Many people like loop rides because you can do the ride and end up where you came from rather than having to back track or do a 2 car shuttle. This way you don't have to go over the same trail that you already rode. There is a pretty nice loop trail in Calabasas in the Las Virgenes Canyon area that covers a few different trails including Sheep Corral Trail, Las Virgenes Canyon Fire Road, Bell Canyon Fire Road and Cheeseboro Canyon Trail. For the most part it's an up and down fire road ride with the up part on the way there and the down part on the way back if you do it in the right direction. The fun part of the ride is when you get to the Sheep Corral Trail which connects the two sections of fire road with some semi downhill rocky singletrack.

Sheep Corral Trail, Filmed and Rated by Jim Bernstein Review Date: 4/3/2013 Trail Ratings  Fun Factor:  Technical:

Even though this part of the trails is only about 1.5 miles long it's by far the best part of the ride if you are looking for something more challenging than fire road riding. The Sheep Corral Trail section almost gives it a 3 star rating for technical but it's not that steep so you can ride slowly over it if you are intimidated by rocky terrain. Once you make it through the Sheep Corral Trail then its back to the fire road for a gradual downhill ride to complete the loop. The loop should be done in a clockwise direction for the biggest fun factor. Check out the map for details.

Sheep Corral Trail Video

Sheep Corral Trail Review

This loop is a pretty nice ride and offers some nice scenery at least when everything is still green. The fire road portion is pretty much uphill until you get to the Sheep Corral Trail but it will have a couple of downhill runs so you can get some relief. It's not too steep going up so most people should be able to keep a decent pace and not have to walk their bikes.

Once you get to Sheep Corral Trail and make that right turn is where the fun begins. It starts out as fairly smooth singletrack and then there are a couple of real fun technical rocky sections that you can fly over or take your time riding down. You will also hit some rutty sections as well which can be a challenge if you are riding on the fast side. Once you make it through the rocky section it will smooth out again and turn into some winding singletrack. After that you will hit the fire road again which is a gradual downhill so it doesn't take any effort to make it back to the car.

The total loop is about 9 miles and will take you around 2 hours to finish at the most depending on your pace and how often you stop. We recommend you give it a shot since it's not too hard of the ride, the views are nice and the rocky sections are fun. It will most likely be a hotter ride during the summer thanks to its location and may get a little crowded with hikers at least at the parts of the trail closer to where you park.

Sheep Corral Trail Pictures

Directions to Sheep Corral Trail \ Las Virgenes Canyon

To get to the starting point of this loop you need to make your way to the 101 freeway towards Calabasas and exit Las Virgenes Rd. and head east away from the beach. Take Las Virgenes Rd. all the way to where it ends and find somewhere to park which may be tricky when the weather is nice. The trailhead is right there at the end of the road. Then follow the trail up a little ways and turn left where it makes you go left or right. You may want to look over the map or print it out before doing it the first time to make sure you turn at the right places.

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