate location of Prescott National Forest (USFS trail geometry isn't mapped).
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