Quarry Trail - This easy, short trail extends from the St. George airport to a basalt quarry site on Black Hill, where rock was quarried for the Mormon temple foundation. Trivial climbing, easy technical. Season year-round.
The official Temple Quarry Trail runs from the St. George airport to the western side of Black Hill. At the spot where the pioneers quarried volcanic basalt for the foundation and basement of the temple, it turns around for a nice, easy 2.5 mile ride with almost no elevation change and no technical stuff. Then, if you're crazy enough, there's the 2-mile add-on of trials-level technical, heading to the north end of the mesa.
The official trail is a nice easy ride for beginners. It even makes a nice hike with the kiddies, if you can't put wheels under them. At the end of the trail, you can still see the drill-marks where the pioneers split rock. The trail is the original wagon-track built to haul out the rock. Each slab was 10 feet long, 42 inches wide, and 13 inches high, weighing 5500 pounds.
Getting there: From the St. George Avenue Exit, drive straight west. When you hit Bluff Street, go across to climb Airport Road up Black Hill. At the first intersection, turn right, then left, then right into a gravel parking area. The airport is just beginning, across the road from the trailhead. The trailhead is at the northern end of the parking area, GPS N 37° 06.180' W 113° 35.770'.
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