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The main trail at Heil climbing up from the trailhead to the Ponderosa loop and beyond.


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Map Key

2.6

Miles

4.1

KM

Singletrack

6,707' 2,044 m

High

5,895' 1,797 m

Low

812' 247 m

Up

0' 0 m

Down

6%

Avg Grade (3°)

19%

Max Grade (11°)

Dogs No Dogs

E-Bikes Not Allowed

The first section of singletrack is closed with no reopening date for nesting golden eagles. Detour on the emergency road.

Description

This trail climbs, mostly gradually, right from the trailhead. You'll start out on a rough dirt road, but don't worry - the singletrack starts just up ahead.

Once you hit the singletrack, it's a steady climb for about 2.5 miles, all the way up to the junction with the Ponderosa Loop. The trail mostly runs through a heavily forested area, so there's plenty of shade.

The area is extremely rocky - the ground is covered with many softball to basketball sized rocks. But the Boulder Mountainbike Alliance and others have done much work to clean up the trail, make it flow better, and keep it sustainable.

Ride this trail about 2.5 miles to the junction of the Ponderosa loop. You can connect this to multiple loops at the top of Heil, or to the Picture Rock trail, which leads down to Lions and Hall Ranch.

History & Background

The 5200 acre open space making up Heil Ranch trails and the newer Picture Rock trail are part of a large land purchase made by Boulder County Parks and Open Space in 1993 and 1994. The area housed large quarry operations from the 1890's to the 1960's.

Contacts

Shared By:

Michael Ahnemann with improvements by Wendy Sweet

Trail Ratings

  3.4 from 54 votes

#367

Overall
  3.4 from 54 votes
5 Star
6%
4 Star
50%
3 Star
28%
2 Star
17%
1 Star
0%
Trail Rankings

#121

in Colorado

#367

Overall
9 Views Last Month
4,441 Since Nov 28, 2012
Intermediate/Difficult Intermediate/Difficult

0%
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70%
9%
22%
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Photos

Heil has some great flowy berms that you can rail on the way down.
Aug 13, 2016 near Lyons, CO
Bob and Weave through the numerous rock gardens
Aug 8, 2018 near Lyons, CO
Heil Ranch.
May 19, 2019 near Lyons, CO
Heil Ranch. Excellent use of pavers.
May 19, 2019 near Lyons, CO
Wapiti is one of my favorite rides when there's snow on the ground. It typically gets enough foot traffic to stay packed in, and some sections are faster filled in with snow. :)
Apr 4, 2013 near Lyons, CO
The first section of Heil singletrack is a smooth climb, with great scenery before you dive into the forest.
May 25, 2013 near Lyons, CO
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Weather


Current Trail Conditions

Bad / Closed 6 days ago
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