Cove Wash Trail  - Cottonwood Wash Viewpoint, connections to Stucki Spring
Cove Wash is an ATV route to a viewpoint over Cottonwood Wash. The route here is 10 miles, but you can add a lot of miles by riding directly from St.George or by doing a loop with the ATV trails in (and on the ridgeline between) the two forks of the wash. The trail is entirely dirt road or ATV doubletrack. For the classic ride, you'll spend 3 miles in the wash bottom, then climb up to a viewpoint for 8 miles out-and-back. The grade is steady, and there's nothing technical here. Total climbing is only 600 vertical feet. It makes a good training ride.
Riding notes, Cove Wash Loop:
0.0  Out of parking fence, south on DT
N37 07.244 W113 40.479
0.1  Veer R and drop into wash
0.2  Keep R and uphill
N37 07.212 W113 40.651
1.6  Stay in bottom of wash (ignore DT)
2.6  Fork L as wash splits (option, R for big loop)
N37 06.494 W113 42.253
3.6  Take DT forking L out of wash
N37 06.181 W113 43.007
(option, continue 1.5 miles up wash,
return loop via ridgeline or washbottom)
3.8  Hard L through wash (option, straight)
N37 06.107 W113 43.162
4.1  At viewpoint
N37 05.919 W113 43.263
For out-and-back, retrace route
For loop, L on DT
4.7  Fork R (southwest)
N37 05.840 W113 42.703
4.9  Keep straight
N37 05.667 W113 42.566
5.2  Turn L (northeast)
N37 05.522 W113 42.416
5.9  Enter wash, continue downhill
N37 05.761 W113 41.747
7.3  Pass Stucki Spring
N37 05.981 W113 40.626
(keep heading northwest)
8.8  Through Cove Wash
(option, descend wash)
9.0  Fork L on DT
N37 07.119 W113 39.808
9.7  L toward TH
10   Back at parking
Getting there: In St. George, head north on Bluff Street and turn left on Sunset Blvd. Drive 3 miles west on Sunset through Santa Clara. As you're reaching the end of Santa Clara, look for a road crossing the river on your left. It's about 200 feet before the Jacob Hamblin Home (which will be on your right if you pass the turn). Turn and cross the river and follow the road as it turns right. About 0.4 miles from Hwy 191, turn left onto the dirt Stucki Springs road. At mile 0.7, turn right at the sign "Santa Clara Preserve" or "Cove Wash Trailhead." Pass the water tank, and at mile 1.3, turn right again through the fence. This road will veer left, then arrive at a log fenced parking area at mile 1.5, N37 07.253 W113 40.508.
Dirt route from Green Valley, 5 miles
(plus city streets) each way: Up DH section of GV racecourse (1.8 miles). Step across the fence and go down into the dip facing northwest. Drop down very-steep DT into the next valley, proceed  west then northwest (1.3 miles). R on Stucki Springs Rd, go another 1.8 miles then left at fork (don't descend into big wash). Pass DT going up to fence on your L about 0.1 mile later, then keep R at the next fork 100 yards later, then L at next fork. Drop into wash and start head uphill in the wash.

Copyright 2009 Mad Scientist Software Inc. Trail conditions change. Use this trail guide at your own risk.