Golden Enduro

Contact: Frontrange_rider@yahoo.com

What: A competitive mountain bike ride

When: Saturday April 21st, 2007

Time: 05:14

Where: Golden, Colorado (Start/Finish) White Ranch parking area. The East parking area off Hwy. 93 & W. 56th Ave.


Notes:
3/26 There has been a change to the start time the new start time will be 05:14.

3/29 There has been a change to the Mount Falcon loop. The route change is highlighted BOLD in the route description.


Riders will take part at their own risk. There are no entry fees, waivers, prizes, or support. Riders will sign in prior to the start, and finish at the same location. Riders finish times will be posted on this website. There will be a variety of terrain. Riders will encounter doubletrack, and singletrack trails from Rocky to hard packed dirt, mud, roots, snow. There are a few sections of paved road/Bike path riding. Start/finish is one location, Riders will be unsupported, and unaided except for what you can get on the route which is virtually everything you need. The only outside assistance allowed is what you can get on route or by riding a short distance and getting it/repair it yourself. Riders can expect to find water, or supplies on the route. This ride's route will not be marked, although many of the trails used have their own markings. Riders will be provided a route description, and will be responsible for their own navigation.



Route Description:

Elevation Gain: 7500+
Mileage: 60+ Total 40+ on dirt, rocks, roots, mud and maybe even a little snow!

Start from the parking lot and climb up Belcher hill trail to the bench at the top. Take the trail right and and follow Belcher Hill Trail until you hit the dirt road. Cross the dirt road and there will be a small pullout parking area and a Belcher hill trail sign/marker. Continue past the trail marker until you hit the end of the Belcher hill trail. Go right on the gravel road (Rawhide Trail) and follow the Rawhide trail around the north side of the parking area and follow the Rawhide trail sign/marker until you get to a Y. There will be a Longhorn Trail sign/marker Take a right and descend the Longhorn trail for like 2.5 miles to Whipple Tree go left and follow Whipple Tree to where it intersects Belcher Hill. Go left and follow Belcher Hill Trail back to the parking lot. Go right and follow the frontage road Pine Ridge Rd. to Hwy. 93. Cross Hwy. 93 into the sub division and head south on Ford St. and at 10th St.go right. Go through two stop lights and find what I think is the library. Go left in the parking lot and get on the bike path. Cross the bridge and go right on the road 11th St. and follow it around to Maple St. heading south. Take your first right Birch St. and follow it around to the right around the field. Find the Chimney Gulch trailhead sign.
Follow this trail Chimney Gulch around and go through the tunnel under Hwy. 6 and begin your climb up Chimney Gulch trail. You will come to a gravel driveway go left and a 100 yards go right and you be back on trail. After a short distance you will come to a road crossing Lariat Loop Road. Cross the road and pick up the trail on the other side. You will come to Lariat Loop Road again cross and pick up the trail on the other side in the parking area (Windy Saddle TH). Continue west climbing through the trees until you reach Lookout Mtn trail on the left. Take the sharp left and climb until you hit another intersection follow the trail right on Colorow Road and climb to the Lookout Mtn. Nature Center. When you reach the road at the Nature Center go right for a ways until the road dead ends. Across the street there is an Apex trail marker in between two houses is the trail.
Descend and stay on the Apex trail all the way to the bottom. Like 2.5 miles. Ride through the parking lot to Hwy 40.
Head south on the shoulder of Hwy. 40 and ride a couple miles under I-70 to the Matthew Winters park on the right.
Enter the park and head south on the Red Rocks Trail towards Red Rocks. When you come to where the Red Rocks trail and the Morrison Slide trail intersect go right go up the steps and climb to the top where it flattens out. Descend by heading south and intersect the Red Rocks trail again. Follow this trail until it parallels the road continue to STAY RIGHT and climb for about a mile until you hit a road up close to the Amphitheater there is a really old toll road sign right before the road. Go left and follow this road beneath the entrance to Red Rocks to the Hwy.
Cross the Hwy go left for a couple hundred yards then right on Hwy. 8 at the stoplight. Head south on Hwy. 8 and follow the signs to Mount Falcon. Enter Mount Falcon and locate the Castle trail and start the climb. Do not take the runners trail!(Turkey Trot is hiker ONLY!) Take a left on the Meadow Trail and go left on Parmalee Trail. Follow this west. At the intersection of Parmalee and Castle Trail go right and decend to the bottom and backtrack to Hwy. 8 and then left back to the light.
Go right and head through Downtown Morrison on the bike path and east towards Bear Creek State Park go under C-470 and at the BIKE PATH INTERSECTION almost in the park take a right over the bridge and go south take your first left and go through the parking lot and pick up the Mount Carbon loop trail across the road. Head east on Mount Carbon loop trail and through some confusing trails and locate the small climb (Mount Carbon) on the east side of the lake. Head towards that. You will come to a road or paved bike path go right and head up hill to where you can switch back left and climb the small hill to the top where you will descend singletrack to the golf course building and frontage road. Head down this road to where you will find some singletrack on the left side and climb this trail. Cross the road and continue on the singletrack following the golf course to where you start heading back west and towards the lake. Descend a short hill and find a trail that will take you north to Morrison Rd.
Cross the road and head east. Go left at the light Bear Creek Rd. Head north to Green mountain when you get to Alameda cross the road and find the trail entrance and climb to the main trail. Find and climb the switchbacks (John Hayden Trail)to the top of Green Mountain (Stay left at the intersections) and head west on the service road. At the first sharp turn continue straight onto the singletrack. Stay left at the first two intersections. Left at the next intersection. Then Right at the next intersection in the bottom of the valley. Descend singletrack to the bike path. Go right through the tunnel and follow the bike path. Go right on Rooney Rd. and cross colfax/US 40. When at the light for Rooney Rd. and Colfax/US 40 the bike path is at your 2 o'clock. When you get to the next light cross and head north towards Golden. When the bike path intersects 19th St. go right. Go a short distance and go left on Elm St. Cut through the school and follow the road around right. Take a left on Maple St. Cross the bridge. Right onto 10th St. Go left (North) onto bike path just past Ford St. Stay on the bike path at all intersections. Left at the SHARP LEFT TURN. When it comes out on Ford St. head north until you intersect Hwy. 93. When you come back to Hwy. 93 head north on the side of the Hwy. ride a short distance to the gate with an Open Space sign go through this gate and enter North Table Mtn.
Climb the steep road to the top. Follow some doubletrack and find the singletrack decent on the east side and follow the trail around to the north side of the mountain. Keep following this trail around and begin another climb to the top of North Table Mtn. Go past the Antenna and find your way back to the road on the first climb and descend it. Cross Hwy. 93 and follow the frontage road back to White Ranch parking lot and the Finish.

There may be some changes with the route but they will only make the route longer! I will have a solid route description and post it on here well before the ride. So stay tuned!!

A few pics of the route

Looking down on Golden from Chimney Gulch

Green Mountain singltrack

Matthew Winters

Mount Falcon

White Ranch