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Running through western Colorado’s scenic Grand Valley, the Colorado Riverfront Trail provides an unparalleled biking and walking experience in Mesa County. The paved trail follows the Colorado River from Loma through Fruita, Grand Junction, and, Palisade, connecting several parks, lakes, and recreational amenities. The trail has been made with the long-term vision and hard work of the Colorado Riverfront Commission, established in 1987.
About the Route
The trail opens with a bang with the stunning Monument View Section on its western end. The view in question is that of the rugged canyons of the Colorado National Monument. This 8-mile section also provides access to the Walter Walker State Wildlife Area, itself a beauty with its grassy, tree-lined river corridor. (Note that the trail extends west to Loma, where it connects with the Kokopelli system of mountain-biking trails).
At the southern end of the Monument View Section, the trail forks; the northern branch of the fork is named the Blue Heron Section for the Blue Heron Lake, which is its main attraction. The trail begins at the Junior Service League Park and ends at Riverside Park, a distance of 5.6 miles. Along the way, the trail is surrounded by a mixture of woodlands and marshy areas; keep your eyes peeled for bald eagles in the treetops.
The southern branch is the Audubon Section, which extends less than two miles, beginning in the Connected Lakes State Park and ending at the Redlands Marketplace. The secluded, wooded surroundings here offer ample opportunities to see many types of birds, including blue herons, osprey, owls, and hawks. The two sections of the trail meet up at the pedestrian/bike path over the Colorado River along State Highway 340 (Broadway).
From State Highway 340, the re-merged trail is known as the Riverside Section. It winds along the north bank of the river for 1.4 miles, through a beautiful natural area where the Colorado and Gunnison rivers meet, and ends at the Western Colorado Botanical Gardens and Butterfly House.
From the Botanical Gardens, trail users can seamlessly pick up the Las Colonias Section, named after a park of the same name, which it traverses. The first phase of the 101-acre park opened in 2015 and includes parking, a restroom, a bike repair station, and a water fountain; future plans call for the addition of an amphitheater.
The Parks and Wildlife Section offers access to portions of the James M. Robb Colorado River State Park, where recreational opportunities abound, including picnicking, fishing, boating, and swimming. Note that for trail users parking in this section, the purchase of a parking pass is required; the best access point is Corn Lake.
Farther west, the Clifton Section is named for its centerpiece, Clifton Nature Park. Here, the trail is rural and tranquil. Trail users might even see horses grazing near the river and birds wading in its calm waters.
The eastern end of the trail ends in the town of Palisade. The big draw for this section is passage through Riverbend Park, where you can access the river at Harky’s Launch. Additionally, the park is a haven for wildlife.
The Colorado Riverfront Trail runs between Hawkeye Rd. (Fruita) and Brentwood Dr. (Palisade).
Parking is available at:
Please see TrailLink Map for all parking options and detailed directions.
This trail is really really nice. The concrete is wonderful. There is a small section of blacktop but is in the world to be replaced with concrete. The trail can be a little confusing but once you get the hang of it, it is easy to follow. Beautiful views along the entire trail. Most people follow the simple rules to make it nice for everyone to enjoy.
Trail is cement and wide. Very few people so we could ride as fast as we wanted.
We have done the majority of the trail.
I rode most of this trail last week, Grand Junction to Fruita and back. It's a beautiful bike path. There is one section that is asphalt and a bit rough, but the scenery really makes up for it!
My nephew and I just finished this trail April 7th, 2022. We started in Palisade and finished in Loma and we connected the trailheads by riding on the roads and ditch banks. It was altogether 32 miles. Great ride! Wish they would connect the whole thing because that would be awesome.
Love the scenic views, tunnel art and single tracks!!!!
Beautiful views along the Colorado River. Connections to parks, mountain bike trails, restaurants
Started in Fruita and turned around at Eagle Rim Park. A number of repairs and improvements have been completed since my last ride over that route. A section of the trail had been washed away by the river some time ago...that portion has new bank installed and new trail surface put in. The trail used to exit on to a residential street at Riverside Park, the park has been enlarged and what used to be a street is now a nicely done bike path through the park. In the Las Colonias park area huge improvements have been made, making this a very nice "water" park area along the river.
I also very much enjoy the "new" section of trail from Fruita to Loma. It is ridden much more frequently being closer to home. Check it out also.
This trail is a very beautiful trail with different sceneries of the lakes, trees, and the Colorado River! Because of COVID-19, I can’t go out much, but this trail has entertained me through these difficult times. It is long (so you can get exercise) and if you enjoy to explore, this trail gives you the perfect chance! I give this trail a 5 star review because there are so many different ways to go!
Love this trail. I cycle this trail regularly; at least 3-4 times per week.
I often ride this trail from Fruita into Grand Junction (Eagle Rim Park) and back. The first couple miles from Fruita are a bit boring as it is a straight shot and parallel to I-70 but after that it gets more interesting. Today lots of bikers and walkers, plenty of room for everyone. The section from Fruita into Grand Junction is the newest portion and the trail is nice wide concrete. The older section of trail is narrower and some asphalt. Still a nice ride. Many of the underpass sections have some nice art work on them. A few weeks ago a bobcat ran across the trail only a few feet in front of me. Another section of trail is being built going from Fruita west, I believe it will then connect to the Kokopelli Trailhead near Loma.
A nice and pleasant, flat ride especially if you keep your focus toward the river and not the usual urbanization or industrial influences or highway hijinks in the opposite view direction. Brief sections have less intrusive stuff and more natural beauty than others. Only climb of note is the short easy one to Eagle Rim Park where you can take a lap and do some tricks in the nice bike park there. There is a very good overlook of the entire Grand Junction valley there too.
There is some great public art, "graffiti-like", along the way too.
This area of Colorado can be exceptionally hot in the summer. But that means it can be really pleasant in the cooler months and very ride-able on nice winter days. Given the abundance of vegetation along the river course (lots of big Cottonwood trees), it would be spectacular in fall when the leaves are changing. Spring would nice too with it all greened out and likely lots of birds.
Judging from the other reviews, I don't think I rode the most scenic part of this trail in my out and back. One one hand, there are a few nice stretches along the river, but there is quite a bit of the trail that's close to the busy highway. The paved trail is in good shape and the ride is easy.
Looking forward to the new rest area, peach groves, shaded benches, not to mention a great view. Located near the new RV campgrounds. A nice ride or hike from Junction to Palisade.
We started the ride at Los Colonias Park next to the botanical gardens. There is parking, water, restroom, and a shaded gazebo with picnic tables here. We headed towards Fruita cycling the recently-completed Monument View Trail to the Blue Heron trail to the Colorado Visitor Center in Fruita.
The condition of this trail varied depending on the section. The trail starts out nice and smooth at about 12 feet wide from Los Colonias Park. It then narrows to about 8 feet with lots of roots and cracks in the pavement until you reach the new section called Monument View near the Blue Heron Boat Launch. Then, it is smooth and wide to the Fruita visitor center.
At some points, the path is curvy and runs along the river. At other points, it is flat and runs parallel to the road. The description in this website doesn’t always match the reality of the path. Yes, at some points you do have nice views of the surrounding mesa and the river. However, the description fails to mention that if you start your ride at Los Colonias park near downtown Grand Junction, you will be cycling through industrials areas. Some of your view will be that of junk yards, gravel pits, storage yards, trucking company parking lots and other industrial-type businesses. So, unless you are wearing blinders, it isn’t as pretty as described. If you want pretty all the way, park at the Blue Heron Boat Launch and head out from there.
There are benches along the path but most of them are not strategically placed. Most are in full sun and many are placed at weird places like across from an industrial site or, if along the river, right in front of a tree which blocks the view of the river.
However, overall, we enjoyed the ride and would recommend it. Water was available only at the beginning at Los Colonias Park and at the end of our ride at the visitor center. Our roundtrip mileage was about 28 miles with a couple of detours.
This review is for an out-and-back ride. We cycled from downtown Grand Junction down 7th Street for one mile to the start of the trail at Los Colonias Park which is next to the botanical gardens. Parking, water, restroom, and a shaded gazebo with picnic tables are available here. We headed in the direction of Palisade. Heading in this direction, there is a gap in the trail after about 2.4 miles. You will cycle on C ½ Road for about 0.9 miles before turning right at the end onto 29 Road for a half mile to connect back up to the trail. C ½ Road is lightly traveled; 29 Road is a bit busier but there is a bike lane and a wide sidewalk.
Throughout the ride, the bike path was in excellent condition and very wide. However, additional signage is needed especially at the Corn Lake section of the Colorado State Park. Since we are not from the area, if we hadn’t read about the bike path continuing at an underpass under the highway, we would have simply not continued on. For the most part, the bike path is away from streets and traffic and feels remote (when really it isn’t). The ride had a country-like feel to it. The bike path ended abruptly at a county rode. A passing cyclist told us that we would need to cycle the road to get to the town of Palisade. We turned around at this point.
We highly recommend this section. Our round-trip mileage was about 20 miles. There are no services and no water available along this route. There are some benches along the path but most are not shaded. Get a big-picture map from a local bike store. Individual section maps are available for download at one of these sites:
http://riverfrontproject.org/
http://www.gjsentinel.com/bike
Excellent trail over 15 miles. You can ride all the way to Fruita. You can catch the trail at the botanical gardens and several other places with no parking fees. The starting place on the map charges for parking.
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