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Rubicon Ridge D1 - Hot Springs ORV Park
Hot Springs,
Arkansas
(Garland County)
Last Updated:
08/01/2023
Trail Information
Highlights
Forest
Iconic
ORV Park
Rock
ScenicRubicon Ridge is one of four trails at Hot Springs ORV Park where you can earn a Jeep Badge of Honor. For avid off-road enthusiasts, it is on the "must do" list, as the trail consists of a myriad of challenges depending on the weather and trail conditions. You get everything from steep downhill and uphill grades, loose gravel, slick clay/dirt, larger rocks, off-camber sections, and beautiful scenery all combined on a two mile trek you won't soon forget.
Trail Difficulty and Assessment
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Shawn Ayres
Official Crew
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Trail Navigation
Rubicon Ridge is a mix of gravel, dirt, clay, large cobble, and small to medium boulders. The terrain varies, consisting of downhill cobble, downhill clay/dirt mix, up and down sections with loose gravel, and off camber situations in washed out sharp stone. The trail is 2 miles of elevation change, dropping 320 feet into a valley in the first 0.37 miles of the trail. The next mile of the trail has uphill and downhill sections that are fairly consistent in elevation. From the 1.4 mile mark to the end of the trail, it ascends 336 feet to end up back on Main Road 5. Higher clearance than stock is recommended, especially in the first steep downhill section, which is littered with larger cobble and small boulders and has about a 20-30% downhill grade.
Trail Reviews
Open
Rated
5/5
Visited: 01/27/2022
Difficulty Accuracy:
Easier
Badge Hunting !!!!!
Overall, I would rate the trail at a 3 as there was nothing hard on it. The worst spots were all optional. The hardest required was the long hill climb on the east side but that wasn't hard by any means. Just really long. We took a stock JL with us, it was able to do it. It was wet making a few things a little harder but still no problem.
Open
Rated
5/5
Visited: 11/10/2021
Difficulty Accuracy:
Spot On
In my opinion, this is the best overall trail at Hot Springs ORV. Great view to start the trail for lunch or photos and then you begin the descent. Can be a bit intimidating if you don't have a lot of experience. Just take your time and expect to scrape. Off camber spots can be tight in a couple of locations but an easy pass. Mike's trail is a bit tricky on the first turn but a challenge on par with the first descent.
Definitely a must trail for those that visit this park.
Open
Rated
5/5
Visited: 09/05/2020
This was my first time wheeling in Arkansas. The Hot Springs ORV Park is a delight. Once in the park, the trailheads are well marked. Rubicon Ridge was a particular trail that I wanted to get in for the Badge of Honor program. Any excellent choice. I do recommend, however, that you should visit the park on a weekend other than Labor Day weekend. There were many large groups there to enjoy the park. As a result, there was a lot of stopping and waiting on the trail.
The first segment of the trail was the most difficult heading downhill in a particularly rocky area. Stock vehicles will scrap along this section. The middle of the trail was much more tame.
Open
Rated
5/5
Visited: 01/25/2020
Rubicon Ridge drops off the mountain, pretty steep downhill but once to the bottom the trail winds through the mountain on the edge of the park. Definitely a fun trail. When wet some of the climbs will be a bit more difficult but not impassable. Views from both end of the trails are great. Hot Springs ORV is a great weekend park for the weekend.
Open
Rated
5/5
Visited: 06/22/2019
We ran this one once again. I think I should have at least a few dozen Jeep "Badge of Honor" badges as many times as I have run it. It wasn't too dusty today, and we even took the Michael's Way split and made it through.
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