Name: North Table Loop
Rating: 3.7

Conditions

Minor Issues 1 day ago

Some Mud - South and west portions were fairly dry, with a couple muddy spots. History

Getting forecast...

“Big climbs. Rowdy descents. Amazing 360-degree views.”

— Leslie Kehmeier

Driving Directions GPX File

Dogs Leashed

Features eMTB allowed

Overview

Overall, this is a nice mellow ride that feels somewhat remote, despite being right on the edge of town. There's a decent amount of climbing, so the ride isn't trivial, but it's not technical, and it's straightforward to follow.

Description

From the North Table parking lot, this trail heads due southeast and starts a brutal gravel road climb... Once you're nearly at the top, the trail passes Tilting Mesa Trail and then tops out at its high point. Be sure to soak up the views!

Shortly after cresting the climb, the trail descends. Slightly at first, and then almost as steeply as the initial climb. This descent is raucous and winding, but be sure to keep an eye out for other trail users heading up the hill. At the bottom of the descent, North Table Loop contours on bench cut trail back to the north, bypassing Neighborhood Access Trail on your right and Cottonwood Canyon Trail on your left.

Continue straight, as the trail winds and rolls its way around the table's east side. Eventually, you'll come to the second largest descent of the ride, where you'll be greeted with some very tight switchbacks. Once at the bottom of this descent, you'll be at a junction with Lithic Trail, a short neighborhood access trail. Stay left to continue on the ride.

From Lithic Trail, the ride climbs and then continues to contour the table. This section of the ride is fast, flowing, and fun. So, open it up and really get some speed going! Eventually, after bypassing Table Rock and Mesa Top for a second time, you'll be at the North Table parking lot.

Contacts

Local Club: Colorado Mountain Bike Association

Land Manager: Jefferson County, CO - Open Space Dept.

Full Details

Trail Ratings

3.7 from 193 votes

#1

in North Table Mountain

#39

Overall

3.7 from 193 votes

5 Star		15%
4 Star		51%
3 Star		24%
2 Star		8%
1 Star		2%

Rankings

#1

in North Table Mountain

#15

in Colorado

#39

Overall

544 Views Last Month

59,867 Since Jun 17, 2016

Intermediate

		1%
		25%
		61%
		9%
		2%
		1%

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Photos

Rare foggy morning ride on the North Table Loop.

North Table Mountain provides an excellent ride…

Morning sunrise.

Along side the basalt cliffs, between downhill…

Part of the "Table" in North Table Mountain...f…

Even on wagon wheels, you can easily cruise the…

Some good flow and climbing involved rewarded b…

Beautiful singletrack lets you really open it u…

Enjoy gorgeous views of South Table and the Coo…

The final climb up to the top of Table Mountain

Cottonwood Canyon Trail Junction

On the North Table loop.

Family fun on the North Table Loop.

Nice shady resting spot.

Lithic trail down to Golden Bike Park and neigh…

Looking west over Golden on a beautiful spring…

Leila about to drop in

Very green in the spring!

Cottonwood canyon in the snow!

Specialized Stump Jumper Comp Carbon 29 on the…

A very green North Table Mountain in June after…

11 Comments

Chris Bishop

I would highly recommend doing this track the other direction / counter clockwise. The recommended direction takes you up the technical parts and the big drop at the end is just a dirt road. You will also be riding against most traffic too. If you take it the other direction you have a big climb up the road to start and then down the technical with some technical climbs. I use the term technical for this track loosely. There area few good technical spots. Jul 18, 2015

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Anonymous User

Definitely better as a counter-clockwise loop. One ball-busting climb followed by a long, fun descent. Jul 22, 2015

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Anonymous User

I concur with the previous posts. I rode it clockwise, but a small spill and my lack of athletic prowess, required that I turn around about halfway. I think counter clockwise would have been more fun. Jul 25, 2015

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Anonymous User

Yep. Ride it counterclockwise. The descent after the steep road climb is fast and fun. The rest of the trail flows nicely this way, too. Wasting perfectly good downhill vert on a road is just stupid. Oct 1, 2015

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Joshua Harrington
Arvada, CO

Joshua Harrington Arvada, CO

This is such a quick fun getaway as a Denver resident. Riding it CCW is 10-fold better than CW. The steep section is simply a hard-packed gravel road that takes about 6-8 minutes to climb. Once at the top you're greeted with some flat terrain and then a long fun downhill with a few short technical sections. May 19, 2016

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Tom Robson
Boulder, CO

Tom Robson Boulder, CO

Thanks for the feedback. I just edited the ride to go the other way. Not sure why I rode it CW...! :) May 20, 2016

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Tim Speciale

I'd rather get the climbing outta the way early, personally. Aug 17, 2016

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Chris Bishop

Tim Speciale It looks like they may have updated this. Originally it had you climb the trail and drop the fire road. Aug 17, 2016

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Anonymous User

How long would it take to complete the full loop, for a novice rider? Aug 23, 2016

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Malcolm Moreno

Just did it today, pretty leisurely pace (apart from the long uphill start, which pretty much has no leisurely pace) and we did it in about an hour, hour and a half if you take your time and have some stops. Also if you are a novice I would watch out for the southern half, I would say the trails there are blue/black. 2/3 of the trail is nice and smooth, though. Aug 29, 2016

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Davo Pil

How do you guys take these cool pics of yourselves on bikes?? Apr 25, 2018

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7.5 Miles 12.0 Kilometers 80% Singletrack	883' 269 m Ascent -934' -285 m Descent
5% Avg Grade (3°) 14% Max Grade (8°)	6,482' 1,976 m High 5,857' 1,785 m Low

North Table Loop

7.5 Miles 12.0 Kilometers

80%

883' 269 m

-934' -285 m

5%

14%

6,482' 1,976 m

5,857' 1,785 m

Shared By Leslie Kehmeier

Conditions

“Big climbs. Rowdy descents. Amazing 360-degree views.”

Dogs Leashed

Features eMTB allowed

Overview

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Trail Ratings

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#39

#1

#15

#39

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11 Comments

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