D-Loop #1

This past winter was mild so I had a lot of time to ride and thought it would be fun to see how many miles are in Red Rocks and what it would take to ride them all in certain directions. I tried to minimize doubletrack and repeats. This is a great route to push yourself on as you obtain a surprising amount of vertical.

You'll get to hit Cordell Trail, White Acres Trail, 719, Roundup Trail, Intemann - Sand Canyon Connector and all of the other unofficial names in between.

There's a great BBQ joint called Rudy's at the corner of Hwy 24.

A small brewery called Fossil is tucked into the strip mall facing Hwy 24 and usually has a food truck. Really good beer, patio, and they have a real pour.

The 31st trailhead, as all trailhead parking lots in Red Rocks, has had break-ins. Just make sure to keep valuables out of sight.

First, you need to know Red Rocks well. If you're not riding here a lot, you're going to get frustrated with all of the intersections with no signs. Consider this a locals lap, if you're from out of town... good luck! You can always download the GPX file to help!

The beginning of this route is a loosen-up on Hogback Ridge Trail to the Pavilion. At about 1.24 miles in, the road will turn right and you'll continue straight onto the singletrack to start on White Acres Trail. The top of White Acres Trail has a technical section that is possible but most won't get it. Once you're through the techy bit, the trail will flatten out to a T-intersection, hang a left to continue on White Acres Trail. This ridge can be tricky in spots but is a bragging point once you clean it.

The next part is easy to get lost, at 2.5 miles take the unmarked righthand trail uphill. You're done climbing... until the next one. This will meet with Palmer Trail, stay to the right until the Red Rock Canyon Overlook Trail singletrack (719) on the right after a technical, red rock climb.

Once you're in the field at 3.7 miles, 719 will take you uphill but you'll take the trail to the right, downhill in this valley on Garbage Chutes. This descent is non-technical and really fast.

The Garbage Chutes will dump you onto the Lion Trail doubletrack, take two lefts towards Roundup Trail. Stay on Roundup Trail, crossing three doubletrack trails on top of ridges. Once you start a sustained descent, be on the look out for a sneaky left turn around 5.8 miles. A good marker is a random evergreen on trail right that is missing all of it's branches on it's left side. It's common to miss this turn!

After Roundup Trail, stay left to start climbing Sand Canyon Trail and East Fork Sand Canyon Trail towards Intemann Trail. Get comfortable, as you'll need to earn some more turns. Around seven miles in, there is a hazard that is rideable. If you mess up your line, it'll be a nice tumble into the creek below.

You'll meet up with Red Rock Canyon Overlook Trail (719) again around 7.3 miles as a left turn as Intemann Trail takes a hard right uphill. You'll eventually end up on the west side of Garbage Chutes to descend this trail again. This time, take a right at the bottom onto Lion Trail to start your last climb on New Meadow Trail.

At the top of this climb, the road will cross through the knife ridge, take the singletrack up to the right towards White Acres Trail. You'll meet up with the T-intersection from earlier, take the left to descend White Acres Trail. Once you hit the dirt road near the pavilion, stay right to mach down some easy doubletrack on Hogback Ridge Trail.

Upon passing a trail sign and slight uphill, be on the look out for a trail on the left right as the road starts to descend again. This is a fun link between Upper Codell Trail and Cordell Trail. Take the trail across the road and climb to the top of the ridge to Cordell Trail. Enjoy the great views as you can rest your legs and let 'er rip! Don't go too fast though as there is a speed check feature at mile 11!

Finish the last switchbacks and hang a right to cruise out of Red Rocks.