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 Post subject: Tucson - Fantasy Island
PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 1:03 am 
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You may as well call this Tucson's LPQ. Its a cool little (big) trail system that is right in town, that people will tell you is overrated, yet one which you are always guaranteed a great time at.

The builders have managed to cram a claimed 18mi of trail into a 3-mile by 3-mile square of land. Very impressive. We found, however, that the maps are out of date and there is a lot of new singletrack there which we didn't know about. In fact, after the first 20min we didn't really know where we were until the last 20min of the ride. All told there should now be over 25 mi of twisty, flowy singletrack. We covered 19mi.

For those of you who had the pleasure of riding Intestines, parts of Fantasy Island remind me of that, but with a less climbing. Mix Intestines with the flow of Tunnels and the mesa top, add some cactus, and you get the idea.

I really wanted to check this place out, but with so many other destination-worthy trail systems I wasn't sure when we could fit it in. Sunday was fairly warm and we had brought our lights, so we decided to ride this place at night. The 16mi or so from earlier today just didn't seem respectable enough :lol: . But really, we were feeling not too tired and a night ride seemed like a good way to spin out the tiredness in our legs.

Map of the trail system. Note that only 4 loops are shown
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They are serious about keeping undesireables out
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We're off!
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Robo, if you're wondering what happened to your Flows, they are hanging in this tree on Lone Cactus Loop. Must admit though, I thought you were above having reflectors on your wheels?
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Safety first, there were reflectors on all the trailside cacti to protect night riders
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Bunny Trail? That is definitely not on the map
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Kreechan rides through a g-out
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Snake Dance loop is not on the map either
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If we didn't figure out where we were, we might end up like this
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This may have been Christmas Tree loop, some of the cactus could pass for a Christmas tree
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Rez Loop not on the map...
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Nor was Fire loop
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Field goal named after the 2 tall cacti you ride between
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One can only assume how this spot got its name..ouch!
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roof rack
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Memorial
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it really wasn't that sharp a turn
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A signature feature coming up, finally something that is on the map
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Moto wheel to line the trail
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Over
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and Under
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Bo's loop
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Need a rest? This spot is for you
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Back on Lone Cactus loop
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Very fun section down a draw
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Yes it is....
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I think our total was something like 19mi and only 400 ft of climbing. Not bad for an evening ride. The trails here are incredibly fun, we were very glad that we did not pass this one over!


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 3:18 am 
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love this place...

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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 7:43 am 
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ozzer wrote:
love this place...

Ditto that. I've only done it as a nite ride once. Curious to try it in daylight sometime to see if its still as fun. Obvious that the folks developing and maintaining FI really enjoy what they're doing!


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 8:47 am 
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Nice. I can imagine drifting those corners at a nice clip once you get to know the place. One day I'll get there!


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 10:36 am 
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 12:35 pm 
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Robo wrote:
Nice. I can imagine drifting those corners at a nice clip once you get to know the place. One day I'll get there!


From what I recall and exprienced, all trails are one way only except for a few merge/interchange. It is a cute place.
I love their signage there and just the general sense of humor.
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Nice ride report, Ev. Thanks for the reminder as I'm really going to make this a side trip when we hit up Somo soon.

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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 8:19 pm 
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Love this TR! And a night ride to boot! Bummed I missed out on this!

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PostPosted: Thu Jan 20, 2011 8:59 pm 
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It should be noted that several riding areas in Tucson, including Fantasy Island, resides on State Trust Land which is not public use land like National Forest or BLM. This requires buying a state permit. This may seem a pain, but I won't go into the details of how it works and who it benefits, but it basically keeps these area open and set aside for recreational use instead of agriculture, cattle grazing, mining, etc. Read more here: http://www.land.state.az.us/programs/na ... aqs.htm#Q1


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PostPosted: Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:21 am 
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Going into some detail on how it works is kinda the important part, given you can only get the permit by mailing in your application and check.

I only found this out researching trails the Tuesday before we left. There is no option to buy the permit there, even if you could find an office that is open. I called the State Land trust office and the guy assured me they could email me the permit if they got my app by Friday. I never received the email, so I called them and they said they would fax it right away, but never did. It was in my mailbox on Monday when we got home, which was awful nice of them except that our trip was already over!

While their response time by mail is good for a gov't agency you do need to deal with this a couple weeks ahead of time if you go. We just rode anyways and risked a ticket. Supposedly enforcement isn't strict but it is a real ticket (trespassing) if you get one, not like the joke tickets for not displaying an adventure pass. This is mostly a problem for visitors since there is little to warn you about this permit requirement until you actually hit the trail and see their signs.


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PostPosted: Mon Jun 06, 2011 4:12 pm 
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Hey all.... glad you liked Fantasy Island, which is my neighborhood ride and perfect for single-speeding. I'll be happy to show you around anytime!

The loops that have been added since that old sign was put up puts the total mileage at about 26 total... which is impressive for it's relatively small size. We're having a bit of a problem of folks going out and cutting new trails without authorization, but that is starting to happen all over Tucson, too. And the new builders aren't keeping to FI's previous "one way" mantra, so it can get confusing a bit with the new loops. The new trails may be fun, but they could risk getting the whole place closed if they're not careful.

FI has also always been threatened by the ever-encroaching sea of houses. In fact, it was slated to be bulldozed a few years ago, but (kinda?) thankfully the housing crash saved it. It is "safe" for now, but only until someone with enough $$ and the want to start building homes comes back in. The local riders will certainly speak up if that ever is threatened again, but we all know what is louder... $$.


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PostPosted: Mon Jun 06, 2011 5:22 pm 
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Hey azcycle where do we park when riding fantasy island.

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PostPosted: Mon Jun 06, 2011 6:42 pm 
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tfitz wrote:
Hey azcycle where do we park when riding fantasy island.


Easy peasy. The main (North) trailhead is at the T intersection of Irvington and Harrison. Huge paved and dirt parking lot... you can't miss it. The Bunny Trail entrance (South) is kinda easy to miss but it's on Valencia.

You can see google maps of both locations on our website:

http://www.sdmb.org/trails/fantasy-island/

Enjoy! Lemme know... I'll give ya a tour. :bang:


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