Apple Turnover - Slaughter Pen

Apple Turnover — Slaughter Pen’s Most Exposed Technical Trail

If you’re looking for a trail at Slaughter Pen that demands genuine technical skill and rewards careful line reading over speed, Apple Turnover is one of the most serious tests in the system. This hand-built, tech-heavy descent runs along the hillside overlooking Black Apple Creek, packing tight rock lines, ledges, steep chutes and optional drops into roughly 0.3 miles. Trailforks describes it as an advanced technical trail that is very exposed in sections — an assessment that holds up completely once you’ve ridden it.

Two Entrances

One detail that catches most first-time riders: Apple Turnover has two separate entrances, and neither is obvious if you don’t know to look.

Starting near the creek crossing by the tunnel that runs under A Street and Tiger Boulevard, the first option is the spicier of the two — a rocky uphill climb that works its way up the hillside before intersecting with the second, more mellow entrance. Both get you onto the same trail. Which one you take sets the tone for how your ride begins.

Choose Your Own Adventure

From the point where the two entrances meet, Apple Turnover becomes a genuine exercise in line selection. The trail weaves through a rocky hillside with multiple route options throughout, and riders with sharp eyes will spot alternatives that aren’t obvious at speed. Some lines only reveal themselves after you’ve already committed to something else.

This is what makes Apple Turnover rewarding on repeat laps. The trail doesn’t ride the same way twice unless you want it to, and finding a cleaner line through a section you previously struggled with is its own kind of progress.

Respect the Exposure

Several sections of Apple Turnover will stop you cold — tight rock features mixed with narrow gaps between trees followed by traversing exposed layered rock. The exposure Trailforks warns about is not an exaggeration. Narrow points are genuinely narrow, and there are places where a front wheel can wash out faster than you can react to it. This is especially true during wet weather.

This is not a trail to follow the mantra pre-ride, re-ride then free ride.

Apple Turnover Trail Pics

A picture of the Apple turnover trail as it flows by a tree and across and over several rocks that require you to ride over to proceed
Apple turnover singletrack showing a line choice to either ride up and over a narrow stretch over several rocks and beside multiple trees or to the right a more mellow option that rides below those rocks and trees
Apple Turnover Singletrack as it forces the rider to traverse several layers of rock strata as you proceed across the hillside
Apple Turnover Rock layers that are integrated into the trail forcing the rider up and over at a diagonal before reaching the top of this section
Apple Turnover Singletrack as it provides 2 line choices. The first to the left take you to a ridge or a pathway to the right offering more rock challenges before connecting further down the hill
A narrow section of Apple Turnover where the trail narrows with a rock wall on the left and a tree stump and the hillside to the right
Apple turnover singletrack as it flows over a large rock that also sees water flow over it when it rains and water flows from higher up.
Apple turnover singletrack where the trail narrows with a rock wall on the left and the trail forcing the rider to ride over several layers of rock before narrowing to pass by a tree on the right side with the hill exposure also on the right side
Apple Turnover singletrack as it flows down into a rock covered gully before climbing up a challenging rocky section
This is where Apple Turnover intersects with Black Apple Creek