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2.0 miles
Distance
94 ft
Climb
-497 ft
Descent
00:13:50
Avg time
-403 ft
Altitude change
9,867 ft
Altitude min
10,288 ft
Altitude max
10,270 ft
Altitude start
9,869 ft
Altitude end
-3.8%
Grade
-32.2%
Grade max
11.6%
Grade min
1,949 ft
Distance climb
1 mile
Distance down
1,047 ft
Distance flat
00:13:50
Avg time
Ellis Details
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Activities
- Mountain Bike
- Horse
- Hike
- Trail Running
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Riding AreaSandia Mountain East Side Trails
Albuquerque, New Mexico -
Ref Number#202
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Difficulty Rating
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Voted DifficultyBlack Diamond (1 vote)
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Local Popularity60 in Mountain Biking [+]
- 80 in Trail Running
- 95 in Hiking
- 5 in Horseback
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Global Ranking
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Hiking SAC ScaleT2 Mountain Hiking
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Trail TypeSingletrack
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Bike TypeAM, XC
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DirectionBoth Directions
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Climb DifficultyBlack Diamond
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Physical RatingHard
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SeasonApril-October
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Dogs AllowedYes
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eBike Allowed
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Land OwnerUSFS - Sandia Ranger District
Access to the Ellis Trail is at the Ellis Trailhead Parking Lot located off the Sandia Crest Rd. Parking requires a pass available for $5 on site. Cross the highway to start.
The 2 mile Ellis Trail follows a wide 200 ft road cut that was stripped of trees in the late 1960's in an ill-conceived plan to construct a highway called Skyline Drive intended to go from Sandia Crest to Placitas. The project was eventually stopped. The road cut has become a lovely meadow, filled with flowers in the spring and glowing aspen trees in the fall. Ellis Trail is used by cross-country skiers, hikers, equestrians, runners and mountain bikers. It offers solitude and glorious views. It is named after George Ellis, who lived in the Sandia Mountains from the 1880's until his death in 1912. The pre-existing trail followed the old road cut with steep, rocky up and down sections Many of the sections were badly eroded and in need of re-routing for sustainability. In the summer of 2024 extensive improvements were made in the form of reroutes. These reroutes bypassed previous rocky steep areas. The new re-routes meander in and out of dense forest at a more gentle grade with more sustainable tread making this a truly amazing user experience as well as made it more MTB friendly, although still considered a black. In my opinion it is best ridden as an out-and-back, but can also be ridden as a loop with the 10K North trail. The loop option is more technical and rocky, requiring frequent dismounts.
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
Local Trail Association
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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
- 0 rides
6 Months
- 1 rides
- 22.9 km avg distance
All
- 31 rides
- Last: Jan 17, 2023
| c1 | c2 | c3 | c4 |
|---|---|---|---|
January | February | March | April |
May | June | July | August |
September | October | November | December |
Ellis Trail Reports
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- Snow Packed
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- Snow Cover Partial
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- Icy
- Prevalent Mud
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Directions to ellis trailhead
(35.209430, -106.441420)
Photos
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Routes with this trail
★ 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...
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Nearby Trails
- Klaus Trail 745 ft
- Challenge 764 ft
- Rocky Point 764 ft
- Switchback Trail 1,588 ft
- South Crest 1,965 ft
Sandia Mountain East Side Trails
- By aldousfilcher
& contributors - #75282 - 2,399 views
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Frequently Asked Questions About Ellis
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Where is Ellis located?
Ellis is located in Sandia Mountain East Side Trails, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Sandia Mountain East Side Trails trail network. The trailhead is located at coordinates 35.20943, -106.44142.
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How hard is Ellis?
Ellis is rated as Black Diamond difficulty. The physical rating is Hard. The average grade is 3.8%. The climb difficulty is rated Black Diamond.
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What is the elevation gain for Ellis?
Ellis has 94 ft of elevation gain. The trail has 497 ft of elevation descent. The elevation ranges from 9,867 ft to 10,288 ft.
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Is Ellis a point to point trail?
Ellis is not a point to point trail. The direction is Both Directions. The trail type is singletrack.
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