USFS National Forest System Trails · Santa Fe National Forest · New Mexico · Updated June 2026
Canoncito (USFS trail 852) is a 4.2 mi trail in Santa Fe National Forest, New Mexico. Mountain-bike use here is accepted but discouraged in USFS data, with Class 1 e-bikes also designated.
Can I bike Canoncito?
| 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 Santa Fe National Forest, 63% of rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes — a Bike Access Grade of B.
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About this trail
Canoncito (USFS trail 852) runs 4.2 mi through Santa Fe National Forest in New Mexico. Everything below comes straight from the US Forest Service National Forest System Trails dataset — length, surface, slope-derived difficulty, and the specific bike and e-bike designations on record — so you can check legality before you load up. Underfoot, the trail is recorded as native material. USFS slope data puts it in the Easy band (grade band +5-8%), meaning a gentle 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 Canoncito?
- Mountain-bike use on Canoncito 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 Canoncito?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Canoncito in the USFS data.
- How long is Canoncito?
- Canoncito measures about 4.2 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Canoncito?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Canoncito as native material.
- How difficult is Canoncito?
- Its grade-based difficulty is Easy (grade band +5-8%), 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 Santa Fe National Forest (USFS trail geometry isn't mapped).
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