Colorado.com Staff Writer

<p>It takes ample amounts of black top, singletrack, sunshine and friendly people to create a bikers’ paradise to match Colorado.</p>


6 Ways Colorado Biking is Best

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Colorado mountain biking at Keystone Resort

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<p>Lively Colorado biking communities ensure that events abound spring through autumn and that road-biking and trail-riding options proliferate in every part of the state.</p>
<h2><strong>1. Great Trail Mapping</strong></h2>
<p>Wherever you go, there you are ... but where to next? That’s where a good map comes in handy, especially on a bike ride with a group. In <a href="/cities-and-towns/durango">Durango</a>, for example, rides are rated from easy to difficult. <a href="/cities-and-towns/eagle">Eagle</a>’s <a href="https://eagleoutside.com/explore/trails/">website</a> has detailed navigation of nearly every inch of their trails. And in <a href="/cities-and-towns/steamboat-springs">Steamboat Springs</a>, the maps can help you decide if you need fat tires or skinny. In <a href="/cities-and-towns/fruita">Fruita</a> and <a href="/cities-and-towns/crested-butte">Crested Butte</a>, two of Colorado’s mountain-biking master towns, the trail networks are so vast and varied that a map is a downright necessity.</p>
<h2><strong>2. Amazing Biking Events</strong></h2>
<p>Hundreds of events are to be had each year for cyclers and mountain bikers. Longtime favorites include <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/la-veta">La Veta</a>'s <a href="https://spcycling.org/stonewall-century/">Stonewall Century</a> (August), the <a href="https://www.newbelgium.com/events/tour-de-fat/">Tour de Fat</a> in <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/fort-collins">Fort Collins</a> (August) and <a href="https://www.theridecollective.com/tourofthemoon">Tour of the Moon</a> in <a href="/cities-and-towns/grand-junction">Grand Junction</a> (September).</p>
<h2><strong>3. Bike Shares Abound</strong></h2>
<p>Many of our cities and mountain towns have embraced pedal power. <a href="/cities-and-towns/boulder">Boulder</a>'s <a href="https://www.colorado.com/boulder/transportation/public-transit/boulder-b-cycle">B-Cycle</a> lets you cruise about town, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/aspen/transportation/public-transit/we-cycle-bike-share-program">WE-cycle</a> is great for rolling through the Rolling Fork Valley (<a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/aspen">Aspen</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/snowmass">Snowmass</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/carbondale">Carbondale</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/basalt">Basalt</a> and beyond) and <a href="https://www.colorado.com/colorado-springs/attractions-entertainment/tours/pikeride-bike-share">PikeRide</a> is a fun way to navigate <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/colorado-springs">Colorado Springs</a>.</p>
<h2><strong>4. Town Connects</strong></h2>
<p>Connection rides between cities are not only beautiful and vary in difficulty, but they’re also well-traveled by bikes and lightly traveled by traffic (read: plenty of shoulder room). There are many to choose from, but for starters try <a href="/cities-and-towns/wolcott">Wolcott</a> to <a href="/cities-and-towns/steamboat-springs">Steamboat Springs</a>, <a href="/cities-and-towns/las-animas">Las Animas</a> to <a href="/cities-and-towns/lamar">Lamar</a> (with a stop at John Martin Reservoir State Park), <a href="/cities-and-towns/aspen">Aspen</a> to <a href="/cities-and-towns/glenwood-springs">Glenwood Springs</a>, or <a href="/cities-and-towns/fort-collins">Fort Collins</a> to Mishawaka Amphitheatre (OK, The Mish isn’t a town, but when there’s a concert on, it’s close). The ultra-popular <a href="/cities-and-towns/boulder">Boulder</a>-to-<a href="/cities-and-towns/golden">Golden</a> route was recently improved with the addition of a larger, paved shoulder route for bikes. Try the <a href="/cities-and-towns/grand-junction">Grand Junction</a> to <a href="/cities-and-towns/palisade">Palisade</a> “fruit loop” route, which starts at the botanical gardens, then winds riders through the tidy rows of peach trees and grapevines the area is famous for.</p>
<h2><strong>5. Gold-Rated Routes</strong></h2>
<p>As of 2024, Colorado is ranked No. 6 in the U.S. as a bicycle-friendly state, according to the League of American Bicyclists, and it has a variety of <a href="https://www.bikeleague.org/bfa/awards#state">gold- or platinum-rated bicycle communities</a>. Boulder and Fort Collins are ranked platinum, while <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/breckenridge">Breckenridge</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/durango">Durango</a>, Carbondale and Aspen are gold. Silver status goes to Colorado Springs, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/gunnison">Gunnison</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/vail">Vail</a>, Summit County, Golden, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/arvada">Arvada</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/silverthorne">Silverthorne</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/glenwood-springs">Glenwood Springs</a> and <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/longmont">Longmont</a>, while Fruita, Grand Junction, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/pueblo">Pueblo</a>, <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/lakewood">Lakewood</a> and <a href="https://www.colorado.com/cities-and-towns/montrose">Montrose</a> make the podium with bronze.</p>
<h2><strong>6. Bike the Byways</strong></h2>
<p>The planet looks pleasing when it passes at a pedal-powered pace. That’s why there’s no better way to see Colorado’s purple mountains majesty or its amber waves of grain than by collecting the 26 long-distance <a href="https://www.codot.gov/programs/bikeped/information-for-bicyclists/colorado-bicycling-maps">Bike the Byways</a> rides. Start at the <a href="https://www.colorado.com/byways/south-platte-river-trail">South Platte River Trail</a> and work your way toward the <a href="https://www.colorado.com/byways/lariat-loop">Lariat Loop</a> near Denver before tackling mountain rides like <a href="https://www.colorado.com/byways/top-rockies">Top of the Rockies</a> and finishing off with the bluffs and buttes of <a href="https://www.colorado.com/byways/dinosaur-diamond">Dinosaur Diamond</a> north of Grand Junction. Or, start the other way round at the mystifying <a href="https://www.colorado.com/byways/trail-ancients">Trail of the Ancients</a> and add rides to your list as you work your way north. Either way, Bike the Byways provides unmatched verification of Colorado’s big-time biking credentials.</p>
<h2>Want More?</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.colorado.com/articles/locally-loved-running-biking-destinations">Check out these locally loved cycling routes</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.colorado.com/articles/adventurous-adaptive-summer-sports-colorado">Find adaptive cycling adventures</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.colorado.com/articles/colorado-summer-bike-races">Explore summer bike races in Colorado</a></p>
