North Dakota trails · JC Trail
JC Trail
A 3.4-mile out-and-back in North Dakota, with 424 ft of climbing. Managed by the state.
Elevation profile
Most of the climbing sits in the final third — 63% of the ascent, between mile 2.2 and mile 3.4. It gives back about 401 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Getting there
JC Trail access. 47.53346, -102.72790 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:36 a.m., the sun rises at 7:07 a.m. and sets at 6:05 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 6:36 p.m. (MDT) — 10 h 57 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 6.7-mile round trip takes roughly 2 h 55 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 10:03 a.m. — 8 h 02 min before sunset.
Loop options
- EN (Eagle's Nest) Trail + JC Trail + W (Wagon) Trail — 6.3 mi loop, 1,454 ft gain
- EN (Eagle's Nest) Trail + JC Trail + RR Trail — 15.2 mi loop, 3,389 ft gain
- TX (Texas) Trail + JC Trail + W (Wagon) Trail — 5.9 mi loop, 1,443 ft gain
Nearby trails
- W (Wagon) Trail — 0.9 mi
- EN (Eagle's Nest) Trail — 1.6 mi
- TX (Texas) Trail — 2.1 mi
- Summit Trail — 24.0 mi