Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Fort Collins, whether you're looking for an easy short cross country skiing trail or a long cross country skiing trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a cross country skiing trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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Two unpaved segments of the Great Western Trail are currently open in rural Weld County at the northwestern corner of Colorado's Eastern Plains. Both portions were built on a railbanked Great Western...
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Big Dry Creek Trail follows an east-west course for 12 miles between Interstate 25 and Standley Lake in Westminster, one of Denver's northern suburbs. The trail is generally flat, with short stretches...
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...
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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 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 Firestone Trail mostly parallels Colorado Boulevard between Dacono in the south and north of Firestone, at the northern end of the trail. The trail is paved and provides access to parks,...
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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 Poudre River Trail tracks a 21-mile, scenic course along Cache la Poudre River between Windsor and Greeley. The paved trail is popular with hikers, runners, cyclists and inline skaters. The path...
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...
Note: Like most of Lyons' parks system, the Corridor Trail has been closed since a devastating flood in September 2013. Work is currently underway to reopen the closed parks and trails. See the city's...
The Switzerland Trail in the peaks west of Boulder was named for the spectacular mountain scenery along this remote and former railroad route. Although why it had to be named after another country...
The Fowler Trail is an easy hike in scenic Eldorado Canyon State Park that provides a great place to sight wildlife, watch rock climbers, or take in stunning views of the surrounding canyon....
The Firestone Trail mostly parallels Colorado Boulevard between Dacono in the south and north of Firestone, at the northern end of the trail. The trail is paved and provides access to parks,...
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 Poudre River Trail tracks a 21-mile, scenic course along Cache la Poudre River between Windsor and Greeley. The paved trail is popular with hikers, runners, cyclists and inline skaters. The path...
Big Dry Creek Trail follows an east-west course for 12 miles between Interstate 25 and Standley Lake in Westminster, one of Denver's northern suburbs. The trail is generally flat, with short stretches...
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...
Two unpaved segments of the Great Western Trail are currently open in rural Weld County at the northwestern corner of Colorado's Eastern Plains. Both portions were built on a railbanked Great Western...
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 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...
The Poudre River Trail tracks a 21-mile, scenic course along Cache la Poudre River between Windsor and Greeley. The paved trail is popular with hikers, runners, cyclists and inline skaters. The path...
Two unpaved segments of the Great Western Trail are currently open in rural Weld County at the northwestern corner of Colorado's Eastern Plains. Both portions were built on a railbanked Great Western...
The Switzerland Trail in the peaks west of Boulder was named for the spectacular mountain scenery along this remote and former railroad route. Although why it had to be named after another country...
The Firestone Trail mostly parallels Colorado Boulevard between Dacono in the south and north of Firestone, at the northern end of the trail. The trail is paved and provides access to parks,...
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...
Note: Like most of Lyons' parks system, the Corridor Trail has been closed since a devastating flood in September 2013. Work is currently underway to reopen the closed parks and trails. See the city's...
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 Fowler Trail is an easy hike in scenic Eldorado Canyon State Park that provides a great place to sight wildlife, watch rock climbers, or take in stunning views of the surrounding canyon....
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...
Big Dry Creek Trail follows an east-west course for 12 miles between Interstate 25 and Standley Lake in Westminster, one of Denver's northern suburbs. The trail is generally flat, with short stretches...
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.
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.
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.
It's great to experience the vast beauty of the Colorado Rocky Mountains and there is no better place than in Estes Park! The Lake Estes Trail offers panoramic views at any given point as you circle around the lake and ride along side the Lake Estes Golf Club. At a little under 4 miles it makes a great hiking/walking trail as well as cycling. Enjoy the view of the Stanley Hotel or drop a line in the lake as you make your way around...this trail offers much to do for all!
I started at the northern terminus (small parking area) at 136th and Brighton Rd. I rode out to 88th Ave and back, which was 20 miles total. The first 6.5 miles to 104th Ave are very nice with less obvious/ugly man-made intrusions and lots of natural scenery. South of 104th, you see more fences, power lines, construction areas, urbanization, etc., but it is still nice as you travel along within the river's greenbelt. In this section, near the crossing at McKay Rd., there a couple of short gravel detours but also some nice new path [re]construction just being finished up. Overall, the path itself is excellent as it is wide and very smooth concrete. The course it takes is flat and easy though there is an overall ascent/descent (~10'/mile) based on whether you are going up or down river. Despite it being mid-December with no leaves in the trees and most everything browned out, there are some very pretty cottonwood groves and marshland areas Also, there was plenty of waterfowl varieties to see including Great Blue Herons and a fair number of raptors including a couple of Bald Eagles. I plan on returning during other times of the year to how it looks in the other seasons and because it is such a great recreation resource.
This is my second review for this trail. The starting point is S. Public road in Lafayette. The trail parallels the river and is quite nice. It goes by the park in Lafayette, then up toward 42. There is a decent climb up to the Aquarius trail head and a spectacular view. From then on, you are heading down hill with some lessor hills along the way. The trail goes by the back of the Dillon road tech center. Then you will go by the Rock Creek country club. There are signs saying to watch out for golf balls. At Superior, you have the opportunity to link with the Coulton trail. The trail does a button hook by the town hall. This is an out and back trail for the most part with nice scenery and wildlife. Note that there will be construction from Nov 19, 2018. The Coal Creek Regional Trail will be closed between McCaslin Boulevard and the US 36 Bikeway on Monday, November 19th. This closure will be ¿in place for approximately 6 months while improvements are made to the Coal Creek corridor. A signed detour will be available to guide bicyclists and pedestrians from the US 36 Bikeway through Downtown Superior to McCaslin Boulevard.
Did this trail in 2 sections. First, starting at Hwy 36, I went east all the way to I-25 and back (~14 miles). This section of the trail is wonderful. The new, wide smooth concrete path weaves and rolls following the creek though a surprisingly wide open and pretty green belt. There are wetland and prairie areas where it is possible to see various bird and wildlife. You feel like you are in the middle of a wildlife area for the most part. 5 stars.
From Hwy 36 to the west, the trail is not nearly as good quality as the other direction. To me, it was more convoluted and confusing as it goes close by office buildings, apartments/homes, stores, schools, etc. There are some new concrete sections to go with older areas and the pea gravel section on the climb to Standley Lake. Though there are pretty areas and some wildlife, for the most part, it feels like you are in the middle of suburbia. 3 stars.
Though not overly busy, I encountered other riders, runners, stroller pushers, dog walkers, etc. All seemed to be enjoying themselves!
I started on S Public road in Lafayette. The trail is well marked and a mixture of gravel, small sections of concrete. There were underpasses to avoid major roads. The countryside was pretty, starting out very lush by the creek, then turning more arid from Lafayette to Eire. There are sections of the trail that were washed out, so while biking, care is needed to navigate those sections. There is a good deal of wild life in and around the trail. Watch out for several prairie dog holes right in the middle of the trail. Bring water and some snacks. Overall, I would recommend the trail.
Rode this trail Aug 27th 2018, it forms a loop 21+ mile loop around Loveland Co. The eastern part of the trail is excellent as it goes north from US 34 through the seven lakes area and continues along the west shore of Boyd Lake. At the north end of Boyd Lake the trail splits. The Loveland loop heads straight west for 2-3 miles and passes under highway 287. (Optionally, one can turn north and connect to the Ft Collins trails). This part of the trail is in excellent condition, fully paved and 12 feet wide. Once under 287 the trail itself heads west for about 1/2 mile where it ends. At this point one can ride or walk along about 100 yards or so of dirt to 57th street. 57th street is busy and has no bike lane, but now there is only about 300 yards along 57th street to the new long view trail parking lot. (Optionally, one can ride along 57th street from 287 to the long view trail parking lot, a distance of 1/2 mile or more). The long view trail opened on Aug. 18th 2018 and connects the west side Loveland trails with the Ft Collins trails. It follows along Taft ave in Loveland which is Shields in Ft Collins. So, at this point one can choice to go north on the long view trail to Ft Collins or go south along the west side of Loveland to complete the loop around Loveland. To go south one crosses to the southwest corner of 57th street and Taft ave where the trail continues south. This part of the trail is in excellent condition, paved and 12 feet wide. There is a short section along Wilson avenue that is bike lane instead of trail, but the trail picks up again and continues south where it goes under US 34. At the “T” turn left (east) and continue to Namaque Ave. Here the pavement ends but the trail continues straight along the canal on dirt to Wilson. Turn south along Wilson and then under Wilson where the trail heads straight east along the Thompson River and into RxR park, go around the north end of the park and then swing south. The path will turn east again and go under highway 287 and swing north, up the hill and onto Washington Street. The stretch along Washington is only 1/2 mile long to 1st street. Cross 1st street, and continue east to the Chilson Center where is turns straight north, across 4th street and continue north under Madison street and then across Boise and back to US 34. For the remainder of 2018 Wilson is under construction and access to the trail at Wilson is closed. So, at Namaque Ave, turn south on Namaque to 1st street, east on 1st street to Dotsero Dr, north on Dotsero through a neighborhood where there is access to the trail again. Parking is available at the Walmart on highway 34 & Denver Ave, at the Chilson Center, at the RxR park, at Mehaffey Park, and on the street in many other locations along the trail. This will be a great trail once finished, but for now it still has a couple of rough spots.
I was a bit skeptical of this trail at first since it starts out quite twisty and winding with a lot of debris from the trees. It also passes a few parking lots but once that’s behind you it starts to get much nicer. There are only a couple of road crossings - the rest you go underneath the bridges with the stream that parallels much of the trail. I did most of the trail on inline skates and it worked out fine.
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