It's Time...

It's time to break out the mountain bike, dust off the saddle, fill up those tires, grease the chain, and tighten the brakes. With warm spring weather here, and the snow leaving the foothills, it's definitely time to start thinking about mountain biking!

The front range is an incredible place to live if you're a mountain biker, and there are trails of all styles and difficulties scattered up and down the entire range. In celebration of the fast approaching (if not already here) mountain bike season, here's a list of the top five trails in the immediate vicinity of Boulder (keep in mind, though, that with so many trails, this list is certainly limited, subjective, and open to change – the important thing is to explore, try new rides, and create, edit, update, and expand lists like this one!):

5. Picture Rock Trail – this trail essentially links the Heil Valley Ranch trail system to downtown Lyons, and further on, to Hall Ranch. The trail itself is fast, with up and down hills rolling through prairie landscapes. Watch out for sharp and sudden turns, but be prepared to pedal hard and go fast!

4. Betasso Preserve Loop – this is a popular Boulder ride since it can easily be accessed by pedaling up the Boulder Creek Path and cranking up the Link Trail (which heads nearly straight up from Canyon Road), leading bikers straight to the Betasso trailhead. This loop is relatively short, technically moderate, and while it may not be the most thrilling or technically challenging trail around, it can definitely be ridden fast. To make it more difficult, pedal the loop multiple times in one trip. The important thing to remember with Betasso is to check for the correct direction of travel – the city posts signs at the beginning of the trail indicating the correct direction to use the trail, so follow whatever these signs say! (map here)

3. Heil Valley Ranch – the trailhead is located just off Lefthand Canyon Drive. Heil Valley offers a nice network of trails that all interconnect with one another, presenting the opportunity for riders to create their own routes. Relatively close to Boulder, this trail network weaves through lightly forested land, and is moderately challenging, including some consistently bumpy patches but lacking any real technical challenges. (map here)

2. Walker Ranch – another Boulder favorite, Walker Ranch is located off Flagstaff Mountain Road (pretty high up the road, so if you plan to pedal there, leave early and get ready to crank!). This trail offers some solid technical sections, some rock gardens, and long climbs and descents. It's a little bit of everything, and all in all, this is a solid, fun, and grueling trail (although perhaps still slightly overrated). (map here)

1. Hall Ranch – this ride is one of the best – if not the best – in the immediate Boulder vicinity. Start at the trailhead just off Highway 7 (southwest of Lyons). From here, riders work their up the tough mile-long rock garden before leveling out, enjoying a short, fast, and technical descent, and finally climbing up to the loop at the top of the trail. After completing the loop, riders are definitely rewarded with one of the best descents around: bomb back down the long ride from the loop and enjoy the technical, challenging, and amazingly fun ride down the rock garden and back to the trailhead. (map here)

While this list only mentions a few of the many trails surrounding us, hopefully it provides some good initial ideas for some rides. For any mountain bikers who can make it farther north, Fort Collins has some great rides in Horsetooth State Park, Lory State Park, and scattered throughout the Poudre Canyon. For anyone heading the opposite direction, there are many trails in and around the Golden-Morrison area.