Quick Tips for Riding in Bentonville
Bentonville has quickly become a must-ride destination for mountain bikers, and word is spreading fast. I first visited in 2020, and since then, I’ve been returning annually—sometimes even twice a year! Bentonville is without a doubt one of the best places I’ve ridden in the U.S., and its reputation is growing worldwide.
Say what you will about Walmart, but the Walton Family Foundation’s investment in the region’s trails and community development is nothing short of amazing. This once-sleepy corner of middle America has transformed into a veritable Disneyland for mountain bikers.
And if you’re thinking “It’s too polished for me,” think again. While Bentonville offers plenty of machine-built flow trails, jump lines, and bike park features, there’s also a ton of rugged, hand-cut trails with plenty of rocks and roots for those who love classic, technical terrain.
The best part? The growth isn’t slowing down. Rumor has it that the region plans to add 1,200 miles of singletrack between Bentonville and Little Rock over the next decade—pretty exciting stuff for mountain biking enthusiasts.
If you’re planning a trip to Bentonville, Arkansas, I put together this guide that has everything you need to make the most of your visit, from the top trails to ride, route recommendations, where to eat, and more!

5-Day Bentonville Mountain Biking Itinerary
Looking for the best trails and route recommendations for mountain biking in Bentonville? Download my 5-day itinerary packed with tips, links, and local secrets including the best trails to ride and route recommendations. Grab it now and start planning your trip to the Mountain Bike Capital of the World!
Bentonville Mountain Biking Map
This map shows all the main mountain biking trail networks around Northwest Arkansas. If you’re looking for even more riding, check out my post on the best mountain biking in Arkansas.

Start at Slaughter Pen
The Slaughter Pen Trails are probably the most famous Bentonville mountain biking trails and a good place to start. They’re located basically in town – you can literally catch singletrack trails from downtown Bentonville. It’s amazing!
There is everything here and to be honest, it can be a bit overwhelming if it’s your first time visiting. There are machine-built flow trails, hand-cut old school trails, a skills park with jumps and drops, a CASTLE, cross-country riding, and even big stuff I will never hit (hello Boneyard).
I think most visitors get into the trap of only riding the Slaughter Pen trails when they visit Bentonville, and while they are awesome, don’t fall into that trap. It’s worth checking out the other networks I’ve listed as well. I’d say 2 days at Slaughter Pen is good (obviously more if you have the time).

Tips for riding at Slaughter Pen:

Head to Blowing Springs & The Alice in Wonderland Trails
Making your way closer to Bentonville, the Blowing Springs and Alice in Wonderland Trails bridge the gap between Little Sugar and the Back 40 in Bella Vista (see below) and the Slaughter Pen trails near downtown Bentonville.
These trails are some of my favorites. It’s not a huge area, but what’s packed in there is pretty darn fun, especially if you like old-school tech (Boom Diggity) and new-school flow (Ace of Spades).
It might be easy to overlook these trails when putting together your Bentonville mountain biking trip, but I highly recommend doing at least 1 ride here!

Tips for riding at Blowing Springs & Alice in Wonderland:

Get your XC on at Little Sugar
Little Sugar (and The Back 40 – see below) are the rolling cross-country areas of Bentonville, although there are a few pockets of some fun tech if you know where to look. Little Sugar is northwest of downtown in the residential community of Bella Vista.
There is one 25+ mile loop around Little Sugar called Tunnel Vision. It rolls in and out of neighborhoods on mellow terrain with lots of well-built climbs and long, fast descents. I’ve done the full loop twice and it’s actually pretty fun and worth doing if you have 25+ miles in your legs. If you’re not up for a big-mile day, there are plenty of options for shorter rides at Little Sugar (see route recommendations below).
Little Sugar is also home to the Huntley Gravity Zone. This cluster of trails is located almost smack dab in the middle of Little Sugar and has a few machine-built flow and jump lines. Air-Raid is the most popular and a great trail to build confidence on jumps and drops. (Note: the Huntley Gravity Zone isn’t on the big Little Sugar Loop. You’ll need to take the trail Uphill Both Ways to access it).
Lastly, the last time I rode Little Sugar, I discovered a little pocket of trails on the north end that were a ton of fun. This is where Staggerwing, Sister Rosetta, and Immortal Amanda are. Don’t miss them!

Tips for riding at Little Sugar:
🚴♀️ Check out Little Sugar on TrailForks 🚴♀️


5-Day Bentonville Mountain Biking Itinerary
Don’t forget to download my Bentonville Mountain Biking Itinerary to make the most of your time there! It’s packed with route recommendations, best trails to hit, and more.
Loose the Crowds at Back 40
The Back 40 trail network is similar to Little Sugar in that it’s mainly cross-country and has one long 22+ mile loop – the Back 40 Loop. There are also plenty of ways to put together shorter (and arguably more interesting) rides with the crisscrossing of trails throughout the trail network.
The Back 40 is also located up in Bella Vista but on the right side of the community. It’s home to one of my favorite mountain bike trails in Bentonville – The Ledges – which follows a band of rock with some exposure and a few tricky rock gardens.
Tunnel Vision or the Back 40? If you want to do one long cross-country ride, I like the Tunnel Vision loop a little more than the Back 40 loop. I also think the Back 40 has better options for shorter and more interesting rides than Little Sugar.

Tips for riding the Back 40:
🚴♀️ Check out the Back 40 on TrailForks 🚴♀️

Turn up the fun at Coler Preserve
If you only have time to visit one mountain bike network in Bentonville, make it Coler Mountain Bike Preserve. This place is awesome! There’s a ton to explore here and there’s a great variety of trails, features, and terrain.
Most of the downhill trails start at The Hub on the north side. This alien-looking structure is an elevated launchpad with ramps dropping down into different trails. Fire Line is a must! Cease & Desist and the famous Drop The Hammer start from here as well.
On the south side of Coler, Thunder Dome and Family Flow are two fast and flowy machine-built trails that are worth lapping a couple of times.
In between the north side and south side are a mix of cross-country trails ranging from beginner-friendly to the expert-only Here’s Johnny.
Need a snack? Be sure to hit up Airship Coffee, which is located in the middle of the Coler Preserve trails and can only be accessed by foot or bike. You can also book a site at the Coler Campground if you want to shred sunup to sundown.

Tips for riding Coler Preserve:
🚴♀️ Check out Coler Preserve on TrailForks 🚴♀️

Find old school tech at Handcut Hollow
Handcut Hollow is one of the newer trail networks in Bentonville. As you’d suspect from its name, there are a lot of natural trails here, BUT it’s not all handcut. The Hub does access a few machine-built lines like my favorite – Interplanet Janet (so fun!) – and some impressive rock work trails like The Body Machine. Mother Necessity is the climb trail up to the hub.
If you are looking for old-school hand-cut, though, you’ll love Traverse Loop. It’s a good mix of cross-country and tech. When I rode it, I had the trail mostly to myself. This area is less popular than other Bentonville mountain biking networks.
Handcut Hollow is also home to the infamous Zone 4 trail. The brief for the trail builders was to build the hardest climb they could! As of this post, no rider – even the pros who’ve tried it – has been able to ride the whole thing in one smooth shot.
Tips for riding Handcut Hollow:
🚴♀️ Check out Handcut Hollow on TrailForks 🚴♀️

Trail Networks Farther Afield
The six trail networks listed above make up the riding closest to Bentonville. However, there is great riding all around Northwest Arkansas! Here are a few other trail networks to check out if you have the time:

Watch BKXC ride some of the trails in Bentonville
Planning Your Bentonville Mountain Bike Adventure
☀️ When to go: Bentonville can technically be ridden all year long, but the summer months can be very hot and humid and winters can be cold, rainy, and snowy. It’s best to visit during the shoulder seasons of March-May and September-November when the temps are perfect and the rain and humidity are minimal. Bentonville also hosts several mountain bike events if you want your trip to coincide with a shindig. Bentonville Bike Fest happens in May and OuterBike comes to town in October.
🗓️ Number of days to spend here: A month? A year? Honestly, the more time the better! There’s so much riding in Northwest Arkansas you could spend weeks here and not do everything. I recommend at least 5 days to explore the highlights.
🚲 What bike to bring: There’s nothing too techy or hardcore in Bentonville, so I recommend a short or mid-travel full suspension mountain bike (120-150 mm rear travel).
⚡️ e-bikes: They are alive and thriving. Bentonville is one of the most e-bike friendly places to mountain bike in the US.
🚗 Getting around: A car is helpful, but not absolutely necessary. If you’re going to stay close to town (Slaughter Pen and Coler), then you can get away without a car. But if you want to explore the Bella Vista trails and other networks in NWA then a car is necessary. Alternatively, Shuttle Hound is a shuttle service in Bentonville that provides transportation to and from trailheads.
🏠 Bike shops & rentals: There are a lot of great bike shops in Bentonville. I’m partial to Mojo Cycling and Phat Tire Bike shops.
🚴 Mountain bike tours: There are actually quite a few businesses in Bentonville that offer trail tours and lessons:
\⛺️ Camping: Surprisingly, there’s not a ton of camping in and around Bentonville. Coler Preserve has a handful of sites that book up fast and Blowing Springs campground is an option, but personally I don’t like it (too crowded with very little privacy). The Bike In Bentonville has a few van camping sites and Bentonville Bike Camp a newer option that gets good reviews. (Use this link to get $10!)
🏨 Hotels: There are a ton of places to stay in Bentonville. Check out my guide on mountain-biker-friendly accommodations and the Bentonville Bike Inn.
🧳 Bentonville-specific packing list: For a complete packing list, head over to my Mountain Bike Trip Packing List post. Here are a few recommendations specific to Bentonville mountain biking:
- Salt Stick Tabs: If you’re visiting in the summer, be prepared to sweat a lot. I swear by these Salt Stick tabs, which are basically a compact shot of electrolytes.
- Photochromatic lenses: The trails in Bentonville weave in and out of the woods and I’m always so glad I invested in photochromatic lenses whenever I ride there. These Smith Shift Mag shades are light sensitive and go from clear to dark depending on the conditions. I love them! (Make sure you get the photochromatic ones).
- A bell: The trails in Bentonville can be busy with other riders, trail runners, and hikers. It’s helpful to have a bike bell so you can pass people without scaring the bejesus out of them.
Read next
Planning a mountain bike trip to Arkansas? Check out these posts for inspiration and details:
Have you been to Bentonville to ride? Does it live up to the hype? What questions do you still have about Bentonville mountain biking? Leave a comment below!
Planning your trip? Download my 5-day Bentonville Mountain Biking Itinerary!
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you had bike shop recommendations, on this page. I bookmarked it for a upcoming trip and now there are no local bike shops listed….. bummer
Hi Dane – I moved the bike shops to my 5-Day Bentonville Itinerary, which also includes the Google maps locations for them (and a lot more!). I’m trying to move away from ads as much as possible while still keeping most of my content free. I hope you understand and have a great trip to Bentonville!
What’s the lay of the land when it comes to e-bikes? Wanting to get a Sur Ron X soon and am not sure how welcome it would be in Bentonville.
Bentonville is very pro e-bikes. You’ll see a lot of them there 🙂
I’m from Wisconsin and get winters off from work. I would like to get some off-road action late Feb or March. How is the riding in Bentonville that time of year?
Bentonville does get snow, but it doesn’t usually last more than a day or two. Temps are typically in the 50’s.
Hi! What is there to do when you are NOT riding? Thanks, this guide is great!
There’s a ton of fun stuff to do around Bentonville! The Crystal Museum is really cool (and I’m not a museum person). If you have kids, the Amazeum is supposed to be awesome. There are also a lot of really cool hikes, parks, and outdoor off-bike things to do within a short drive. And there are some great restaurants and bars and a cute downtown to walk around.
Do you recommend renting a car? Or most of the trails are accessible directly from Bentonville with 10-20 minutes bike ride?
A car is not absolutely necessary since all of the trail networks are connected by bike paths. However, you may need to add quite a few miles to your ride depending on where you’re staying (I’d say 10-30 minutes one-way). I just did a quick search for mountain bike shuttles in Bentonville and it looks like Shuttle Hound has some good options if you don’t want to rent a car. If you’re not staying in or close to downtown Bentonville, though, I’d recommend renting a car. Have fun!
Becky-glad you had a good time in our little paradise. Next time don’t forget to check out Pedalers Pub. Very best pizza, staff and beer selection.
Thanks for the recommendation! I’ll definitely check it out next time I’m in Bentonville 🙂
So glad I came across your post as we will be making our first biking trip to Bentonville. Your tips on what to do, where to go and where to stay were very helpful. Thank you!
So glad you found it helpful! Have an amazing time in Bentonville 🙂
Nice guide. I appreciate the tips. This will definitely help me decide on where to bike this summer on a cross-country road trip. I have 1 day/night in Arkansas and I was struggling on which city to camp and hit some easy to intermediate level trails. My main objective is scenery without being too technical.
Thanks for reading Charles and glad these posts are helpful. Bentonville is awesome and definitely worth a stop. There’s also a lot more mountain biking around Arkansas that I haven’t ridden (yet). Hobbs State Park is supposed to be amazing as are Pinnacle and Mount Nebo State Parks. Hoping to hit those this fall. Check out the Monument Trails page