Open in App
Get this trail on your phone instantly.
more stats
2.0 miles
Distance
170 ft
Climb
-608 ft
Descent
00:19:57
Avg time
-439 ft
Altitude change
9,420 ft
Altitude min
9,935 ft
Altitude max
9,878 ft
Altitude start
9,439 ft
Altitude end
-4.2%
Grade
-44.6%
Grade max
21%
Grade min
3,068 ft
Distance climb
1 mile
Distance down
692 ft
Distance flat
00:19:57
Avg time
10K South Details
-
Activities
- Mountain Bike
- Horse
- Hike
- Trail Running
- Snowshoe
- Backcountry Ski
-
Riding AreaSandia Mountains - Upper East Side
Albuquerque, New Mexico -
Ref Number#200
-
Difficulty Rating
-
Voted DifficultyBlack Diamond (1 vote)
-
Local Popularity50 in Mountain Biking [+]
- 60 in Trail Running
- 80 in Hiking
- 5 in Horseback
- 5 in Snowshoeing
- 5 in Backcountry Skiing
-
Global Ranking
-
Trail TypeSingletrack
-
DirectionBoth DirectionsPopular Direction Shown
-
Climb DifficultyBlack Diamond
-
Physical RatingHard
-
SeasonApril-October
-
Dogs AllowedYes
-
eBike Allowed
-
Land OwnerUSFS - Sandia Ranger District
10K Trail is one continuous bi-directional, multi-use trail that is split by its crossing of the Sandia Crest Road. True to its name, the 10K trail roughly tracks the 10,000’ elevation mark as it traverses from north to south. The southern portion of 10K is less heavily trafficked by hikers than the northern portion. It is a challenging trail, with several steep, rooty, rocky climbs and descents, but is less difficult than the northern portion. 10K South trends mostly downhill (heading north to south) until it reaches the intersection with the Wilderness boundary and the very difficult Tree Spring Trail. Be aware that 10K South also intersects the KOM and Golden Eagle trails on the the Sandia Ski Area property, though the intersections are marked.
Access Info
Multiple Trailheads, all official parking areas are paid ($3) but there are several pullouts along the road where one can avoid paying.
Trail Supporters
- Maintainer
Local Trail Association
-
-
Please consider joining or donating to the local trail association to supportDonate to earn trail karma!
trail development & maintenance.
Traditionally Indigenous Territory
Recent Activity on Trail
Past Week
- 1 rides
- 8 miles average
6 Months
- 5 rides
- 13 miles avg distance
All
- 63 rides
- Last: Jul 5, 2026
| c1 | c2 | c3 | c4 |
|---|---|---|---|
January | February | March | April |
May | June | July | August |
September | October | November | December |
10K South Trail Reports
more »
close
-
Layers w
- Weather Layers
- Pro
- Pro
- Pro
- Pro
- Pro
- Pro
- More Layers
- Pro
- Pro
- Pro
- Pro
-
Upgrade to
3D
Trail Conditions
- Unknown
- Snow Groomed
- Snow Packed
- Snow Covered
- Snow Cover Partial
- Freeze/thaw Cycle
- Icy
- Prevalent Mud
- Wet
- Variable
- Ideal
- Dry
- Very Dry
Trail Flow (Ridden Direction)
Trailforks scans users ridelogs to determine the most popular direction each trail is ridden. A good flowing trail network will have most trails flowing in a single direction according to their intension.
The colour categories are based on what percentage of riders are riding a trail in its intended direction.
The colour categories are based on what percentage of riders are riding a trail in its intended direction.
- > 96%
- > 90%
- > 80%
- > 70%
- > 50%
- < 50%
- bi-directional trail
- no data
Trail Last Ridden
Trailforks scans ridelogs to determine the last time a trail was ridden.
- < 2 days
- < 1 week
- < 2 weeks
- < 1 month
- < 6 months
- > 6 months
Trail Ridden Direction
The intended direction a trail should be ridden.
- Downhill Only
- Downhill Primary
- Both Directions
- Uphill Primary
- Uphill Only
- One Direction
Contribute Details
Colors indicate trail is missing specified detail.
- Description
- Photos
- Description & Photos
- Videos
Trail Popularity ?
Trailforks scans ridelogs to determine which trails are ridden the most in the last 9 months.
Trails are compared with nearby trails in the same city region with a possible 25 colour shades.
Think of this as a heatmap, more rides = more kinetic energy = warmer colors.
- most popular
- popular
- less popular
- not popular
ATV/ORV/OHV Filter
Max Vehicle Width
inches
US Cell Coverage
Legend
Radar Time
Activity Recordings
Trailforks uses anonymized public activity data.
?
Activity Recordings
Trailforks uses anonymized public activity data.
?
Personal Heatmap
▶
Activity Types
all
/
none
▶
Options
2
Date range
month
–
Winter Trails
Warning
A routing network for winter maps does not exist. Selecting trails using the winter trails layer has been disabled.
Missing Trails
Most Popular
Least Popular
Trails are colored based on popularity. The more popular a trail is, the more red. Less popular trails trend towards green.
Jump Magnitude Heatmap
Heatmap of where riders jump on trails. Zoom in to see individual jumps, click circles to view jump details.
BC Backroad Status
![map legend]()
Service Road Atlas is a free to use, community-driven service for viewing and creating reports on the numerous back-country service roads around B.C. and Alberta.
Slope Aspect
Direction the slope faces
Trails Deemphasized
Trails are shown in grey.
Only show trails with no bike usage.
Suggested Layers
Based on selected activity type
Save the current map location and zoom level as your default home location whenever this page is loaded.
Save
Directions to 10k-south trailhead
(35.205980, -106.432150)
Photos
3 more »
Videos
1 more »
25:27 |
89 |
Feb 2, 2025 , Albuquerque
Routes with this trail
★ 4.0 • 27 miles • 4,829 ft • 33 • Loop •
This is a pretty techy and difficult ride that gets all of the best stuff in the Sandia East Side trail...
★ 4.0 • 30 miles • 5,614 ft • 33 • Loop •
Very difficult route that gets the entirety of the Faulty trail (minus to at the very beginning.) You need...
★ 5.0 • 22 miles • 3,710 ft • 33 • Loop •
This is a real fun route that gets all of the best stuff in the Sandia Ski Area system. This route...
We hope you've been enjoying Trailforks!
Create a FREE account to view trail comments and much more.
Nearby Trails
- Double Eagle 1,640 ft
- Short Connector From 10k Parking To Challenge And 10k South 2,671 ft
- 10k North 2,943 ft
- Kiwanis Cabin Trail 4,180 ft
- Klaus Trail 4,291 ft
Sandia Mountains - Upper East Side
- By aldousfilcher
& contributors - #75199 - 3,326 views
- Follow/Subscribe
- login to download gpx or kml files.
Frequently Asked Questions About 10K South
▼
Where is 10K South located?
10K South is located in Sandia Mountains - Upper East Side, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Sandia Mountains - Upper East Side trail network. The trailhead is located at coordinates 35.20598, -106.43215.
▼
How hard is 10K South?
10K South is rated as Black Diamond difficulty. The physical rating is Hard. The average grade is 4.2%. The climb difficulty is rated Black Diamond.
▼
What is the elevation gain for 10K South?
10K South has 170 ft of elevation gain. The trail has 608 ft of elevation descent. The elevation ranges from 9,420 ft to 9,935 ft.
▼
Is 10K South a point to point trail?
10K South is not a point to point trail. The direction is Both Directions. The trail type is singletrack.
Hit the Trail
Download Trail
Save to wishlist, Garmin & download.
Find Related Routes
Find routes and users activities that include this trail.
You must enter a description before submitting.