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Vail Mountain's signature cross country trail


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Map Key

5.6

Miles

9.0

KM

Singletrack

11,188' 3,410 m

High

10,318' 3,145 m

Low

958' 292 m

Up

88' 27 m

Down

4%

Avg Grade (2°)

11%

Max Grade (7°)

Dogs Unknown

E-Bikes Allowed

Features Views

Description

If you're not singing the "Sound of Music" on this ride, you should hang up your wheels...

And you know it's good, because Vail made their own video of it: Grand Traverse Video

The trail starts from the top of the gondola, and then cruises around Game Creek bowl, through pine forests and across flower-covered ski runs while gently climbing uphill. Views of the Mt of the Holy Cross are astounding. The trail then wraps around a ridge with all of Vail's back bowls laid out in front of you. A bit more gentle climbing around the bowls, mostly in open meadow, before a final short steeper climb to the top of chairlifts 4, 5, and 11. The trail ends here.

Return: just returning on the same trail is certainly the most scenic, and it is an enjoyable downhill with a gentle grade, smooth, flowy singletrack, and jaw-dropping scenery. Kloser's Klimb follows a dirt road back to the top of the gondola. It's fast, but not much fun. New in 2014 is Mid Vail Escape, which will take you to Mid-Vail, and from there you could take a number of trails to the bottom, or the enjoyable Lucy's Loop back to the top of the Lionshead gondola.

There are many options to make this a much longer ride. One good one is to follow the ridge along the top of Vail all the way to Outer Mongolia Bowl, from where you can catch dirt roads down to Vail Village. Check the maps for other ideas.

Contacts

Shared By:

Nick Wilder

Trail Ratings

  4.5 from 38 votes

#3

in Vail Resort

#285

Overall
  4.5 from 38 votes
5 Star
63%
4 Star
26%
3 Star
11%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%
Trail Rankings

#3

in Vail Resort

#103

in Colorado

#285

Overall
7 Views Last Month
14,244 Since Sep 10, 2012
Intermediate Intermediate

4%
4%
93%
0%
0%
0%

Photos

Coming around the bend in Game Creek Bowl.
Apr 14, 2013 near Vail, CO
Climbing out (towards the east) on the incredible Grand Traverse Trail
Jul 9, 2017 near Vail, CO
Great feel for the Grand Traverse trail
Oct 4, 2013 near Vail, CO
Big bowls and Blue Sky Basin
Nov 16, 2012 near Vail, CO
Elk?  Really big - I should have put something in for scale.
Nov 16, 2012 near Vail, CO
Hard to focus on the trail...
Nov 16, 2012 near Vail, CO
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Weather


Current Trail Conditions

Unknown
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