4.6 miles
Distance
727 ft
Climb
-723 ft
Descent
4,123 ft
High Point
4 ft
Altitude change
3,552 ft
Altitude min
3,552 ft
Altitude start
3,556 ft
Altitude end
-30.9%
Grade max
47.1%
Grade min
2 miles
Distance climb
2 miles
Distance down
4,587 ft
Distance flat

Starting from Parking Lot 3 at the Jasper Activity Centre this route starts with a leg burning steep but non technical ascent up Trail 11 - Town Trail to the junction with Trail 8, where the pitch mellows out a little. The climb will all be worth it when you get to the apex at Mina Lake (the second beautiful lake you see on this loop) Enjoy the view and take a breather before continuing on. Trail 8 past Mina has several ups and downs with some moderately technical descents. Turn right at the junction with Trail 8c and after a short climb it is downhill all the way back to the parking lot.

To make this ride a bit longer consider adding the Cottonwood Slough Loop after descending 8c, or return to town via Trail 2a.

To make this ride a bit easier, ascend Trail 2 and traverse on Trail 8e - Cabin Lake Fire Road to connect with Trail 8 to make the climb to the lakes

Detailed Description
Mina - 8C Loop is a 5 mile popular intermediate route located near Jasper Alberta. This mountain bike only route can be used both directions and has a hard overall physical rating. This route includes 3 trails. This route climbs 727 ft with a max elevation of 4,123 ft then descends -723 ft.
Local Trail Association
Local trail association
Jasper Park Cycling Association (jasperparkcycling.com)
Please consider joining or donating to the local riding association to support trail development & maintenance.
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Stats

  • Distance
    5 miles
  • Avg time
    2 hr 37 min
  • Altitude min
    3,552 ft
  • Altitude start
    3,552 ft
  • Altitude end
    3,556 ft
  • Climb
    727 ft
  • Descent
    -723 ft
  • Grade max
    -30.9%
  • Grade min
    47.1%
  • Distance climb
    2 miles
  • Distance down
    2 miles
  • Distance flat
    4,587 ft

2 Reviews & Comments


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Trails in Route

Details

  • Riding area
  • Primary Activity
    Mountain Bike
  • Difficulty rating
    Blue
  • Route Type
    Loop
  • Bike type
    AM, XC
  • Direction
    Both Directions
  • Physical rating
    Hard
  • Ridelogs
    3

Directions

  1. Walk northwest on Trail 2 (Church trail).
  2. Continue for 50 meters.
  3. Make a sharp left onto Town Trail.
  4. Continue for 900 meters.
  5. Keep right to take Trail 8 (Mina Lake).
  6. Continue for 2 kilometers.
  7. Bear right onto Trail 8 (backside).
  8. Continue for 1 kilometer.
  9. Walk north on Trail 8 (backside).
  10. Continue for 100 meters.
  11. Bear right onto Trail 8c.
  12. Continue for 2 kilometers.
  13. Turn right to stay on Trail 8c.
  14. Continue for 90 meters.
  15. Walk east on Trail 8c.
  16. Continue for 400 meters.
  17. Bear right onto Trail 2 (Church trail).
  18. Continue for 900 meters.
  19. Keep straight to stay on Trail 2 (Church trail).
  20. Continue for 50 meters.
Avg: 4.5 (2 votes)
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    • Singletrack
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    132
    Climbing the Mina Lake Trail 8, Aug 16, 2020
    Climbing the Mina Lake Trail 8, Aug 16, 2020
    10:01 | 128 | comments: 0 | favs:
    Aug 18, 2020
    @boyblue1973

    Recent Trail Reports Along Route

    statustraildateconditiondescription
    Trail 8c
    Jun 13, 2026 @ 12:59pm (America/Edmonton)
    Jun 13, 2026
    Trail 8c
    Nov 11, 2025 @ 6:50pm (America/Edmonton)
    Nov 11, 2025
    Trail 8 (Mina Lake)
    Jul 29, 2025 @ 6:53pm
    Jul 29, 2025
    more reports »
    • By andrewfromjasperTF Pro VARDA JPCA & contributors
    • #1976 - 1,777 views

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