Grafton Mesa

Grafton Mesa is a mountain bike trail system on the benchland above Rockville, part of the same mesa complex as Gooseberry Mesa just outside Zion National Park's southwest corner. Access is via Bridge Road in Rockville, crossing the Virgin River on the old bridge before the road forks toward the mesa.

Riders have options here. The easiest is an out-and-back on mesa doubletrack to a viewpoint over the Virgin River valley — about 4.2 miles round trip with roughly 300 feet of climbing. A longer 9.3-mile loop climbs to around 4,850 feet and finishes with a technical, steep descent suited to experienced riders only, and there's an expert-level descent variant with loose rock, drops, and serious exposure.

The payoff on any of these is the view: the mesa edge looks straight up the Virgin River toward the entrance to Zion Canyon, one of the better vantage points on this side of the park.