Find the top rated bike trails in Boulder, whether you're looking for an easy short bike trail or a long bike trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a bike trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Not to be confused with the longer Saint Vrain Greenway of nearby Longmont, the Saint Vrain Avenue Trail is a hard surface, multiuse trail in the Rocky Mountain resort town of Estes Park. While Estes...
The Silverthorne Recpath runs through Silverthorne, Colorado, connecting residents and visitors with the town's various amenities and the scenic Dillon Dam Recpath at its southern end. Both trails are...
The Happy Canyon Trail runs for just over 4 miles through the communities of Centennial, Cottonwood and Parker on the southern outskirts of Denver. To the north, the trail begins at in the Cherry...
The trail on the east side of Bradburn Boulevard is relatively short, but it makes an important connection between two major Denver metro trails. Following the trail north brings you to within feet of...
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Gaining only 200+ feet in elevation, the Narrow Gauge Trail is in Pine Valley Ranch Park, a beautiful open space near the mountain community of Pine, Colorado. The trail follows the north bank of the...
The Spring Gulch #1 Greenway is a multiuse pathway in Longmont, Colorado. The trail stretches the length of the 16-acre Kensington Neighborhood Park, extending from 3rd Avenue north to a point not far...
The Castle North Trail provides a safe, non-motorized connection between the Castle Rock Community Recreation Center and Castle North Park. The paved pathway cuts right through the heart of the...
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The Union Pacific Trail runs for just a short distance between E. 100th Avenue and Thornton Parkway in the Denver suburb of Thornton. The trail runs through a shadeless corridor alongside a railroad...
The Power Trail provides a convenient north-south route through Fort Collins in two disconnected segments along the west side of the Union Pacific Railroad. The pathway is paved and flat, traveling...
The Dillon Dam Recpath offers a scenic route along the western shore of the Dillon Reservoir in the White River National Forest, connecting the towns of Frisco and Dillon. If you begin your journey at...
The Sheep Draw Trail is a 10-foot-wide paved regional trail along the scenic Sheep Draw Creek corridor connecting neighborhoods to shopping, recreation centers and schools. The trail travels through...
The Centennial Link Trail, parts of which were formerly known as the Little Dry Creek Trail, lives up to its name by providing a useful link between the outskirts of Littleton and Centennial, forming...
The Cherry Creek Regional Trail is a picturesque 40-mile route that begins in downtown Denver and connects suburban and rural Arapahoe and Douglas Counties, including the communities of Parker,...
The Longmont-to-Boulder Regional Trail (nicknamed the LOBO) extends more than 10 miles between these two major cities and taps into the region's vast network of trails. Most of the pathway has a...
The Snake River Recpath begins in Dillon and follows the river southeast just over 6 miles to the popular Keystone Resort. Along the way, you'll enjoy spectacular mountain scenery and views of Dillon...
Colorado's West Rail Line Bike Path parallels the W Line, a new light rail corridor through Denver and Lakewood that was known during construction as the West Rail Line. The Regional Transportation...
The Loveland Recreation Trail encircles the "Gateway to the Rockies," offering views of the mountains and access to many of Loveland's natural treasures. While the trail is mostly complete, there are...
Aurora’s Piney Creek Trail provides a pleasant route across town with few street crossings. The paved pathway begins at the Ponderosa Preserve and heads northwest, winding through residential...
The Fraser River Trail runs between the town of Fraser and Winter Park, paralleling US 40 for its entire route. The trail offers lovely views of the surrounding mountains and is a great way to connect...
In comparison to some of the lengthy, fantastic trails in the southern suburbs of Denver, the Lee Gulch Trail may not seem like anything special. However, it offers a wonderfully useful off-road...
The Weaver Gulch Regional Trail runs east-west across the northwestern edge of the suburb of Littleton, following the course of a greenbelt converted from a drainage ditch through a series of...
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The Powerline Trail provides a convenient east-west route across Aurora. This concrete pathway begins in Horseshoe Park, where trailheads for the Cherry Creek Spillway Trail, Toll Gate Greek Trail and...
The Westerly Creek Trail provides a convenient north-south route through the heart of Aurora. It traverses residential and commercial areas and runs through two major community open spaces, Expo Park...
Aurora’s Piney Creek Trail provides a pleasant route across town with few street crossings. The paved pathway begins at the Ponderosa Preserve and heads northwest, winding through residential...
The Massey Draw Regional Trail, located in the southern suburbs of Denver, connects the longer Columbine Trail to a series of local parks and amenities. This quiet, pleasant concrete path takes you...
The Scott Lancaster Memorial Bike Path is a short, but pleasant 5 miles of mostly off-road route that allows cyclists and walkers to get between Idaho Springs and Floyd Hill, which is otherwise only...
The C-470 Bikeway—also known as the C-470 Trail and Centennial Trail in Douglas County—provides open views of the Colorado foothills as it follows the southwestern segment of Denver's beltway. Along...
The Happy Canyon Trail runs for just over 4 miles through the communities of Centennial, Cottonwood and Parker on the southern outskirts of Denver. To the north, the trail begins at in the Cherry...
Gaining only 200+ feet in elevation, the Narrow Gauge Trail is in Pine Valley Ranch Park, a beautiful open space near the mountain community of Pine, Colorado. The trail follows the north bank of the...
The Cherry Creek Regional Trail is a picturesque 40-mile route that begins in downtown Denver and connects suburban and rural Arapahoe and Douglas Counties, including the communities of Parker,...
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0.8 miles of trail isn't much on its own, but as part of a connective tissue of little trails linking major regional regional trails, the Turnpike Trail plays an important role. On the west side, it...
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The Platte River Trail is just one of many of Denver's superb multi-use trails, this one stretching from just north and west of Englewood and heading north toward Henderson. The 28.5-mile trail...
The Farmers’ High Line Canal Trail provides an easy, pleasant way to traverse the northern suburbs of Denver. The paved pathway stretches more than a dozen miles, connecting Westminster, Northglenn,...
The Centennial Link Trail, parts of which were formerly known as the Little Dry Creek Trail, lives up to its name by providing a useful link between the outskirts of Littleton and Centennial, forming...
The Coal Mine Trail is a short sidepath trail that connects the Columbine Trail with the Dutch Creek Regional Trail, running for most of its length alongside Coal Mine Avenue in the suburban community...
The Cherry Creek Spillway Trail offers wide open views with the Denver skyline as a distant backdrop. Along the way, recreational opportunities abound as the path winds through Aurora's Wheel Park and...
The 6th Avenue Trail provides expansive views of the Rocky Mountain foothills as it follows its namesake thoroughfare (also known as US 6) from the Colorado School of Mines in downtown Golden to...
The Niver Creek Trail winds through Thornton, a northern suburb of Denver, connecting parks, riparian areas and open space inhabited by prairie dogs, coyotes, numerous bird species, and other...
The Snake River Recpath begins in Dillon and follows the river southeast just over 6 miles to the popular Keystone Resort. Along the way, you'll enjoy spectacular mountain scenery and views of Dillon...
The Montezuma Spur Recpath is a short trail along Montezuma Road near Keystone, Colorado, home to the popular Keystone Resort. From the path's western end, trail users can take the Snake River Recpath...
The Dillon Dam Recpath offers a scenic route along the western shore of the Dillon Reservoir in the White River National Forest, connecting the towns of Frisco and Dillon. If you begin your journey at...
The Fossil Creek Trail offers over 8 miles of paved pathway (in two disconnected segments) on the south side of Fort Collins, a college town at the foothills of the beautiful Rocky Mountains. The...
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The Mary Carter Greenway (a.k.a. Arapahoe Greenway) runs for 8 miles along the South Platte River from Chatfield State Park near Columbine north to Englewood. Here it meets up with the Platte River...
The Cherry Creek Spillway Trail offers wide open views with the Denver skyline as a distant backdrop. Along the way, recreational opportunities abound as the path winds through Aurora's Wheel Park and...
The Silverthorne Recpath runs through Silverthorne, Colorado, connecting residents and visitors with the town's various amenities and the scenic Dillon Dam Recpath at its southern end. Both trails are...
The Coal Mine Trail is a short sidepath trail that connects the Columbine Trail with the Dutch Creek Regional Trail, running for most of its length alongside Coal Mine Avenue in the suburban community...
The Cook Creek Trail is a short, paved trail located in the suburban community of Lone Tree. The trail originates in Cook Creek Park, home to a local pool, tennis courts, and a portion of the Willow...
The Lake Estes Trail is a paved pathway that loops around its namesake lake, offering scenic views of the water and surrounding Rocky Mountains. In the fall, watch for elk that roam in the area. On...
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The Poudre Trail in Fort Collins follows the meandering course of the Poudre River from the Bellevue Watson Fish Hatchery to Colorado State University's Environmental Learning Center on East Drake....
Closely following its scenic namesake waterway for most of its journey, the popular Boulder Creek Path runs east from Boulder Canyon to the outskirts of the Valmont Reservoir. Its western end is dirt...
The Loveland Recreation Trail encircles the "Gateway to the Rockies," offering views of the mountains and access to many of Loveland's natural treasures. While the trail is mostly complete, there are...
In comparison to some of the lengthy, fantastic trails in the southern suburbs of Denver, the Lee Gulch Trail may not seem like anything special. However, it offers a wonderfully useful off-road...
The East Plum Creek Trail begins in a field across the street from the Native Legend Open Space. It goes through an underpass under Meadows Blvd near Castle Rock Middle School. The next few miles of...
The Westerly Creek Trail provides a convenient north-south route through the heart of Aurora. It traverses residential and commercial areas and runs through two major community open spaces, Expo Park...
Aurora’s Piney Creek Trail provides a pleasant route across town with few street crossings. The paved pathway begins at the Ponderosa Preserve and heads northwest, winding through residential...
Although less than a mile long, the Inca Street Multi-Use Path provides an important connection between the neighborhoods of Sunnyside and Globeville on Denver's north end. The paved pathway and its...
The Fraser River Trail runs between the town of Fraser and Winter Park, paralleling US 40 for its entire route. The trail offers lovely views of the surrounding mountains and is a great way to connect...
The Weaver Gulch Regional Trail runs east-west across the northwestern edge of the suburb of Littleton, following the course of a greenbelt converted from a drainage ditch through a series of...
The Rocky Mountain Greenway Trail opened its first 7-mile section in 2016, but is one day planned to stretch 25 miles across the northern Denver Metro area, including the suburbs of Westminster,...
The Power Trail provides a convenient north-south route through Fort Collins in two disconnected segments along the west side of the Union Pacific Railroad. The pathway is paved and flat, traveling...
Never again. Although very scenic in some areas the signage along this trail is lacking, especially in important areas when there is a fork in the trail. I found myself going the wrong way several times. The City of Arvada needs to step up and provide direction for riders who don't know this trail. When it's getting dark and becoming cold, the challenge of finding your way back on the this kind of trek does not become fun anymore.
We had a fun day exploring the Clear Creek Trail in Golden and some of the city's numerous attractions. We began at Parfet Park, where there was ample parking along Jackson Street. The trail begins paved, but becomes crushed stone as you head west out of town. The path can get a bit bumpy here, but we were fine on our hybrid bikes. The pathway closely parallels the river and we saw lots of families tubing down the river and a couple of people with fly fishing gear. There was a great playground right along the trail, too, which my daughter loved. Nearby, we also visited the American Mountaineering Museum and took a tour of the Coors brewery.
I didn't get a chance to explore all of this trail, but I was very impressed with what I saw of if as well as the Denver cycling infrastructure in general (handlebar videos available at youtube.com/ratbas). The idea of being able to ride for miles through a major city without having to cross an intersection is very enjoyable. The trail is well maintained, has good signage and plenty of public are while taking you past many points of interests. There are also countless access points to make it very practical for commuters and tourists.
We had a wonderful time on the LoBo Trail, beginning our ride from Boulder's Celestial Seasonings parking lot after a great tour of the tea factory. The trail’s scenery was beautiful: a mixture of shady tree corridors and open fields with long grasses and wildflowers. Quiet neighborhoods buffered the trail just beyond the trees, and we saw many people out enjoying a weekend bike ride or walking their dogs. The trail was largely hard-packed crushed stone, which our hybrid bikes handled easily. There was a short break in the trail between Twin Lakes Road and Lookout Road, but that afforded us the opportunity to access a commercial area where we stopped for lunch.
This is a great concrete running trail that is moderately shaded and pretty easy to follow. It connects with a couple other trail systems, most notably the Clear Creek Trail on the eastern end. Sometimes there are concentrations of homeless underneath Wadsworth Blvd. but they seem to keep to themselves. Occasionally, the disc golfers at Memorial Park will take up the whole path and/or smoke, but that's just a minor personal annoyance.
The worst part of the trail is when the trail briefly ends and you have to run along Brooks Dr. and Johnson Way on either the sidewalk or the road to get back onto the trail at the Apex Tennis Center.
Traveling west is an ever slight incline and as you reach the end of the trail on the western end of the trail, there are some serious uphill climbs. In the winter, the city does a pretty good job of keeping the trail cleared of snow but there are still icy patches around.
Overall, this is a pretty good urban trail.
Pros: Pretty well shaded, well marked in most places and lots of places to access or exit the trail. Great views of the mountains around Pecos and Federal when running westbound.
Cons: There are a lot surface-level street crossings starting at and east of Huron St. Trail runs next to busy roads for stretches.
Perfect for an out of towner like myself. Trail was easy to follow especially with this app!
My wife and I rode this trail out and back this week. Parking was good but you do need to find the lots and that can be difficult. The trail itself is wonderful. Lots of shade, open areas, and mixed riding with a nice climb and decent coming and going. The surface is well packed and wide. We saw many other bikers and walkers even though it was a workday. Our biggest complaint, and it caused more miles than planned, is horrible to non-existent signage. There are large blue signs at some intersections with the trail name but no direction on the signs. There are numerous trail junctions to neighborhoods, other trails, and shopping but not one sign to show where the main trail leads. For added confusion these off-shoot trails have the same surface as the main trail and look the same. At one major intersection the trail split 3 ways, we took what looked like the main trail and ended up in a car wash and the trail literally disappearing. Talking with locals who were on the trail was no help as many only used the connector trails and did not know where the main trail was. After finally figuring out the main trail with many detours we turned around before we would have liked and headed back. So, if going on this trail, know the trail before you go.
This trail from Mile High Stadium north to Thornton was awesome. The path is all concrete with a few brief exceptions. The trail is well laid out, good signage. The are frequent rest spots and even quite a few places to relieve yourself if need be with porta potties that were surprisingly clean. Lots of wildlife and open areas. Well worth the trip.
This is one of the loveliest and nicely maintained urban bike trail I have ridden. The trail is paved and wide without many hazards on the pavement. The trail is well marked for the most part. I did miss a turn at one point and found myself on a different trail. Eventually, I turned back and found the correct trail again. I had missed the sign on a fork in the road and turned on to the wrong trail. The scenery is very lovely - it follows along a stream with pretty waterfalls.
Several different trailheads make this a fun spot to try many times. It is deceptively big and can be challenging or moderate depending on the route you choose. It is very popular- and in the fitness crazed Golden CO area, so you will meet others on the way.
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